After making the offer at the 2012 Sprint Cup Series award banquet, Penske said:

If he wants to do the double, I’d put him in it. We’ve talked about it before. I guess I made it official tonight.

But, Stewart decided to pass on the offer. He said:

As much as I would like to do it, we just don’t have the time to do it proper. The IRL is so competitive now, you’re not going to just show up like drivers used to do in the past and be competitive. These guys don’t leave anything on the table there. You’re not going to stroll into the Indy 500 with these guys who race every week and be as competitive as they are. It was a very humbling comment and offer that he made, for sure.

He added:

I’m very humbled by the fact that he offered it to us. It’s a great opportunity, but it’s very hard when you’re running three Cup teams right now and the obligations that we have making sure that we’re doing the right things, we have a lot of people that depend on us. And, it’s kind of like being at Thanksgiving dinner. My plate is finally full. I don’t know if I can add anymore to what I have right now.

Stewart did, however, leave the door open to doing it in the future, if the offer still stands.

John Andretti said:

It would be difficult to script a scenario any better than the one we have here. The relationship I have with Richard, the respect I have for Michael [Andretti] and his team, the partnership I enjoy with Window World and all of it focused on the Indianapolis 500 – it’s really a perfect situation. I can’t wait to get in the car and get to work. May can’t get here soon enough.

The car will feature Petty’s tradition Petty Blue and Day-Glo Red color scheme that The King made famous during his career. The car will have decals for Window World Cares, the charitable foundation of Window World Inc.

Petty said:

I’m excited to be a part of this venture with John, Andretti Autosport, and Window World for the Indy 500. There is so much history around this event and the Andretti’s have such a rich tradition in racing. I’m looking forward to watching John hit the track in May.

Andretti will join teammates Marco Andretti, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Tony Kanaan, and Danica Patrick as a part of Andretti Autosport. If he qualifies, it will be his 11th Indy 500.

Last year, Andretti, Petty, and Window World teamed up with Dreyer & Reibold Racing to field a car in the Indy 500. He finished 19th. The team hopse to improve upon that finish by teaming with Andretti Autosport, which won the Indy 500 in 2005 and 2007.

Team owner, and John Andretti’s cousin, Michael Andretti said:

I’m really excited to be able to be a part of this. Richard Petty is one of the true legends in our sport and someone I have always admired. Window World deserves a lot of credit for bringing all of this together. … I have a lot of respect for John’s talent – I always have. I really think he will fit in very well at Andretti Autosport and can be a factor during the month of May.

Andretti has driven in nine Indy 500s, including the last two years. He finished fifth in the race in 1991. Last year he finished 16th. He also has 10 NASCAR starts at the track. His best finish in a stock car at the track is seventh. 

A news conference is scheduled for Monday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

An tax evasion indictment was returned by a grand jury on Thursday. Castroneves is charged with consipracy and six counts of tax evasion. His sister, who is also his business manager, and his attorney are also being indicted.

In the charges, it is alleged that Castroneves, his sister, and attorney used a Panamanian shell corporation called Seven Promotions to fraudulently hide Castroneves’ income from the IRS.

According to the indictment, the driver received $6 million in income over three years, but his tax returns only reflected $1 million. The remaining money was diverted to a company in the Netherlands.

The defendants face up to 35 years in prison, if convicted, but it is highly unlikely that they will receive such a stiff penalty. Actual penalties are expected to much less.

After two seasons, Stremme was released from CGR due to sponsorship issues. He returned to the Nationwide series driving for RWI. Earlier this year, Stremme was hired as a test driver for Penske.

When Ryan Newman announced he was leaving the No. 12 at the end of the season, Stremme was rumored to be on the list of candidates, which also included Casey Mears and Martin Truex Jr. Following the announcement that Truex Jr. would stay at Dale Earnhardt Inc., and that Mears was headed to Richard Childress Racing, Stremme became the lead candidate for the No. 12.

Newman later announced that he would drive for Stewart Haas Racing next season.

Stremme said:

It’s a great opportunity to get to drive for Roger Penske. I mean just look at what the organization has done in motorsports — the Daytona 500, Indy 500, championship drivers — I’m just so excited I barely have the words to explain how I feel.

Franchitti drove Ganassi’s No. 40 Dodge in the Sprint Cup Series before the team was shut down due to a lack of sponsorship. Franchitti missed a few races because of an injury he sustained at the Nationwide race at Talladega Superspeedway. He also missed some races due to being outside of the top 35 in owner points.

Some believed that Franchitti was the frontrunner to replace Reed Sorenson, who is heading to Gillette Evernham Motorsports next season. Franchitti elected to return to IndyCar instead.

Franchitti said:

 I have really enjoyed this last season in stockcars and have not completely closed that chapter of my professional career but the opportunity that arose was just something I could not pass up.

Dan Weldon, the driver Franchitti will replace, agreed this week to a multiyear deal to return to Panther Racing, his first team, where he will drive the No. 4 car.

Dixon’s pit crew got him out with the lead on the final pit stop. He held off Panther Racing’s Vitor Meira to win Ganassi’s third Indy 500 victory.

Top 10: Dixon, Miera, Marco Andretti, Helio Castroneves, Ed Carpenter, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Hideki Mutoh, Buddy Rice, Darren Manning, and Townsend Bell.

Notable: Dan Weldon (12th), John Andretti (16th), Patrick (22nd), and Tony Kanaan (29th).

Danica Patrick got hit by Ryan Briscoe on pit road, which broke the left rear suspension, ending her day.

After the incident, she slammed her steering wheel down in frustration. When her car was pushed back to the pits, she took off her gloves and began making her way, angrily, toward Briscoe’s pit. A track official stopped her.

He said:

I won’t deny that I’m thinking about it. It would be great to one day try the [stock] cars. But at this point I’m focusing on Indy cars and winning the Indianapolis 500 again.

Castroneves currently drives for Team Penske, which fields cars for Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, and Sam Hornish Jr., Castroneves’ former teammate who recently made the switch from IndyCar to NASCAR.

Castroneves’ contract is up for renewal this season, and he plans to discuss his options with Roger Penske after the Indy 500.

Of note, Penske could field one additional car without breaking the cap NASCAR set on teams.