Of late, Bump Day at Indianapolis has not held the attention that it once used to command, but the reunification of US open-wheel racing at least went some way to adding some suspense to the occasion in 2008.
Where the 'old' Indy Racing League often struggled to raise enough entries to complete the 33-car field at the Brickyard, the 'new look' unified series had four cars vying for the final spot in this year's race - and built anticipation of more trying their hand in future instalments.
In the end, AJ Foyt IV, Buddy Lazier and Marty Roth made the cut, with Mario Dominguez, Roger Yasukawa and Max Papis failing in last ditch attempts. Phil Giebler was also listed among the unlucky, having not been able to run again after crashing in Saturday's sessions.
The final 30 minutes of Indianapolis' four-day qualifying procedure provided the majority of the excitement
click here], as Lazier, Dominguez and Yasukawa tried to break into the field as Foyt had done early on, while Roth and the luckless Papis could only watch from pit-lane.
Ultimately, Roth was the one who could breathe the biggest sigh of relief. The Canadian was 'on the bubble' for the final eight minutes of the day as Yasukawa made a second unsuccessful qualifying attempt and Dominguez crashed after completing the first of four necessary laps at the same time the gun sounded to end the session. Roth had earlier been bumped from the field by Foyt, only to climb back in after knocking Yasukawa from the 33.
“I'm relaxed now but I was definitely pumping away at it after rolling off the scales," the owner-driver said of not knowing whether he would - or could - make another attempt to reclaim a place, "You realise the gravity of it if you don't make the show. It's huge.
![Mario Dominguez - Pacific Coast Motorsports [pic credit: IRL/McQueeney]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/436611.jpg)
