All of the following racers had mediocre qualifying attempts, but will show why they are heralded as some of the best in the sport by overcoming the adversity and ending up toward the front of the pack.

All times and information via the Official Indy 500 website.

Takuma Sato

Starting Position: 18th

After running a few really strong practice laps, the rain hit Indianapolis Motor Speedway Saturday morning, delaying the start of qualifying and taking away the momentum IZOD IndyCar Series point leader Takuma Sato had been building.

Sato posted an impressive 226.6 MPH lap during the morning practice, but with the track undergoing changes with the added moisture from the rain and the heat of the jet dryers, the AJ Foyt Racing star only managed a four-lap average speed of 225.892 MPH.

That’s only good enough for 18th overall starting spot in the 2013 Indy 500.

While Sato will have to work his way through the field, the Japanese star knows what it takes to contend for the win at Indianapolis. Sato was in second place on the last lap of the 2012 race when he tried to make a pass on eventual winner Dario Franchitti and crashed.

After coming so close last year, expect Sato to be hungrier than ever.

Predicted Finish: Fourth

Graham Rahal

Starting Position: 26th

While Graham Rahal may only be 24 years old, his lineage of racers and his experience in the Indy 500 makes him a serious favorite. With five career starts in the race already—including a third-place finish in 2011—the young star is a favorite to win it all.

Despite starting all the way back in 26th, the IndyCar sensation has the skill, pit crew and equipment to maneuver through the field in the long race and eventually find himself in contention for the win by the end of the day.

Rahal was a favorite to contend on Sunday anyway, but with his father Bobby calling the shots as the team owner and crew chief Matt Swan making things happen on the track, racing fans are expecting to see the star fighting for the win on the last lap.

Predicted Finish: Eighth

Josef Newgarden

Starting Position: 25th

While the expectations for Josef Newgarden aren’t as high as many of the other drivers in the field, the 22-year-old American has taken the IndyCar series by storm since stepping into the major leagues last year.

Newgarden had a rough race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2012, finishing in 25th after starting a very respectable seventh. The hope from the young driver and the entire Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing team is that the car is strong enough to work through traffic and be there at the end to contend for a top-10 finish.

If Newgarden can sneak out a 10th-place finish or better in just his second Indy 500 start, there is little doubt that this race would be deemed a success for the Tennessee native and his team.

Predicted Finish: 10th

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Like baseball, a lot can happen during the course of the event, but the end is all that really matters. You can get 26 outs and be in good shape, but if you don't get that last one, you lose. Conversely, you can be down all day long, but pull it out at the end.

In NASCAR, you can trail all day long as well, but if you lead at the end it is all that matters. So to narrow it down to the top 10 most exciting finishes of all time will be quite a task. It will surely lead to many arguments as well, but that's alright. It's why there is a comment section below.

So without further ado, let's count them down.

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Busch's first test of an open-wheel car on a high-speed oval ultimately was a success. He passed the traditional IMS rookie orientation program and became eligible to compete in the Indianapolis 500. A lack of experience, funding and timing kept Busch out of the seat for the 2013 race, but he's vowed to take a thorough look at racing both events in 2014.

Affectionately known as "The Double" in racing circles, a driver hasn't attempted to race Indianapolis' 500 and Charlotte's 600 in the same season since Robby Gordon's effort in 2004. Only two others (John Andretti and Tony Stewart) have tried it otherwise.

Thanks to Busch's IndyCar test, the reality of seeing another driver try to win both races seems closer than previously thought. The following is a list drivers who would make excellent entrants in both events.

Begin Slideshow

This year's field is loaded with top talent, from top to bottom.

Past champions, rising stars and veteran mainstays will compete for the right to chug a bottle of milk and take home the Borg-Warner Trophy.

Dario Franchitti won the event a year ago—his third career Indy 500 victory. He and Helio Castroneves will be seeking their fourth wins this upcoming Sunday, but there are a few hot drivers who will surely give them, and the rest of the field, a tough challenge.

Here's the official start order for the big race, courtesy of the official website of the Indianapolis 500:

Now it's time to take a look at the hottest drivers of the 2013 season heading into the Indy 500.

James Hinchcliffe

There have been four IndyCar Series races thus far in 2013, and Hinchcliffe has won two of them. 

He's simply the hottest IndyCar racer in the world right now. He won at St. Petersburg and at Sau Paulo, defeating a loaded field on both occasions. 

Hinchcliffe was unable to complete the race in his other two appearances after getting stranded at Birmingham and crashing out at Long Beach. Basically, the way he's running right now, it's a good bet he'll either win the Indy 500 or fail to finish.

At least he swings for the fences, right?

Ryan Hunter-Reay

Last year's top racer, Hunter-Reay won the Indy Grand Prix of Alabama last month and has been smoking hot in qualifying this year.

He won the No. 1 starting spot at Birmingham and at Sao Paulo, while earning the No. 2 spot in Long Beach. While it's true Hunter-Reay wasn't able to capitalize on his excellent starting position in two of those races, it's clear he and his crew have a car they like.

Alden Woods, a beat writer for IDS Sports, was at the track for Hunter-Reay's Fast Nine run and posted a nice clip featuring the pure speed he gets while on the track:

In five previous attempts, Hunter-Reay has never finished on the podium at Indianapolis. You can bet he's gunning hard for the chance to immortalize himself as an Indy 500 champ this year.

Takuma Sato

Sato earned his first career victory earlier this year at Long Beach in impressive fashion. He built up a nice lead in the latter half of the race and never let up. 

It was also an historic win, as Sato became the first Japanese racer to win an IndyCar series race, per ESPN Motorsports:

In addition to his big win, Sato earned a podium finish at Sao Paulo, finishing in second place behind Hinchcliffe. 

Sato and his crew really have things dialed in right now, and it'll take everyone's best effort to win this year's Indy 500. Starting from the No. 18 spot on the grid means Sato will need to race smart and fast from start to finish to come away with his second victory this year.

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Fantasy NASCAR players will be able to use the information from last week’s Sprint All-Star race to determine which drivers they should select for the Coca-Cola 600. The winner of the Sprint Cup All-Star race has gone on to win the Coca-Cola 600 seven times. Jimmie Johnson has a good chance of making it eight.

In addition to the Sprint All-Star Race, NASCAR teams will have 3.5 hours of practice time to prepare for the Coca-Cola 600. Do not get too caught up in the practice times this week because all of the practices occur during the day and the race is at night. The track conditions will be totally different.

The strategy for the Fantasy Live game should be to select as many drivers from Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing as possible. The two organizations have dominated the 2013 season and I see no reason why it will change this week. The list of drivers include: Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch

Fantasy NASCAR teams playing the Yahoo! Fantasy Auto Racing game must know that their team must be selected by early Thursday morning this week. Qualifying takes place Thursday night, so Yahoo! Fantasy Auto Racing locks the rosters early this week.  

Here are my picks for the Yahoo! Fantasy Auto Racing game…

Begin Slideshow

Bump Day had compelling potential. With nine spots remaining and 10 drivers left in the field, it could have produced a war for that final spot in one of the world's most prestigious races.

Unfortunately, Michel Jourdain Jr.'s car didn't cooperate, and the Mexican racer finally called it quits with 20 minutes still left on the clock. Per Indy Motor Speedway, his pain was Katherine Legge's gain, as she made it in as the final contestant:

All in all, Bump Day was rather boring for fans watching at home and on the track. But don't worry, racing fans, this is just the calm before the storm. 

Here's the official start order for the big race, courtesy of the official website of the Indianapolis 500:

Taking a look at this list of names—the top IndyCar racers in the world—it's quite clear the 2013 Indy 500 will be an incredibly competitive race. 

Ed Carpenter shocked the field by capturing the pole. He's only won two events in his career and hasn't finished higher than 14th place in 2013.

Lurking below him are IndyCar legends and rising stars Carlos Munoz, Marco Andretti, Will Power, Helio Castroneves and last year's IndyCar champ, Ryan Hunter-Reay.

James Hinchcliffe is the only racer to win twice in 2013, and he'll surely put up a good fight from the No. 9 spot, while Japanese sensation Takuma Sato will start in the middle of the pack. 

Last year's Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti will come charging hard from the middle of the field, too. 

From top to bottom, this grid is full of racers capable of winning the big event.

So, while the action on Bump Day may not have titillated your senses the way you hoped, the Indy 500 next Sunday will certainly give you what you desire. 

The action will be intense from the first lap until the bitter end, and as we know from experience, anything can happen on the track when the drivers start pushing their cars and their senses to the limit.

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It might have all seen fairly uneventful on the day, but there were still several top performances to be found throughout qualifying—especially after watching Ed Carpenter dominate Team Penske and Andretti Autosport in the Fast Nine Shootout.

Which drivers delivered standout performances in qualifying this year?

Read on and find out.

1. Ed Carpenter

Without the greatest form-line coming into this one or record at the Indy 500, Ed Carpenter stole the show in qualifying with a tremendous pole-position performance.

He finished fifth in qualifying but was able to knock off several other competitors in the Fast Nine Shootout to take the top spot. As the only driver in the shootout who was connected with Andretti Autosport or Team Penske, the win was no doubt even more satisfying for the Indianapolis-born star.

The statistics show that his pole time was done in blistering pace, and he therefore deserves his chance to lead the field in the prestigious race.

Whether he'll be able to lead until the final lap still remains to be seen, and given the talent behind him, it does seem unlikely. However, that shouldn't minimize just how strong his performance in qualifying was here and how much he deserves the top spot.

2. Carlos Munoz

Making just his first appearance in the league, Carlos Munoz showed no signs of nerves during qualifying here and chalked up a very impressive front-row finish. The rookie was very quick at times and was ecstatic after finding out he'd finished on the front row, posting via his Twitter account:

As Dave Lewandowski notes, the rookie picked up an additional $50,000 for making the front row, which he also posted a photo of via his Twitter.

A very strong day out for the Colombian indeed.

22. Townsend Bell

Finishing down in 22nd position might not seem like a laudable achievement, but given the problems that Townsend Bell was experiencing, to finish inside the top 24 was still a very strong drive.

He finished in 20th position on his first attempt but then scrapped that and finished outside of the top 24 on his second attempt. That would no doubt have rattled many drivers, but Bell was able to keep his composure despite there being next to no time remaining in qualifying and was able to piece together a time that put him back inside the starting 24 and into 22nd position.

It won't get recognized, but it was a great bit of composure from Bell, who stated afterwards via his Twitter account that he wasn't sure why pace was such an issue.

If it's all figured out by May 26, Bell could be a big player from the back of the field and could be one of the big movers to watch for in the prestigious event.

2013 Indy Car Qualifying: Full Results for Entire Field

* Note: All positions and averages via IndyCar.com

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For the second year in a row, the skies above Le Mans opened up on the Sunday morning of the French motorcycle Grand Prix, but what would follow was not be a typically processional wet race with large gaps between the riders, each one seemingly content to ride at the pace with which he is most comfortable. 

Instead, Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa and Ducati's Andrea Dovizioso would exchange the lead nine times in the first 13 laps of the 28-lap contest, and halfway through the race there were six riders with a realistic chance of finishing on the podium.

For some mysterious reason apparently not known to anyone, Ducati's Desmosedici loves riding in the rain. All of the flaws that have for years been irrevocably inherent in the Desmo are seemingly wiped away when there is water on the racing surface. Gone is the lack of front-end feeling when on the brakes heading into the corners. Absent too are the mid-corner understeer and brutish power delivery which ravages the Desmo on corner exits.

As a result, Ducati achieved their best finish of 2012 at a rain-soaked Le Mans when Valentino Rossi took second place after a brilliant battle with the now retired Casey Stoner.

For 2013, Dovizioso, Rossi's replacement in the Ducati garage after the Italian icon left his compatriot manufacturer to resurrect his career with Yamaha, secured the holeshot from third place on the starting grid and, incredibly, led the race into Turn 1.

From there, he would battle back and forth with Pedrosa until the elder half of Honda's Spanish duo was finally able to pull a gap with 10 laps to go. It was his second consecutive win. After a slow start to the season, Pedrosa appears back to the form that saw him win six of the final eight races in 2012.

As Pedrosa was pulling away from Dovizioso, Yamaha Tech 3's Cal Crutchlow was rapidly gaining on the Italian.

Watching Crutchlow stalk and measure his former teammate brought back memories of 2012 when the Tech 3 duo could more often than not be found in a fierce battle from which Dovizioso usually emerged the winner.

This time, Crutchlow got the better of the duel. Throughout his time in MotoGP, the biggest knock against the British rider has been a perceived unwillingness to make an aggressive overtaking maneuver to find a way past the top riders in front of him. He did it twice in Le Mans. With 15 laps to go, Crutchlow got past Rossi with a clean inside move for third place. Ten laps later, he took advantage when Dovizioso's Ducati momentarily lost traction with the rear wheel, allowing Crutchlow to get his power to the ground more effectively and zip past the surely frustrated Italian.

The second-place finish was Crutchlow's best in MotoGP, and perhaps provided a vindication of sorts as rumors have been swirling about the Tech 3 team already having lined up Moto2 star Pol Espargaro as a replacement for Crutchlow in 2014.

Repsol Honda's Marc Marquez has been a MotoGP journalist's dream so far in his rookie campaign. He started the season in impressive fashion by battling nine-time world champion Rossi for second place in Qatar. He then surprised everyone by not only winning the inaugural GP at COTA in Austin, but making it look easy in the process. Then, of course, came the infamous last-corner incident with reigning world champion Jorge Lorenzo in Jerez.

In Le Mans, the 20-year-old phenomenon qualified on pole and looked ready to once again dominate the headlines. However, this time he suffered a horrendous start and found himself mired in ninth place by the time he leaned into Turn 1. The middle of the pack is where Marquez would stay for 11 laps as he struggled to gain control of his RC213V in the wet conditions—Sunday being the first time the rookie had faced racing in the wet on a MotoGP bike.

Fittingly, once Marquez had it figured out, the first person in his sights was Lorenzo. The reigning champ had been struggling all race with stability under braking and traction with the rear. As a result, he was passed by just about everyone on a prototype machine as if he had a flat tire.

There would be no drama in their encounter this time. Lorenzo took a wide line indicative of his struggles through a left-hander, and Marquez flew by on the inside without incident.

Marquez would continue his methodical march toward the front until finally, with only one lap to go, he made it past the fading Dovizioso to claim third place, his fourth podium finish in as many premier-class races.

Yamaha needed success in the early part of the season. Qatar, Jerez and now Le Mans are all tracks at which the M1 has traditionally shined, while many of the later races are at tracks that seem to favor the Honda.

Yamaha took care of business in Qatar with a 1-2 finish, but Jerez, shockingly, saw Honda grab a 1-2 and Le Mans was nothing short of a disaster with Rossi crashing and Lorenzo finishing in seventh place. To put that in perspective, Lorenzo didn't finish lower than second throughout the entire 2012 season.

The next round continues the Yamaha-friendly trend at Mugello, another track that has been kind to the M1. They clearly have work to do if they hope to compete for the championship, but they still have the time in which to do it.

With the victory, Pedrosa displaced his teammate atop the overall championship leaderboard with 83 points. Marquez, now second, has 77. Lorenzo is a suddenly distant 17 points back in third place, and Crutchlow has leapfrogged Rossi into fourth place with 55 points. Rossi's 12th-place finish after rejoining the race was only good for four points, taking his total to 47.

For full race results, click here.

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Busch wrecked early (at least three race cars required repair after incidents during the season-opening Daytona Speedweeks) and was a participant to incidents often (11 races with incidents in 30 starts) with Phoenix Racing last season. In between, he was desperately trying to repair his image that was tattered when his emotions boiled over in the final race of 2011.

In that scene, Busch unflinchingly berated a waiting ESPN reporter in the Homestead-Miami Speedway garage. A fan recorded the video and posted it online, where today it totals over 1.1 million views. Less than two weeks later, amid pressure from team sponsors, Penske Racing and Busch parted ways—marking the second time Busch left a Sprint Cup race team for matters unrelated to on-track success.

In 2012, while working for Phoenix, Busch's effort at reshaping his image was a mixed bag. He spoke all of the right lines, consistently detailing the "fun" he was having at the "old-school" Phoenix operation. By the end of the season, he shaped a documentary for air on SPEED channel that was a one-sided look at Busch through a "different lens."

The PR campaign needed to be at full swing because the 2004 series champion was still pulling the negativity toward himself. There was the odd Darlington run-in with Ryan Newman's crew, and then a one-race suspension after threatening a reporter at Dover in June. Phoenix Racing nearly dropped him.

But Busch won a Nationwide Series race at Daytona in July and had soon caught the eye of Furniture Row Racing owner Barney Visser. At the time, Regan Smith was piloting FRR's No. 78 to a season below expectations with just a single top-five and three top-ten finishes. Visser pulled the trigger—a controversial one because of the gulf between the reputations of each driver—and Busch raced the final six races of 2012 for the Colorado-based team.

In the season's final three events, Busch matched Smith's season-to-date results with three top-ten finishes.

The story has only been more success for the oft-criticized Busch in 2013. Through 11 races, a year-to-year comparison of Busch and Smith show FRR made the right call. A year ago, Smith drove the No. 78 in an average running position of 23rd and raced just 13.6 percent of the laps of first eleven events in the top-15. Meanwhile, Busch's average running position in the same period his season is better by nearly six spots with 60 percent of competed laps coming in the race's top 15 positions.

Busch also dazzled in NASCAR's All-Star Race for FRR. He won two of the race's segments only to finish fifth in the most important final dash after a disappointed pit stop. All told, Busch has stepped up his game for three reasons: he's handling pressure from all corners better, he's letting his true talent shine and he's taking advantage of technical improvements FRR sought in the offseason.

The result has put Busch back on the map of drivers that have a reasonable shot at winning each week.

Learning to handle the pressure

Busch will never be completely level-headed when he's in competition mode. He exhibits the traits of any hardened competitor—just perhaps a bit more publicly than most. There's an upside to that intense internal desire to succeed, of course, but for many it sits on the wall between "just right" and "too much."

Busch has gone over that wall many times as evidenced by his now famous in-car radio meltdowns and aggressive on-track behavior. But in 2013, the Las Vegas native has shown a shift in his ability to combat frustration.

At Darlington Raceway, where Busch started from the pole, he played a new melancholy role on the in-car radio in situations that in the past had brought him to demonstrative and damaging vitriol. He was upset and complaining, sure, but the exchanges seemed to be more of a release of frustration instead of gasoline on the fire. In the past, Busch would've compounded the problems with his anger. At Darlington, he managed a decent 14th-place finish.

His role was similar during the All-Star event in Charlotte after Busch won the race's first segment and became the only driver eligible for the $2 million payout.

Busch's natural driving talent surfaces

We've known for a long, long time that the older of NASCAR's Busch brothers could wheel a race car. His first NASCAR-sanctioned season came in 2000 in the Camping World Truck Series. Busch didn't win in his first 13 Truck races (he was a runner-up four times), but he then proceeded to take the checkered flag in his 14th and then three more times in the next 10 events.

The pattern was similar, if elongated slightly, in the Cup Series. Busch didn't win in his first full-time rookie season (2001). But by the end of his third full-time year, Busch had eight wins in NASCAR's top series. The very next year he was the sport's champion.

In the No. 78 this season, we're getting to see that Busch is on a different level talent-wise than many in the sport. Smith is no slouch of a NASCAR driver (in a part-time role with Phoenix this year, Smith has two top-ten finishes, no finish worse than 24th and two Nationwide Series wins at JR Motorsports) but Busch brought immediate improvement to the FRR team. Outside of fuel system issues at Martinsville Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway, Busch has a legitimate chance to be one the of the top 15 drivers in the point standings.

Growth of Childress/FRR technical partnership

Busch came to FRR amid a growing relationship between that team and longtime NASCAR torchbearer Richard Childress Racing. That's essential for FRR's unique headquarters location outside of Denver. The team claims to be the only Sprint Cup team based west of the Mississippi River—which is a long way from the North Carolina roots for most competing teams.

The teams have shared a technical and engineering partnership for multiple seasons. But in January, the FRR/RCR alliance grew further when FRR's director of competition Mark McArdle doubled his duties to become the director of racing operations for RCR. Suddenly, Busch's No. 78 became a satellite fourth team to the RCR team fielding Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Paul Menard.

In today's NASCAR, such partnerships are crucial for single-car operations because of the increased access to research, data collection and engineering work. For Busch, it's a key part of his resurgence to the competitive standard where he belongs.

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A unique event, the All-Star race consisted of five separate segments—four 20-lap mini-races, so to speak, and one final 10-lap sprint. The racers' averages throughout the first four segments determined the final order for the 10-lap sprint.

Jimmie Johnson won the exhibition race in exciting fashion, stealing the victory from Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne in the final laps of the race with a phenomenal surge after the final restart.

Both Busch brothers had dominated the race until the final 10 laps, averaging second-place finishes through the first four segments, according to NASCAR on Speed:

But Johnson's late charge shook up the leaderboard for good.

Here is a look at the final standings from Saturday's event:

Here were the biggest stories from Saturday's All-Star race.

Jimmie Johnson Wins Fourth All-Star Race

Johnson's victory on Saturday was his fourth All-Star win, which is the most by any racer in the history of the event (h/t AP, via ESPN.com).

NASCAR on Speed inferred that he has the event's format down to perfection:

After watching him manage the race with such precision and skill, it's hard to argue against Johnson being the greatest NASCAR driver in the world right now. 

Johnson is No. 1 in the Sprint Cup standings right now, and he's finished the season at the top spot in five of the last seven years. He's cementing himself as the premier racer on the Sprint Cup Tour, and after a couple of disappointing seasons in 2011-2012 he seems to be better than ever.

Danica Patrick Becomes the First Woman to Compete in the All-Star Race

Patrick is a huge star on the NASCAR circuit, and she has attracted a multitude of fans over the years. 

Her rise to the pinnacle of American racing hasn't come easily—Patrick has been battering down barriers as a female racer in a man's world the entire way.

Like other major stars, Patrick's mere presence in a race inevitably draws bigger television numbers. There's a good chance many of the fans tuning in to see her race are women who would never have been inclined to watch before. 

In fact, Monica Evans of Fox 4 in Kansas City recently covered the growing trend of female racers, pit-crew members and fans. She spoke with NASCAR's Jennifer Jo Cobb:

Cobb says women behind the wheel and working in the pit is becoming more common place and so are the growing number of NASCAR’s female fans...Attracting more women to racing is something NASCAR has embraced and has reported the once male dominated sport currently has a 60 percent male to 40 percent female fan base.

Patrick's inclusion into this year's All-Star race is proof of her incredible fanbase.

It's also proof that NASCAR is committed to give its fans what they want to see. Patrick is a star, and she earned her spot in the race just as much as any other.

Brad Keselowski's Early Exit

Last year's Sprint Cup winner Keselowski was unceremoniously grounded in Lap 3 with a busted transmission, as NASCAR on Speed reported:

So much effort and planning goes into each and every race. Though the All-Star race is only an exhibition, it means just as much—if not more—to these professionals as any other race.

Keselowski handled his misfortune with as much grace as can be expected, but it was a tough blow, to be sure. Not only did Keselowski potentially miss out on a massive pay day, but he also missed out on an opportunity to test himself against all the best drivers on NASCAR. 

All because of a freak mechanical malfunction.

Sometimes, the breaks just don't fall your way.

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