Brazilians had something to cheer about Sunday. Not only did their team win its World Cup game, but IndyCar driver Tony Kanaan earned the victory at the Iowa Corn Indy 250.

Sunday marked the fourth annual Corn Indy 250, held at the Iowa Speedway in Newton. Fans experienced two days of loud engines and live music before spending Sunday cheering on Kanaan and fellow drivers. Although a successful driver in the IndyCar world, Kanaan had yet to win a race since June 2008. 

Sunday’s victory mended any negative feelings Kanaan held against the largest IndyCar race in Iowa. Three prior Corn Indy races finished prematurely when collisions with other cars forced Kanaan to withdraw before crossing the finish line.

With a record 25 drivers starting that day, Kanaan started the race in the middle of the pack at 15th. Before taking the lead, Kanaan went head-to-head with driver and fellow Brazilian Helio Castroneves.

“I was trying not to hit him,” Kanaan said jokingly. “We’ve got to fly back home together. It would have been an awkward flight if that happened.”

Another reason for Kanaan to celebrate included beating long-time friend Dario Franchitti, winner of last year’s Corn Indy. With 50 laps to go, Franchitti experienced a problem with his car’s gearbox that ultimately cost him the victory. Kanaan was neck and neck with Franchitti before the malfunction, saying that their battle felt less like a race and more like two friends having a good time.

“The battle with Dario was awesome,” Kanaan said. “I’m not kidding. He’s my best friend, and we were just really having fun. It wasn’t racing a race.”

Brett Snyder was in attendance at Sunday’s race, and will forever remember the 2010 Corn Indy — although his reasons don’t include a trip down victory lane. Snyder, native of Muscatine, is a member of Swiss driver Simona De Silvestro’s pit crew. During a pit stop on lap 98, De Silvestro pinned her crew member’s leg against the wall with the tail of her car. A sprained ankle was the only result and is a first on Snyder’s list of IndyCar injuries.

It was the fourth year Iowa Speedway hosted the race, but it was also the fourth time the racers drove cars fueled by 100 percent fuel grade corn ethanol. In 2006, the IndyCar Series partnered with Iowa Corn and Pioneer. More than 20,000 gallons of fuel were saved the first year, and progress has been made since then.

“Powering IndyCars at top speeds is the ultimate in ethanol performance,” said Tim Burrack, chairman of the Iowa Corn Promotion Board.

In a statement regarding the Corn Indy 250, he said not only are the cars being driven at speeds of 200 miles per hour, but Iowans are also hearing and seeing “messages about the power, performance, reliability and energy … from homegrown corn ethanol.”

Upcoming events at the Iowa Speedway include the Prairie Meadows 200 ARCA series July 10 and the U.S. Cellular 250 NASCAR Nationwide series July 31.