Helio Castroneves 3 Penske car (LS/Bill Menzel)

Latino Sports Photographer Bill Menzel spent part of the July 4th Weekend at Watkins Glen, NY and took photographs of the racing cars driven by Latino drivers. Unfortunately he did not have access to photograph the drivers, but he gathered brief information on each one. Milka Duno   is the only woman driver in this group.

Helio Castroneves    San Paulo Brazil       3 Penske car

Helio Castroneves became the first driver to win the Indianapolis 500  two years in a row since Al Unser won in 1970 and 1971, and only the  fifth driver in Indianapolis 500 history to win in consecutive appearances. At the age of 27, Castroneves became the youngest driver 
to win the race twice and the only driver ever to win in his first two attempts.

Raphael Matos US Marine car (LS/Bill Menzel)

Vtor Meira       ABC CAR

Hometown: Brasilia, Brazil
Residence: Miami

Vitor Meira began racing go-karts in his native Brazil when he was 12 and won a Brazilian karting title by the time he moved to Europe to race cars in 1995, just before his 19th birthday. He has also won the South American F3 title and was the inaugural winner of the Indy 
Racing League's Rising Star Award, given in honor of the late Tony Renna.

Away from the track, Meira is an accomplished triathlete and is often cycling on the roads around his home or running. He is also active in charitable work, becoming auto racing's first Special Olympics ambassador and holding a Brasilia Ambassador award - similar to a Golden Key Award - in Brazil.

EJ Viso      PDVSA Car

Hometown: Caracas, Venezuela

Residence: Caracas, Venezuela

E.J. Viso started racing go-karts in Venezuela at age 7 and captured numerous titles before moving to Europe to further enhance his racing career.

He captured two British Formula 3 (B) championships before moving up to GP2, where he earned several race victories. In one season in the United States, he captured the Skip Barber Dodge Eastern Championship. Viso also served as an F1 test driver with Spyker.

EJ Viso PDVSA Car(LS/Bill Menzel)

Tony Kanaan       7-11 Car

Hometown: Salvador, Brazil

Residence: Miami

When racing great Michael Andretti decided to retire as a driver, he searched for a replacement to anchor his team. Andretti thought Tony Kanaan was the perfect choice. Kanaan didn't let him down, posting a solid season in 2003, with one victory, nine top fives and 12 top 10 finishes in 16 races.

But it was Kanaan's accomplishments in 2004 that were quite spectacular. He became the first driver in major auto racing history to complete every lap of every race for an entire season on his way to winning the 2004 IndyCar Series title.

"I never thought about it, but at the end of the year everyone was talking about it," Kanaan said. "It was pretty amazing. It was something unexpected. We did it, it's in the books, and I'm happy to have a record like that."

An accomplished triathlete, he also enjoys bicycling, go-karting and watersports. He speaks English, Portuguese, Italian and Spanish.

He enjoys participating in extreme sports and rides a unicycle to unwind.

Tony Kanaan 7-11 Car(LS/Bill Menzel)

Milka Duno    Citgo car / Dreyer & Reinbold Racing


Hometown: Caracas, Venezuela

Residence: Miami

Milka Duno has attracted attention worldwide for her racing talents and educational background. The 2000 Venezuelan Auto Racing Driver of the Year is a naval engineer with four master's degrees -- in Organizational Development, Naval Architecture, Maritime Business and 
Marine Biology. She earned the last three simultaneously.

Duno's path to being a successful female racer was far from typical.  In 1998, Duno was invited by a friend to participate in a Porsche Driving Clinic. The rest, as they say - is history. In 2007, Milka scored a second-place finish in the 24 Hours at Daytona - earning the 
highest finish ever by a female driver in the 45-year history of the race. She also made history by becoming the first Latina to qualify and race in the Indianapolis 500.

Duno also had the role of Kellie "Gearbox," a race car driver, in the movie that is based on the 1960's classic anime series "Speed Racer."  She has published a book about the importance of education that is aimed at grade- and middle-school students and travels extensively to 
promote the benefits of education.

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