Competing as a rookie driver last year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Taylor Fletcher was a little in awe of the tradition and history of the famed Brickyard.

Back for year two, racing the Indy Racing League Infiniti Pro Series on Friday, Fletcher was more accustomed to the track and all the activities surrounding the race.

Going in, Fletcher and his team, Bullet-Team Motorsports, were hoping for a top 10 finish, which was accomplished as Fletcher finished in 9th place.

``I thought it went pretty good,'' Fletcher said, whose first race of the season was at Indy.

``I felt like it was a successful weekend. We ran against teams that have been running all year, against better funded teams. I felt like we did good.''

Over 100,000 people attended the 40-lap race (100 miles), which was interrupted just five laps in due to a light rain.

The delay can cause havoc for the driver, who after getting the adrenaline going, has to stop and calm down again.

Every driver has their trick and Fletcher is no different.

``When you are racing, you are so busy you don't have time to think,'' Fletcher said. ``Then you come in and sit during a red flag in your car. It's not a comfortable thing.

``You are pumped up, the adrenaline is going and you have to calm down. I pray or I meditate. The main thing is to maintain your composure so when the race starts up again you are not flustered.''

Fletcher, who qualified 15th, held a steady position throughout the race even though his car was pushing toward the wall early on. Every car has cockpit controls, which Fletcher adjusted on the straightaways until it felt comfortable.

But it was not nearly as big of a problem as the team experienced Monday before the race.

``We found out the engine had a problem,'' Fletcher said. ``We had to pull the bottom half out and worked on it all night. Something always comes up, but it's better that it happened then than during the race.''

Last year, Fletcher finished 12th, so he and his team were happy with the result this year. Plus, the team was more familiar with the scene this time around.

``Last year, everything was totally new,'' Fletcher said. ``There is so much history with the track it was overpowering.

``Having gone through it, I was more mentally prepared. It's a very unique track with the long straightaways and steep turns that it is difficult to drive.

``So I had some experience how to drive it.''

Now, Fletcher will turn his attention to future races. He hopes to compete at Indy again at the end of June and at Fontana and Chicago later in the season.

Still no track will hold the meaning like Indy does.

``It's the biggest thing I've done in racing,'' Fletcher said.

Although Fletcher would've liked the win, he did accomplish the next best thing.

``I'm real pleased,'' he said. ``The car is in one piece.''