KANSAS CITY, KAN. ? As if Brazilian drivers in the Indy Racing League needed another boost, last weekend IRL points leader Tony Kanaan became “The Hulk.”

At least that’s the image Kanaan was trying to convey as he sat in his bright green and purple Honda, painted like the comic-book hero in the movie of the same name.

Kanaan didn’t need to artificially stand out. The circuit has felt his shock waves during the 28-year-old’s inaugural season as an influx of foreign drivers like Kanaan have bolstered the IRL’s success.

Fans could see such spirit firsthand today when the IRL spins into Kansas Speedway in preparation for Sunday’s Kansas Indy 300.

“The best drivers are going to make their way to the best league,” said Swedish driver Kenny Brack, who drove test runs at the 11/2-mile tri-oval track last month.

“If you have a globe and you take the best Swedish driver, you take the best English driver, you take the best Brazilians, or best Italian or whatever, and you take the best American driver — then you’re going to have the best drivers in the world all competing against each other in the same series.

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“But right now I think the Brazilians are overpopulating a bit,” Brack quipped.

Kanaan leads the league’s points standings and has snagged one victory and two seconds along with three pole positions.

Indy racing league driver Scott Dixon answers questions at Kansas Speedway. Dixon appeared June 17 for practice in Kansas City, Kan.

But it was a 1-2-3 finish by Brazilians — Gil de Ferran, Helio Castroneves, and Kanaan — at the Indianapolis 500 that showed their current stranglehold.

“They say it is the water, but, I do not know,” Kanaan said, trying to explain the Brazilians’ dominance. “The only explanation I have is that I think we don’t have many options in Brazil.

“Motor racing is a very famous sport out there, and in America you have so many options. I mean, you have football, you have baseball, you have hockey … you name it. We don’t have a lot of options. I mean, we have what? Tennis? We have soccer, and then we have racing. And a lot of people, with the tradition that Brazilians in the past did so well, a lot of kids want to be race car drivers.”

But the IRL’s boost this season hasn’t been limited to Brazilians. Scott Dixon, who grew up with rugby in New Zealand, has become red hot as a rookie.

Dixon, the only driver to win two races this season, trails Kanaan by just 27 points and is coming off one of the most dominant victories in IRL history. Dixon led every lap last weekend in winning the SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond International Raceway.

Dixon said time spent around the sport was a deciding factor.

“I had a big family influence,” Dixon said. “My father was big into racing, so was my mother. In some ways I guess I didn’t have much of a choice.”

So, what’s up with the Americans? They’ve parked their cars in victory lane twice in seven races, but only twice have Americans had more than one driver among the top five.

In the Indy Japan 300 — won by Scott Sharp — Americans Al Unser Jr. and Michael Andretti placed in the top five, but Kanaan, Dixon and Castroneves all were involved in accidents and de Ferran didn’t participate.

Unser Jr. won the Bombardier 500 in Texas, then last week two-time series champ Sam Hornish Jr. had his best showing at Richmond, coming in fourth.

With a newly painted car — incorporating the “Terminator” theme — Hornish, a two-time runner-up at the Speedway, vows to break through.

“I’m excited about going to Kansas to race,” said the 24-year-old from Defiance, Ohio. “It’s a beautiful track, and the Panther team has run really well there, with two seconds in the last two years.

“The guys will give me a great car, I’m sure, and we’ll be in the hunt. The Panther team doesn’t ever quit. We’re looking for a top-five finish.”

But those, as of late, have been harder to come by for the Americans.

“I never feel comfortable. I feel comfortable if I’m leaving after winning it all after the last race,” Kanaan said. “You can’t count anybody out.”