DATE

News (chronologically)

6/24/02

Infiniti Pro cars wide open at 175 MPH  On Aug. 31, 2001, plans for the Indy Racing Infiniti Pro Series were unveiled at Chicagoland Speedway, two days before the inaugural Delphi Indy 300 Indy Racing League event at the 1.5-mile oval.  On June 24, 2002, 297 days after the announcement and at the same track, eight drivers representing six teams completed a total of 639 laps in their new Indy Racing Infiniti Pro Series cars during the development series’ Open Test. Speeds peaked at 177 mph.  More..

6/24/02

Carmody wins Russell Racing/USAC triple crown  Chris Carmody of Valencia, Calif. is the 2002 USAC Russell Racing Triple Crown Pro Series Champion, claiming the title with his third-place finish in Saturday's series finale at Infineon Raceway, formerly Sears Point Raceway. Scott Speed, USAC's 2001 Formula Russell Champion, led all 22 laps of Saturday's race around the 2.52-mile road course after winning the pole position. He was trailed to the checkered flag by Jason Bowles, Carmody,  John Mefford and Chris Nelson. Carmody emerged from Saturday's race with a six point margin over Brazilian Victor Hugo Queiroz, who finished seventh in the 22-lap finale. FINAL STANDINGS:
1. Chris Carmody 65
2. Victor Hugo Queiroz 59
3. Jason Bowles 57
4. Scott Speed 54
5. John Mefford 48
6. John Knudsen 38
7. Bruce Feldman 34
8. Chris Nelson 34
9. Robert Hagerty 20
10. Sergio Sardinha 14

6/24/02

Herta to try pitching arm  American Le Mans Series driver Bryan Herta will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Columbus (Ohio) Clippers baseball game this Friday night. The Clippers, associated with the New York Yankees and a member of the AAA International League, will be taking on the Syracuse Sky Chiefs at 7:30 p.m. at Cooper Stadium in Columbus. Herta will sign autographs prior to the start of the game and his time on the pitcher's mound. The appearance will mark somewhat of a homecoming for Herta, who drives for Panoz Motor Sports on the ALMS. The California resident graduated from nearby Ohio State University and lived in Columbus while driving for car owner Bobby Rahal on the CART series. He will be in the Columbus area preparing for the Sunday, June 30, ALMS event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

6/24/02

Fish and Marriott return to SPEED Channel team  Veteran broadcasters Calvin Fish and Andrew Marriott will return to the broadcast team for SPEED Channel's coverage of the American Le Mans Series event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend. Fish and Marriott will report from the pits during the live telecast of the two hour, 45-minute race. Fish worked most of SPEED Channel's telecasts of ALMS races last year and this year's Sebring race, but has been mostly working on CART event telecasts this year for the cable network. Fish is very familiar with Mid-Ohio and the former driver teaches at a driving school located at the track. He will be on the rest of SPEED Channel's ALMS telecasts this year. England's Marriott worked on SPEED Channel's coverage of the 24 Hours of Le Mans earlier this month. He has also done some ALMS races for NBC Sports. Jon Beekhuis, who has been a pit reporter for SPEED Channel on the first two ALMS races of the season, will miss the Mid-Ohio race but will be back later in the season. Amanda Stretton, the other regular pit reporter on ALMS races, will miss the rest of the season on maternity leave. Rick Benjamin (play-by-play) and Bill Adam (analysis) will be in the booth for the Mid-Ohio broadcast by SPEED Channel.

6/24/02

Back to the races for ALMS  The American Le Mans Series returns to racing action this weekend with American Le Mans at Mid-Ohio, the first half of a consecutive weekends doubleheader for the sports car racing series. Following Sunday's event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, the series will move north and west to make its first-ever appearance at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. The Road America 500 presented by the Chicago Tribune will be run on Sunday, July 7. The Mid-Ohio race will start at 2 p.m. (EDT) and will be televised live by the SPEED Channel. The Road America event will start at 12:15 p.m. (CDT) and will have live coverage by CBS from 4-6 p.m. (EDT). Both races will be broadcast by the American Le Mans Series Radio Web, which can be heard online at www.americanlemans.com.

6/24/02

Plaque to honor Krosnoff and Avrin at Toronto  A plaque in memory of CART FedEx Championship driver Jeff Krosnoff and track worker Gary Avrin is to be unveiled 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, July 3 at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, replacing a makeshift memorial which stood at the site of the accident that took their lives during the 1996 Molson Indy . Fans had placed flowers, a plaque and a Krosnoff decal on the elm tree that Krosnoff's car struck after an on track incident redirected his car into track workers, resulting in the death of Avrin and Krosnoff and the injury of two others. When it became known that the elm tree was dying of disease, an effort began more than a year ago to place a proper, permanent memorial at the site. At last, that plaque has become a reality. "We have asked several CART drivers who knew Jeff to attend, along with friends and family of both Jeff and Gary, as well as other members of the motorsports community in Canada and the United States," said Douglas Graves, Avrin's fellow track worker who spearheaded the effort to install a permanent memorial. The site of the plaque looks over the accident scene at Turn 3 of the Exhibition Place racing circuit, just west of the foot bridge over Lake Shore Boulevard. Because parking will not be available on the Exhibition Place grounds due to installations for this year's CART FedEx Championship Series Molson Indy Toronto, July 5-7, parking at Ontario Place is suggested, with an easy walk across the bridge to the site of the ceremony, which is expected to take 30-45 minutes. For more information, contact Douglas Graves of the Jeff Krosnoff / Gary Avrin Memorial Fund. (416) 259-8421 ext.4295 or inky_doug1@hotmail.com (7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.) (905) 426-2001 or dgraves8@sympatico.ca (after 5 p.m.)

6/24/02

CART approves new speed limiter  After two days of meetings in early-June with its Franchise Board, Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. announced several rule changes slated to take effect during the 2002 season to reduce costs for teams and improve the competition on the race track. A rule change and safety innovation that resulted from those meetings will take effect beginning with the CART FedEx Championship Series CART Grand Prix of Chicago this weekend with the implementation of a new, two-stage pit lane speed limiter. The new speed limiter will maintain a 50 mile per hour limit the first time the button is pushed by the driver, 85 miles per hour on the second push, and full control on the third push. This technology was successfully tested by Ford at The Milwaukee Mile, site of Round 4 of the CART FedEx Championship Series, and all teams will have the two-stage limiter for the Chicago event. In addition to this weekend, the new speed limiter will be used in the oval events at Rockingham Motor Speedway and EuroSpeedway Lausitz in an effort to get the Champ Cars returning to the race after pit stops up to normal racing speeds faster, and enabling the cars to blend safely back into the race.

6/24/02

IRL entry list falling too  UPDATE There will be a press conference tomorrow to announce that Sarah Fisher will team with Robbie Buhl this weekend in Richmond.  It's interesting that the IRL can always find a way to do a deal(s) and add cars to their starting lineup. We don't know if this deal is for one race, or the remainder of the season.  One wouldn't expect a press conference just for a single race.  6/22/02 - Everyone is making a big deal about CART's dwindling starting fields, recently down to 18, but the IRL's is falling at almost the same rate.  The entry list for next weekend's IRL race at Richmond is down to 21, from 23 the last race.  And next year, the IRL teams have to buy all new cars and all new engines, meaning many IRL teams might not make it in 2003.  When existing IRL teams realize they can run a 20-race CART series for less money in 2003, some may bolt.  The all-oval IRL series is extremely expensive given that every contact with the hard outside walls costs the teams a lot of money.  It's beginning to show.  The rich teams like Team Penske, will bury the less fortunate IRL teams, and already they are starting to make their presence felt.  Instead of CART and the IRL merging like every sensible person on this planet says they should, Tony Bring My Hammer to Work Everyday George does not think that is the right thing to do.....and the war marches on.

6/24/02

Barcelona test do or die for Jaguar and Irvine  Ford is reviewing the Jaguar F1 program.  This week may be a defining moment in their history.  Eddie Irvine admits his Jaguar racing outfit face a crunch test in Barcelona this week that could affect his Niki Lauda's Formula 1 futures. The team will unveil a radically-altered version of the R3 car. Irvine has said that if the new car does not bring an expected vast improvement in performance he could decide to quit at the end of this season (and maybe start that Champ Car team he has always talked about). And it was reported over the weekend that Lauda's job could be at risk if the team do not start out-performing Arrows who have the same Cosworth engine as Jaguar. Irvine will test the new car on Thursday on the Circuit de Catalunya after a two-day straight-line test at Ford's facility at Lommel in Belgium which starts on Tuesday. "This week's test is crucial," said Irvine who has regularly found himself at the back of the grid since scoring three fortunate points in the season opener in Australia. "I think a lot of people are pinning a lot of hopes on it. "It is the best job we think we could have done. "We know our history and we know why we have made a mess of this car. "We think we have done the new package a lot better and on Thursday we will find out if we have achieved those goals," Irvine added. The Northern Ireland driver said the new car was "radically different" to the previous model. "I believe it is going to be better and let's hope it is". "The British Grand Prix is going to be one of the defining factors of my future," added Irvine. "It is going to let me know what to do. "If the car comes out and it flies then I am going to want to stay in Formula 1. "If it doesn't then it does bode well for the future."

6/24/02
Industry News

Manufacturer stock watch  Shares of General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. fell after Morgan Stanley cut its rating on the automakers because the second-biggest investment bank expects lower car and truck prices and demand next year. GM slid $2.59, or 4.6 percent, to $53.75, its biggest one-day decline since Oct. 29. Ford fell 75 cents, or 4.6 percent, to $15.73, its largest drop since April 1. DaimlerChrysler AG's U.S. shares declined $1.17 to $43.98. GM dragged the Dow Jones Industrial Average lower because of concern that U.S. consumer spending is slowing.

6/24/02

CART stock watch 

MPH closed at $8.49, + $0.09 on volume of 24,500 shares.
$7.83 Bid - $8.81 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $8.36/$8.60
MPH Value Change + 1.07%
END
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe, Chicago

6/24/02

NASCAR taking aim at CART's road racing market?  Trying to be all things to all people (i.e. run all types of circuits) CART has never been able to focus on their niche (road racing) and excel at it, thereby locking up that market. Perhaps NASCAR sees that weakness and is ready to pounce.  Dear AutoRacing1.com, I was watching the start of the NASCAR race this weekend at Sears Point (Infineon) Raceway, and the subject of running on road courses was brought up. When asked his opinion on the matter, Darrell Waltrip said something to the effect of “I think there should be more road course races. We run on all different types of courses, half mile ovals, mile ovals, superspeedways and road courses. You need to run all of these different types in order to call your drivers the best in the world…” Sound familiar? NASCAR is obviously aiming at CART’s demographic with this none too subtle sound bite.  Patrick Harte.  Dear Patrick, in this case we believe you missed the main point of what Waltrip was trying to say.  He was responding to questions as to whether NASCAR should drop their two road races and focus on its niche, ovals.  Waltrip thought that NASCAR should not drop its two road courses.  Mark C.

6/24/02

Ecclestone even hotter on China  Bernie Ecclestone has now gone on record that there will be up to three new races on the calendar in 2004, and the same number will have to be axed from the current line-up. Ecclestone said that the 2003 calendar would remain the same, but that there will be some new venues coming up the year after. China looks to be at the front of the queue to host a race. Ecclestone and FIA president Max Mosley have recently said that the Far Eastern nation is vital if F1 wants to be considered a global series, and Bernie has now hinted that the race could happen in two years. "Next year the calendar will be the same, but the year after we will lose two or three and gain two or three," he said. "We may be going to that place where there's a lot of people and they eat nice Chinese food!"

6/24/02

Tickets moving slow for Chicago race  2nd UPDATE We have an update on projected attendance for CART's upcoming Chicago race - we are told to expect right around 25,000 on Sunday, perhaps slightly above, which is what we were told by another source previously.  Stellar?  No, but up from last years 18,000.  The Cubs are in town playing the White Sox Saturday and Sunday, or the attendance may have been higher.  6/24/02 - We are now being told that the numbers we (and others) have been using for Chicago attendance are not even close (we have seen 3,000 to our high of 25,000 published).  We are trying to get a better estimate for you.  6/20/02 - Tickets are moving more slowly for the Grand Prix of Chicago in Cicero. Race promoters pointed to confusion about the race--which was canceled, then revived earlier this year--but they still expect a crowd of at least 25,000. Tickets range from $15 to $110 for race day. General-admission tickets are $5 for Friday practice and $15 for Saturday practice and qualifying. For information, call (708) 656-6300 or (708) 652-2812 or go to grandprixofchicago.com

6/24/02
FIA Sportscars

Le Mans leaves impression on Bell  Europe´s biggest car race has had a significant influence on the career of American sportscar rookie TJ Bell. Although the 21-year-old from Reno couldn´t drive a single lap in the race after his team mate Werner Lupberger crashed the Ascari-Judd after a rear suspension failure, Bell has drawn a clear conclusion from his time at La Sarthe. "Before Le Mans, racing was just a passion", the American says. "Now I know that I really want to do this is as a profession - and that I'm capable of achieving this." Bell had impressed the sportscar world by being fastest of all the American rookies in prequalifying - including former CART ace Bryan Herta in his Panoz. This performance is worth even more when taking into account that Bell's Ascari-Judd was not running on Michelin tires, which are known to be the best rubber for prototypes these days and were fitted to the Panoz of the other US boys on their maiden Le Mans laps. Unfortunately, Bell could not repeat his brilliant performance during race week. "It's hard to compare my lap times with those of my team mates because I only did seven timed laps", recalls Bell. "Werner Lupberger also went out on soft race tires and even on qualifiers which I didn't either. The first time I went out was already in darkness on Wednesday night. I found it pretty hard to judge the braking points on the Mulsanne straights." In spite of running on harder rubber than his Ascari team mate, Bell only lost 1 ½ seconds on the South African's times. "I feel I know the track already. But there a few little things about the circuit which you only know when you've done 100 laps. All in all, I believe I have done quite well and have shown my potential. I certainly feel we had a car capable of a top ten finish. It's just a shame we couldn't show more of this because of the early exit." Quite naturally, Bell feels that Le Mans owes him one. "I definitely want to come back and get my record straight", he said. "I was very impressed by the magnitude of this race and it's history. I even had goosebumps at the start. I would love to become part of this race - and after prequalifying and practice, I know that I´ve got what it takes to leave an impression at Le Mans. I hope I'll get a second chance next year and prove my point for the future."

6/24/02
FIA Sportscars

Trio go head-to-head at Magny Cours  The FIA Sportscar Championship teams travel to central France for Round 4 at Magny Cours next weekend and with three winners from the first three events and the Championship race wide open in both the SR1 and SR2 classes, another action packed race is in prospect at the French Grand Prix venue.  Story

6/24/02

Nurburgring crowd huge  Contrary to earlier reports, a record crowd traveled to the Nurburgring to watch this year’s European GP.  "We`ve never had so many spectators," Nurburgring Managing Director Walter Kafitz told the BMW website. 350,000 fans visited the Nurburgring over the grand prix weekend, and recent modifications meant that an extra 8,000 were able to view the race action. And you thought NASCAR was big?  Small compared to F1.  Road racing is the predominate form of motorsports in the World.  Oval racing, which takes less talent and is 99% car, is pretty much an American phenomenon.

6/24/02

NASCAR antitrust lawsuit update  This News Journal newspaper article sums up the latest in this continuing saga.  Johnnie Cochran has described NASCAR in previous media interviews as "almost incestuous" and said that he would possibly seek more than $1 billion from NASCAR should his side prevail. He was quoted in an ESPN Internet report as saying "that (breaking up NASCAR/ISC) is the logical end result, and we have the legal counsel to do it."

6/24/02
Grand-Am

Dyson team wins Glen 6-Hours  Dyson Racing Team dominated the Rolex Sports Car Series 6 Hours of The Glen at the Sports Car Grand Prix today. The team's pair of Ford-powered Riley & Scotts started the race on the front row and led the entire 187-lap race, giving the team its sixth win at The Glen in the last eight years. Polesitter Butch Leitzinger put the #20 Dyson entry out front early and built a strong lead over his former co-driver James Weaver in the team's #16 car. He relinquished the lead to the Englishman briefly during a pit stop and full-course caution, but jumped to the front when the green flag fell, grabbing a 48-second lead before his second pit stop to hand the controls over to team owner Rob Dyson. Ferrari of Washington took the top honors in GT for the first time. Cort Wagner and Bill Auberlen piloted the brand-new #33 Ferrari 360 GT in the race. Although the duo had raced a Ferrari at the first three races of the season, the 6 Hours of The Glen was their first time in the newly factory-produced car. The Ferrari finished with a four-lap lead over the second-place G&W Porsche. The Alegra Motorsports/901 Shop #10 BMW M3 finished third in the class. The GTS class was full of surprises during the 6 Hours of The Glen. The polesitting Park Place Racing #5 Saleen S7R made an early exit from the race after an off-track incident sparked transmission failure. The PharmacyDirectUSA.com Racing #14 Porsche moved into the class lead, but always held a narrow margin over the second-place Jack Lewis Enterprises #72 Porsche.

6/24/02

Formula One Hot News 

European Grand Prix: Analysis
Montoya Blames Michelin Boots
The Case Against Michelin
Three Fingers For Rubinho!
Ferrari and Bridgestone Celebrate
Shoulder Injury For McNish
DC to Montoya: Congratulations!
Williams Blame Tire Wear
Scarlet Men Applaud Barrichello
Barrichello Emotional In Germany
Schumacher Contends With Media
Ferrari 'Playing To Audience'?
Button Tries To Silence Rumors
Alonso Eyes Up Jenson's Seat
Fisichella's 'Big Three' Future?
Bits and Pieces From Nurburgring
F1 Birthdays

6/23/02

Road Courses challenge NASCAR drivers physically  We have long maintained that road course racing is the hardest form of racing, both physically and from a driving skill standpoint.  The majority of the Winston Cup drivers were noticeably exhausted after today's race at Sears Point, and it's evident they just are not used to driving that hard.  Today was not particularly hot in Sonoma either, with a high of about 80-degrees and low humidity.  On top of that, the race was only a little over 200-miles in length, short by Winston Cup standards.

6/23/02

It's time for standing starts  A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com, I could not help but miss the talk about launch control during the Portland race broadcast that the Champ Cars now have.  Given how many times they had to start that race before they got it right (actually, they never did get it right), and given how CART wants define itself as a unique form of racing in the USA,  why don't they implement standing starts?  Dan Devry, Eugene, Oregon.   Dear Dan, You are absolutely correct, there is no reason why they can't implement standing starts at Portland, Cleveland and Mexico City, because all three have starting straightaways that are wide enough for standing starts.  And with the launch control they now have, though not as sophisticated as F1, it certainly is good enough.  Standing starts take a bit more talent than rolling starts, but the powers to be at CART are afraid to try it, as if to say their drivers are not good enough.  Given they crash in the first turn at Portland and Cleveland anyway, it certainly can't get much worse.  A few standing starts each year would get a lot of 'positive' media attention, and really raise fan interest.  Instead, the only media attention CART appears to be getting are 'negative' stories on 'CART is dying' in each of its markets it goes to.  In fact, one reader commented about how negative CART articles have appeared in local newspapers prior to and during each CART race this year starting with Long Beach, as if there was a concerted effort being made to discredit CART and drive ticket sales down.  Hmm....  Mark C.

6/23/02

Darlington sues Dura-Lube  According to this News & Press article, South Carolina International Speedway Corporation—which owns and operates the Darlington Raceway—has filed a breach of contract suit against the Dura-Lube Corporation, alleging the company failed to pay more than $375,000 in sponsorship fees for the Dura-Lube 200 Busch Series races in Darlington in 2000 and 2001. In a suit filed at the Darlington County Courthouse, it's claimed Dura-Lube agreed to pay $675,000 to the SCISC for sponsoring Busch races at the Darlington Raceway from 1999 to 2001. Dura-Lube paid the $200,000 it owed for 1999, but only paid $100,000 out of the $225,000 it owed for the 2000 race and paid nothing on the $250,000 it owed for the 2001 race, for a total unpaid bill of $375,000. SCISC also requests punitive, consequential and incidental damages "flowing from the breach and any other damages the court deems just and proper," the suit reads.

6/23/02

CART misses out on Pepsi opportunity in Chicago  A reader came across this press release from Pepsico. It would have made perfect sense to tie this product release into the Chicago race? A product targeted towards the Latino neighborhoods in Chicago is released the week before the Chicago Grand Prix, which happens to have 3 Mexican drivers. Any sort of sponsorship out of this, even if its minor, would have been perfect timing for the race......PURCHASE, NY (June 20, 2002) – Pepsi-Cola North America today announced that Dole single-serve juices, its fast-growing line of juice beverages, will be test-marketing Dole Aguas Frescas in Latino neighborhoods in Chicago. Dole Aguas Frescas is a new, non-carbonated juice drink that’s been developed specifically for Latino consumers thirsting for a beverage they can call their own. The new, ready-to-drink beverage – modeled after juice drinks that have traditionally been prepared in Latino homes – will be available in four, great-tasting natural fruit flavors (Guava, Mango, Strawberry and Tamarind). In extensive focus groups conducted over the past year – as Dole Aguas Frescas was being developed – study participants consistently described its taste as "an authentic, home-style beverage experience" and "a product that rivals homemade aguas frescas beverages that have been popular among Latino households for generations." Beginning next week, Dole Aguas Frescas will be distributed in 16-ounce glass bottles and primarily sold in grocery and convenience stores in the Chicago area. Introductory marketing support includes outdoor advertising, in-store merchandising and targeted sampling efforts.

6/23/02

Minardi money far from assured  In this Hot News item we reported that Minardi would have to wait before getting the Prost TV money.  The whole process will likely drag on at least two months and perhaps longer. We hear that the GPT Ltd (McLaren, Williams, Jordan, Arrows and BAR) has decided that it wants to take this case to arbitration that will be heard by the International Chamber of Commerce in Lausanne, Switzerland.

6/23/02

Formula One Hot News 

European GP: Qualifying Analysis
Bridgestone Still Confident
Good Day For Michelin
Renault Announcement At Silverstone
Back Downhill For BAR
Coulthard Hoping For Incident
Rare Mistakes For Master Schu
Mercedes: Don't Judge Our Speed
Slow Progress At Arrows
Stoddart: We Need Alliances
Race-Day News From Nurburgring
F1 Birthdays

6/22/02

Scenes from Sears Point 

Photo Page by Mike Veglia

6/22/02
F3000

Hill beats his teammate  Sebastien Bourdais led all 30 laps to win the FIA International Formula 3000 race Saturday ahead of Ricardo Sperafico and Antonio Pizzonia. With his third victory in six races this season, Bourdais now leads the championship with 34 points over Tomas Enge, who failed to finish and has 21 points.  Derek Hill, son of Phil Hill, who in 1961 became the first driver from the United States to win the World Championship, had a close battle with Bjorn Wirdheim for sixth place. Wirdheim beat him by just 0.244 of a second. Hill will compete for the rest of the season with the Durango Formula team.  Hill also beat his teammate, Ricardo Sperafico.

6/22/02
Industry News

Sears Point gains Infineon  Sears Point Raceway, one of North America’s most complete and versatile motorsports complexes, has been renamed Infineon Raceway as part of a 10-year $34.6 million deal with Infineon Technologies (DAX/NYSE: IFX), one of the world’s top semiconductor manufacturing companies. The new Infineon Raceway name and logo were unveiled today at a Winner’s Circle press conference attended by senior executives of Speedway Motorsports (NYSE: TRK), Infineon Technologies and Infineon representative Mario Andretti, who is serving as Grand Marshal of this weekend’s Dodge/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Winston Cup event. The agreement, which represents just the second major motorsports naming rights partnership in the country, provides a significant branding and marketing platform for Infineon Technologies, which is based in Germany and has its North American headquarters in nearby San Jose, Calif. “Proximity to the business centers of the Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area, combined with first-class motorsports and conference facilities, make the new Infineon Raceway the perfect venue for a technology and communication company like Infineon,” said Julian Hawkins, Vice President of Sales for Infineon Technologies North America Corp. “By using the facilities here to showcase our products to customers, partners and the general public, we gain both broad exposure and direct business-to-business marketing opportunities. This is a superb starting point for business development and customer relationship programs to grow our business in North America.” “The Infineon brand embodies the fundamental qualities we associate with this new facility — speed, performance and quality relationships with customers,” said Steve Page, President and General Manager of the new Infineon Raceway. “We are very excited about this partnership and the potential it holds for both companies. We look forward to welcoming Infineon’s guests from around the world to enjoy our racing and business facilities, and the unmatched ambiance of the Sonoma Valley.”

6/22/02

Pictures from the Nurburgring 

6/22/02

Saturday AM times from Germany 

 Driver Team (Tires) Time Gap Laps

01. M Schumacher Ferrari (B) 1:30.658 22
02. K Raikkonen McLaren-Mercedes (M) 1:31.176 0.518 25
03. R Barrichello Ferrari (B) 1:31.332 0.674 20
04. N Heidfeld Sauber-Petronas (B) 1:31.422 0.764 22
05. R Schumacher BMW.WilliamsF1 (M) 1:31.685 1.027 34
06. M Salo Toyota (M) 1:31.803 1.145 32
07. D Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 1:31.811 1.153 24
08. JP Montoya BMW.WilliamsF1 (M) 1:31.833 1.175 37
09. J Trulli Renault (M) 1:32.415 1.757 27
10. J Button Renault (M) 1:32.698 2.040 26
11. F Massa Sauber-Petronas (B) 1:32.715 2.057 22
12. A McNish Toyota (M) 1:32.863 2.205 30
13. T Sato Jordan-Honda (B) 1:33.017 2.359 31
14. M Webber Minardi-Asiatech (M) 1:33.146 2.488 26
15. E Irvine Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 1:33.157 2.499 22
16. G Fisichella Jordan-Honda (B) 1:33.167 2.509 23
17. O Panis BAR-Honda (B) 1:33.202 2.544 22
18. HH Frentzen Arrows-Cosworth (B) 1:33.668 3.010 26
19. J Villeneuve BAR-Honda (B) 1:33.681 3.023 24
20. E Bernoldi Arrows-Cosworth (B) 1:33.877 3.219 24
21. A Yoong Minardi-Asiatech (M) 1:35.016 4.358 33
22. P de la Rosa Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 1:35.736 5.078 06

6/22/02

Hot News from Germany 

European GP: Friday Analysis
Mixed Reaction To New Section
Stoddart Optimistic About Future
Jenson Button In Demand
Villeneuve Slams Team Boss
Honda 'Satisfied' With New Engine
Bridgestone 'Not Worried'
Formula One's Football Distraction
F1 News In Brief
News Direct From Nurburgring
F1 Birthdays

6/21/02
Industry News

Kentucky Speedway sued  An AP article appeared in the Louisville, KY Courier - Journal newspaper, June 21, under this headline, "Kentucky Speedway architect sues over fee." The lawsuit filed June 13 in U.S. District Court in Covington, KY, claims that Bill Moss and his architectural firm MP Group are owed $1.05 million by Kentucky Motor Speedway. Moss who also designed Talladega and Las Vegas Motor Speedway, has been paid part of his fee but is suing for breach of contract to collect the balance.  The IRL and NASCAR Busch Series race at Kentucky.

6/21/02

Pizza Hut and Team Players announcement  Pizza Hut Canada and Team Player's will make a significant business announcement involving the two brands on Tuesday June 25th at 11:00 AM in Vaughan, Ontario. Team Player's drivers, Alex Tagliani and Patrick Carpentier will be on hand to give a driving display. Two Team Player's racecars will also be on site. Pizza Hut employees will get a chance to see what it's like to be part of a real pit crew, while they try their skill at tire changing with fully torqued air guns in the Team Player's Pit-Stop Challenge. John Bitove, Chairman, priszm brandz, Pizza Hut majority owner, and Mark Thorne, Marketing Communications Manager, will also be on hand.

6/21/02

AJ Allmendinger pic  Rookie AJ Allmendinger has been causing quite a stir in the Barber Dodge Pro Series this year, winning at Portland last weekend in convincing style.  Ace photog Bill Kistler caught this picture of AJ right after he took the checkered flag, hands clinched in air.  If AJ (named after AJ Foyt) continues his impressive performances, look for him in the Champ Car ranks by 2005.

6/21/02
Russell/USAC

Scott Speed tops Russell/USAC charts  Listed below are the qualifying times from the first session of the Russell/USAC Triple Crown Pro Series presented by Yokohama at Sears Point Raceway. A second session is scheduled for 9:00am tomorrow with the best time from either session taken for each driver to set the starting grid. The race is scheduled for Saturday at 2:30pm immediately after the Snap On Tools 200 which is part of the Dodge SaveMart 350 NASCAR Winston Cup event.
Pos Car # Driver Time
1 23 Scott Speed 1:20.070
2 4 Victor Hugo Queiroz 1:20.187
3 11 Phil Carlson 1:20.802
4 9 Chris Carmody 1:20.878
5 14 Jason Bowles 1:21.081
6 8 Brad Plumer 1:21.244
7 16 John Mefford 1:21.337
8 17 Chris Nelson 1:21.943
9 24 Bruce Feldman 1:22.077
10 18 John Knudsen 1:22.267
11 12 Cristian Sabellarosa 1:22.814
12 2 Josh Judd 1:23.690
13 1 Bob Hagerty 1:23.799
14 22 Kevin York 1:24.404

6/21/02
World Rally

Two spectators killed at Ireland rally  As can be seen in the photo at the right, Rally fans clearly have suicidal tendencies.  Two rally fans have been killed and three more seriously injured following an accident in the Dongeal International Rally. The event, stayed in the Republic of Ireland, was thrown into turmoil after one of the rally cars left the road and collided with a spectator area in the Cloghan region of the country. Initial reports suggest that two men died at the scene, while three additional people were taken to the the Letterkenny General Hospital where the injuries are currently being reviewed. The condition of one of the men is described as 'serious, but not life threatening' while the other two have superficial injuries.

6/21/02

Marlboro buying extra tickets for Richmond  Marlboro buys at least 2,000 tickets to giveaway at each IRL race, but for the Richmond race next weekend, they have bought 6,000 tickets to giveaway to employees in a tobacco plant in Richmond.  Marlboro's ticket buys do help the IRL's attendance figures, and CART wishes they still were buying tickets for their races.  However, that does not mean all the free tickets get used.  For example, at the recent Boomtown 500, it was reported that the attendance was 83,000.  In reality, it was far less than that (see pictures below).  83,000 was the number of tickets sold, not the number of people who showed up for the race (about 50,000 which is still decent).  A lot of the ticket holders were part of a NASCAR/IRL ticket package who decided not to bother to use their IRL ticket.  We just wish the sanctioning bodies/race organizers would report the real numbers, and that goes for CART too, where we saw inflated numbers for last weekends Portland race.

The main front straight grandstand at TMS holds 120,000 people.  Given these photos, one would estimate that the attendance was closer to 50,000.  The first turn was similar to the 4th turn, i.e. empty.  It's amazing how deceiving the TV shots are, especially at night.
Photos by Ron McQueeney/IMS

6/21/02

Coulthard quick in Germany  UPDATE We have added the transcript from Friday's press conference from Germany. 6/21/02 - David Coulthard topped the timesheets for Friday practice at the Nurburgring today. Fitted new rubber he set a 1:31.886 to take the top honors. Michael Schumacher finished second quickest, the German improving on his earlier time, followed by Kimi Raikkonen, this morning’s pacesetter Rubens Barrichello, and Juan-Pablo Montoya who improved late to take fifth. Ralf Schumacher was sixth, ahead of Jarno Trulli, Jenson Button, Mika Salo and Olivier Panis. Story & Results | Press Conference

6/21/02

Venture Capitalist bullish on Shanghai  Venture capitalists view China's major cities as the main target for their investments in the next 12 months, according to a survey by law firm CMS Cameron McKenna.  Shanghai was the top choice among 10 Asian cities, with 81 per cent of 47 venture capitalists interviewed saying they would choose it for their investments. Next was Beijing, which saw 68 per cent support. Hong Kong ranked third with 42 per cent of respondents showing interest. CMS Cameron McKenna corporate partner Chris Southorn, who conducted the research in April, said there was increasing optimism in the venture capital market brought about by China's accession to the World Trade Organization. "Certainly, levels of investment activity in China are already accelerating, and there is also increasing interest from mainland companies in accessing foreign capital, both public and private. These results show we can look forward to an interesting year." Mr. Southorn was not surprised with the findings as Shanghai and Beijing were China's most developed financial centers. While remaining an investment target, Hong Kong also played an important role as the gateway to the China market.  CMS Cameron McKenna also found a significant shift in investor focus towards raising funds in Asia, with 69 per cent of respondents saying they would be seeking funds in the region in the next 12 months. In a similar survey last year, 68.5 per cent of respondents were seeking to raise funds in the United States, while the figure for Asia was only 42 per cent. SCMP

6/21/02

Ticket sales start fast for Mexican GP  Tickets went on sale today for CART's Mexican Grand Prix Telmex-Gigante which will close the 2002 season next November 17th at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico's capital. Sales started promptly at 11 o'clock this morning, and have been going at a very fast rate all day long, even though the race is still 5 months away. Besides Ticketmaster outlets in Mexico, and phone and internet Ticketmaster offices, tickets can be purchased in person at the Palace of Sports, right across the track. All tickets are 3-day tickets: for practice/qualifying on Friday 15th, practice/qualifying/races on Saturday 16th, and races on Sunday, November 17th, including the main feature, the FedEx CART series in which three Mexican drivers compete -Michel Jourdain Jr., Mario Domínguez & Adrián Fernández.  Note: for the first 3-weeks, tickets are being sold exclusively to Banamex-Visa cardholders.  Also note, we hear that due to environmental concerns, and concerns for crowd control the first year, the organizers decided to limit the number attendees the first year.  It will be interesting, therefore, to see how quickly the 167,000 sell out, and whether they will be allowed to add more seats if they sell out early.

6/21/02

CART ladder, Mexican driver appeals  Mexican driver Germán Quiroga, currently running in the Barber Pro series, part of the CART Ladder, finished 10th in the race at Portland but was penalized and sent to the 16th place for passing fellow competitor Aurelio López II at the start when Aurelio had trouble and moved aside. The pass was right before the start-finish line but Germán is appealing because Aurelio -who went to finish behind him- moved aside clearly slowing down, and he couldn't do the same for he could have caused and accident, and actually everyone else passed Aurelio who was last at the first turn. Commenting on the season so far, Germán, who is a former Mexican champion in Neon touring cars and has been the fastest Mustang driver in qualifying in 2001, said: "Little by little I am starting to get the right feel for open wheelers, and I have been improving, now I am running at mid-field with the rest and I feel I can get a lot better since I am very consistent and many of my rivals get a great time in qualifying but can't maintain the pace during races. I feel the Barber Dodge Pro Series is much stronger than I anticipated, but it is also one in which I can reach the top once I have enough experience. I'm struggling a bit since I don't have a sponsor yet, but we are knocking at all doors and we hope one will open soon".

6/21/02

Buhl, Hornish & de Ferran test Chicagoland  Defending Indy Racing League champion Sam Hornish Jr. and series standouts Gil de Ferran and Robbie Buhl completed two days of Firestone tire testing June 21 at Chicagoland Speedway, helping Firestone devise tire compounds and preparing for the Delphi Indy 300 on Sept. 8 at the track. While Hornish and Buhl competed in the inaugural Chicagoland IRL event last September, this was the first time on the 1.5-mile oval for de Ferran, winner of the Radisson Indy 225 on June 16 at Pikes Peak International Raceway. “Chicagoland Speedway is very unique in the sense that the backstretch is not straight, it is slightly curved, and the transitions into both turns on the north and south ends of the track are very smooth,” de Ferran said. “It also has a lot of grip; I like that.” Marlboro Team Penske teammates Helio Castroneves and de Ferran are first and second, respectively, in the IRL point standings in their first full season in the series. But de Ferran admitted that tests on 1.5-mile ovals such as Chicago might be even more important for the team than tests on tracks of other lengths. “If anything so far this year, our weakest performance has been on this type of racetrack, but we have been able to be in the top six anyway, so we will continue to work hard and try to improve our performance on this type of racetrack,” de Ferran said. Hornish clinched his first Indy Racing title with a runner-up finish last year at Chicago. This year he is third in the points behind Castroneves and de Ferran and used the two-day test to continue to hone the setup on his No. 4 Pennzoil Panther Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone in pursuit of the Penske pair. “Right now we are trying to make sure the car is where we want it to be,” Hornish said. “We had three good races and three bad races, but hopefully we will continue with the good races. That’s how racing goes; things don’t always go your way. We will work together as a team and try our best to come back on top again.” Temperatures both days were in the high 80s and low 90s with high humidity – exactly the kind of weather Firestone wanted for the test because similar conditions could be encountered on race weekend in early September. “We are trying a variety of compounds and a couple of small construction changes to try to come up with the best tire for the September 8 race here,” said Dale Harrigle, Firestone Racing project engineer. “The weather is good and is what we wanted for the tire test, so it’s good that it is hot.”   IRL

6/21/02

CART Stock Watch 

MPH closed at $8.40, Down $0.20 on volume of 130,500 shares.
$7.74 Bid - $8.71 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $8.19/$8.60
MPH Value Change - 2.33%
END
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe, Chicago

6/21/02

Villeneuve's days at BAR numbered, takes swipe back at boss  On the topic of his Boss David Richards asking Jacque Villeneuve to take a pay cut - "It gets on my nerves," Villeneuve said at Nurburgring. "It's easy for David Richards to talk like that but he's only been here for six months. For me, it's been four years that I've been fighting to make this thing better. I wonder what this team would have been like if I'd not signed four years ago?" Villeneuve added: "I think it's unfair to put me in this position. I've always worked hard, respected my contract and never tried to embarrass someone like Richards is doing to me now. "As far as I know, he gets paid too. If the people at BAT and BAR decided that I deserved the money, it's because they were getting something out of it. "My relationship with David Richards is good, I just don't like him using the media like this. It's not positive for the team. If I could go to a winning team like Williams or Ferrari, it would be a different matter but there is no point in changing team to finish sixth. There are no openings and so there is no decision to be made."

6/21/02

Ticket woes in Germany  This Yahoo Sports article says, All is not well at the Nurburgring this weekend as fans opt to stay away from the racetrack and ticket sales plummet. While ticket sales for round nine were good at the beginning of the year, as is normally the case, the corporate customers who bought a huge number of grandstand seats in readiness for this weekend's event, find themselves left high and dry, unable to pass them on to fans. 150,000 seats have been sold, however don't be fooled by these figures as there will be a lot of empty seats around the new Nurburgring layout unless fans take advantage of the lowered prices. Radio and newspapers are advertising special prices as ticket agencies, who bought their usual amount of seats for resale well ahead of time, try to unload the surplus. But, the good news for fans wanting to attend this weekend's race is, hang in there! Predictions are that ticket prices will plummet by 50% before race day, just to get rid of them! A sad state of affairs for all concerned….

6/21/02

IRL nips CART in head-to-head network TV battle  UPDATE The puzzling head-to-head scheduling of IRL and CART races meant disappointing ratings for both series last weekend. IRL fans make take a little delight in winning the battle with a 1.0 rating on ABC, representing 1,066,000 fans. CART checked in with a 0.8 final rating, yielding 875,000 households. By comparison, horse racing on the CBS Sports Spectacular had a 0.9 rating and the College World Series on CBS had a 0.8. Three tape-delayed World Cup soccer games on ABC that had already been broadcast earlier on ESPN had better ratings than both open wheel races. No sporting event on a major over-the-air network had a lower rating than 0.8. www.MotorsportsTV.com  6/19/02 - The overnight television ratings from Nielsen Media Research have shown the CART FedEx Championship Series Round Seven event from Portland to have drawn over a million viewers, a result that is an impressive 29 percent increase over the seventh-round race from a season ago. The CART G.I. Joe's 200 from Portland International Raceway earned a 0.9 national overnight rating on CBS Sunday afternoon, equating to 972,000 households and over a million viewers. The race showed especially strong as expected in the host area, drawing a 2.6 rating in Portland, but also drew ratings of over 1.5 in nine national markets including major areas such as Las Vegas, New Orleans, Jacksonville and Columbus. The event drew 29 percent more viewers than the race in the same time slot from the 2001 season - the Tenneco Automotive Grand Prix of Detroit - which was also shown live on network television. Last year's Round Seven event from Belle Isle drew a 0.7. The ratings numbers showed the CART race to have been the most-watched open-wheel racing event of the weekend, besting the Indy Racing League event at Pikes Peak by over 100,000 households in the overnight counts. Final ratings are expected to be released on Thursday. The ratings were held down somewhat by the viewership of Tiger Woods and his march to the PGA's U.S. Open crown, as Woods teed off for his final round just as the CART event was set to begin. The U.S. Open ratings were the biggest of the weekend for any sporting event, drawing an 8.9 overnight number.  CART

6/21/02

Moscow GP official survives 2nd assassination attempt  And you wonder why we doubt the Russian GP will ever happen?  The man who orchestrated the deal with Tom Walkinshaw to build a racing circuit in Moscow was shot two years ago At the time Moscow police stated that they thought the attack was somehow related to the plans for the race. Last time Ordzhonikidze was seriously injured but survived, although one of his bodyguards was killed. On Thursday assassins tried again, spraying his car with bullets. His bodyguards returned fire and the attackers' getaway car was later found burned out with a body inside. One of Ordzhonikidze's bodyguards was also wounded and a passer-by was also hit by a stray bullet.

6/21/02

Ride-buying Hattori done  Shigeaki Hattori's USA career appears to be over.  He is out of money, and out of his IRL ride.  As the IRL gains better financed teams, more of the ride-buyers, many of which had no business even being in a race car, will be history.

6/21/02

Hot News Items 

Minardi Saga Not Over Yet
Asiatech In Minardi Takeover?
New Sponsor For Minardi
Is Schumi's Mind Elsewhere?
Report On Nurburgring Changes
Coulthard Secure At McLaren
Ralf Defends On-Track Aggression
Todt Broke Promise to Rubens
McLaren Blame Michelin Tires
New Ferrari Engine Set For Debut
Tire Regulations Set For Change
News Direct From Nurburgring
F1 Birthdays

6/20/02

Said looks forward to Sears Point  To prepare himself for one of the most grueling stretches of the Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup season, Boris Said is “tuning up” by competing in this weekend’s NASCAR Winston Cup event at Sonoma, Calif. Said, the Trans-Am Series points leader, will drive the No. 67 Jasper Engines and Transmissions Ford Taurus in Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350 Winston Cup feature at Sears Point Raceway. He will prepare for that test by piloting the No. 99 Federated Auto Parts Chevrolet in Saturday’s Featherlite Southwest Series NASCAR Touring Race at Sears Point. “These Winston Cup races are like Christmas to me – they only come once or twice a year,” Said told www.NASCAR.com . “I’m like a little kid. I’ve been waiting all year to get back into one of these cars and I’m ready. “Last year, I had my best two Winston Cup finishes [ever] with Jasper Motorsports,” Said added. “We’re looking to build on that.” Said joined the Jasper Team for both NASCAR road-course events last season, standing in for Winston Cup regular Robert Pressley, and finished 11th at Sears Point and eighth at Watkins Glen.

6/20/02

Tickets moving slow for Chicago race  Tickets are moving more slowly for the Grand Prix of Chicago in Cicero. Race promoters pointed to confusion about the race--which was canceled, then revived earlier this year--but they still expect a crowd of at least 25,000. Tickets range from $15 to $110 for race day. General-admission tickets are $5 for Friday practice and $15 for Saturday practice and qualifying. For information, call (708) 656-6300 or (708) 652-2812 or go to grandprixofchicago.com

6/20/02

Time needed for CART to match F1 in Montreal  UPDATE  It will be the first time for many years that CART and F1 cars will have run on the same track and will give an indication as to how the two series compare. Pook says he does not expect the CART cars to be as quick as the F1s.  "We certainly won't be faster," Pook said. "You have to recognize that Formula 1 is a class of its own in the world. We're not attempting to compete with F1 at all."  At 400 pounds heavier, less HP, and less technology - not only will the Champ Cars be slower, they will be in the neighborhood of of 10 seconds per lap slower, which will bring smirks up and down the F1 pit lane.   6/19/02 - This Canadian Press article says, Organizers are expecting at least 150,000 spectators for the inaugural Montreal Molson Indy at Montreal on Aug. 25 and hope one day to match the popularity of Formula One racing. "I'm sure that with the experiences of the promoter, this event will grow to be a huge success," Chris Pook, head of the FedEx CART racing series, said at a news conference Wednesday. "Don't expect Formula One numbers right away. It will take time to build it. But it took time for them to build the Formula One race."  Regular subscribers to Formula One tickets were given an advance offer for CART tickets and 15,000 were sold. The CART tickets are about 40 per cent cheaper than those of Formula One. The Montreal race is the third Canadian stop on the CART circuit, following Molson Indy races on street courses July 7 in Toronto and July 29 in Vancouver that draw huge crowds. Blais said a publicity campaign would be launched soon to lure fans from the northeastern United States, an area that currently has no major motor racing. Pook said there were fans of defunct CART races in New Hampshire and in Watkin's Glen, N.Y., who will likely drive up for the Montreal race.

6/20/02

Lehto to team with Herbert  Former grand prix driver JJ Lehto will partner Johnny Herbert in the Champion Racing Audi R8 for the remainder of the American Le Mans Series season. Lehto replaces Andy Wallace, who co-drove with Herbert at the opening race of the year. The Finn is an experienced sportscar racer and has driven 25 times in the ALMS, taking 11 wins. "We feel that JJ would be very complimentary to Johnny Herbert as he focuses on winning the drivers' championship this year," said Champion Racing's vice president, Don Skuta. "Andy Wallace has a strong commitment to Bentley and he is dedicated to their program."

6/20/02

Richmond race to feature big fireworks display  Richmond International Raceway and the Indy Racing League are teaming up to bring race fans the largest fireworks display in Virginia this year immediately after the SunTrust Indy Challenge on June 29 at RIR. The fireworks add even more value to the Saturday-night racing double-header, which starts with the Dominic’s of New York 100 USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series race. Reserved seats are $35, and general admission tickets are $30. Kids 12 and under are free in the general admission sections when accompanied by a paying adult. For more information, contact the Richmond International Raceway ticket office at (804) 345-RACE.

6/20/02

Dallas businessman wants to start Cup team  According to this Dallas Morning News article, Dallas businessman Lee Sanders is working on a plan to start a Winston Cup team and hopes to enter some races later this season. Sanders owns The Sanders Companies Inc. investment firm and North American Development Corp., a Dallas real estate development company. He is teaming with Atlanta businessman Gordon Whitener to form SWI Motorsports. Whitener is the founder and president of the U.S. Cowboy Tour. He recently launched the Racing Rodeo Series, which features rodeo events in cities where a Winston Cup race is being held. Sanders and Whitener are graduates of the University of Tennessee. They have purchased five Fords from Penske Racing South and are looking for a sponsor. The team will be based in the Charlotte, N.C., area. Its goal is to run a full Cup schedule in 2003.

6/20/02

Infiniti Pro drivers await tests  Ten drivers will turn their first official laps in an Indy Racing Infiniti Pro Series car at Open Tests scheduled for June 22 and 24 at Gateway International Raceway and Chicagoland Speedway, respectively. Arie Luyendyk Jr., Jason Priestley, Mike Koss, Marty Roth, Ed Carpenter, Aaron Fike and Cory Witherill will test their new Dallara chassis powered by 450-horsepower Infiniti V8 engines on Firestone tires at both the 1.25-mile Gateway oval and the 1.5-mile Chicagoland oval. “I'm excited for everyone testing this weekend, including myself, to go out and see what the car is really going to be like,” said Carpenter, driver of the No. 2 Menards/Johns Manville Sinden Racing Service Dallara. “All the racing I’ve done has been front-engine and with zero downforce in sprint cars. Having other cars at this test is going to help us understand what it will need to run well in clean air and dirty air. “This type of racing is new for me, so it’s going to help me work with downforce and get a feel for a rear-engine car and my ultimate goal of running in the IRL.”

6/20/02

Priestley tests Infiniti Pro car  A name known more in Hollywood circles than in racing ovals was at Michigan International Speedway on Thursday testing an Indy Racing Infiniti Pro Series car for the first time. Jason Priestley, star of television’s Beverly Hills 90210, and driver coach Tony Renna tested the No. 7 Homemed Kelley Racing Infiniti Dallara at MIS, the first time an Infiniti Pro Series car had taken laps around historic speedway. The drivers logged 58 laps during the muggy day, with Renna taking the first 20 in the morning and Priestley handling the final 38 in the afternoon. The test, intended less for speed and more for working out kinks before an open test session this weekend in St. Louis, proved valuable to the team. Priestley, in particular, is looking forward to competing at MIS in the Michigan 100 Infiniti Pro Series race July 28 prior to the inaugural Michigan Indy 400 Indy Racing League event. “I think it’s going to be a great race,” Priestley said. “The cars produce a lot of downforce, so I think all of us will be comfortable and that’ll lead to a lot of close racing. The speeds won’t be quite to the level of the IRL cars, but it’ll be a great show.”  Tickets for the inaugural Michigan Indy 400, including the Michigan 100 Infiniti Pro Series race, on July 28 are just $40 with kids 12 and under free. Add a Saturday ticket – and see the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race – for just $10 more. The ticket prices include admission to the two-day ACDelco Corvettes at MIS presented by AutoWeek on July 27-28 in the MIS infield.  At those prices, one would expect to see a sellout.  Any seat in the house for $40, a real bargain.

6/20/02

Long looks for ride  Mansion Motorsports has shut down their race teams due to not having enough money to continue racing. Carl Long is now looking for other teams to join up with. Carl has 11 Dodge engines, including 3 new Busch engines which were prepared by Petty Enterprise's engine builder, Mike Ege. Carl will work for any team that runs Winston Cup, Busch, or Truck series. To contact Carl Long, e-mail him at team@mm85.com to receive contact information. In the meantime, Carl and SR Racing, with help from Glenn Racing, will team up to run a Dodge in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this August. The team is currently searching for sponsorship.

6/20/02

CART stock watch 

MPH closed at $8.60, Down $0.16 on volume of 77,200 shares.
$8.01 Bid - $8.95 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $8.60/$8.90
MPH Value Change - 1.83%
END
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe, Chicago

6/20/02

FIA issues ballast warning  THE FIA is warning F1 teams to attach ballast more securely, following an incident in Canada last week when several, large pieces of the stuff were dropped on the Montreal circuit. This week's Autosport magazine quotes an FIA source who says the issue will be high on the agenda at a meeting of the Technical Working Group, scheduled for next week. According to the source, three pieces of ballast - said to be in the region of 10 x 10 cms and weighing about four kilograms - detached themselves from an unidentified car on the final chicane during the race at Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Apparently the FIA are deeply concerned that the loose ballast could fly into GP crowds or into following cars, causing serious injury.  ITV

6/20/02

Tracks beg for Cup date, Woods look at Hamilton  This Tennessean article talks about Nashville and Kentucky and their trials and tribulations in trying to get a Winston Cup date.  It also says the Wood Brothers are looking at Bobby Hamilton to replace Elliott Sadler.

6/20/02

More HP for Ferrari  Ferrari has bolstered its attempt to wrap up the Formula 1 world championship as soon as possible by introducing a new evolution engine, according to this week's AUTOSPORT magazine. Michael Schumacher used the new engine to smash the lap record at Mugello last week, recording a best lap 0.7s quicker than the F2002 had previously gone at the Italian track. Although the German was keen to play down the role of the engine in the time, sources close to Ferrari have revealed that the team is intending to debut the powerplant at next month's British GP as it bids to secure the drivers' and constructors' titles. "Am I surprised by the record lap time?" said Schumacher after the test. "Yes and no, because the car has evolved a great deal since the last time we were here."

6/20/02

Minardi announces new sponsor  Minardi has announced a new sponsorship deal with global hedge fund manager, Quadriga. The company, founded in Austria by Christian Baha, has offices in Vienna, Frankfurt, Zurich, New York, Chicago and Grenada, and is hoping to use Minardi to break into the South East Asian and Australian markets. "We will go full speed into Asia and Australia, with the strength of the Minardi name and the popularity of Mark Webber and Alex Yoong supporting the company's expansion into these regions starting in the summer of 2002," said the company's founder and CEO. Minardi's Paul Stoddart added, "The Quadriga hedge funds already have a strong presence in their home market, but the Minardi team will help to establish the brand name in South East Asia. These are both young companies driven by an ambition to succeed and a desire to do things a little differently from the competition".

6/20/02

EuroSpeedway files for bankruptcy  According to this German newspaper article, the EuroSpeedway Laustiz announced today they are to file for insolvency! A call the EuroSpeedway office today resulted in a "all events including the German 500 will be to proceed as were planned" reply.  What this means is that the track will likely negotiate a restructured financial package with its creditors, as we doubt the German government will let it shut its doors.  MC

6/20/02

Action pictures from Portland Barber Dodge Pro Series Race

Left: CART shareholder and Barber Dodge Pro Series driver, Jon Vannini, climbs from his wrecked car.  Center & Right: - Julio Campos was very lucky to survive unscathed after he flipped and even broke his rollover hoop. The car rolled over and was sliding along upside down with the roll hoop intact (which likely weakened it), and then the chassis launched over one of the rear tires and came down squarely on the roll hoop, completely collapsing it. Campos was extremely lucky.  Note the scrapes on the top of his helmet when it scraped along the pavement.. 
Photos by Bill Kistler

6/20/02

DeWalt re-signs  According to the Winston Cup Scene Daily Newsletter, DeWalt Power Tools has decided to return to Roush Racing as Matt Kenseth's sponsor next season, according to a story in this week's NASCAR Winston Cup Scene. Roush Racing President Geoff Smith says in this week's issue that the agreement has been reached with only the final details being ironed out. "Now you can take DeWalt and Matt Kenseth out of the rumor mill," Smith said. Financial terms weren't disclosed, but the publication says the deal is for 2003 and that both sides hold options for 2004 and beyond.

6/20/02

European GP times altered  The European Grand Prix schedule has been altered to accommodate the World Cup on Saturday 22nd June.  All track sessions will begin 45 minutes earlier than usual, with Free Practice 1 beginning at 08.15 AM CET rather than 09.00. Free Practice 2 will then shift forward to start at 09.30. The pit lane will open for the Qualifying hour at 12.15, rather than the usual 13.00. Saturday sees the conclusion of the quarter final matches, with Spain facing Korea at home in Gwangju at 15.30 and Senegal taking on Turkey in Osaka, Japan, at 20.30. Practice, Sunday Warm-Up and Race times on Friday and Sunday have not been changed.

6/20/02

Hot News Items 

Villeneuve Set For Pay-Cut
Mercedes: Coulthard Staying Put
DC Looks For Michelin Boost
New Aero Package For Ferrari
Minardi Selling Up?
The Future Of Grand Prix Tires
Wet Weekend At The Nurburgring?
F1 News In Brief
F1 Birthdays

6/19/02

No Bull 5 details  To select the pairings of the eligible No Bull Five drivers with the five fans who are also eligible to win $1 million, officials from Winston will pair each driver with a fan using the results of a special Greyhound dog race at the Daytona Dog Track located just outside turn one at Daytona International Speedway. The drivers - #6-Mark Martin, #17-Matt Kenseth, #32-Ricky Craven, #28-Ricky Rudd and #24-Jeff Gordon, are eligible based on their finish in the Coca Cola Racing Family 600 last month. The event will be held on Friday, July 5th. NASCAR

6/19/02

Sharp fast in testing  Scott Sharp was the fastest of three drivers preparing for the SunTrust Indy Challenge on June 29 at Richmond International Raceway during testing June 18-19 at the ¾-mile oval. Sharp turned a top lap of 16.40 seconds, 164.634 mph in the No. 8 Delphi Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone. That was more than 4 mph faster than last year’s MBNA Pole speed of 160.417 set by Jaques Lazier. “I think all of the drivers had to learn a lot last year,” Sharp said. “We were happy with the progress we made at the race last year. We got very competitive by the end of the race, but felt we could come back here and get some different ideas. “We’re trying to get a different baseline and a more secure car. We ran some qualifying runs and some longer runs of around 100 laps.” 1996 Indy Racing League co-champion Sharp, who finished fifth in the inaugural SunTrust Indy Challenge last year, turned 250 laps during two days of testing. Also testing were his Kelley Racing teammate, Al Unser Jr., and Mark Dismore of Team Menard. Unser was the busiest of the three drivers at the test, turning 300 laps in his No. 7 Corteco/Bryant Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone. His best lap was 16.75, 161.190 – also faster than Lazier’s pole speed from 2001. “We had a great time here last year, and I’m really excited about coming back,” Unser said. “I talked with all of the guys the week after our race last year, and we all agreed it was such a fun place to race. “It was a ‘Saturday Night Fight,’ and we all expect it to be that way again. We’re here in the middle of NASCAR country, and last year, the fans accepted us with open arms, which was great to see.” IRL

6/19/02

Minardi wins TV money  It's pretty much a done deal now.  The Minardi team's immediate survival apparently has been assured as the FIA have awarded the team the TV money owed to the now-defunct Prost team. The FIA have given Minardi the £8 million contested. Minardi had insisted before that they would not be able to start next season if they could not get this money. An FIA source told Reuters that it was far from over: "It was a crunch day yesterday but there are still some hurdles to jump over."

6/19/02

CART Media Day in Chicago  Today’s “Chicago Grand Prix” media day at Chicago Motor Speedway was very well attended by local media outlets. The CART FedEx Pace Car Team was on hand along with Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kenny Brack to provide media representatives “hot laps” around CMS’s 1.029 mile “paper clip” oval. Also on hand were former Chicago Bears Defensive End Richard Dent and Chicago Motor Speedway CEO Gene Haskett. Tom Shaer, President, Tom Shaer Media, Inc. is providing Media Relations services for CART this year and judging by the turn out he and his staff did a fine job.

6/19/02

CART Stock Watch 

MPH closed at $8.76, - $0.26 on volume of 52,400 shares.
$8.13 Bid - $9.16 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $8.60/$9.20
MPH Value Change - 2.88%
END
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe, Chicago

6/19/02

At-Large slot open for Craftsman Pit Stop Competition  CART FedEx Championship Series pit crews do battle on every stop along the 20-race schedule not only to get their cars to Victory Lane, but also to post times quick enough to earn them entry into the Craftsman Pit Crew Challenge at California Speedway. Teams are awarded points at every race according to the total elapsed time the car spends in the pits, with the teams with the lowest cumulative pit-stop times given points based on the CART scoring system. The top four teams in those point standings earn entry to the final head-to-head shootout November 3rd during the CART weekend at the two-mile oval. Up for grabs in the shootout is a custom Waterford Crystal trophy and $50,000 in cash - as well as bragging rights for the bulk of the 2003 season. But next weekend's CART Chicago Grand Prix will boil the season's competition down to a single event as the team with the best times during the June 30 event will be granted an automatic wild-card entry to the CPCC shootout, which was begun in 1999 by Craftsman. After six races this season, Newman/Haas Racing crew of the #11 Lilly Toyota/Lola/Bridgestone of driver Christian Fittipaldi is atop the Craftsman leader board, taking the top honors at Milwaukee and Laguna Seca. Team Rahal's crew on the #9 Gigante Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone of Michel Jourdain Jr. is second, with Target Chip Ganassi Racing's crew of the #4 Target Toyota/Lola/Bridgestone of Bruno Junqueira standing third. Newman/Haas Racing got both of its crews into the top four after a strong performance at Portland as the crew of the #6 Havoline Toyota/Lola/Bridgestone of Cristiano da Matta moved into fourth place in the season standings by taking the maximum points available in the event.

6/19/02

NASCAR continues to win ratings game  In the final overnight ratings, last Sunday's Sirius Satellite 400 at Michigan International Speedway, televised by FOX, more than quadrupled the rating of that day's two open-wheel races (IRL on ABC and CART on CBS). ... In the national ratings from the previous week, the Pocono 500 was viewed by an estimated 7,961,000 people, a number more than 10 times greater than the estimated viewership for the IRL race (on ESPN2) that weekend, and more than 20 times greater than the CART event on SPEED Channel. And the NASCAR Busch Series reinforced its status as the nation's No.2 motorsports series; the series' race in Nashville was viewed by 1,230,000, a number exceeding IRL and CART combined. NASCAR

6/19/02

Leader Bonus at $110,000; three possible winners  The NASCAR Winston Cup Leader Bonus has reached $110,000 for this week's race at Sears Point. The bonus is awarded weekly to the race winner, if that winner also leads the series points standings. The bonus starts at $10,000 and increases weekly in $10,000 increments - "rolling over" - if a race winner doesn't also lead the points. At Sears Point, three drivers have a chance to collect the $110,000: Sterling Marlin, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon, the current top three in points. The highest payout from the bonus program was in 2000 when Bobby Labonte got $190,000 for winning the Brickyard 400 and leading the points. NASCAR

6/19/02

Southwestern Exposure  In an effort to gain more seat time on this challenging 2-mile layout, RCR drivers Robby Gordon, Jeff Green and Kevin Harvick are scheduled to compete Saturday in the Snap-On Tools/Jelly Belly 200 Featherlite Southwest Series, NASCAR Touring event. Among this trio, Harvick has the most experience in the 2,900-pound race cars; he was the 1995 Featherlite Southwest Series rookie of the year and has three series wins. His most recent victory in the series came in 1999 at the half-mile Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield, Calif. Ken Schrader, who won the Featherlite Southwest Series season-opener at Phoenix earlier this year, will field a car for veteran road course driver Boris Said. Saturday's event marks the 15th time the Featherlite Southwest Series has raced at Sears Point since 1987. NASCAR

6/19/02

Portland happy with CART race  This Oregonian article says big-time racing in Portland really hinges on CART coming back.  The article throws around attendance numbers of 125,000 for last weekend, and previous articles stated 65,000 attended the CART race.  We can tell you that if that many people bought tickets, the race would have made a profit given CART's sanctioning fee.  The fact of the matter is that they only sold around 45,000 tickets for race day, not the 65,000 that the Oregon newspapers reported, and we have inside sources for our info.  While the IRL would have loved to have 45,000 for its race last weekend (they had right around 20,000), 45,000 for CART is not stellar, and represents a drop from years gone bye at Portland.  The economy is weak in Oregon right now, which may have contributed to the problem. MC

6/19/02

Honda backing BAR a bit ironic  UPDATE Lucky Strike BAR Honda boss David Richards has said that if Jacques Villeneuve does not take a salary cut he will use up all of the team's development budget for 2003 on the 1997 World Champion.  Villeneuve's future at BAR has been in doubt for some time, but his airtight contract for 2003 seems set to save him for the time being. His salary, believed to be up to $20 million, is still proving a real bone of contention, however. "It must be demoralizing for him not to have a car to fight at the top," Richards told Italian magazine SportAutoMundo. "But his salary represents such a sum that I will have to cut the team's budget, and practically get rid of the development budget during the season."   6/19/02 - We find it a bit amusing that Honda looks set to back the BAR team in 2003 exclusively, and dump Jordan, yet it is the Jordan Honda  team that has scored points this year.  BAR has scored zero.

6/19/02

More on Shell Chicago ticket deal  If you fill up at Shell gas stations in the Chicago area three times, you can get free tickets to next weekends CART GP of Chicago.  This link gives you all the details.

6/19/02

Gordon brings new car to Sears Point  When it came to their road course program, Jeff Gordon and the No. 24 DuPont team followed the same old saying for five years - "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Each of Gordon's record seven road course victories came in the same car. He rolled off six straight wins in it starting at Watkins Glen in 1997, but the streak was broken in 2000 with a 23rd-place finish at Watkins Glen and was followed up with a third at Sears Point in 2001. The car won its final race at Watkins Glen in 2001, giving Gordon the record and his seventh win in the last nine road course events. Despite the car's phenomenal record, the driver of the "fire & flames" No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet feels that the competition has caught up with him. "That's why we decided to build a new car," said Gordon who has three wins, three poles and six top-five finishes in nine Winston Cup starts at Sears Point. "We had one car that won all those races and was so good that we were afraid to change it - afraid to do anything different. "As a matter of fact, I tested that car against a new car a couple of years ago and liked it better than the new car. So we stayed with that older car. But once we ran those races, we realized we weren't the best car. We won at Watkins Glen last year, but mainly because Robby (Gordon) fell out. So we built a brand new car and tested it at VIR (Virginia International Raceway). It was fast and we're happy with it. We're hoping to gain something with it.

6/19/02

Bernie already gave Minardi money months ago  The Guardian newspaper reported on Tuesday that Bernie Ecclestone instructed SLEC, the company that owns F1 TV rights, to advance Paul Stoddart's team £3.5m at the beginning of the season in order to keep the ailing team on the 2002 start grid. The report claims this was the first installment of the team's share of TV revenues due to go to Prost before the French team went bankrupt, but that Minardi has paid the money back, hence Stoddart's insistence that the team get their full share of the Prost TV money, despite opposition from the other teams.

6/19/02
Industry News

TV Ratings down across the board  This Chicago Sun-Times article talks about how sport TV ratings are down in General.  In fact the only TV ratings going up really, is NASCAR.  Therefore, CART and the IRL are not totally to blame for sagging ratings, but their silly war certainly is not helping either side.  As the article says, the networks are drowning in red-ink, and in our opinion, deals such as NASCAR's, whereby NASCAR makes a huge windfall, while FOX loses their shirt (continues to lose money) despite increased TV ratings, may soon be a thing of the past.  It's safe to assume that networks are going to want the sport organizations to share in the risk and the rewards.  When NASCAR's current contract expires, if FOX and NBC are still flowing red ink, you can bet they will be forced into accepting a far less lucrative TV contract.  MC

6/19/02

F1 Hot News

European Grand Prix Preview
Schumacher: Williams The Threat
New Chairman For Breakaway
Williams Have 'Best Engine And Drivers'
New Package For Renault
World Cup Fever Hits Schumacher
Toyota's 'Unbelievable' Progress
Lauda Returns To Nurburgring
High Downforce For Nurburgring
F1 Birthdays

6/18/02

CART stock watch 

MPH closed at $9.02, unchanged, on volume of 72,800 shares.
$8.39 Bid - $9.33 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $8.95/$9.20
MPH Value Change + 0.00%
END
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe, Chicago

6/18/02

Barry Green convinced they won Indy 500  Barry Green was interviewed on RPM2Night and stated the Indy 500 hearing went very well.  He feels strongly that the evidence presented shows clearly that Paul Tracy won the race and that no evidence was presented to prove otherwise.  He talked about how they presented evidence from different camera views all synched and all showing the same thing - Tracy was ahead when the light first turned yellow.  They also brought in a GPS expert who apparently used GPS data to prove their point.  He led us to believe that there is no way Tony George could not rule in their favor.  We shall see.  Now that the hearing is over, we can tell you what we know - some ESPN folks who said they saw the ABC video, a higher resolution version than the one we all saw on TV, told AR1 that it's clear, watching frame-by-frame in stop and go motion, that Tracy was indeed ahead when the light first flashed on.  On TV we could not see a light in the circle presented, but apparently in the studio on a better monitor, it's clear.  This comes from ESPN personnel, who if anything, would be pro-IRL and not admit Tracy was ahead.  But that is what they told us they saw.  Ironically, if this had happened years ago, the rules stated the order reverted back to the previous completed race lap, but not too long ago the rules were apparently changed to read "the leader at the time the caution period begins".  A caution period begins with the display of the yellow flag and/or yellow lights.  It now appears quite possible that Tony George, after seeing all the evidence, will have no other choice but to rule in Paul Tracy's favor.  Won't that be a shocker? Tony George certainly would gain a lot of credibility if he reverses the order of the finish, as that is a decision that would have enormous ramifications.  Mark C.

6/18/02

NASCAR catches cheater  NASCAR officials announced that Jim Long, crew chief of the No. 5 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, has been fined $20,000 and placed on probation until Dec. 31, 2002 for a rule violation found during pre-race inspection at Sunday’s Sirius Satellite Radio 400 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Mich. Long was penalized under Section 12-4-Q in the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series rule book, “Any determination by NASCAR Officials that parts and/or equipment used in the Event do not conform to NASCAR rules: Fuel Cell.” The penalty was a result of the team attempting to increase the capacity of the fuel cell through pressure.

6/18/02

Chris Pook heads to Montreal  UPDATE Our Montreal sources tell us ticket sales are going very well for the Montreal race and they expect to reach their 180,000 goal for three days quite easily.  In fact, we hear over 200,000 now appears attainable, a solid number for a first-year event.   6/18/02 - Chris Pook arrives in Montreal tonight. He will visit the Gilles Villeneuve circuit on Wednesday morning and then meet with the local media at his hotel downtown.  Now that their F1 race is behind them, and the concern of impacting F1 ticket sales no longer an issue, Wednesday's event will kickoff Montreal's big advertising push for the CART race.

6/18/02

CART causes earthquake in Indy  Chris Pook seems to have caused an earthquake in Indy with his new plan for CART.  A 4.0 earthquake to be exact - it happened at about 12:30 PM today.  Earthquakes are not common in the Midwest.

6/18/02

Cleveland GP News  This Cleveland Plain Dealer article says the sport of open-wheel racing is strong and exciting on the track. And solid individual ticket sales for the upcoming Cleveland Grand Prix support his optimism. It's the business side of open-wheel racing that is unclear. "From a business standpoint we have to continue to look at the environment in which we operate very closely," he said. The current environment is this: IMG is in the final year of its contracts with the city of Cleveland; CART, the race's sanctioning body and Marconi, the event's title sponsor. On top of that, there have been plans floated that include making Burke Lakefront Airport, site of the race, part of a lakefront development project. It adds up to a lot of "business" swirling around the event, now in its 21st year. Yet Young is far from panic mode. He reports a deal with the city is "in the process of being renewed." As for CART, while the series is perceived to be teetering compared to its open-wheel rival, the Indy Racing League, Young said a clear view of the landscape should be available soon. "Over the next eight to 12 months, certain things will play out to help determine that," Young said. Implied, but not stated, was that if CART is in business a year from now, so will the race in Cleveland. To date, for every positive that emerges for CART, such as recent revelations Ford is looking to be an engine supplier for the series next season, there is a lingering negative that must be addressed. This year, CART has had fewer than 20 cars participate at many events; last season's Cleveland race had 26. "Cleveland is very, very consistent in terms of ticket sales," Young said. "We're going to have a lot of people for the Grand Prix. The one area where we are down in revenues is hospitality suite sales. "That is a national trend in all sporting events. That is not a reflection on this event, specifically. But our ticket sales are solid. And our sponsorships have met our projections. And that is a true reflection of how strong this event is."

6/18/02

Ladder series news  Championship Auto Racing Teams today announced AJ Allmendinger and Marc Breuers as the Barber Dodge Pro Series participants in the first CART Mentor Program, to be held in conjunction with the CART Grand Prix of Chicago. The two American drivers will be guests of CART and the Toyota Atlantic Championship and will participate in almost every aspect of the race weekend, including debriefings, engineering sessions and team meetings, plus press and sponsor events, when possible. The intent of the Mentor Program is to increase the lines of communication between Ladder System drivers and key team personnel at the next level.  More...

6/18/02

Ford may yet axe Jaguar F1 program  The FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG is reporting that, despite comments from Ford that the F1 program is safe, the Detroit giant is by no means certain to continue with the Jaguar Racing program. The newspaper quoted Ford's Nick Scheele saying that: "I instructed Richard-Perry Jones to come up with a fundamental analysis. It will be completed in six weeks. Thereafter we will decide whether or not we will continue." Scheele did add, however, that he would like to see the project continue. "I'm a racing fan. We want to stay in Formula 1. But if Parry-Jones comes to the conclusion that getting to the top is only possible at substantial additional expense, he'll have to live with the consequences."  If the Jaguar F1 program gets axed, we see a real likelihood of Jaguar badging the Cosworth CART engine because Jaguars biggest market is the NAFTA market.  Jaguar sales in the USA are up 62%.

6/18/02

New head of F1 constructors group  According to this BBC article, Juergen Hubbert is the new chief executive of the company set up by Formula One carmakers to plan for a possible new grand prix series in 2008. The head of DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes car division replaces Paolo Cantarella, who resigned as chairman of GPWC Holdings earlier this month. GPWC also said that Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo would represent Italian carmaker Fiat as a director of the Dutch-registered company. Ford's Richard Parry-Jones has replaced former Jaguar boss Wolfgang Reitzle after he quit the carmaker for a new position in Germany in May. GPWC said its five-man board now consisted of:
Hubbert
Burkhard Goeschel (BMW)
Montezemolo
Parry-Jones
Patrick Faure (Renault)
GPWC said the next meeting with all Formula One principals would be held in early July. The existing agreement between teams and the holders of Formula One's commercial rights expires in 2007.

6/18/02

Stewart to pull double duty at Daytona  Tony Stewart will not only drive his #20 Home Depot Pontiac in the July 6 Pepsi 400 NASCAR Winston Cup Series race, but he has also signed up to wheel the #2 Home Depot Judd-powered Crawford with road racing veteran Elliott Forbes-Robinson in the Rolex Sports Car Series Jani-King Paul Revere 250. The Jani-King Paul Revere 250 will go green shortly after the conclusion of Bud Pole Qualifying for the Pepsi 400 on July 4. It's Stewart's second appearance this season behind the wheel of the #2 Crawford that competes in the Rolex Premier SportsRacing Prototype class. Stewart competed in the 40th anniversary of the Rolex 24 At Daytona in February. In February's Rolex 24, Stewart and the Crawford Race Cars team started in the third position and maintained a spot in the top five of the 80-car field before the car lost its engine in the 12th hour and was forced to retire from the race.

6/18/02

Nadeau in for Grissom at Sears Point  Led by veteran crew chief Greg Steadman and winning stock car driver Jerry Nadeau, the #44 Georgia-Pacific Dodge team heads to the two-mile Sears Point (Calif.) Raceway for Sunday's Dodge/Save Mart 350. Nadeau will substitute for driver Steve Grissom on the road course. Nadeau, who grew up driving on road courses, has won in go-karts, the Skip Barber Pro Series, and in some European Series. The six-year NASCAR Winston Cup veteran is a proven winner in Winston Cup competition, and has claimed over 15 victories in the Skip Barber Series, a road course series. Steadman is in his third year as a crew chief at Petty Enterprises. Steadman served as crew chief for two years with driver John Andretti, and now has taken the helm of the #44 Georgia-Pacific Dodge. He has a career-high finish of second at a very tough Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, and has always prepared competitive cars for Andretti at Sears Point.

6/18/02

F1 Hot News

Jordan-Cosworth Likely

Coulthard Off To Toyota?

Ferrari To Remain At Sauber

Soft Tires For Nurburgring

British Grand Prix Secured

Renault Target Top Teams

Minardi Decision Imminent

Webber To Test A Jaguar

F1 News In Brief

F1 Birthdays

6/18/02

Yet another NASCAR-based movie  According to this Sympatico Lycos article, Multihyphenate Ice Cube is in negotiations to come aboard to rewrite and executive produce with Matt Alvarez through their company CubeVision the MGM comedy feature "Race" for Hyde Park Entertainment. The project, aiming for a fall start, is set to go out to actors and directors. "Race" reteams Cube with MGM, the studio for which he recently wrapped shooting the lead role in the comedy "Barbershop." Cube will not take on acting duties in "Race." Set on the NASCAR circuit, "Race" is a fish-out-of-water story about a cab driver who finds himself the only black participating in a stock-car race.

6/18/02

CARA Charities announces new Runway madness event  One of the biggest social events of the year on the CART FedEx Championship Series, Runway Madness, hits the Las Vegas Strip in the fifth annual CARA Charities' presentation on Friday, November 1, at the Ontario (Calif.) Convention Center.  This year's extravaganza - called "runway madness Viva Las Vegas" - will include a different program in 2002 and will be totally "interactive" for the sponsors, guests and the entire CART community. For the first time in "Madness" history, the program will be seen on SPEED Channel as part of "CART Friday Night".  More...