Hot News
|
Thanks for visiting our Hot News page
Please visit our
Rumors page for all the scuttlebutt. If you have some
news, or can supply more information about one listed here,
e-mail us with as much supporting information as possible
and we may post it.
User agreement & disclaimer. Newer rumors supercede older ones of the same topic. Go to our
forums to discuss any hot news.
|
 |
Go to our
forums
to discuss this news.
|
DATE
|
News (chronologically)
|
9/13/02
 |
Skinner crashes, latest oval
track victim
UPDATE PRN's
Garage Pass Radio Show
talked with Mike Skinner just a little bit after seeing one of
several doctors Thursday. He was scheduled to see his doctor
in Florida Thursday night about his right knee which was
injured in the crash. It's the same knee he had operated on
this time last year. He's says he pretty banged up, but he
will be in New Hampshire to practice on Friday to see how he
feels. Depending on that he may ask Larry McClure [#4 car
owner] to find a sub for him. The quotes: "I'm gonna be
okay...I'm just beat up a little bit and my face is burned a
little bit. I'm gonna try it (practice) tomorrow (Friday) and
see how it goes. If I don't feel like can give them (the team)
100% and if I feel like I'm jeopardizing myself then I'll have
them put somebody else in it." Skinner thinks the Kansas
Speedway testing accident knocked the fuel pump off and
knocked the firewall out of the car and blew fire up in the
car. He says, "I don't remember, but I guess it was a pretty
big fire." The Kodak Chevy driver says his safety equipment
did "a great job" 9/12/02 - While testing at Kansas Speedway, Mike Skinner was
involved in a crash Wednesday. Heavy impact with the wall
caused the #4 Kodak Chevy to become engulfed in flames.
Skinner was treated at the infield care center and then taken
to a local Medical Center in Kansas City for further tests and
evaluation. He was released yesterday evening. |
9/13/02
 |
Vitor Meira fastest in Texas
Rookie Vitor Meira showed consistent speed Sept. 13 during two
practice sessions for the Chevy 500, turning the top overall
lap of the day of 23.6524 seconds, 221.457 mph at Texas Motor
Speedway. But the day was not so smooth for Indy Racing League
points leader Sam Hornish Jr. and his Pennzoil Panther Racing
team, locked in a tight championship chase. Meira’s top lap
came in the first practice on the 1.5-mile oval in the No. 2
Menards/Johns Manville/Pittsburgh Paints
Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone. But he was second to Scott Sharp
in the second session at 23.7299, 220.734. “We were doing
qualifying setup,” Meira said. “I don’t know if that’s quick
enough or not. The car feels really good. We’re still working
on it, but I think it’s going to be better for qualifying.”
MBNA Pole Qualifying starts at 2 p.m. (EDT) Saturday. 1998
Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever Jr. was second overall
at 23.6800, 221.199, turned in the first practice in the No.
51 Red Bull Cheever Racing Dallara/Infiniti/Firestone. 1996
IRL co-champion Sharp was third overall at 23.7193, 220.833,
leading the second practice in the No. 8 Delphi
Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone. Hornish had a rough first day as
he tries to become a repeat series champion. He leads second
place Helio Castroneves by 12 points in the series standings
entering the season finale, which starts at 3 p.m. (EDT)
Sunday and will be televised live on ABC. During the first
practice, an oil-line connection broke in Hornish’s No. 4
Pennzoil Panther Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone, causing a fire
under the engine cover. Hornish had turned only seven laps in
the car with a top lap of 24.1594, 216.810, good for just
24th. That was just part of the hard work that the Pennzoil
Panther crew was forced to produce today. Rookie Dan Wheldon,
Hornish’s new teammate, crashed in Turn 4 during the second
practice. Wheldon was unhurt and cleared to drive, but the
left front of his No. 15 Pennzoil Panther
Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone was damaged, forcing repairs. “We
have a little bit of work to do,” Hornish said. “We’re pretty
much a practice session behind right now, but we know what we
need to do for qualifying, so we’re not worried about that.
We’re just going to go out and do whatever it takes to make
the car fast for the race because that’s all that’s really
important.” Castroneves had no mechanical dramas. But he was
11th in the first practice at 23.9060, 219.108 in the No. 3
Marlboro Team Penske Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone before
picking up the pace in the second practice at 23.7843,
220.229, good for sixth in that session. “Today we worked on
the race setup in both practice sessions,” Castroneves said.
“As the afternoon went on, the Marlboro Team Penske car was
handling better and better. In the second session, I was able
to run side by side with several other drivers, so we were
able to simulate the conditions we’ll see on Sunday.” |
9/13/02
 |
Tickets on sale for 29th Toyota
GP of Long Beach It’s a ‘shore thing’! Tickets are
now on sale for the 29th Annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long
Beach, set to take place April 11-13, 2003. The 2003 Toyota
Grand Prix of Long Beach -- Southern California's Official
Spring Brake -- will again feature the cars and stars of the
CART FedEx Championship Series, led by two-time Long Beach
winner Paul Tracy and the sensational Cristiano da Matta. Also
scheduled for the action-packed weekend is the
always-entertaining Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race, now in its 27th
year. In addition, several other exciting race series will
take their turns running through the streets of Long Beach.
Complimenting the top-notch racing will be a variety of
family-oriented activities throughout the weekend, as well as
the immensely popular Rock-N-Roar Concert Series, which has
featured internationally known acts like Third Eye Blind and
the Goo Goo Dolls in the past. Race fans will again have free
admission to the Automobile Club of Southern California
Lifestyle Expo, featuring the latest high-tech products and
services, racecars, games, and simulators. In addition, the
extreme sports demonstrations will return, as will the kids'
fun zone. “As always, we continue to strive to put together a
weekend of activities that will have maximum appeal to all our
attendees,” said Jim Michaelian, president and CEO of the
Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. “In that regard, we hope
to make some exciting announcements in the near future.” For
the fourth consecutive year, the race circuit configuration is
unchanged, although due to the Pike at Rainbow Harbor
construction project downtown, two Grandstand locations (Nos.
2 and 34) have been eliminated. The circuit, which includes
the downtown streets of Long Beach surrounding the Long Beach
Convention and Entertainment Center, is 1.97 miles in length
and comprises 11 turns. Nineteen grandstands line the circuit,
which include reserved seats, limited general admission seats
and seating for various club ticket packages. Ticket prices
for the three-day event range from $40 for a Sunday-only
general admission ticket to $108 for a three-day ticket that
includes Saturday and Sunday reserved seating in upper levels
of the grandstands. Pre-paid parking packages are available
and can be purchased when ordering tickets through the Grand
Prix ticket office. Credit card orders for the 2003 event can
be placed by calling the ticket hotline toll-free at (888)
82-SPEED. Copies of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach ticket
brochure can also be obtained by calling the ticket hotline.
The ticket brochure includes a circuit map with grandstand and
parking locations as well as ticket prices and a ticket order
form. Handicapped seating, Bosch CART Garage passes, super
photo tickets and hospitality club packages are also
available. For updated Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach ticket
information, news or announcements of special race week
activities, visit
www.longbeachgp.com. |
9/13/02
 |
CART stock watch
MPH closed at $4.69 Down $0.10 on
Volume of 14,100 shares.
$4.06 Bid - $5.00 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $4.60 /$4.75
MPH Value Change Down 2.09%
DOW Jones Down 66.72 or 0.8% on Volume of 1.5 billion shares.
NASDAQ Up 11.72 or 0.92%
S&P 500 Up 2.9 or 0.33%
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe - Chicago |
9/13/02
 |
Hornish has had 'special' Chevy
engine
Now we know why Sam Hornish Jr. has been winning so many
races, and appears to have more HP than the Penske team in the IRL, a
series where HP wins races. This Indy Star
article says - With Team Penske's Chevrolet engine not
producing quite the horsepower Panther Racing's Chevy is
giving Hornish, Castroneves admittedly was on the defensive in
Chicago. He doesn't expect that to be the case this
week.........Owner Roger Penske, who is switching his team to
Toyota engines next season, takes the blame for Castroneves
not having the special engine manifold Panther is using.
"Don't take this as any kind of excuse, (but) the facts are
the facts," Penske said. Rumor has it Penske may
also not be getting the best stuff from Chevy because he is
dumping Chevy, much like he dumped Honda when he went to
Toyota in CART. |
9/13/02

 |
Feud splits Andretti's
This Bloomberg
article says - The split in Indy-car racing is
carrying in its draft one of America's most famous racing
families. Mario Andretti, 62, winner of the Indianapolis 500,
Daytona 500 and Formula One world champion in 1978, has joined
the board of Championship Auto Racing Teams Inc.'s Indy
circuit. Son Michael, winner of a record 42 CART races, just
bought his own racing team and may move it to the rival Indy
Racing League. While Mario pledges his loyalty to CART in
almost every sentence, Michael, 39, looks ready to provide the
upstart IRL circuit with another high-profile catch following
CART co-founder Roger Penske's defection last season. ``It
confirms the confusion of open-wheel racing,'' said Derek
Daly, a former Formula One driver and now an analyst on News
Corp's. Speed Channel and Viacom Inc.'s CBS. ``The family that
has known the most intimate details of the sport at the
highest level is confused as to which camp they should be
in.''.....................As an owner, Michael must choose
between where the team's sponsors may lead him and the series
his father champions. ``He wants me to stay in CART, I want to
stay in CART,'' he said. Prodding from sponsors, who may favor
the IRL because it has the prestigious Indy 500, would help
him make up his mind, he adds. He said he expects to make a
decision within two weeks. His team's major sponsors, British
American Tobacco Plc and Honda Motor Co., declined to comment.
The IRL has gained ground in recent years. It was given a big
boost this season following the switch by Penske, whose teams
have won 12 Indy 500 races. Honda, which supplies engines to
both the Kool Green and Motorola teams, will end its CART
relationship and produce motors only for IRL beginning next
year. As IRL pushed ahead, CART's shares have mirrored the
older circuit's declining fortunes, sliding from a high of
$35.19 in 1999 to around $5 in recent weeks. They closed at
$4.79 yesterday. Both Mario and Michael emphasize their
differences aren't personal and that it's possible the senior
Andretti may yet run a racing team for Michael. Still, the
split weighs on both. ``This is very delicate,'' Mario said.
``He has his own beliefs. He has to express them.'' Michael
also said he is conflicted and trying to separate his personal
life from his business affairs. ``We just have different
views,'' Michael said. ``What's wrong with that? You don't
always agree in work, it doesn't get in the way of
relationships. Business is business, family is family.'' |
9/13/02
 |
IRL on spending spree
This Dallas Morning News
article says, Have CART and the IRL switched places?
That question is being asked frequently these days of the two
open-wheel series. Five years ago, the IRL was the new league
that was cutting costs and giving poorly funded teams a chance
to compete. CART was the established league with extravagant
spending by big-money teams that had backing from major
sponsors and top engine manufacturers. Things certainly have
changed. The cost of running a competitive IRL team next
season is expected to double while CART is implementing
programs of reduced spending to try to stay afloat. With Honda
and Toyota becoming engine suppliers in the IRL next year, the
expense will go up. An engine leasing agreement with either
company is expected to cost about $1.6 million. Chevrolet,
which entered the league this year, will be slightly less
expensive. The fear by some IRL teams is that the engine
manufacturers will do what they did in CART by choosing who
gets to develop their engines and charging enormous sums to
everyone else. The engine programs cost in CART had been as
high as $3 million. IRL teams are pleading with league
president Tony George and vice president Brian Barnhart not to
let the series drift down the same path that caused problems
for CART. "If it gets to that point, I will quit right on the
spot," said IRL team owner A.J. Foyt. "And that's what I told
Tony and Brian. I will never put myself in a situation like
that again, but I don't think it will come to that. Tony will
not let that happen." |
9/13/02
 |
McGehee joins Cheever
Robby McGehee, winner of the 1999 Indy 500 rookie of the year
title, joins fellow American drivers Eddie Cheever Jr. and
Buddy Rice at Red Bull Cheever Racing for this weekend's Chevy
500 at Texas Motor Speedway. ”I think this will be the best
opportunity I've had in an Indy car to win a race," McGehee
said. "The Infiniti has great power, and the Red Bull Cheever
Racing team works hard to make their cars fast. I am really
excited to be a part of this program. I want to thank Eddie
and the entire team for this opportunity." ”Said team owner
and driver Eddie Cheever Jr.: "An opportunity came up to run
Robbie. Since this is the last race for this equipment, I am
glad to give a driver of his caliber a ride for this weekend's
race. I will be equally happy if any of the three Red Bull
cars win on Sunday." ”McGehee, 29, will drive the No. 53 Red
Bull Cheever Racing Infiniti in the season finale at Texas
Motor Speedway on Sept. 15. The car will feature the familiar
Red Bull paint scheme found on the No. 51 car driven by
Cheever, and the No. 52 car of Rice. All three Dallara chassis
will be powered by the Infiniti Indy V8 engine and use
Firestone tires. |
9/13/02

 |
Miami GP of Americas sponsor
lining up Grand Prix Americas, Downtown Miami’s
premier auto street race, has secured four premium companies
as sponsors for Grand Prix Americas to be held October 4 – 6,
announced Chuck M. Martinez, president and general manager,
Grand Prix Americas. The sponsors include (more to follow we
hear):
Story |
9/13/02
 |
Tagliani tops Friday practice
Alex Tagliani topped Friday morning practice in Rockingham
England today with a time of 24.811 sec. Tora Takagi was
2nd and Cristiano da Matta third. 2/10th of a sec
covered the top 11 car. Dario Franchitti and Patrick
Carpentier rounded out the top five. Next up,
qualifying.
Results |
9/13/02
 |
Schumacher tops first Monza
practice Ferrari's Michael Schumacher was in
top form in the first practice session for the Italian Grand
Prix, topping the time sheets with a lap of 1m22.869, some
eight-tenths of a second ahead of last year's winner Juan
Pablo Montoya in a Williams BMW. Montoya's team-mate Ralf
Schumacher was third fastest, with Jaguar teammates Pedro de
la Rosa and Eddie Irvine sandwiching Renault's Jarno Trulli in
fourth and sixth places respectively. Rubens Barrichello did
not complete a flying lap after sitting out the session with
suspected brake problems. |
9/13/02
 |
Rockingham enjoying Indian
Summer England has had an "Indian Summer" since last
Tuesday with warm, still, sunny days. All looks set for great
racing and spectating conditions at Rockingham, hazy sunshine
and temperatures in the low 70s Farenheit. Everything looking
good! |
9/13/02
 |
Miami race ads
A reader writes to tell us there are loads of billboards
alongside the I-95 Palmetto Expressway in Miami advertising
the upcoming CART/ALMS Grand Prix of the Americas. |
9/13/02
 |
Coulthard hits back at Irvine
McLaren ace David Coulthard has angrily retorted to Eddie
Irvine's latest verbal bashing. In the Northern Irishman's Sun
newspaper column recently, the outspoken Irvine mused that
'David's career has been killed by team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.'
Now, as the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza gears up to host the
opening day of practice for the Italian Grand Prix, David
Coulthard has heard enough and broken his silence. 'I want to
know which is the real Eddie Irvine,' the Scot said fiercely
in the Monza paddock. 'Is it the one we see or the one we read
about? 'It's nice to see that he is unique to Formula One
because it is difficult to understand someone who has got two
faces. 'Maybe his future is night-club hopping with his
hangers-on who tell him how wonderful he is.'
|
9/13/02
 |
Russian GP scrapped
The Russian motorsporting media here in Monza are reporting
that plans for a Grand Prix on Nagatino Island, near Moscow,
have been scrapped. Eugeni Panteleev, Russia's chief of
science and industrial politics, was quoted as saying that the
area will be exclusively used for residential zoning. A Grand
Prix bid in the city of St Petersburg remains the final hope
for a Russian Grand Prix. |
9/13/02
 |
Latest F1 Hot News
Arrows Saga: FIA
Decide To Wait
HHF: Sauber 'Team
Of Future'
Speed Bumps Cause
Headaches
Montoya Defends
Maiden Win
Yoong With Point
To Prove
Lauda Admits
Webber Talks
Schumacher: No
Signs Of Retirement
Burly Brawn Sits
Monza Out
Trulli and Fisi
Play Second Fiddle
Da Matta's
Chances At 20%
Tomas Enge Fails
Drug Test
Ferrari Expect
Closer Race
Has F1
'Black-Balled' Villeneuve?
Fisi Admits
Engine Concerns
Coulthard Hits
Back At Irvine
Trulli Fends Off
Reputation
F1 News In Brief |
9/12/02

 |
Da Matta now rates F1 chance as
50-50 This Canadian Press
article says, Newman-Haas team owner Carl Haas wants a
decision about Da Matta's plans. Meanwhile, Da Matta is
waiting to hear from Toyota and expects to make a decision
before the United States Grand Prix on Sept. 29 in
Indianapolis. ``Toyota is a very unique Formula One team that
comes in with a good budget and good prospects for the
future,'' Da Matta said Thursday. ``I think it could be very
good for me.'' ``I cannot rush them to make a decision and I
cannot ask them to wait longer for me.'' ``I think Formula One
is a good challenge. Toyota is still very young and I'm going
to be young with the series so maybe we will have an
opportunity to grow up in the series together.'' On Thursday,
Da Matta initially described his chances of going to F1 as
``about 20 per cent,'' but later called it ``50-50.'' He
tested for Toyota on May 17 in France and described his test
``as very good.'' |
9/12/02
 |
Da Matta would rather race
bicycles than in the IRL In this Canadian Press
article, about CART point leader Cristiano da Matta
- What he did rule out was running for the rival IRL series.
``For sure not IRL,'' he said. ``I'd prefer going back to
Brazil and racing bicycles rather than racing IRL. All oval
racing _ I don't have any interest.'' |
9/12/02
 |
Rockingham ticket sales
Officials say 32,000 seats have been sold for race day at
Rockingham, England on Saturday with near 40,000 expected.
The track seats 52,0000. Corporate sales are up over
2001. |
9/12/02
 |
Falcon enhances wind-tunnel
program: Indy Racing League chassis manufacturer Falcon
Cars has hired C&B Aerodynamic Consultants as a technical
partner to enhance its wind-tunnel program for the next three
years. Falcon Cars, based in Concord, N.C., is one of three
companies that will build chassis for IRL competition in 2003.
The others are Dallara and G Force. C&B already is
involved with the IRL, building the airbox used for General
Motors’ Chevrolet V8 engine. C&B, formed in 1991, has worked
on wind-tunnel programs for a variety of open- and
closed-wheel race and road cars. Ken Anderson, Falcon
technical director, worked with C&B Aerodynamic Consultants
when he was the chief designer of the 1997 G Force, which won
the Indianapolis 500 with Arie Luyendyk and the IRL
championship with Tony Stewart. “We’ve been working together
all summer and have been expanding our relationship,” Anderson
said. “C&B is a great resource for our company, and we’ve
decided to commit to a three-year program. We’ll be able to
utilize their expertise and experience to improve on our own
aerodynamic and CFD (computational fluid dynamics) programs.” |
9/12/02
 |
Priestley, Hallisky continue to
improve: Kelley Racing driver Jason Priestley and crew
member Bernie Hallisky continue to improve as they recover
from serious injuries received in separate accidents Aug. 11
at Kentucky Speedway. Both Priestley and Hallisky are now in
intensive physical therapy and rehabilitation programs.
Doctors expect Priestley and Hallisky to make complete
recoveries. Priestley has undergone surgery to repair broken
feet, a broken vertebra and nasal and facial bones following
his accident during the final pre-race practice for the
Kentucky 100 Infiniti Pro Series event. On Sept. 6,
Priestley’s doctors removed stabilizing hardware from his feet
to allow increased bone density as his feet continue to heal.
New casts were applied following the simple outpatient
procedure to remove the hardware. It is anticipated these
casts will be removed in approximately three weeks and
replaced with removal casts that will allow him to begin
weight-bearing therapy. Hallisky is involved in a daily
therapy program to rebuild muscles atrophied from inactivity
due to the extensive surgery he underwent to repair his broken
leg, hip and pelvis. He will work into weight-bearing
rehabilitation program. Hallisky received his injuries in a
pit accident during the Belterra Casino Indy 300 at Kentucky
Speedway. |
9/12/02
Industry News |
Japananese and USA companies
continue march to China United States-based printing and
multimedia company R. R. Donnelley & Sons has announced that
its new US$29.5 million joint venture printing facility in
Shanghai will be operational next month. Donnelley chairman
and chief executive William Davis yesterday said the firm had
a 49 per cent stake in the Shanghai venture, which was
approved last December. Nissan Motor is set to become
the latest foreign car giant to make an aggressive expansion
into the huge mainland market, with a reported investment of
100 billion yen (about HK$6.48 billion) in a proposed joint
venture. Yesterday, an official in Tokyo with Japan's
third-largest car-maker yesterday confirmed it was negotiating
with Dongfeng Automobile, the mainland's No 2 vehicle maker,
to significantly boost its presence in the mainland market. He
said negotiations had been taking place for several months but
gave no details on the proposed project. Japanese news media
reported that Nissan and the Hubei-based vehicle maker planned
to establish a joint-venture in central China's Hubei province
with an initial investment of about 43 billion yen. |
9/12/02
 |
CART stock watch
MPH closed at $4.79 Down $0.03 on
Volume of 137,100 shares.
$4.13 Bid - $5.16 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $4.75 /$4.85
MPH Value Change Down 0.62%
DOW Jones Down 201.76 or 2.35% on Volume of 1.4 billion
shares.
NASDAQ Down 35.77 or 2.72%
S&P 500 Down 22.55 or 2.48%
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe - Chicago |
9/12/02
 |
Forsythe buys all of Grosfeld's
CART stock AutoRacing1.com learned today that Gerald
Forsythe has bought up all of James Grosfeld's CART stock.
Obviously he doesn't think CART is going away anytime soon.
We believe that brings Forsythe ownership close to the 23%
limit he was just granted today. If you add what
Grosfeld sold (7%) to what Forsythe previously owned (15%)
you'll get what he is allowed to own (23%). |
9/12/02
 |
CART announces amended stock
plan Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. announced
today that it has amended its stockholders rights plan to
permit Gerald R. Forsythe and his affiliated entities to
increase their aggregate ownership of CART stock to 3,377,400
shares, or 23%, without triggering the stockholders rights
plan. Forsythe, in consideration for the amendment, has agreed
to vote and exchange all shares acquired in excess of 15% of
the outstanding stock consistent with the recommendations of
the Board of Directors of CART on all strategic matters for a
period of three years. The stockholder rights plan was
established to ensure that CART shareholders receive fair
value and equal treatment in the event of any proposed
takeover of the company or other strategic actions. The Board
of Directors believes that this amendment is in the best
interest of CART and its shareholders. The amendment is being
made at the request of Forsythe and not being made in response
to any proposal to acquire CART. Under the amended plan, if a
person or group, other than Forsythe, acquires or commences a
tender offer to acquire 15% or more of CART's common stock,
except pursuant to a tender or exchange offer which is for all
of the outstanding stock of the company at a price and on
terms approved by the Board of Directors, the other
stockholders will be entitled to purchase shares of CART stock
at a purchase price equal to 50% of the then current market
price. |
9/12/02
 |
12th annual Phil Casey golf
tournament Three Indy legends and two rock bands
have donated items that will help raise money for the
designated charities of the 2002 Phil Casey Indy Racing
Charity Golf Tournament. The annual charity golf outing,
presented this year by Infiniti, William D. Ward (Wachovia
Securities), Frank Weiss Machines and Spot on Cables, is
Monday, Sept. 16 at the Tour 18 golf course in Fort Worth,
Texas. It’s the 12th year that Casey, the technical director
of the Indy Racing League, has organized this charity
tournament. All of the tournament’s proceeds go to charity,
with the Pediatric Diabetes Center at Valley Children’s
Hospital in Fresno, Calif., receiving half each year. This
year, Casey allowed 1998 Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever
Jr., who supports the tournament every year, to select the
other charity. Cheever chose the remaining half of the
proceeds to be directed to the Brian’s Wish Foundation.
Simpson Racing Products has donated three helmets that have
been painted as replicas of helmets worn by Indy legends – A.J.
Foyt, Johnny Rutherford and Al Unser – representing 11
Indianapolis 500 wins. The helmets are up for bid on a live
eBay auction until the end of the golf tournament Monday.
Bidders can find the helmets under the Motorsports Memorabilia
Indy 500 section. An autographed ’02 Tom Petty and the
Heartbreakers T-shirt that has been professionally framed by
Indianapolis’ Frame and Save was donated by the band for
auction. It can also be found on eBay under Music Memorabilia:
Rock-n-Roll (Autographs and Apparel). The Red Hot Chili
Peppers rock band donated a limited edition Fender Squier
Strat electric guitar that has been signed by each band
member. The guitar is also up for auction on eBay. Golfers
participating in the tournament will be eligible to win an
exact replica of the Maurice Lacroix “Indy 500” watch won by
race winner Helio Castroneves in 2002. In addition, several
IRL drivers and teams have donated memorabilia as raffle and
door prizes. Motorsports artist Sam Bass has again donated one
of his limited edition NASCAR prints signed by the artist.
Other event sponsors of the 2002 Phil Casey Charity Golf
Tournament include Target Chip Ganassi Racing, PROtential,
Toyota/TRD and Speedway Engine Development. Casey organized
his first charity tournament for a special reason – his
granddaughter Jennifer. She was diagnosed with pediatric
diabetes at a young age, and Valley Children’s Hospital was
instrumental in helping Jennifer to lead a normal life. The
Brian’s Wish Foundation is named for Brian Hall, who passed
away on May 23, 2002, from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
Hall won over many in the Indy Racing community with his
courage and attitude, including Cheever. Cash donations to the
charity tournament are also accepted. Make checks out to the
Brickyard Foundation, Inc., and send them to: Kris Callfas,
Indy Racing League, 4565 W. 16th St., Indianapolis, IN 46222. |
9/12/02
 |
No Jag contract for Webber
Today in Monza Niki Lauda was asked about Webber's future at
Jaguar, and said: "We have not yet come to an agreement.
"Stoddart still has an option on Mark and we haven’t been able
to find a compromise so far. We don’t know what decision we
will take regarding Webber and Irvine." |
9/12/02
 |
Kruseman to make IRL debut
Popular sprint-car driver Cory Kruseman will make his Indy
Racing League debut with PDM Racing in the Chevy 500 on Sept.
15 at Texas Motor Speedway. Kruseman, 31, from Ventura,
Calif., will drive the No. 18 PDM Racing, Inc.
Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone on the 1.5-mile oval at Texas. The
300-mile race starts at 3 p.m. (EDT) and will be televised
live on ABC. “It’s a dream of mine to run an Indy car,”
Kruseman said. “I’m pretty excited that I’ve got a great group
of people behind me to help make this happen. “I think my
biggest goal is to go out and finish the race. I’d like to get
all the laps to get all the experience I can and hopefully not
go out and make any rookie mistakes. I think it’s neat that a
sprint car driver is actually making it. That’s where we’re
all hoping to go, the Infiniti Pro Series and the IRL.”
Kruseman passed the IRL rookie test with PDM in February 2002
at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, completing the four-phase test in
just 81 laps with an unofficial top speed of 207.6 mph. Few
American short-track drivers have enjoyed more success in
recent years than Kruseman. He won the coveted USAC Valvoline
Indiana Sprint Week championship this year, capturing four
victories in the eight-race series. Kruseman also is the
reigning champion in the Sprint Car Racing Association series,
as he won 15 features en route to the title in 2001. Kruseman
is second in the 2002 SCRA standings with four victories in
the series, based primarily on the West Coast. In 2000,
Kruseman won the prestigious Chili Bowl Midget Nationals at
Tulsa, Okla., after finishing runner-up in the event in 1999.
Kruseman also scored six SCRA victories in 2000 and finished
second in the Non-Winged World Championship series, a title he
won in 1999. Kruseman, nicknamed “The Kruser,” has shown his
versatility by competing in a variety of vehicles, including
USAC Silver Crown cars, sprint cars, midgets, three-quarter
midgets, stock cars and karts. He uses that vast experience to
instruct students at the Cory Kruseman Sprint Car Driving
School at Ventura (Calif.) Raceway. He started the school in
2000. |
9/12/02
 |
Reminder 2002 Barber
Dodge Pro Series Champion A.J. Allmendinger will appear on
RPN2Night this evening to discuss his championship-winning
season and his plans for the future. Allmendinger's
performance this season, which saw him take six wins and four
poles during the ten-race season on his way to winning the
championship by a record 68 points over Rafael Sperafico, has
attracted the attention of several car owners. Allmendinger,
of Hollister, California, came in second place in the Skip
Barber National Championship in 2001 before racing in the New
Zealand Formula Ford Championship during the winter of 2002.
The young driver is a Stars of Tomorrow Winner and has a
number of karting championships to his credit as well. The
young racer is currently working on securing a position within
a top-line team for next season, and is already looking
forward to going racing again. Allmendinger will sit down with
host John Kernen on RPM2Night, which airs at 6:30 p.m. Eastern
Time on ESPN2. |
9/12/02
 |
Gloy fined The
Trans-Am Series has penalized Tom Gloy Racing 28 championship
points and $20,000 for a rules infraction during Round 9 of
the championship on Sept. 1 at Denver. The penalty was
equivalent to the points and purse which would have been
awarded to second-place finisher Butch Leitzinger, driver of
one of two cars entered by Tom Gloy Racing in the event. Tom
Gloy Racing was penalized for violation of Rule 3.3.3 in the
2002 Trans-Am Series Rule Book, which states that “Only
Trans-Am approved ignition systems are allowed.” During
post-race technical inspection, Leitzinger’s car was found to
have an unspecified ignition amplifier box, which served as
the basis for the penalty. “The Tom Gloy Racing team contends
that a Trans-Am Series technical official gave verbal approval
for use of the component in question,” said Trans-Am Series
Chief Steward Terry Dale. “We have not been able to
definitively determine if that is the case, and if it is,
appropriate action will be taken to prevent a re-occurrence of
any similar situation in the future. “Regardless of that
argument, however, verbal assurance does not override the
written rule,” Dale added. “The bottom line is that the
integrity of our rule book must be protected.” |
9/12/02
 |
Rockingham secures last-minute
title sponsor
Saturday's CART FedEx Championship Series battle at the
Rockingham Motor Speedway will be in 'Sure' hands as the
leading anti-perspirant brand in the United Kingdom signed on
as the title sponsor for Saturday's Round 15 of the 2002 CART
Championship. The Sure For Men Rockingham 500 is the new name
of the 211-lap event, which will get underway with Friday's
practice and qualifying, followed by Saturday's battle on the
1.479-mile oval which saw its first Champ Car action in an
exciting event last year where Gil de Ferran passed polesitter
Kenny Brack on the last lap to take the win. |
9/12/02
Industry News |
Transcripts from The inaugural
SPEED Chat With Jim Liberatore This
article is a transcript of a chat with SPEED TV's Jim
Liberatore reveals some interesting things about SPEED TV's
plans for the future. Did you know you can hear F1 and
CART races live on Sirius Radio? Did you know that more
F1 races will be on network TV in 2003? |
9/12/02
 |
Enge tests positive
The FIA has issued the following statement ahead of this
weekend's F3000 Championship decider. Following an anti-doping
test at the Hungarian Grand Prix, Tomas Enge, Formula 3000
driver for the Arden International team, tested positive for a
substance prohibited by the FIA under Appendix L, Chapter II,
Article 4 of the International Sporting Code. Tomas Enge has
been summoned to appear before the World Motor Sport Council
at its next meeting which will be held in Paris on Tuesday,
October 1st, 2002. In conformity with the regulations, a
driver may request a re-test of the original sample within 8
days of being informed of a positive test result.
|
9/12/02
 |
Minardi to use Cosworth
Minardi Team boss Paul Stoddart stated today in Monza the team
will use Cosworth engines in 2003 because the Ferrari engines
were just too expensive. The team will also retain
Malaysian sponsorship. |
9/12/02
 |
No action on Arrows
Desperate not to lose anymore F1 teams for good, the FIA has
announced that it has no plans to take any action against the
Arrows team at the moment. The Federation noted that the team
has missed the recent races and said that "if this failure
were due to insolvency, Arrows would lose its rights under the
Concorde Agreement. However at present the FIA has no hard
evidence that Arrow's absence is due to insolvency rather than
to some other cause". The FIA concluded that in the
circumstances it will wait until various negotiations and
proceedings relating to Arrows have been concluded before
considering any formal action.
|
9/12/02
 |
ALMS - Miami, race
details
EVENT: Cadillac American Le
Mans Challenge Grand Prix Americas American Le Mans Series
Round 9 of 10
LOCATION: Miami Downtown Street Circuit Miami, Florida
1.57-mile temporary racing circuit (15 turns)
WHEN: Saturday, October 5, 2002 – 4 p.m. (EDT)
LENGTH: 2 hours, 45 minutes (timed event)
CARS: Four classes of American Le Mans Series sports
cars: Le Mans Prototype (LMP) 900; LMP 675; Grand Touring
Sport (GTS); Grand Touring (GT).
TELEVISION: SPEED Channel (Live) Airtime: 4:00 p.m.
(EDT) Eurosport (Tape delay) Airtime: 20:00 (Central European
Time), October 13, 2002
TICKET INFO: Online:
www.miamirace.com; Telephone: (888) 248-RACE.
SUPPORT RACES: Trans-Am Series for BFGoodrich Tires
Cup. ALMS is co-feature with CART FedEx Championship Series.
SCHEDULE: Friday, October 4
8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. ALMS Practice
12:00 noon – 1:00 p.m. ALMS Practice
3:40 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. ALMS Qualifying (GTS & GT)
4:05 p.m. – 4:25 p.m. ALMS Qualifying (LMP 900 & 675)
Saturday, October 5
8:55 a.m. - 9:20 a.m. ALMS Warm-up
4:00 p.m. - 6:45 p.m. Race |
9/12/02
 |
Huth no longer President of
IMSA Dennis Huth, who has been President of the
International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) since May of
2001, is no longer affiliated with the organization. Scott
Atherton, President and COO of the Panoz Motor Sports Group,
and President of ALMS, said that Huth’s departure from the
organization was by mutual understanding. Atherton said that
his office would work directly with the existing management
team of IMSA in assuming day-to-day operations of the
organization until a permanent replacement is confirmed. IMSA
is a sanctioning body for professional road racing in North
America, including the American Le Mans Series, Star Mazda
Series, Panoz Racing Series and the Super Truck Racing
Association of North America. |
9/12/02
 |
Latest F1 Hot News
What's New For
Monza?
Tifosi Turn Backs
On Monza
F1 News In Brief
(1)
McLaren Target
Development
Arrows: FIA Losing
Patience
Schumi Aims To
Please Tifosi
Anthony Davidson
To Jordan?
Irvine Prolongs
Coulthard Spat
Bernoldi Looks On
Bright Side
F1 News In Brief
(2) |
9/11/02
 |
Castroneves, Rice fined
Indy Racing League Vice President of Operations Brian Barnhart
issued penalty notices Sept. 11 to drivers Helio Castroneves
and Buddy Rice for unsportsmanlike conduct during the Delphi
Indy 300. Citing Rules 8.1 and 8.3(A.) of the 2002 Indy Racing
League Rule Book, Castroneves and Rice were both fined
undisclosed amounts for on-track actions during the event
Sept. 8 at Chicagoland Speedway. “The Delphi Indy 300 was a
thrilling race that produced close, exciting open-wheel racing
and a memorable finish,” Barnhart said. “What makes this type
of racing possible is a code of ethics that’s been developed
by the drivers and Indy Racing League officials over the past
seven years. Both Helio and Buddy displayed actions on the
track during the race Sunday that were not appropriate.”
Castroneves and Rice may appeal their penalties prescribed in
Section 12.1 of the Indy Racing League Rule Book. An appeal
may result in an increase, decrease or no change to the
penalty. |
9/11/02
 |
Yates employee resigns
UPDATE "On behalf of
Robert Yates Racing and our team members, I want to apologize
to our many fans, sponsors, associates and NASCAR for the
incident that took place at Richmond International Raceway
last Saturday night after the race. After meeting with my team
members I feel confident that in moving forward, all those
associated with RYR will compete and represent themselves in a
manner that our fans and sponsors will be proud of." Gary
Putnum Replaces Steadman as Crew Chief of the #44 Gary Putnum,
32, has been named as crew chief for the team effective
immediately. Greg Steadman, who had been crew chief, will now
take the position of Manager of Shop Operations. Steadman’s
duties will include overseeing the day-to-day activities of
car preparation for all cars in the shop at Petty Enterprises.
“The opportunity to bring a talent like Gary into a leadership
position and further organize what we are doing at the race
shop at the same time was too good to pass up,” said Kyle
Petty, CEO of Petty Enterprises. “Greg Steadman suggested we
look at this kind of setup and when we saw we could add Gary
to that mix, we went for it. “This is the kind of move that
might not seem as big as it is. This is a major positive move
for Petty Enterprises, and one that will help us as we
continue to move forward with our organization,” he added.
Putnum joins Petty Enterprises after two years with MB2
Motorsports, serving as car chief for driver Johnny Benson. A
native of Vermont where he developed on the NASCAR Featherlite
Modified Series, Putnum has been working in NASCAR Winston Cup
competition for seven years. He played a key role in the
development of MB2 Motorsports and served as car chief for
Benson’s career-best two runner-up finishes in 2000. “The
Petty’s are tradition and that tradition is of being winners
and being champions,” said Putnum. “They have never stopped
doing what it takes to make it back to the top, and that is
what I want to help do with this Georgia-Pacific team.
9/11/02 - Robert Yates Racing engine research and development
employee Larry Lackey, who punched the team's Winston Cup
driver, Ricky Rudd, following Saturday night's race at
Richmond has resigned, team officials confirmed Wednesday. |
9/11/02
 |
Stewart shoving incident update
From the Boston Herald Courier - Sullivan County
investigators have wrapped up their probe of Tony Stewart, but
the NASCAR driver will wait another two weeks to learn if he
will be charged with assaulting a fan at Bristol. "The
investigation is pretty much finished except to turn it over
to (prosecutors)," Sullivan County Sheriff Wayne Anderson said
Tuesday. "It will be turned over on Monday." Prosecutors have
said the case will be presented to a county grand jury at the
end of the month; the grand jury will decide whether to issue
an indictment in the case. Meanwhile, Anderson has made public
an incident report filed by Deputy Shane Christian -- the
officer who said he witnessed the encounter between Stewart
and the woman. Christian wrote that he saw the 31-year-old
NASCAR driver shove the woman against a race trailer at 11:30
p.m. after the running of the Sharpie 500 on Aug. 24 at
Bristol Motor Speedway. He filed the report four days after
the alleged incident. "He took his left arm and shoved her out
of the way. The female's back struck the Home Deport car
hauler and she appeared to trip over either tires or rims that
were lying at her feet," Christian wrote. Stewart yelled an
obscenity and told the woman to get out of his way, Christian
wrote. The deputy said he spoke with Shaffer immediately after
the incident and asked if she wanted to charge the driver,
according to the report. The woman apparently was unharmed in
the incident, authorities have said. [Editor's Note: If
indeed Mr. Stewart did shove the women against the hauler at
which time she fell over tires and could have been injured,
Stewart, who is on probation by NASCAR and his sponsor Home
Depot and who was going to a counselor to control his hot
temper, might have finally done himself in. How come
other drivers don't have this problem in the crowded garage
area?]. |
9/11/02
 |
CART stock watch
MPH closed at $4.82 Down $0.14 on
Volume of 12,300 shares.
$4.19 Bid - $5.16 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $ na /$ na
MPH Value Change Down 2.82%
DOW Jones Down 21.44 or 0.25% on Volume of 1.0 billion shares.
NASDAQ Down 4.65 or 0.35%
S&P 500 Down 0.13 or 0.01%
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe - Chicago |
9/11/02
 |
Shepard to attempt Loudon
return
Morgan Shepherd is set to return to New Hampshire
International Speedway this week with hopes of qualifying for
the New Hampshire 300 on September 15th. This will be Morgan's
sixth attempt in the NASCAR Winston Cup 2002 season with his
#89 Racing With Jesus Ford Taurus. Morgan has been pleased
with several sponsors coming on board this season.
Catchfence.com, Motorsportsweb.com and Racing With Jesus
Ministries continue their associate sponsorship, however
primary sponsorship is needed. One race sponsorship deals are
available and additional associate sponsorship packages are
also available. This is a dedicated Christian race team and
driver who are looking for someone to come on board and help
them be the competitive team they know they can be and who
will appreciate their values. "This has been an exciting year
for us with the Craftsman Truck Series and returning to
Winston Cup on a limited schedule," said Morgan. "It has been
a struggle, but God has been good to us and blessed us in so
many ways. I want to thank everyone who continues to believe
in us and who supports our efforts. I love NHIS and always
look forward to returning there to our many friends and fans." |
9/11/02
 |
Surfers
remembers 9/11
CART will be racing in Surfers Paradise, Australia in about
one month. Today some people in Surfers got together to
create this human flag on the beach there in Surfers in honor
of the USA and the fallen victims of 9/11. The town is
gearing up for the expected 300,000+ weekend attendance.
All flights from Sydney to Brisbane have been sold out for
that weekend since June. |
9/11/02

 |
Penske praises IRL, doubts only
one series now In
this Dallas Morning News
article, Roger Penske justifies his move to the IRL,
but also backpedals on one Indy Car series now, realizing that
Pook is going to save CART.....Almost a year after making the
move that rocked the world of American open-wheel racing,
Roger Penske is convinced he made the right decision to leave
CART and join the IRL. “Overall, I've definitely been
satisfied," Penske said. "I love this series because it's so
competitive. The championship is coming right down to the end,
and that's the way racing should be – not one guy way out
front." …………… "Quite honestly, from what I had seen from a
CART perspective, the IRL was more viable long term because it
wasn't a public company," Penske said. "It didn't take a
wizard to make that decision, and it wasn't based on emotion.
When you see what public companies are going through these
days, it's a tough situation." Penske said before the Indy 500
in May that he expected one series would fold within the next
18-to-24 months. He wouldn't repeat that prediction last
weekend in Chicago. He still would love to see the two leagues
merge in some fashion, but he doesn't hold out much hope of
that happening. "The thing that hindered the leagues getting
together was the fact that Tony did not want to be involved in
a public-company environment," Penske said. "I think Tony has
done a great job here. He has stayed on course and put his
money where his mouth is. He hasn't varied at all, and he has
supported all the teams."…………….. "The facts are the facts.
From my perspective, we need one open-wheel series, but Pook
is a very savvy guy. He understands marketing and sponsorship
and the impact of television." |
9/11/02
 |
NASCAR penalties
Robert Yates Racing team member Larry Lackey and driver
Ricky Rudd were fined and placed on probation by NASCAR for
their altercation in the garage area following Saturday
night’s NASCAR Winston Cup Series race at Richmond
International Raceway. Lackey was fined $10,000 for his role
in the altercation between the two while Rudd, driver of the
No. 28 Ford Taurus, received a $5,000 fine. Both were placed
on probation until Dec. 31. Todd Berrier, crew chief of the
No. 30 Chevrolet Monte Carlo of driver Jeff Green, was fined
$5,000 for an unapproved left front spring found in post-race
inspection. The coil winding of the spring was not evenly
spaced and did not meet the standards set forth in the rule
book. He was penalized under Section 12-4-Q: “Any
determination by NASCAR Officials that parts and/or equipment
used in the Event do not conform to NASCAR rules.” The
infraction also cost Green 25 driver points and team owner
Richard Childress 25 owner points. |
9/11/02
 |
NASCAR ratings on TNT up
TNT continued its strong ratings surge both in Winston
Cup and Busch Series racing this weekend in Richmond,
Virginia. Saturday night's Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 with The
Looney Tunes registered a 4.2 national cable rating for TNT,
up 20% from a 3.5 in 2001. Friday night's Funai 250, also from
Richmond, scored a 2.2 rating, up a whooping 47% from a year
ago when the Richmond Busch race earned a 1.5 national cable
rating. The Richmond race concludes a streak of four straight
Winston Cup races on TNT, all substantially up from the
previous year. During that period TNT averaged a 4.8 national
cable rating, up 17% from a 4.1 during the same four races in
2001. For the year, through six Winston Cup races, TNT is up
9%. to a 4.8, compared to a 4.4 in 2001. The Busch Series also
continues to show terrific growth. Year to date, the Busch
Series is averaging a 1.6 national cable rating on TNT, up 14%
from a 1.4 in 2001 for six like races. TNT also telecast the
lead-in Busch Series race for the Daytona 500 in February,
earning a 2.7 rating. The same race aired on Fox in 2001,
garnering a 3.2. |
9/11/02
 |
Andretti agrees to stay with
Petty
After publicly putting the heat on John Andretti to make
a choice on where he wants to go, it appears that Kyle Petty
received his answer. Speaking to at the Hickory Grove Baptist
Church in Charlotte on Monday night, Petty stated that John
Andretti has agreed to stay with Petty Enterprises, but that
nothing official has been worked out concerning a contract,
and that his statement was not an official announcement that
Andretti was returning as the driver of the No. 43. But with
the Winston Cup rides becoming mostly filled, it seems like
this is a done deal. |
9/11/02
 |
Hendrick names new crew chief
Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick today named
Peter Sospenzo as crew chief of the No. 25 UAW-Delphi
Chevrolet through the remainder of the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup
Series season, replacing Brian Pattie. "It's exciting for me
to join an operation like Hendrick Motorsports," said Sospenzo,
who has nearly 20 years of Winston Cup experience. "My goal is
to work hard, produce results on the race track and make the
most of the opportunity I've been given." Sospenzo, 45, will
assume the position immediately, leading the team into
Sunday's event at New Hampshire International Speedway with
driver Joe Nemechek. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native most recently
worked with drivers Jeremy Mayfield and Mike Wallace as crew
chief of Penske Racing's No. 12 Winston Cup entry from 1999
through 2001. He joined the team in December 1997, serving as
car chief before being named crew chief in May 1999. In his
first full season as crew chief in 2000, Sospenzo led Mayfield
to two victories, four pole positions, three runner-up
finishes, six top-fives, 12 top-10s and 10 top-10 starts.
Pattie will return to his role with Nemechek's NASCAR Busch
Series operation as team manager and crew chief. |
9/11/02
 |
Frentzen seeking damages
Arrows settled with Champion Recruitment out of court before
yesterday’s hearing, but lawyers acting on behalf of the firm
have confirmed that the petition was still in place, and that
Frentzen had become the petitioning creditor. He drove for the
team in 11 races this year on a race-by-race agreement but
left after the German Grand Prix. Frentzen is also involved in
a legal dispute with Jordan, which sacked him without warning
before the German Grand Prix in 2001. The 35-year-old is
seeking compensation for breach of contract. Cosworth is also
taking action against Arrows, seeking over $2 million for
outstanding engine lease payments. |
9/11/02
 |
Wallace - Bulldoze New
Hampshire
According to this Las Vegas Sun
article, Rusty Wallace said he hopes New Hampshire
International Speedway will make "major, major changes"
following this weekend's Winston Cup race at the 1-mile oval.
The track surface proved to be hazardous in two of the turns
that were repaved prior to the July 21 race at the Loudon
track. "They need to get started with the project as soon as
they can after we run there on Sunday," Wallace said. "They're
going to have to come in there and bulldoze the place; they're
going to have to rebuild the track, reconstruct the turns.
They need to come in there and put some banking in the turns
and make it a permanent fix, not just the band-aid-type
approach that's been going on there for the last couple of
seasons." |
9/11/02
 |
On this day....
On this day in 1978, the Italian Grand Prix was held at a
sunny Monza circuit. Tragically, one of the fastest drivers of
his era, Ronnie Peterson, was killed when his Lotus crashed on
the opening lap. The Swede, who won ten races in his eight
year career, was 34 years old. American Mario
Andretti, at the age of 38, went on to clinch the World
Driving Championship that day, and today remains one of only
two American drivers (Phil Hill being the other) to reach the
pinnacle of auto racing. He and the late great Giles
Villeneuve put on a stirring battle for the lead the entire
race, with Andretti finally making the race winning move in
his Lotus 79 Ford by out braking Villeneuve going into
the Paribolica with six laps to go. He then stretched
his lead over the hometown favorite Ferrari at the checkered.
Afterward, both Andretti and Villeneuve were penalized 1
minute for jumping the standing start, handing the race win to
a lucky Niki Lauda in a Brabham. |
9/11/02
 |
Monza forecast
As our Italian Grand Prix correspondent arises at the
Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, he is reporting that rain is set
to fall on this eleventh day of September. Moisture is
expected to clear with morning showers tomorrow, while an
overcast, fine and mild weekend of racing, with tops around
23-degrees, is tipped. Our weather source at Monza, however,
remains firm that: 'Rain is a possibility for all three days.'
Stay tuned for updates.
|
9/11/02
 |
New aero pieces for BAR
British American Racing will unveil new updates of their
aerodynamic package for this weekend's high-speed blast at
Monza. David Richards, Team Principal, said: 'We had a very
constructive test in Monza last week and have been working
hard with Honda to overcome any reliability concerns following
Spa.' An uprated Honda engine, that endured a difficult test
last week with several failures, will feature in BAR and
Jordan's Monza package |
9/11/02
 |
Latest F1 Hot News
The Drivers: Who
Likes Monza?
Reprieve For
Ailing Arrows
Ralf 'Steadily
Improving'
F1 News In Brief
(1)
Asiatech To Launch
Chassis
Toyota In Good
Shape
Can Jaguar
Continue To Leap?
Yoong's 'Fresh
Approach' For Monza
McLaren Still
Target Wins
McNish: Many
Options For '03
F1 News In Brief
(2) |
9/11/02
 |
Memorial service at Rockingham
As the world stands still to remember the events of last years
attacks in New York and Washington, the British will stand
shoulder to shoulder with their American colleagues from CART
today, who are in the UK preparing for this weekends
Rockingham 500. A minutes silence at 13:46 will be observed by
the Oak tree that was planted at last years Rockingham 500 as
a memorial to the victims of the attacks. There is a plaque
bearing the following inscription - “Ordinary people worldwide
have been united by America’s mourning. We remember those
whose spirits embody the Land of the Free and the Brave.” A
memorial service will be held by the CART community in the
evening at Deene Park Chapel, led by CART minister Father Phil
De Rea. As a mark of respect no further press releases or
announcements will be made from Rockingham today. |
9/10/02
 |
CART ladder series champions on
RPM2Night
Two of Championship Auto Racing Teams' brightest rising
American stars will receive national television coverage over
the next week as CART Toyota Atlantic champion Jon Fogarty and
Barber Dodge Pro Series champion AJ Allmendinger appear on the
motorsports magazine show, RPM2Night. Allmendinger, winner of
six races and four poles on his way to the Pro Series
championship, will be highlighted this Thursday, September
12th. Allmendinger, a 20-year old from Hollister, California,
defeated Brazilian Rafael Sperafico in the championship by a
record 68-point margin. Fogarty, winner of two races and four
poles during his Atlantic championship run, will appear
Wednesday, September 18th. Fogarty, a 27-year old from Portola
Valley, California, secured the season championship by winning
the final race of the year at the Shell Grand Prix of Denver
weekend, defeating Canadian Michael Valiante by a narrow
11-point margin. Both drivers will sit down with host John
Kernan in RPM2Night's Charlotte studio. RPM2Night, aired on
ESPN 2, can be seen each weeknight at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. |
9/10/02
 |
SAFER Wall to be announced for
Dega
From the
USA Today - Talladega Superspeedway is expected to
announce this week that it is lining about 3,000 feet of its
inside retaining walls with the SAFER impact-absorbing barrier
system. The project should be complete in time for the Oct. 6
EA Sports 500. The barrier system, which debuted on the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway's outside retaining walls in May,
is designed to absorb some of the forces generated in a crash.
Although the majority of racing crashes involve the outside
wall, the barrier needs further development before it can be
used on high-banked tracks. Installing the barrier on
Talladega's inside walls could help absorb energy from
secondary impacts. Testing of a modified version of the
barrier suited to hang on the outside walls of high-banked
tracks might begin this week |
9/10/02
 |
Lepage for Cope at NHIS
From the Derrike Cope
website: Cope
saw an orthopedic surgeon today to have his knee looked at and
it was confirmed that he has a broken left fibula (leg). Also,
his right scapula (shoulder) is broken. Due to the injuries at
opposite points of the body, he is unable to use crutches and
is using a wheelchair. There is no operation necessary so it
is just a healing process. He will be getting an MRI and CT
Scan Tuesday. Jay Robinson and Elaine Hughes (General Manager
/ Public Relations) were by Cope's side in Richmond and he is
very appreciative of their help. He estimates that he will be
unable to drive for 5-6 weeks. Cope said that Kevin Lepage
will be driving the #37 Friendly's Ford this weekend in
Loudon/ New Hampshire Intl Speedway. Lepage drove for Quest
Motor Racing at Charlotte this past May in the #38 Ford owned
by Cope. Friendly's Ice Cream Corp will sponsor the #37 Ford
at NHIS |
9/10/02
 |
Walker optimistic
Gordon Kirby's Current
article
at cart.com is about Derrick Walker. In it we found this quote
particularly interesting considering all the rumors that CART
is dying floating around: "It's a strange situation when we've
got this time of turmoil and we've got the economy in the tank
but I've never seen so much activity over the last ten years
when it comes to interest in CART or in sponsorship or in
being involved in racing. I don't know if it's all going to
percolate out. There's a lot of uncertainty as well but
personally, I've never been so busy chasing potential
sponsors." |
9/10/02
 |
Papis to replace de Ferran
Penske Racing, Inc. announced plans to continue fielding two
Marlboro Team Penske entries at Texas Motor Speedway on
Sunday, September 15th. Two-time National Champion and
full-time Marlboro Team Penske driver Gil de Ferran will sit
out the event due to injuries suffered in a crash at
ChicagoLand Speedway. His replacement will be veteran
open-wheel competitor Max Papis. “Obviously I am extremely
disappointed that I will be unable to fight for our third
consecutive championship. I respect Dr. Bock’s decision and
want to thank the medical staffs of the Indy Racing League,
ChicagoLand Speedway and Saint James Hospital in Olympia
Fields, IL. I was in good hands throughout this difficult
process,” said de Ferran. “I sincerely wish that my teammate
Helio Castroneves can bring the championship home for Marlboro
Team Penske and I’m sure that Max Papis will do a good job for
our Team.” “We understand that Dr. Bock’s decision was made
for the right reasons. We are also quite fortunate that a
driver of Max’s caliber was available under these
circumstances,” said Tim Cindric, President of Penske Racing.
“Although we share Gil’s disappointment in not being able to
compete for the 2002 IRL Championship, ultimately Gil’s health
and well being is our primary concern.”
|
9/10/02
 |
CART stock watch
MPH closed at $4.96 Down $0.14 on
Volume of 56,400 shares.
$4.33 Bid - $5.28 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $4.92/$5.00
MPH Value Change Down 2.75%
DOW Jones Up 83.23 or 0.98% on Volume of 1.4 billion shares.
NASDAQ Up 15.49 or 1.19%
S&P 500 Up 6.62 or 0.73%
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe - Chicago |
9/10/02
 |
Earnhardt Jr. quote of the week:
When asked about his Busch win on Friday night in Richmond
with his new JR Motorsports/DEI Team: "The win in the Busch
car was fun, and it was cool, but that car was so awesome my
two-year old niece Karsyn could have won with it." |
9/10/02
 |
Arrows saga continues
UPDATE Arrows press
release - The High Court in Leeds (UK) today agreed to
postpone any hearing regarding the future of Arrows for 28
days. Arrows is delighted that its creditors and the Court
have given the Company a chance to secure the best possible
future and the Company remains committed to achieving this.
The process of selling the team is ongoing and that is where
all efforts will continue to be concentrated at this time.
Arrows will make further statements as and when news is
available. [We assume this means the team won't compete
at Monza this weekend.] 9/10/02 - Arrows trucks have reportedly turned back from Calais after
setting off for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza. Yesterday,
the Arrows team successfully avoided a legal petition from
Champion Recruitment which threatened to file charges if the
money they were owed was not settled. |
9/10/02
 |
Tony Stewart's thoughts on the
current NASCAR point system: Does the current point system
need to be altered, favoring wins over consistency? "That's a
question I was asked a lot at last year's awards banquet. The
way I look at it is that it's the same for everybody, so it's
fair. There's nothing unfair about it. It rewards consistency.
The system that's in place is pretty good, and we all know
what it is when we show up in Daytona at the beginning of the
year. It works for me, and it obviously seems to have worked
for NASCAR for however long they've had it in place." How
would it change things if the point system were altered and
more points were rewarded for a win? "I think you'd see a lot
more guys crashing, throwing around 3,400-pound race cars. If
someone takes a chance and makes a mistake, and they're in
front of you, it's pretty hard to stop 3,400 pounds once it's
moving. Now we have that to a certain degree now, but what I'm
saying is that it'll become a lot more common if the points
system is altered to favor race wins over consistency. That
would put all of us at more of a risk, in my opinion." |
9/10/02
 |
Marlin hurting but expects to
race at NHIS: Sterling Marlin, still in intense pain
yesterday after a hard crash at Richmond International Raceway
this past Saturday night, said if he needed to race today, he
couldn't do it. ''I'm too sore to even climb in the car,''
Marlin said from his home in Spring Hill, where he is resting.
''Hopefully I'll start feeling better on into the week. I plan
on racing this weekend.'' Marlin crashed early in the Richmond
race and had to be helped from his car as he was wincing in
pain. He was checked at the infield hospital and released.
''Nothing was broken,'' Marlin said, ''but I'm so sore I can
hardly move. I must have stretched muscles and tendons in my
back, chest and neck. I'm scheduled to go to a chiropractor
[this morning] to get some treatments.''
Tennessean |
9/10/02
 |
Rudd and Yates crew member
exchange blows UPDATE
Did you happen to see Totally NASCAR last night and catch a
glimpse of Ricky Rudd? Looks like when the Yates press release
said a punch was thrown “in the direction of Ricky Rudd” by a
member of the Yates team, they forgot to mention the punch
connected. Rudd was sporting a full blown shiner on his left
eye as he appeared on Totally NASCAR. The incident was sparked
when earlier in the week Rudd had commented on the equipment
he was given, specifically the engines and their reliability.
Who was the team mate who threw the punch, none other than
crewman and engine man Larry Lacky. Obviously with Rudd on his
way out, and his earlier problems with Michael “Fatback”
McSwain, one has to wonder if there are more serious problems
in the Yates shop. 9/8/02 - STEVE POST, Public Relations
Representative --28-- Havoline Racing -- "There are a lot of
reports as to an incident that happened in the garage area
following tonight's race. An employee of Robert Yates Racing
and Ricky Rudd got into a heated discussion, apparently about
some comments Ricky had made earlier in the week. After a
brief heated discussion, a punch was thrown and a water bottle
was thrown in return. The two people were separated and both
have left the speedway property at this stage now. We want to
stress that there is some incorrect information that this was
fan. This was not a fan, it was an employee of Yates Racing.
At this stage, this is an internal problem that will be dealt
with by Robert Yates Racing." CAN YOU IDENTIFY THE CREW
MEMBER? "Yates Racing has asked that I not do that." WHO THREW
THE PUNCH AND WHO THREW THE WATER BOTTLE? "The punch was
thrown in the direction of Ricky Rudd and the water bottle was
thrown in the direction of the crew member." |
9/10/02
 |
Did you know?
-- Sam Hornish Jr. has now won
four Indy Racing League events in 2002. His other wins came at
Homestead-Miami Speedway, California Speedway and Richmond
International Raceway.
-- Sam Hornish Jr. has now won seven IRL events in his career,
tying him with Scott Sharp for second on the all-time win
list. Buddy Lazier leads with eight career victories. Hornish
is the only driver to win seven races in two seasons.
-- Sam Hornish Jr. has won four IRL events on 1.5-mile tracks.
-- Helio Castroneves is the only driver who has been running
at the finish of every race this season.
-- Just 0.9387 of a second separated the top 10 cars at the
finish of the Delphi Indy 300. |
9/10/02
 |
Latest F1 Hot News
Lotus Name To
Return?
Arrows Pay Out
Creditor
Optimism Fades For
Monza
Coulthard: It
Still Hurts
Massa Favorite For
Toyota?
Renault Expect
Tough Weekend
Ferrari Pilots
Ponder Monza
F1 News In Brief
(1)
F1 News In Brief
(2) |
9/10/02
Industry News |
Mickey Thompson murder trial
update We
promised to keep you informed on progress in the trial of
Michael Goodwin for the deaths of Mickey and Trudy Thompson,
here’s the latest. Goodwin was arrested on December 13, 2001,
for their murders and was charged with double homicide with
three special circumstances: Murder for hire, Double murders,
Murder for financial gain. He remains in the Orange County
Jail without bail. This past Friday, September 6th, there was
a hearing for Goodwin’s 995 Motion before Judge Frank Fasel.
This was
delayed until September 20. (A 995 motion is an appeal by a
defendant to overturn the rulings made by a judge in a
Preliminary Hearing) . Also on September 6th, Judge Francisco
Briseno heard a 1538.5 defense motion to suppress evidence
seized by officers responding to search warrants. The defense
filed a 1050 motion to delay the hearing. Judge Briseno was
not favorable to the delay and ordered an informational
hearing for September 20 in his courtroom, to be held
immediately following the 995 motion in Judge Fasel's court.
The start of the trial has been on the calendar for some time
and is scheduled to begin December 9, 2002. The defense said
they would like to move the trial date to March of 2003,
however, Judge Briseno was not receptive to another delay and
asked them to be ready for trial on December 9th. |
9/9/02
 |
Was that really racing?
2nd UPDATE [Editor's Note:
the last letter on this topic we promise] Dear Mr.
Zimmermann, Let me remind you that Shigeaki Hattori was so bad
CART yanked his license, yet the rev-limited cars take so
little talent to drive that Hattori held up the leaders for
over 30 laps last year at Texas, not able to get around him.
I'm sorry, but 100% throttle racing isn't a sport, but just a
show like the oh-so popular WWF. If the auto racing
community wants its drivers to be considered athletes (we have
struggled for so many years to get the drivers to be
considered athletes by the stick and ball crowd) then we had
better not lose sight of the fact that racing had better be
about the the athletes. Yes, the customer should be
entertained, and CART's parades certainly are not
entertainment to many, but rev-limited, pedal-to-the-metal
driving where all cars are essentially equal has nothing to do
about driving skill and everything to do about putting on a
'show.' The greatest athletes in the world are
respected for their 'athletic' ability to hit home runs, throw
footballs, sink three-pointers, drive a golf ball 300 yards,
etc. If our drivers are nothing but robots purely at the mercy
of how much HP their engines make, driving cars that are so
planted to the track even washed up drivers can contend for a
race win, we have lost sight of what is sport and what is a
show simply to make money. I cringe the day when I hear
some stick and ball fan tell me "yeah, auto racing is just
like the WWF, you call them guys athletes? Taxi cab
drivers in NY City bump and bang and can drive better than
those so-called drivers you have." Certainly the WWF is
very popular where the fans cheer and scream, but is it a
sport? And I'll close by saying, you won't see any IRL
drivers being courted seriously for F1, where even the great
Juan Montoya struggles to win races. That my friend, is
a race series where the very best drivers are true athletes,
the best our sport has to offer, our Major Leagues.
Mordichai Rosen Another response Dear
AutoRacing1.com, regarding the Rosen & Zimmermann letters -
IRL is similar to many of today's new "artists." They lack
musical talent so they continually strip down to less and less
clothing. This is appealing to the naked eye, but the ultimate
goal is not the music but money. Do you think world class
composers and musical scholars look at and respect Britney
Spears and NYSNC as tremendous artists? I think not. In
a similar fashion, do you think Britney Spears and NYSNC will
be around and remembered in another 10-15 years? What about
Bach or Beethoven? IRL is similar to all of this. The driver's
lack the talent to drive in the upper levels of open-wheel
racing, so they load the downforce on the cars, reduce the hp,
pack them together, and hope nobody dies. Great show and money
maker (?), but like NYSNC and Brittney, the focus is on the
money, not the sport. Similar to the composer or musical
theologian, does this type of racing get the respect of the
most learned racing driver or racing fan? Nope. Will history
look back and say how skilled those IRL driver's were? Hardly.
Just look at the history of the IRL's premier event, the Indy
500, since the IRL's inception in 1996, it continues to drop
in popularity. Why? Because no one respects it anymore.
Finally, if I wanted to drive in the IRL, how does a racing
driver hone his/her skills for this type of racing? I think
I've got it. I'm practicing right now by laying my right foot
flat to the floor and holding my left hand lower than my
right. I can see it now, CART and F1 teams should be lining up
for my ability to avoid accidents. D. Hughes Atlanta,
GA 9/9/02 - Dear Mr Rosen, I
spent Sunday afternoon on the edge of my seat at Chicagoland
Speedway. Regarding your note to Autoracing1.com from
September 8, where do I begin? "The rev limited cars are so
equal, the drivers could run side-by-side for 20 laps and no
one could gain an advantage." "We have lost sight of the fact
racing is about the talented athletes and made a complete show
out of it whereby the driver means almost nothing." Yes, the
cars are pretty equal, and their high downforce aero packages
let them run side by side at 220 mph. Would you prefer they
run single file and keep 5 - 10 car length intervals? (like
they did at one of the other races I attended this summer at
Chicago Motor Speedway). Is your argument that 'equal' cars
prevent driver skill and experience from being a factor? That
flies in the face of every 'how much is it the driver, how
much is it the car' comparison I've read in the past 25 -30
years. Whatever advantage there was to be gained between
Hornish and Unser was through subtle adjustments to their
racing lines in order to be an inch or two ahead when they
passed over the start - finish line - without screwing up and
crashing out the whole field in the process. That's not
something you discover (in those conditions) by trial and
error. Any mistake or a slight lifting of the throttle by
either of them would have given the other driver a clear lead
and would probably have cost 4-5 positions on top of it.
"Exciting finish, but no talent required." Really. No talent
(or bravery) required to run dozens of laps side by side at
220 mph without giving the other guy more than a few inches
advantage at any given time. Did you see Buddy Lazier come
from nowhere to finish 3rd? Did you see the cutting and
thrusting (Rice, Cheever, Castroneves, Giaffone) going on back
in the pack, without anyone making the 'big mistake'. Please
see Webster's for a definition of talent. " It's all about how
much HP your engine builder can give you." Always has been,
always will be. In every form of the sport. That's racing. "My
grandmother could drive a car that is so underpowered and so
planted to the track at 100% throttle." Get an agent and get
her in a car. This year, I've attended 3 CART, 2 IRL, 2
Winston Cup, 1 World of Outlaws and 1 NHRA event. Over the
past 35 years, I've attended literally hundreds of races,
including a couple of dozen Grands Prix events, 34 Indy 500s,
Can Ams, Trans Ams, NASCAR, CART, IRL, and everything in
between. The last 30 laps of yesterday's Delphi 300 were the
finest racing I've seen since the Mears-Johncock battle at
Indy in 1982. Period. Paul Zimmermann 9/8/02
- A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com, I saw some very close
racing at Chicagoland today and what a great finish it was.
However, I could not help but notice that every driver ran
100% throttle the whole race. The rev limited cars are
so equal, the drivers could run side-by-side for 20 laps and
no one could gain an advantage. The two lead cars
running together created a wall and no one else could get
past. Exciting racing? My grandmother could drive
a car that is so underpowered and so planted to the track at
100% throttle. Exciting finish, but no talent required.
We have lost sight of the fact racing is about the talented
athletes and made a complete show out of it whereby the driver
means almost nothing. It's all about how much HP your
engine builder can give you. Mordichai Rosen, LA,
California |
9/9/02
 |
Newman wins rookie of race
award
Ryan Newman was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the
Monte Carlo 400 at Richmond International Raceway. Newman
scored his fourth second place finish of the season and
collected his 12th top-five finish. Entering Sunday's New
Hampshire 300, Newman has more top-five finishes than any
other Winston Cup driver. He scored his seventh top-five in
the last nine races. Newman has racked up 15 top-10 finishes,
has been Raybestos® Rookie of the Race 14 times this season
and leads the been Raybestos® Rookie of the Year contest
316-301 over Jimmie Johnson. |
9/9/02
 |
Las Vegas tickets go on sale
Monday
Tickets for the March, 2003 NASCAR Weekend at Las Vegas
Motor Speedway will go on sale Monday, Sept. 16 at 8 a.m.
Pacific Time. Tickets for the sixth annual UAW-DaimlerChrysler
400 NASCAR Winston Cup event on March 2, 2003, the Sam’s Town
300 NASCAR Busch Series event (March 1), Pole Day (Feb. 28)
and the Pennzoil World of Outlaws (Feb. 28 and March 1) will
be available on Monday. Race fans can call 1-800-644-4444 or
log on to www.lvms.com to
purchase tickets. “This past year’s race was a virtual
sellout, so we are encouraging everyone to purchase tickets
early to assure seating,” said Chris Powell, LVMS’ executive
vice president and general manager. “This has become one of
motorsports’ most popular events, and it will keep getting
bigger.” Race fans purchasing weekend packages receive seating
priority from year to year. Weekend packages include
frontstretch seats for the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 and Sam’s
Town 300 as well as a free ticket to Pole Day. LVMS also
offers a “Super Ticket” that includes tickets to two nights of
the Pennzoil World of Outlaws events in addition to the NASCAR
events. For the third consecutive year, Las Vegas Motor
Speedway will offer Pole Day-only pit passes. These passes,
which must be accompanied by a Pole Day ticket, will allow
fans access to the infield and pit-road areas during practice
and qualifying. The passes do not allow for access to the
garage areas. |
9/9/02
 |
Eddie has words for Helio
Eddie Cheever is mad at Helio Castroneves for blocking tactics
during the closing laps of the Delphi 300. Castroneves
too Cheever down to the white line with some daring blocking
maneuvers. Eddie says he will speak to Brian Barnhart
while Helio says Eddie isn't fighting for the championship
like he is. "I didn't do anything crazy" said
Castroneves, but did not deny he had a very wide car. |
9/9/02
 |
CART stock watch
MPH closed at $5.10 Down $0.04 on
Volume of 223,100 shares.
$4.42 Bid - $5.38 Ask on close.
Session Low/High $4.96/$5.10
MPH Value Change Down 0.78%
DOW Jones Up 92.18 or 1.09% on Volume of 1.35 billion shares.
NASDAQ Up 9.31 or 0.72%
S&P 500 Up 9.03 or 1.01%
Courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe - Chicago |
9/9/02

 |
Townsend Bell, to test with Minardi?
3rd UPDATE According to
this Formula1.com
article, Contrary to reports over the weekend, a
Minardi spokesman has refuted rumors that the team plans to
test ex-CART racer Townsend Bell at Mugello after the Italian
Grand Prix next week. Although a representative for Bell is
believed to have spoken informally to Paul Stoddart, the
team's principal, in Hungary three weeks ago it is not thought
that they came to a firm agreement. "Minardi will be testing
Sergey Zlobin for a second time following his successful test
at Fiorano last week, probably to be joined by Matteo Bobbi,"
the spokesman stated. "But there are no firm plans at this
point to test Townsend Bell." However, he admitted that there
was a possibility that Bell could appear at the wheel of a
Minardi later in the year: "It is possible he could be tested
later in the year." 9/6/02 -
This Autosport
article gives more details of the story regarding Bell's test for Minardi we broke last
Saturday.
9/1/02 - Beside Townsend Bell, the Minardi team give Bryan Herta a proper testing opportunity at the end of the season, during the post-season month of testing. Herta had a run in a Minardi at the recent Thunder in the Park event and got a taste for Formula 1 and hopes to be able to put together a deal to race for the team next year. After the Donington event the team said that they had been very impressed by Herta, despite the fact that it was not a proper test. 8/31/02
- We spoke to Rod Campbell and Townsend Bell today. They informed us that Townsend will be testing with the Minardi team in two weeks at Mugello in Italy. He will be running last years car with this years engine.
It will be a full 2-day test. |
9/9/02
 |
Arrows pays off one debt
According to reports on the Reuter news agency, the Arrows
team has now paid off Champion Recruitment Limited, the
employment agency which had a claim against the team. The High
Court in Leeds, England is due to hear that petition tomorrow
and even if Champion has been paid others, including Jos
Verstappen (who is owed millions of dollars), are still keen
to be paid. |
9/9/02
 |
Chicagoland TV Rating
The overnight TV rating for Chicagoland on ABC was a 1.1, the
same as last year. |
9/9/02
 |
De Ferran survives hard hit at
Chicagoland, out for season 2nd UPDATE
As it turns out, de Ferran has a hairline fracture of his left
wrist and a concussion, and will miss the final race in Texas.
“Recovery periods for any type of concussion vary for many
reasons, but rarely do symptoms completely disappear in seven
to 10 days,” Bock said. “As with any head injury, it is better
to be cautious and not put the driver at risk. That’s what
we’re doing with Gil.” 9/8/02 -
All x-rays were negative so Gil appears to just have a
concussion. 9/8/02 - Gil de Ferran veered to avoid a slowing
car and hit the wall between the 3rd and 4th turn at
Chicagoland Raceway. He was knocked unconscious and the
engine was running full throttle when the rescue crew got to
him, who then reached in and killed the engine. He was
airlifted to a nearby hospital where it is reported he has no
serious injuries with a probable concussion and other minor
injuries. He was seen giving a thumbs up and is reported
awake, alert and responding. His neck was demobilized as
a precaution, but he was wearing a HANS Device which probably
saved him. |
9/9/02
 |
Chicagoland attendance
Dear AutoRacing1.com, According to this Chicago Sun-Times
article, 40,000 were in attendance at Sunday's IRL
Delphi 300 at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois.
This compares to 25,000 for this year's CART Grand Prix of
Chicago at the Chicago Motor Speedway. From those numbers it
appears that IRL is the winner with Chicago's open wheel race
fans. But consider this: The 25,000 that attended the CART
Grand Prix of Chicago bought tickets to see that event only.
The 40,000 at the IRL Delphi 300 received their tickets as a
part of a ticket package that also included this year's NASCAR
Winston Cup event at Chicagoland Speedway. More significantly,
about 30,000 others had tickets for the IRL at Chicagoland
Speedway, but decided not to go--they were paid no shows!
Which is worse for open wheel racing? Fans not buying tickets
to attend a CART event or fans paying for tickets to see an
IRL event, then not going? Just my thoughts... Mark S.
Graham Dear Mark, While you make a valid point that
the IRL had 30,000 people who simply threw their tickets in
the wastebasket, which is a bad reflection, one can argue that
not all 25,000 attendees for the CART race bought their
tickets. We're sure some were sponsor/complimentary
related. Also, the IRL Chicago race actually had
passing, not the follow-the-leader events CART had. CART
is working to change their package next year to produce more
passing, but let's not forget all the passing we see/saw at
CART's Michigan and Fontana races and look what happened to
the attendance at those events. AutoRacing1.com Staff |
9/9/02
Industry News |
SPEED TV to broadcast F3000
races
Formula 3000 races will be shown in the USA on SPEED TV for
the first time in 2003. Speed TV will provide live coverage of
every round of the FIA International F3000 championship,
either live or as same-day highlights. The channel will
broadcast a highlight program of all the 2002 F3000 races
during the winter. |
9/9/02
 |
Scheckter and Cheever to go to
court
This
article talks about the Scheckter and Cheever legal
battle, but more importantly how well American Buddy Rice is
doing taking up Scheckter's place in the team and with not all
the baggage that came with the talented Mr. Scheckter. |
9/9/02
 |
D-Day for Arrows
The bid by American multi-millionaire Carl Smith to buy the
Arrows team must be completed by today or else the Arrows team
will be liquidated. Arrows is facing a final hearing in
the bankruptcy courts on Tuesday. If this happens an official
receiver will be appointed to look into the company's affairs.
He will then decide whether or not the company can be saved or
whether it should be liquidated. As with all bankruptcy cases,
the receiver will either then try to run the company for a
period and clear the debts, or they will call in a liquidator
who will try to sell off the assets of the company and pay off
as many of the debts as possible. Stay tuned as this
sage continues. |
9/9/02
 |
Has Honda fixed its problems
As we all know, Honda suffered an absolute nightmare weekend
two weeks ago at Spa, with engines blowing up all over the
place. BAR driver Olivier Panis alone suffering three
major failures. It's understood that Honda has now
traced the cause to a failure within the oil system on the
latest evolution of the RA002E. Unfortunately the
problems continued at Monza during the four-day test last
week, with Giancarlo Fisichella experiencing two failures in
one day, one using an old 'spec' unit. One has to wonder
how they will do next weekend at Monza where considerable
strain is put on engines that run flat-out for much of the
lap. |
9/9/02
 |
Bridgestone works on 2003 tire
Bridgestone Motorsport are already hard at work on next year's
Formula One tires. The Japanese giant, who have wrapped up
both 2002 championships with Scuderia Ferrari, report: 'Yes,
staff at our technical centre in Tokyo are already working on
next season's tires and we have begun to track test for next
year as well.' Hisao Suganuma, technical manager, adds: 'Since
testing is allowed during November and December this year, we
have to be ready soon with the first prototype, while most of
the winter testing will take place in Spain.'
|
9/9/02
 |
Minardi to lose Malaysia
backing Paul Stoddart, Minardi team chief,
took a trip to the Malaysian capital of Kuala-Lumpur late last
week for unspecified business. With Malaysian rookie Alex
Yoong resuming his driving duties for the final three races of
the year, our sources indicate that Malaysian Sports Minister
Datuk Hishammuddin Hussein has insisted that his countryman
live out his driving contract. Furthermore, the GO-KL and
Magnum sponsorship deals will reportedly not be renewed for
2003.
|
9/9/02
 |
Latest F1 Hot News
Mark Webber To Stay
Put?
Historic Spa Race
Faces Axe
How 'Ferrari' Are
Bridgestone?
More on Franchitti
Test Sabotaged?
Rivals Hunt Down
Ferrari
Sauber Defend
Safety And Health
Yoong Returns To
Racing
New Engine For
Honda
F1 News In Brief
(1)
F1 News In Brief
(2) |
9/9/02
 |
Weather forecast for Rockingham
This
link
provides a 5 day forecast for Northampton, the city nearest to
Rockingham, from the UK Meteorological Office. it looks good
so far, tomorrow will tell more. As you know, rain
is always a concern in England. |
9/8/02
 |
Seen at Chicagoland II
One of the spectators at Sunday's race could have jumped in to
drive, if he wasn't already in the rival CART league. Bruno
Junqueira, who drives for Target/Chip Ganassi Racing, was on
hand to watch. ''I'm a race fan,'' said Junqueira, enjoying a
weekend off before next week's CART race in England. Although
Ganassi ran a car in Sunday's race with Jeff Ward at the
wheel, Junqueira said he was rooting for his fellow
Brazilians. Six of the 25 starting drivers hail from Brazil.
On a more serious note, Junqueira, who is No. 2 in the CART
point standings behind fellow Brazilian Cristiano da Matta,
said he is waiting to see who he might drive for next year.
His contract with Ganassi's team expires at the end of the
year. ''Yeah, I'm looking,'' he said. ''Let's just see what's
going to happen.'' AP Report |
9/8/02
 |
Panther Racing to run team in
Infiniti Pro Series 2001 Indy Racing League champion
Panther Racing will expand to field a team in the Indy Racing
Infiniti Pro Series in 2003, with Mark Taylor driving. Taylor,
24, from London, will run the full season in the Indy Racing
League development series for Panther, which fields IRL cars
for 2001 champion Sam Hornish Jr. and rookie Dan Wheldon.
Taylor drives for Manor Motorsport in British Formula 3 this
year. “We’ve always wanted to grow the team, and we’ve taken
our time,” said Gary Pedigo, Panther co-owner. “We’ve never
wanted to do anything if you can’t do it right. With this
program, we’re going to do it right.” Taylor has earned two
victories this season in British F3, both at Silverstone. He
is sixth in the series point standings. “Coming over to
America was the best opportunity for me for next year,” Taylor
said. “I was very excited to talk with (Panther co-owner) John
Barnes about the Infiniti Pro (Series) and with the prospect
of working with Panther Racing. As far as next year, working
with them is the best thing because I want to move into the
IRL, and this series is a good way of getting into that.”
Taylor also drove in British F3 in 2001, finishing ninth in
the series standings. He won the European Formula Ford
championship and finished second in the British Formula Ford
championship in 2000. He raced in British Formula Ford in 1999
after racing in Formula Vauxhall Junior in 1998. |
9/8/02
ASCAR |
McRae
Goes West, to run Rockingham
Former World Rally Champion Colin McRae to Make His Oval
Racing Debut at Rockingham Champion rally driver Colin McRae
got his hands on a real bucking bronco of a car at the weekend
as he took the wheel of a 500-horsepower Ford ASCAR racer in
preparation for his debut at the Rockingham track in
Northamptonshire next Saturday. McRae will swap his normal
Focus WRC for one of the 'Day of Thunder'-style racers in the
main supporting race to the CART Fed Ex championship event,
which will see drivers including Dario Franchitti, Michael
Andretti and Christian Fittipaldi racing wheel to wheel at
over 200 mph. After his hour long rookie test in the ASCAR two
seater McRae took to the track in the car he will racing on
Saturday. Reigning BTCC champion Jason Plato had gone out
earlier in the same car to set a benchmark time and the
Scottish WRC ace rose to the challenge by smashing it by 0.4
seconds. McRae’s final time of 36.4 seconds is the fastest
ever time recorded by a rookie at Rockingham. "This has been a
new experience for me and I didn't really know what expect, I
had watched it on television and that's about it. The guys at
ASCAR and Bintcliffe Motorsport have been brilliant and I have
got to grips with the car quite quickly. The facilities here
at Rockingham are excellent, it will be fantastic sight when
the stands are full of fans next weekend, I can’t wait to get
out there for the race." “The cars are completely different
and the style of driving required is amazing,” McRae responded
when asked to compare his Ford Focus WRC to the ASCAR. "The
trick is to feel the limit of the car is what it is all about,
no matter what you are driving, you can't really go past the
limit in these (ASCAR) cars, you have to come gradually to the
limit. I found the concrete wall a bit more comfortable than
the trees on a rally stage." When asked how he found it
driving without co-driver Nicky Grist, Colin replied "It's
quite peaceful actually!" |
9/8/02
 |
Giaffone signed for 2003
According to this Ticker
article - Second-year IRL driver Felipe Giaffone has
renewed his contract with Mo Nunn Racing. Brazilian tobacco
company Hollywood will remain as the sponsor of what could be
a two-car IRL team with CART driver Tony Kanaan moving over.
"We're not sure what kind of equipment we are going to be
using, but for the first time in my life, we're all set for
next year," Giaffone said. The driver said the team is
deciding whether to run Honda or Toyota engines next season.
It has yet to decide on chassis between Dallara, G Force and
the new Falcon entry. "In a few weeks, we should know what we
are using," Giaffone said. "I think it will be a two-car team
for next year, but it appears that it is going in that
direction. I hope it's Tony Kanaan, but there are rumors that
he has signed with Andretti/Green. Morris Nunn would like to
have Tony on this team, though. "Mo doesn't have anything
guaranteed for CART and I know he is not happy with the engine
deal in CART. It seems that a lot of teams are going to leave
CART and come here." Giaffone said there will be an exodus of
drivers from CART to the IRL, and that makes deals more
crucial. |
9/8/02
 |
Seen at Chicagoland
UPDATE And from this Ticker
article - After a very successful test with team owner
Travis Carter's NASCAR Winston Cup team, however, Papis would
like to become the first European to become a full-time driver
in the stock car series. "I'm considering every option that is
around for me, whether it's CART, IRL or NASCAR," Papis said.
"I want to work for a team in a consistent manner for several
years. Driving the NASCAR Winston Cup was a lot of fun, a lot
of horsepower on the car. The car is a big car compared to
what I'm used to, but you can change things and the car reacts
to it. "When I went to the Bristol NASCAR race two weeks ago,
I don't think I ever saw anything like that with that many
people watching a race on a short track at night. I was
shocked to see all the people there and the support. Every
time Jeff Gordon was passing Dale Earnhardt Jr., the cheers of
the fans were louder than the noise of the cars. That really
impressed me." The native of Italy believes it would be an
honor to represent his country in what is generally an
American-based series with American drivers. "I'm not thinking
of jumping into NASCAR immediately, but it would help to learn
stock cars," Papis said. "I'm here looking around to keep all
the options open to me. There is a lot of interest here.
Travis Carter has an interest in me doing NASCAR and there are
some teams in the IRL that would like me to drive. "I have a
great relationship with Eddie Cheever. I drove for him in the
Indianapolis 500, but there are other teams that have talked
to me about driving their race cars." Papis declined comment
on whether Honda or Toyota is trying to put a deal together to
have him race in the IRL. Both engine manufacturers will leave
CART at the end of this season to join the IRL. Papis wants to
compete in the Indianapolis 500 again after making his debut
for Red Bull Cheever Indy Racing three months ago. "To me, it
was a dream and a big achievement driving at Indianapolis this
year," Papis said. "It was maybe one of the biggest
achievements in my career. I'm a racer, I want to win. I want
to kick (butt), and that is what matters to me. "I'm a racer
and I can drive with the same passion on ovals that I have
driven on street courses in CART. For me, it would be a great
pleasure to work with an IRL team for several years or a
NASCAR team." 9/7/02 - Max
Papis was making the rounds today at Chicagoland Speedway
talking to Eddie Cheever and Morris Nunn. Max is looking to
land a fulltime ride in 2003 and there's a lot of seats open
in CART, IRL, Grand-Am and of course his interest in NASCAR.
Besides Carl Haas, we spotted Newman Haas's Peter Gibbons and
a number of other CART or ex-CART players. |
9/8/02
 |
More on Tony Stewart incident
According to this Winston Salem Journal
article - According to men familiar with the
situation, the incident began when Stewart was walking back to
his hauler. With less than three feet of space between the
rigs in the garage area, Stewart reached the side door to his
rig and pushed aside a woman to open the door and climb into
his dressing room. The woman, so far unnamed, then went to the
back of the truck and awaited Stewart. When he appeared, after
changing, she told him, 'You owe me an apology.' Stewart,
somewhat taken aback, said, 'OK, I'm sorry.' Then Stewart, as
he walked away, grumbled to his crew about race fans in the
garage, remarks that apparently sparked the official
complaint. Regardless of what might have actually occurred,
fellow drivers are now increasingly worried that they could
become easy targets for fans, particularly in the dark areas
in many of the tour's garages, such as this one. There is the
simple issue of safety - the garages are very dangerous
places, with large puddles of water, sometimes with extension
cords in the middle of the water, with 1,000-pound rolling
carts of equipment. It's not very stable, with bustling
crewmen, and with these 3,400-pound race cars, which typically
have to take a circuitous path on and off the track through
crowds of gawking fans. Throw in some gasoline and.....A
question of safety. It's a recipe for disaster. For fans, for
drivers, for teams and for NASCAR. Insiders say that the
Stewart case has galvanized drivers in the past few days to
demand action from NASCAR. They are not only highly bothered
by the aggravations but they are now increasingly worried
about being the next driver "targeted" for legal action or
worse. Dale Jarrett stood up in last night's pre-race drivers'
meeting to tell Stewart that his fellow drivers were
supporting him. Jimmy Makar, general manager for the
Stewart-Labonte teams, said the solution to the problem is
simple: "Drivers, garage, race. Fans, grandstands, watch. "I
think everybody in this garage, especially the drivers, are
starting to get a little phobia about what's going on. I mean,
we're running around here wide open, especially when practice
is going on, and the race. And it's very easy to bump into
somebody. And if that's all it takes - bumping into someone in
the dark, in a crowded alley between two trucks - well, we
bump into people all day long. But when you bump into people
from outside the business, you have no idea what their agenda
is, what their feelings are, it bothers people. It bothers me.
"And it's not like everybody in here is a fan of every driver.
"That's the scary part." No easy solutions. |
9/8/02
 |
NASCAR and Richmond close
garage area to fans
NASCAR and Richmond International Raceway just may have taken
the first steps to limit fan presence in the garage and pit
area to avoid incidences between drivers and fans when drivers
are trying to move around the garage area. Following the
accident that took out Jeff Burton, Jimmy Spencer and points
leader Sterling Marlin, the garage was cleared of all
non-essential personnel. While this created an optimum
environment in the garage for the teams to work on their cars,
a number of fans who had been given or paid for garage passes,
who were now unable to use them and were extremely unhappy.
While some tracks have a Hot Pit and/or Hot Pit pass, Richmond
distributes a single pit/garage pass that is good for both.
Another item on driver safety was noted during driver
introductions, when a number of big name drivers had police
escorts to create a buffer between the drivers and their fans. |
9/7/02
 |
IRL injury updates Kelley
Racing team members Jason Priestley and Bernie Hallisky
continue to make dramatic improvement as they recover from
injuries received in separate accidents on August 11 at
Kentucky Speedway. Both are now in intensive physical therapy
and rehabilitative programs. Doctors fully expect Priestley
and Hallisky to make complete recoveries. Priestley has
undergone surgery to repair broken feet, a broken vertebra and
nasal and facial bones following his accident during the final
pre-race practice for the Infiniti Pro Series at Kentucky. On
Friday, Priestley’s doctors removed stabilizing hardware from
his feet to allow increased bone density as his feet continue
the healing process. New casts were applied following the
simple outpatient procedure to remove the hardware. It is
anticipated these casts will be removed in approximately three
weeks and replaced with removal casts that will allow him to
begin weight-bearing therapy. Hallisky is involved in a daily
therapy program to rebuild muscles atrophied from inactivity
due to the extensive surgery he underwent to repair his broken
leg, hip and pelvis. He will work into weight bearing
rehabilitation program. Hallisky received his injuries during
an accident on pit road during the IRL event at Kentucky
Speedway. |
9/7/02
 |
Villeneuve CART/F1 interview
If you are interested in listening to what Jacques Villeneuve,
David Richards, and Craig Pollock had to say on Sunday morning
a Spa last weekend, go to
TSN.ca
and look for a video clip link of the live Spa F1 pre-race
show in the bottom right-hand corner titled "Jacques
Villeneuve rumors just won't go away". It also talks
about Bernie Ecclestone trying to move Villeneuve to the
Toyota team. It runs about 5 minutes but is pretty
informative. You will have to register to listen, but
it's free. |
9/7/02
 |
Petty Enterprises
chooses....drum roll.....Petty Georgia Pacific and
Petty Enterprises announced today that Kyle Petty will drive
the #45 Georgia Pacific Dodge in 2003. Petty Enterprises will
move the GP sponsorship to the #45 for next year and will
continue to look for a driver and a sponsor for the #44 for
2003. Jerry Nadeau is currently running the GP sponsored #44
and will remain the driver for the remainder of the Winston
Cup season. |
9/7/02
 |
Ganassi steals Havoline from
Yates Speculation on who the driver would be was
settled when Chip Ganassi Racing announced today that a
multi-year sponsorship agreement has been signed between Chip
Ganassi and ChevronTexaco for its Havoline brand. Jamie
McMurray (pictured right) will drive the Havoline Dodge for the Ganassi team in
the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. Terms of the
contract were not announced, but McMurray will compete in a
full Winston Cup season and will compete for 2003 Rookie of
the Year honors. McMurray is currently in his second full
season in the Busch Grand National Division, and is in ninth
place in the points standings with two top 5’s and nine top 10
finishes in 25 races this season. |
9/7/02
 |
Renault to skip new engine
plans According to a report in 'Gazzetta dello
Sport' - An Italian Sports Newspaper - The Renault F1 Team
Development Department has abandoned plans for the new and
revolutionary 111° V-angle engine. They also reported that the
ideas and principles of the new engine would be great and
fantastic but in fact the engine produces less power and is
less reliable (duh, that makes a lot of sense). With the new
FIA rules starting in 2003 that Formula One teams will be
allowed to use only one engine per car per race weekend, they
don't want to venture into the unknown the report says. |
9/7/02
 |
Two nights in row, now Derrike
Cope hurt That's
two injured NASCAR drivers in two nights at Richmond.
Thursday night Bobby Hamilton broke his right shoulder blade
and left wrist in the truck race. Last night in the BGN
race at Richmond, Derrike Cope was injured in a severe crash.
On Lap 68 of 250, Cope's #49 Chevy entered Turn 1 and went
directly into the outside retaining wall at full speed. After
impact, his car skidded around the wall and rested at the exit
of Turn 2. Cope was pulled from the car and treated on the
track before he was placed in an ambulance and taken to the
infield care center. After an initial examination by Dr.
Stephen Kramer, Cope was diagnosed with a broken right
scapula (shoulder blade) and a broken left fibula
(leg).......as the oval track injuries continue to mount. |
9/7/02
 |
Herbert to announce England
race Former Formula One driver Johnny Herbert will
be joining Charlie Cox and the BBC team to present coverage of
Europe's fastest motor race. Following the race, which takes
place at the Northamptonshire track on Saturday 14th, the BBC
will broadcast highlights of the CART race at Rockingham on
Sunday September 15th from 4.45pm. Herbert has a wealth of
single-seater experience and is no stranger to the Rockingham
circuit, having lapped the track in a Champ Car at 199.85mph
last year. He will be on hand to give his expert views on the
championship which has been won in the past motor sport greats
Nigel Mansell, Juan Pablo Montoya and Jaques Villeneuve.
Herbert said, "I am really looking forward to working with the
BBC Sport team on the Rockingham 500 and conveying the
excitement of what is always an entertaining race." Charlie
Cox said, "I am a huge fan of CART and for the BBC viewers,
this race is particularly thrilling. Not only is it the only
Championship race in Europe this year, but it is also on an
oval track which makes the racing even more intense!"
|
9/7/02
 |
Team St. George website
We have added the revised Team St. George
website to
our links page.
|
9/7/02

 |
Franchitti claims F1 test was sabotaged In this F1 Newswire
article, Dario Franchitti hit out at the Jaguar Formula One outfit, saying he believed his test with the team was deliberately sabotaged in order that he would not make it to the pinnacle of world motorsport. The 28-year-old Scot, currently driving in the CART series, was given a test by Jaguar in 2001 at the Silverstone circuit, but Franchitti has said he was deliberately given an older specification car, unfavorable tires and a higher fuel load to mask his true pace behind the wheel of the R2. Franchitti now feels his future chances in F1 have been ruined, with previous 'openings' now firmly closed as a direct result of his test with Jaguar. "The entire test was a complete farce," he revealed. "I thought I was going to be handed the latest model but, instead, I was given a car that was two or three specs back. I didn't even get new tires or the fuel loads I wanted. It was a joke, I might as well not have bothered. "There were obviously some people who just didn't want me in F1™ and they made life as difficult as possible. I regret agreeing to the test. Beforehand I had a couple of possibilities in F1 but the results from the Silverstone session put paid to them."
|
9/7/02
Grand-Am |
Papis to drive
Renowned racer Max Papis has joined the driver lineup for next weekend's Rolex Sports Car Series
6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant
in Quebec, Canada. Papis will partner with Lawrence Stroll and Nick Longhi in the Falcon Racing Ferrari 360 GT, which will compete in the Rolex Series GT class. The
6 Heures du Circuit Mon-Tremblant will mark Papis' second Rolex Series race of the season. The 32-year-old Italian fulfilled his career ambition of winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona at the start of the 2002 season, teaming with Didier Theys, Mauro Baldi and Fredy
Lienhard in the Doran Lista Racing #27 Judd-powered Dallara. Papis' racing talent extends far beyond sports car racing. He finished sixth in the 2001 CART championship standings after winning from the pole in Portland. He also set a CART record at Laguna Seca in 2001 for driving from the deepest starting position (25th) to victory on a road or street course. The Falcon Racing Ferrari 360 GT is one of the factory-produced race cars, identical to the Ferrari of Washington entry that currently holds a four-race winning streak in the GT class. Papis will team in the Ferrari with Longhi and Stroll. Longhi
is a regular in the Grand-Am Cup Street Stock Series, where he currently leads the Grand Sport II driver point standings. Stroll is well known as a competitor in Ferrari Challenge and Ferrari Historic races. |
9/7/02
 |
And the plot thickens.....
Arrows' transporters arrived at the Monza circuit yesterday, complete with test team and (reportedly) three Cosworth-powered A23 contenders. With the session winding up at lunch-time, however, no orange-clad machine had hit the circuit. The plot thickens...
|
9/7/02
 |
Latest F1 Hot News
High Hopes For Monza Race
Williams Planning Revolution
Next Up: The Italian Grand Prix
F1 News In Brief |
|
Much
More...click on 2002 archives button below
|
Hot News Archives |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|




Watch CART, F1, NASCAR, ALMS & more on
DirecTV
Our Price: $29.99
Order Now
Free Installation
  
Autocourse 2001/2002
Order
Now
List Price: $54.95
Our Price: $38.46
You
save $16.49 (30%)
  
Autocourse CART 2001/2002
Order
Now
List
Price: $34.95
Our Price: $24.46
You
save $10.49 (30%)
DRIVEN
on DVD
Order
Now & Save $$
List Price: $24.98
Our Price: $18.74
You Save: $6.24 (25%)
|
Convert
this page to
another language
|
|