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.
USGP ticket holders get pit
access Race day ticket holders for the 2003 United
States Grand Prix can get an up-close look at one of the most
exclusive places in motorsports – the Formula One pits –
during a pit walkabout Thursday, Sept. 25 at the Indianapolis
Motor Speedway. The walkabout takes place from 8 a.m.-noon
(EST, Indy time) and is available for free to all ticket
holders for the 2003 United States Grand Prix. This is one of
the very few fan walkabouts available on the 16-event, global
F1 schedule in 2003. “It’s only fitting that the Speedway is
offering this exciting, new pit walkabout to United States
Grand Prix fans during one of the most thrilling Formula One
seasons in recent memory,” said Joie Chitwood, Indianapolis
Motor Speedway senior vice president of business affairs. “The
pit walkabout will provide United States Grand Prix fans with
an up-close look at the technology and intricacies of a
Formula One team. "We’re pleased to offer increased
accessibility to the inner workings of F1 as an added
incentive for our ticket buyers, and this pit walkabout will
be the start of a great weekend of exciting racing.” Fans can
walk the pits and stand adjacent to the open garages,
providing a clear view of the sleek cars, high-tech equipment
and skilled personnel of all 10 Formula One teams, including
current standouts Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, BMW WilliamsF1
and West McLaren Mercedes. Those three teams will continue
their intense chase for Drivers and Constructors Championships
during the fourth annual Formula One race on the 2.606-mile
road circuit at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. While no
formal driver appearances are scheduled during the walkabout,
F1 drivers have been in the garages and signed autographs
during walkabouts at other Grand Prix venues. Still and video
photography will be allowed during the walkabout. United
States Grand Prix ticket holders will be mailed separate
passes for the walkabout. Instructions for parking and
entering the track will accompany the passes.
8/7/03
Trois-Rivières penalties
revised The Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich
Tires Cup has revised two penalties assessed during the Aug. 2
Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières race. The penalties, levied
against Tomy Drissi (No. 5 Jaguar XKR) and Joey Scarallo (No.
06 Chevrolet Corvette), were the result of violation of rule
2.10 in the Trans-Am Series General Regulations and Technical
Specifications: “Ground Clearance” found in post-race
inspection. Drissi and Scarallo will be moved to the bottom of
the results, with a notation stating “excluded from results.”
In addition, neither driver will receive Drivers’ or Team
Owners’ points or prize money for the Trois-Rivières event.
The rest of the field moves up as a result. The penalties were
adjusted to conform to the precedence set in the Trans-Am
Series for previous violations of technical specifications.
8/7/03
CART stock watch
In NYSE trading today MPH closed UNCHANGED at $1.45 p/shr. on
massive volume of 603,300 shares. Numerous trades in
excess of 20,000 shares, several as high as 50,000 shares per
trade.
High/Low of Session: $1.55/$1.40
52 Week Low: $1.45
NYSE UP 64.71 or 0.71%
NASDAQ DOWN 0.47 or 0.03%
S&P 500 UP 7.04 or 0.73%
courtesy of C3I.AndersonGroupe – Chicago www.andersongroupe.com
8/7/03
Bristol keeps 2 dates
Bristol Motor Speedway officially announced its 2004 NASCAR
race dates, with events falling on the final weekends in March
and August. The Food City 500 weekend, March 26-28, 2004,
features a Friday pole day for both of NASCAR's top series,
NASCAR Busch Series event on Saturday, and the Food City 500
on Sunday. Bristol’s most popular event, the Sharpie 500-Food
City 250 weekend, will run Friday and Saturday nights, August
27 and 28. NASCAR's Busch Series will practice and qualify on
Thursday, August 26, and race on Friday night in the Food City
250. Teams will practice and qualify for the Sharpie 500 on
Friday before the Food City 250. The Sharpie 500 field takes
the green flag on Saturday night, August 28..
8/7/03
What if nobody wins?
With RJR and Winston turning over the reigns to NEXTEL next
year, what will happen if nobody wins the NASCAR Winston Cup
Leader Bonus this year? To claim the bonus, a driver needs to
not only win a race, but must also be leading the Winston Cup
points chase at the end of the race. So far this year Matt
Kenseth has had the most opportunities to do so, but hasn’t
been able to close the deal and pick up the bonus. If nobody
collects the bonus after the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami
Speedway, whatever money is left over will be divided
incrementally among the top-10 finishers in the final NASCAR
Winston Cup point standings. Currently at $220,000 the bonus
increases by $10,000 every week.
8/7/03
New BAR Technical Director The
BAR Honda technical team has been strengthened following the
appointment of 43-year old Gary Savage, in a newly created
role of Deputy Technical Director. Savage's role is to take
day-to-day responsibility for implementing and coordinating
the design and testing programs across departments whilst
working closely with Geoffrey Willis, the team's Technical
Director, to develop the technical interaction with team
partners, Honda and Bridgestone. Willis will remain
responsible for leading the design and operation of the car,
as well as the long-term technical strategy, but is now free
to spend more time on the complex design concepts required to
push the team and its partners forward in the increasingly
competitive F1 arena. Commenting on his appointment as Deputy
Technical Director, Savage said: "This is the perfect move for
me. The partnership Geoffrey and I have works very well, and I
hope that together we can push forward the shorter and
long-term development of the car. I have immense respect for
Geoffrey and I'm looking forward to working with him in my new
position." Gary Savage has a colorful background, his career
beginning as an Officer in the Royal Marines after leaving
college. Prior to joining the world of F1 in 1990, at the age
of 30, Savage worked in the advanced chemical materials
industry. This included manufacturing materials for use on
aircrafts, tanks and other high tech machinery.
8/7/03
Said looking for full-time Cup
ride This AP
article says, Boris Said has had enough of being a
road racing "hired gun." He wants to be a full-time driver on
NASCAR's top circuit. "I'm going to try my hardest to make it
happen," he said. Said is one of several road racing
specialists hired regularly by NASCAR teams to drive in the
events at Sonoma, Calif., and Watkins Glen, N.Y., the only
road circuits on the Winston Cup schedule. He'll be back at
the wheel of the No. 01 MB2 Pontiac for Sunday's race at the
upstate New York track, driving in place of Jerry Nadeau, who
is recovering from injuries sustained May 2 in a brutal crash
in Richmond, Va. It's the same car that Said put on the pole
at Sonoma in June, then drove to a sixth-place finish.
8/7/03
Gil de Ferran interview Gil de Ferran was this week's guest on the weekly IRL
media teleconference. De
Ferran drives the No. 6 Marlboro Team Penske
Dallara/Toyota/Firestone. He currently has two victories to
his credit this year, those being the 2003 Indianapolis 500 as
well as the Firestone Indy 200 at Nashville Superspeedway, and
he currently stands third in the IndyCar Series point
standings, just three points shy of current leader Scott
Dixon.
Transcript
8/7/03 Industry News
Built for speed This DDI
Magazine
article says, Ardent auto racing fans in Findlay,
Ohio, no longer need to wait for an event to come to town to
purchase authentic racing-related merchandise. Located near
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, one of the state's most well-known
racetracks, racing merchandise is available year-round at the
city's Wal-Mart Supercenter. Mac Tools recently teamed with
Wal-Mart to open Fuel RLS (Real Life Speed), an 800-sq.-ft.,
in-store shop offering racing buffs an array of racing-themed
apparel, collectibles, car parts and autographed memorabilia
in its Findlay Supercenter. In fact, the new shop, which
opened in March, provides racing lovers access to NASCAR,
National Hot Rod Association (NHRA), Drag Racing and Bigfoot
items they would not be able to purchase elsewhere.
More.....
8/7/03
War of the Worlds, it's time to
man the battle stations
UPDATE A reader responds, I think Bernie Ecclestone
would be making a big mistake by not investing in CART.
Formula 1 is going to need an ally to battle the oval racing
contingent. I certainly hope that the round and round leagues
don't take over. Mr. Ecclestone if you're reading this, please
understand that both my father and I became Formula 1 fans
after years and years of watching CART. We needed more races
to watch, and being open wheel fans naturally led us to
Formula 1. Also understand that Formula 1's presence in
America isn't nearly strong enough to let CART fade out of
existence. If you don't have the foresight to save CART then
you will learn painfully when the NASCAR steamroller leaves
the confines of America. It won't be long now. Don't relegate
us fans to having to watch the truest form of lazy American
racing. Sincerely, Joe Yack P.S. AutoRacing1 is the
only site for racing news. Dear Joe, We have to assume
Bernie sees it coming, but we assume Bernie figures he will
retire before the oval track cartel makes a significant impact
overseas, hence is not too worried. Mark C.8/7/03 - A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com, I just
read Mark Cipolloni's War of the
Worlds article. Oh my god, it's really happening
right before our eyes. With NASCAR taking on Japanese
and Brazilian drivers, Japanese manufacturers, talk of going
to Australia, Canada and Mexico, there's no doubt about it,
the oval track cartel is poised to make an assault on the
international scene. If Bernie doesn't buy CART (50/50
chance at best), I think road racing will pretty much die in
this country, and eventually around the world. The oval
track cartel has very deep pockets.
Jeff Purdy, Omaha, Nebraska Dear Jeff, If Bernie
doesn't buy CART and work together to strengthen the road
racing cartel, then it would be time for Plan B. CART,
ALMS and Trans-Am, who have all been weakened by the strength
of NASCAR's domination in the USA, should either merge, or
form some sort of tight alliance that would see all three work
together to strengthen road racing's position in North
America, similar to the NASCAR/IRL alliance. They could
run joint races frequently (i.e. CART/ALMS/Trans-Am) to bring
more entertainment to the fans, and sell a road racing package
to a TV broadcaster. Drivers from one series could
frequently drive in one of the other series on the same
weekend, generating more fan interest. Throw in concerts
(as rumored) and all of a sudden a fan has a weekend full of
entertainment before them. I have always said that CART
should do joint weekends with ALMS at Sebring, Washington DC
and Road Atlanta, with ALMS joining CART at places like
Beijing, Long Beach, Mexico City, Montreal, etc.
Trans-Am could be there too. Add in Toyota Atlantics and
Barber Dodge and the action will be non-stop. Rather
than an alliance, I would prefer to see a merger, with Don
Panoz throwing his weight and wealth in with that of Gerald
Forsythe, Kevin Kalkhoven and Paul Gentilozzi. I have a
lot of respect for Scott Atherton (President of ALMS), so
bringing him under the CART umbrella certainly is a positive.
Paul Gentilozzi already owns Trans-Am, and if he's buying CART
as rumored, it's easy to see how a merger of Trans-Am, CART
and ALMS into one strong entity is quite possible and brings
immediate strength to the road racing cartel, at least in
North America. Merging all three together eliminates
redundant staff, thereby reducing overhead. Merging all
three brings the current manufacturers from all three series
together under one umbrella where they can be coddled and
nurtured. In a nutshell, if CART doesn't get Bernie, which
would be our first choice, Plan B would turn out to be a very
close second - - consolidate and strengthen. I would
still change the name of the CART series to the American
Grand Prix Series, couple that with the American
LeMans Series and the Trans-American (Trans-Am)
series and all of a sudden you have an all-American
company with an all-American theme for North
America. The sooner this happens, with or without
Bernie, the better....but what do I know?
Mark C.
8/7/03
Speedway Motorsports rating
increased Analyst Joseph D Hovorka of Raymond James
upgrades Speedway Motorsports (TRK) from "market perform" to
"outperform." The target price is set to $30.
8/7/03
CART Simple Green Safety Team
special to finally air Heralded across the
motorsports landscape as the standard to which at-the-track
safety services should be held, the CART Champ Car Simple
Green Safety Team will be featured in a video piece to be
aired as part of NBC's NASCAR Winston Cup pre-race show
leading up to this weekend's Sirius at the Glen event at
Watkins Glen. The network's color analyst and racer Wally
Dallenbach Jr. (son of former Champ Car star and Chief Steward
Wally Dallenbach Sr.) accompanied a film crew to the Molson
Indy Toronto last month to find out what makes the Safety Team
one of the best quick-response outfits anywhere in motorsports.
The piece contains interviews with series Director of Medical
Affairs Dr. Steve Olvey and series Chief Orthopedic Consultant
Dr. Terry Trammell as well as with Director of Safety Lon
Bromley and Champ Car World Series drivers Jimmy Vasser and
Adrian Fernandez. The feature will air at 1 p.m. Eastern Time
on Sunday afternoon. It was to have aired on July 27 as part
of the Pocono race weekend but was postponed due to an
abbreviated pre-race show.
8/7/03
Darlington to add lights
Although they lost their traditional Labor Day weekend
Southern 500 date, Darlington Raceway will still have two
Winston Cup dates in 2004 and have gotten the go-ahead to
install lights at the famous historic track.
IRL to announce race in
Milwaukee on Wednesday
UPDATE The
drivers and teams of the IRL IndyCar Series and Infiniti Pro
Series will compete July 22-25, 2004 at The Milwaukee Mile,
officials from the IRL, state of Wisconsin and The Milwaukee
Mile announced Aug. 6. The Milwaukee Mile, in West Allis,
Wis., is located on the grounds of the Wisconsin State Fair
Park, and the announcement was made at a press conference
during the Wisconsin State Fair. Jim Doyle, governor of the
state of Wisconsin, Tony George, president and CEO of the IRL,
and IndyCar Series driver Kenny Brack participated in the
press conference announcing the new venue for the IRL. The
four-day weekend of racing will feature the IndyCar Series and
the Infiniti Pro Series events taking place on July 25. “The
Milwaukee Mile and Indy-style racing have had a long and
storied history,” George said. “We look forward to bringing
the drivers of the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race and the IRL back
to Milwaukee and to a track that will showcase our
wheel-to-wheel racing.” Originally a privately owned
horse-racing track, the 1-mile oval has been in existence
since at least 1876 and played host to automobile races since
1903, making it the oldest racetrack in continuous use. “We
couldn’t be happier or more excited to add the IRL IndyCar
series to the 2004 schedule,” said Wisconsin State Fair Park
Board Chairman Martin J. Greenberg. “The IRL has really come
of age in popularity both on and off the racetrack. Tony
George and his entire staff have revitalized open-wheel racing
in this country and beyond. “In turn, we’ve revitalized The
Milwaukee Mile as we celebrate our 100th Anniversary. We’ve
had an incredible 100th season so far and to be able to cap it
off with such an important addition to our schedule shows the
racing community and our fans that we’re serious about
bringing this great racetrack into the next century by
offering the best and most exciting racing in the world.”
8/6/03 - Tomorrow officials from the Indy Racing League, The
Milwaukee Mile and the state of Wisconsin will announce an IRL
race at the Wisconsin State Fair Park in West Allis, Wis.
starting in 2004. On hand will be Tony George, president and
CEO, Indy Racing League, Jim Doyle, Governor, state of
Wisconsin, Brian Barnhart, senior vice president of racing
operations, IRL, Ken Ungar, senior vice president of business
affairs, IRL, Joe Chrnelich, Wisconsin State Fair Park CEO,
Martin Greenberg, board chairman, Wisconsin State Fair Park,
Mark Perrone, vice president and GM, Milwaukee Mile
8/6/03
Aero exam: eight cars at the
wind tunnel … Eight NASCAR Winston Cup Series cars – two
from each manufacturer – were involved in an extensive
wind-tunnel test on Tuesday at a facility in Marietta, Ga. The
following cars were obtained for the test following Sunday’s
Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway: No. 20 Home
Depot Chevrolet of Tony Stewart; No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet of
Jeff Gordon; No. 38 M&M’s Ford of Elliott Sadler; No. 17
DEWALT Power Tools Ford of Matt Kenseth; No. 42 Havoline Dodge
of Jamie McMurray; No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge of Rusty Wallace;
No. 32 Tide Pontiac of Ricky Craven; and No. 10 Valvoline
Pontiac of Johnny Benson. “The focus of this test is for the
’04 season and has nothing to do with the competition this
season,” said NASCAR Winston Cup Series director John Darby.
“We’re going to get a snapshot of where everyone is today and
also conduct some preliminary testing in spoiler reduction.”.
8/6/03
TV Timeout II: Perception may
not be reality when it comes to commercials …
MotorsportsTV.com has published a report addressing fans’
concerns about commercials interrupting race broadcasts. Data
from 102 broadcasts from 2000 through 2003 was examined. The
data included the amount of commercial time per hour in each
broadcast and the amount of commercial time between the start
of the race and the checkered flag. According to the report,
the data indicated that there appears to be no significant
increase in commercial time during that span. In 2000, the
average amount of commercials per hour was 14 minutes, 39
seconds. According to the report, in 2003, through the
Brickyard 400, the average is 14:47, an increase of only eight
seconds of commercial time per hour under the landmark TV
contract that went into effect in 2001.
8/6/03
TV Timeout: Indy residents
turned out – and tuned in … In Indianapolis, at last
Sunday’s Brickyard 400, approximately 300,000 fans were on
hand. As far as the Indy market’s TV race-watchers were
concerned, the event (broadcast by NBC) earned an incredible
22.1 rating – outside the Daytona 500, the highest local
market rating for any race this year. Indy led the way for 16
markets that had a rating greater than 8.0, including
non-traditional NASCAR markets Dayton (10.5), Milwaukee (8.7),
Columbus (8.5) and St. Louis (8.2). (Figures from NBC and
Nielsen Media Research.)
8/6/03
Villeneuve again belittles IRL
& CART In
this
interview, Jacques Villeneuve answers the question -
Of the current crop of IRL & CART Drivers who do you feel, if
any, are Formula One material? Jacques: "I don’t think that
you could take anyone from IRL. They only compete on ovals.
There might be some good drivers, but it’s difficult to judge,
so I really don’t know. I haven’t really followed the IRL
series close enough to judge. In CART, the driver that has
been the quickest and the most competitive through the season
is Paul Tracy." You are one of a very small
number of drivers who have been successful both in the
American Champ Car series and in F1. My question is, what is
the biggest difference, and the biggest adjustment you had to
make while entering F1 from the American CART series? Jacques:
"That F1 is a bigger step up than anyone would expect. Being
quick in Champ Car does not make you quick in F1. However, if
you are quick in F1 you should have no problems in Champ Car."
[Editor's Note, Champ Cars, like IRL cars, are overweight
beasts, and are so slow compared to F1 cars they give the
appearance of "Lazy racing" as Niki Lauda coined them].
8/6/03 Industry News
Speedway Motorsports reports
record revenue Speedway Motorsports, Inc.
today announced record revenues for the three and six months
ended June 30, 2003, and reaffirmed full year 2003 earnings
per share guidance of $1.55 to $1.65. Second quarter
highlights include Lowe's Motor Speedway hosting its largest
crowds ever at "The Winston" NASCAR All-star event, as well as
Texas Motor Speedway hosting near capacity crowds at its
Samsung/RadioShack 500 NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event.
Also, the Company successfully completed a private placement
of 6 3/4% senior subordinated notes, renegotiated a
replacement credit facility, and redeemed its 8 1/2% senior
subordinated notes.
More...
8/6/03
Feud of the week: Brickyard 400
vs. Indy 500 This CBS Sportsline
article says it all. Tony George's vision of creating
the IRL has diminished the crown jewel of open wheel racing to
a mere shadow of its former self. In the poll included
in the article, the Brickyard 400 is outscoring the Indy 500
3:1 in popularity. The 500 has lost much of its luster
since Tony George formed the IRL in a split with CART. This
past May, due in part to the faltering economy, the Indy 500
barely managed to fill the field with 33 cars. In comparison,
a few weeks later in the same weak economy, 52 drivers
attempted to make the 43-car field for the Brickyard 400. The
biggest factor in the Brickyard 400's favor is NASCAR's
popularity. The IRL doesn't come close. People will watch the
Indy 500 because of the past, but few, except the hardcore
racing fan, actually know any of the IRL drivers in the race.
These are no longer the days of Andretti and Foyt. The Indy
500 has lost touch with the common fan. The Indianapolis 500
isn't an icon of racing because of what it is, but because of
what it once was. NASCAR drivers are more than willing to
carry the torch. History will show that the inevitable
extinction of Indy Car racing in America will be pinned on the
person who created the IRL, split Indy Car racing in half,
fractured its fan base, its sponsor base and its teams,
thereby allowing stock car racing to monopolize racing in
America - Anton (Tony) George.
8/6/03
Interview with Denis Chevrier The
Renault F1 Team’s Engine Operations Manager sat down to
discuss a dramatic season, and spoke about the developments to
come between now and the end of the season. Denis,
how do you evaluate the 2003 season? DC: Our
objective we set at the start of the year was to score four
podiums, and we achieved that with Jarno’s result in
Hockenheim. What’s more, even though the third team in the
Constructors’ Championship is quite a way ahead, the teams
behind can’t really worry us now. That has taken off some of
the pressure, meaning we can tackle the last races of the
season without too many worries. If you had to talk about
disappointments, what would be top of the list? DC:
The three leading teams are very close in terms of points,
which goes some way to prove they have monopolized the major
points-paying positions this year. Our aim was to get close to
them, and we haven’t quite made it all the way there yet. Our
position is that of the outsider team, which can score a
significant number of points on occasion, but not
consistently: we perhaps haven’t quite yet managed to
regularly fight with the big boys. Having said that, we are
not far off: the team’s performances are on the right track,
and we have the potential to develop further. When you get
there, everything has to be performing at 100%: chassis,
engine, drivers and strategy. That is hard to do from start to
finish in a Grand Prix. On the subject of
reliability, are you pleased with the progress made this year?
DC: Yes. According to some, we apparently began the
season with uncertain reliability: I think the critics were
silenced by our results, which proved a lot better than they
had predicted. Naturally, we have had a few retirements and we
still need to make progress in this area, because the top
three teams have excellent reliability. What have
been the major engine evolutions this season? DC: We
brought out a ‘D’ spec engine in Austria. This step brought
gains in power and performance, bringing an improvement in lap
time of around 0.2s. The ‘E’ spec made its debut a little
later at the Nürburgring. The changes were primarily in the
upper part of the engine, which meant we gained horsepower
without any increase in engine speed. There were also some
changes for Hockenheim concentrating primarily on
reliability. These will be a solid base for the next
developments. And what will those developments be,
between now and Suzuka? DC: From Budapest, we will
be able to count on a bit more power. A final performance step
is planned for Monza or Indianapolis: given that the Italian
Grand Prix is particularly mechanically demanding, we may
decide to delay this final evolution until Indianapolis.
8/6/03
Testing discovery makes Danica Patrick
upbeat about rest of season Some of the most important laps Danica Patrick
has turned this season may not have been in a Toyota Atlantic
Championship series race, they may have been at a test at Blackhawk
Farms last week in suburban Chicago. Patrick and her Argent Mortgage
Company team spent a day on track at Blackhawk and made some
significant strides in understanding the car. Those strides paid off
in a season best start of fourth at Trois-Rivières and her third
top-five result of the season. "This was a test that really opened the
door for us," said Patrick. "We have a greater understanding of the
car and that showed last weekend. The key for us is to keep building
on what we have accomplished and take this to the next level." In her
first year in the competitive Toyota Atlantic Championship, Patrick is
seventh in points after eight races, just a single point behind Joey
Hand in sixth. Patrick has posted three top-five results including a
third place finish in the season opener at Monterrey, Mexico. She has
six top-ten results all while getting accustomed to a new series and
her first year Team Rahal Atlantic program. "We have a lot of
experience on this team, but it is still the first year most of these
people have worked together and it takes time for everyone to come
together," said Patrick. "Every time we run we are making progress as
a group. That is all you can ask for as a rookie in this series. I
said at the start of the year I wanted to see improvement and I know
we are making strides." This week Patrick comes to the Mid-Ohio Sports
Car Course for Round 9 of the 2003 Championship. Mid-Ohio is the home
track for Team Rahal and this year will mark the first time that the
Team Rahal Atlantic program has raced on the circuit. "We had a test
day at Mid-Ohio in July but we really didn't get everything
accomplished that we wanted because of some mechanical problems," said
Patrick. "Still this team has a wealth of information about this track
and what it takes to be successful. Bobby [Rahal] himself is a
valuable resource to me in preparing to run at this track."
8/6/03
NASCAR catches another cheater
NASCAR Winston Cup Series crew chief Jeff Buckner has been fined
$1,000 for a rule infraction that occurred during the Brickyard 400
race weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, NASCAR officials
announced today. Buckner was penalized for having unapproved rear
axles on the #02 Pontiac of driver Hermie Sadler. NASCAR officials
discovered the infraction during last Saturday's (Aug. 2)
post-qualifying inspection. Buckner was in violation of Sections
12-4-A (Actions detrimental to stock car racing) and 12-4-Q (Any
determination by NASCAR Officials that parts and/or equipment used in
the Event do not conform to NASCAR rules) of the NASCAR Winston Cup
Series rule book.
8/6/03
MIS Cup race gets sponsor
Michigan International Speedway announced that Grand Rapids, MI based
Gordon Food Service, a premier foodservice distributor with 94 retail
stores in the Midwest, will sponsor the GFS Marketplace 400 NASCAR
Winston Cup Series race on Sunday, August 17. Gordon Food Service is a
106-year-old family-owned and managed company. The company's
distribution network services more than 30,000 customers with more
than 14,000 products. The company also operates a chain of retail GFS
Marketplace stores. The GFS Marketplace stores, begun in 1979, service
the emergency needs of GFS truck delivery customers and are also the
primary supplier to many smaller operators who prefer to pick up their
products including: restaurants, churches, day care providers, service
clubs, caterers, adult foster care facilities, convenience stores and
concessionaires. Party planners and fundraising groups also find a
wide variety of restaurant quality products that will make their event
a success. The stores are open to the public and do not charge a
membership fee. With 94 retail stores strategically located throughout
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan, GFS Marketplace is dedicated to
providing superior customer service and restaurant quality foodservice
products. General Admission (infield) tickets for the GFS Marketplace
400 went on sale Sunday [August 3rd]. Reserved seats are still
available for the Saturday August 16 Cabela's 250 featuring a concert
by Grammy-nominated rock band 3 Doors Down. For tickets, call the
Michigan International Speedway Ticket Office (1-800-354-1010 or
517-592-6672) or by going on-line at
www.MISpeedway.com.
Michigan International Speedway PR
Papis and PK Racing post best finish
yet at Elkhart Lake "Mad Max"
Papis had his best run in a CART Champ Car since returning to the
series with PK Racing in late June. The Italian, who currently resides
in Miami Beach, Florida, overcame a 16th place qualifying performance
to come within four seconds of a podium finish in his fifth race with
his new team. "Sunday's race showed that under difficult
circumstances, determination and the will to succeed came out in
everybody," said Papis with his usual gusto. "The guys gave me
fantastic pit stops, and I made it happen on the track. It was a team
effort, and we never gave up." Papis, who climbed the charts quickly,
hounded Darren Manning late in the contest, and when the Englishman's
Reynard broke third gear, Papis slipped past into fourth place. He set
off after Alex Tagliani, who was slowing with worn rear rain tires,
but Max ran out of laps to catch his rival with the rain-shortened
34-lap race. Papis climbed from 16th to the Top Ten by Lap 11, and
into the Top Five by Lap 18. "We are really making progress," Papis
said. "Under difficult circumstances, the team was good in the pits
and I drove very hard. Once given the opportunity, I take it. We are
focusing really hard to grab whatever we can. We need to improve our
qualifying and step up our game, but we are not that far off. We will
get there!" The PK Racing team spent today performing a seven-post
shaker rig test in Indianapolis, from which they expect to learn
additional information in preparation for this weekend's race at
Mid-Ohio. "Road America's race was great proof of the determination of
the team. It is the first gift I give to Kevin Kalkhoven and everyone
at PK Racing. My goal is a podium finish before the end of the season.
This weekend we were only five seconds off that goal. We will continue
to push to succeed at what I know we can do," added the popular
Italian. Papis now has collected 17 points in the CART points
championship, placing him 16th overall in just three finishes in five
races.
8/5/03
Messy calls at Elkhart Lake This
RPM.ESPN.com
article says the last two Champ Car races are pretty
good indicators of why the drivers don't respect chief steward
Chris Kneifel or his staff, the American fan base has dwindled
and some promoters consider CART a four-letter word. Let's
begin with Sunday's soggy fiasco at Elkhart Lake, which
managed to undo all of Mario Andretti's goodwill work the past
three months, and came on the heels of a classic amateur show
at Vancouver the week before. The article reinforces our
Hot News item below about why bother having rain tires if you
are not going to use them.
8/5/03
Spike TV debuts Monday with
Danica Patrick show
Spike TV speaks to guys' love of cars with a new interstitial
series, "Zero To Sixty," starring top female race car driver
Danica Patrick, debuting Monday, August 11 (from the Playboy
Mansion). These 60-second
updates cover all the news from the automobile world --
everything from the latest concept cars, showroom news, and
the hottest looks from the top carmaker's design studios.
After its premiere on the network's official launch date of
Monday, August 11, Zero To Sixty will settle into a weekend
rotation with new reports airing periodically on Saturdays and
Sundays. "Spike TV is evolving into the place guys come to
talk about and learn about cars. In 'Zero to Sixty,' we bring
together the latest news from the auto world in a way that's
never been done before," said Kevin Kay, Executive Vice
President of Programming and Production, Spike TV. "It's
fast-paced, it's informative, it's sexy -- and it's hosted by
Danica Patrick -- one of the highest ranking and certainly
best looking CART racers on the circuit." "'Zero to Sixty' is
the first mainstream automotive news program of its kind. Danica's upbeat and witty delivery of real industry news
appeals to Spike TV's audience of young, car-savvy men," said
Fred Seibert, Zero to Sixty's executive producer. "Zero to
Sixty will quickly establish Spike TV as an automotive
authority." Patrick, a member of CART's Team Rahal, owned by
former driving superstar Bobby Rahal and David Letterman, is
considered one of the sport's top open wheel drivers. A native
of Roscoe, Ill., Patrick has made a meteoric rise through the
racing ranks -- starting with a second place finish as an
unknown 18-year old at the world renowned Formula Ford
Festival in 2000. She made her CART debut in 2002 and within a
few months, won the pro/celebrity race in the Toyota Grand
Prix of Long Beach. The creator/producers of Zero to Sixty are
Emil Rensing and Fred Seibert. Spike TV, the first network for
men, is available in 86 million homes and is a division of MTV
Networks. MTV Networks owns and operates the cable television
programming services MTV: Music Television, MTV2,
Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite, TV Land, VH1, CMT: Country Music
Television, and Spike TV, as well as The Digital Suite from
MTV Networks, a package of thirteen digital services, all of
which are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks also
operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and
syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen
worldwide.
PRN
Newswire. Related
article.
8/5/03
CART should do away with rain tires
UPDATE A reader
responds, Dear AR1, I couldn't agree with you more on this
post. CART's biggest weakness is that they don't drive in the
rain anymore. Rain is part of racing as far as I'm concerned.
"Real Racing"? That's what CART calls itself doesn't it? This
is not baseball, is it? The problem is that if CART doesn't
give a chance to their drivers to gain experience driving in
such conditions, the next time they have no option but to delay
the race or parade around behind the pace car. CART has to
decide if canceling or delaying road course races because of
the rain is doing any good to the series. In my opinion it is
not, just giving them a black eye. A lot of people have the
opinion that it is due to the safety of the drivers that they
parade around instead of race. I know that wet conditions are
more difficult but that doesn't make the races more dangerous
if the drivers know how to race in such conditions. The latest
fatalities and injuries in open wheel racing have been in
perfectly dry weather. Rain is what separates the men from the
boys in motor racing. If not, CART should change their slogan
from "Real Racing" to "Real Parading." Regards, Roberto
Reyes8/4/03 - A reader writes, Dear AR1, I am disgusted with CART for not
letting the drivers race in the rain at Road America. I was
there and the conditions were not that bad. Why do they even
bother to pretend to race in the rain when in fact all they do is
parade around behind the pace car until the track is almost dry.
Who are they kidding? Roger Nutt, Chicago IL Dear
Roger, CART would lose their title of America's #1 parade company if
they didn't parade around behind the pace car. We remember the
days when Champ Cars actually raced in all conditions (with more HP
than they have today), but unlike F1 cars and drivers, who are able to
race in almost any conditions, we can't recall the last time CART
actually let the drivers race in anger in the rain. This year
Bridgestone brought out a softer rain tire because last year's was so
hard it was treacherous. However, even with the softer tire,
CART waited until the track was pretty dry before going green.
These days they wait until the track is only damp before letting them
go. The great drivers of the past would say, if you can't see in
the mist, or if the track was slippery, the accelerator works both
ways, meaning you can lift and slow down if afraid or if in over your head.
Sure there were puddles of water
in a few spots - the accelerator works both ways.
Drivers like Sebastian Bourdais chose a full wet setup and was mad the
stewards did not let the race start under green right from the
beginning. The drivers who were complaining about the conditions
either didn't gamble with a full wet setup, or simply are not good in
the rain. Of course your car feels bad in the rain if you stayed
on a dry setup. Too bad really. Again, the accelerator
works both ways. As Bourdais put it, "I
think it's just a matter of knowing if we (the CART series) want to do
rain races or not, if you want to compete or not. If CART doesn't want
to do races in the rain then maybe it's not worth buying rain tires.
Basically it's just a matter of being fair for everybody. We each have
to choose the setup for the race (i.e. taking a gamble on the
conditions is all part of racing in the rain). Knowing the conditions
were really wet, I was one of the guys that picked a wet setup. The
race was supposed to start with heavy rain, they are supposed to put
the green flag out. If they don't want to do it, then why bother even
starting the engines?" We remember the memorable drivers by the
true rain meisters, Pedro Rodriguez and Ayrton Senna, and today
Michael Schumacher. The true greats of the sport who could blow
away the competition as soon as the rain began falling. Unfortunately
CART fans will never get to find out who, if any, might be a rain
meister because it's clear the drivers are never going to be given
a real shot in the rain, and because they never get to really go at it
in the rain, they lose what skill they may have developed previously.
It's sad really, and the fans are being cheated. Mark C.
8/5/03
Toyota Atlantic series to be
well represented on Wind Tunnel The CART
Toyota Atlantic Championship will be well-represented on the
first week of nightly "Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain" programs
on SPEED Channel, as the series' points leader will be a
featured guest on Tuesday, August 5 broadcast and a team
owner in the series will be the featured guest on Wednesday,
August 6. A.J. Allmendinger, driver of the #4 RuSPORT
Toyota/Swift, who picked up his third consecutive Toyota
Atlantic victory and his fifth of the season in Sunday's Grand
Prix de Trois-Rivieres, will join Brickyard 400 winner Kevin
Harvick on Tuesday's show. Allmendinger will be live in the
studio with Despain to field questions from the host as well
as from viewers via telephone. The rookie currently leads the
2003 CART Toyota Atlantic Championship point standings by 34
points over Scotland's Ryan Dalziel with four of 12 races
remaining on the schedule. Twenty-four hours later, first-year
Toyota Atlantic team owner and former Atlantic competitor
Bobby Rahal will be the featured guest on the program. Rahal
is the owner of Danica Patrick's #24 Argent Mortgage Company
Toyota/Swift, who qualified a Toyota Atlantic career-best of
fourth and finished fifth in the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres.
The three-time CART Champ Car champion also fields a car for
Michel Jourdain Jr. in the Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car
World Series Powered by Ford, and is one of the principals of
the Champ Car Stars of Tomorrow karting program. Rahal will be
the Toyota Atlantic team's second representative to appear on
the show, as Patrick was the featured guest on Friday, June 20
on the weekend of the G.I. Joe's 200 at Portland International
Raceway.
8/5/03
Racing saves CART
This Mansfield Ohio newspaper
article says, While the business side of CART remains a mess,
the product on the track continues to be its salvation. Despite
speculation that it would, the racing hasn't dropped off a bit in
2003. It starts with the engines. Tasked with fitting every car with a
spec V-8 turbo engine, Ford-Cosworth met the challenge and then some.
Where mechanical failures were once common, they are now rare. "What
Ford and Cosworth have done for Champ Car is absolutely phenomenal.
They don't get thanked enough," said John Lopes, Champ Car's vice
president of racing operations. Cosworth is so good at what it does,
Chevrolet came calling earlier this year to seek help with its IRL
engines. The drivers are drivers again. They know their cars will be
there at the end, so there's no need to baby them. With no traction
control and no fuel knobs in the cockpit, there is nothing to cover-up
mistakes on the track and no way to stretch fuel for economy runs. "I
really enjoy the series this year without the traction control," last
year's winner at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Patrick Carpentier said.
"There are quite a few guys who can be fast."
More....
8/5/03 IROC
IROC series in need of overhaul
This Mercury News
article says what we have been saying for while, the IROC
series in its current format is nothing but a NASCAR driver benefit
series with a different name. To call it international is
insulting.
8/5/03
IRL seeking $10 million title sponsor
This Sports Business Journal
article (requires subscription) reports that "the Indy Racing
League is on the street seeking its first title sponsor in two years."
The report says that the IRL is asking $10 million a year for the
sponsorship.
8/5/03
Jarrett's jackman hit on narrow
Indy pit laneUPDATE John Bryan is at home
and resting after being involved in a pit road incident at
Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the running of the Brickyard 400.
After being evaluated at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, Bryan was
released with all tests coming back negative. Albeit a little sore,
Bryan’s spirits are up and he is looking forward to getting back to
the race track. “I’m very sore . . . I feel like I was hit by a
racecar,” Bryan joked Monday afternoon. “I am a little sore all over
right now but the biggest thing that’s sore is my shoulder, which
makes sense because I landed on my right shoulder. Other than that, I
feel pretty good and hope to get back to the shop later this week.”
Bryan, who has been working at Robert Yates Racing since 1996, has
been part of the #88 team pit crew since April 2002. He has worked as
the Parts Manager since 1996, and shortly after that went to work
pitting the #28 Robert Yates Racing Fords before moving to the #88
team in 2002. Bryan says he has every intention of returning to his jackman duties as soon as possible. Bryan, who flew home with the team
on Sunday night, talked to Jarrett before leaving Indianapolis. “I saw
Dale at the airport and I think seeing me in person and being able to
see I was OK was a big help for him,” Bryan said. “DJ is a great
person and a great driver. We’re having a tough time as a team, but
we’ll get through it and I just want to get back to the track and be
part of that.” Bryan says one of the positives that came out of the
weekend was the performance of his safety equipment. “The safety
equipment did a great job,” Bryan said. “I wear a Troy Lee helmet
which has a chin guard and I think that made a huge difference. I
think I was able to figure some things out too that may even help make
this job safer and have talked to both Robert (Yates) and DJ (Jarrett)
about it.” Bryan will sit out this weekend’s race at Watkins Glen and
probably the August 17th race at Michigan International Speedway. He
hopes to be able to attend the race in Michigan for moral support for
the team. “These things happen,” Bryan said. “This is the class I
signed up for 10 or 11 years ago when I started doing this. I’m not
quitting and I’m looking forward to getting back to the track in the
next couple weeks.” Bryan is going to continue resting for the next
couple days before returning back to work. Elevation Motorsports PR8/3/03 - John Bryan, the jackman for Dale Jarrett's team, appeared to
be injured in a freak accident on pit road early in the
Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Bryan was
checked at the infield medical center and was taken via ground
transportation to Clarian Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis.
Dr. Henry Bock, medical services director for IMS, said Bryan
was awake and alert, but did not provide a report on his
injuries, if any.
8/5/03
Bernie says drivers should be paid
based on performance Bernie Ecclestone has told team bosses
to link drivers’ wages to the number of points they score. He told The
Times: "We can have racing. What was the problem with the racing at
Silverstone? As soon as they all realized they could win or get decent
places, they all started overtaking. There has been too long when the
team manager calls drivers in and they expect to do their overtaking
in the pits, relying on stopping for eight seconds when the other guy
takes ten. They should do their overtaking on the track." He said:
"When I had Nelson, I told him he would get paid when he got points.
It must have worked because he didn’t do too badly. Maybe instead of
paying Michael Schumacher $60 million for a contract, they should pay
him $10 million every time he wins. The drivers should be capable of
motivating themselves but that doesn’t always happen. It is impossible
to force the teams to do it, but we should think about paying the
drivers when they get points and not just hand out the big salaries
flying around at the moment." Mark C.
8/5/03
Watch Road America broadcast now
If you have broadband, CART.com now has a video-on-demand link for the
full race broadcast of this past weekend's Mario Andretti GP from Road
America. Mark C.
Feedback to Mark Cuban
Some have written to express their amazement of how good the
HD Net pictures were of this weekend's CART race from Road America.
You can thank Mark Cuban for the efforts put out by his company HDNet.
While many have complained about the lack of R/A coverage it could not
hurt to have a guy like Mr. Cuban on our CART's side.
Billionaire sports nuts are a good thing. His email address is
mark@hd.net if you would like to send
him a note. We have heard he reads and answers his own e-mail.
8/4/03
Kentucky track better, still bumpy This
AP
article says, that recent efforts to smooth the extremely
bumpy Kentucky Motor Speedway track surface have helped, but Kenny
Brack says it's still pretty rough.
8/4/03
Trulli says Schumacher cheated One
of the hardest fought battles during the German GP was between Jarno
Trulli and Michael Schumacher. The Ferrari driver eventually overtook
the Italian but had to put all four wheels off the track on the
asphalt-covered run-off area in his maneuver. Jarno Trulli did not
appreciate this move at all. "Michael was able to pass me after doing
a maneuver that is not fair," explained the Renault driver to
Gazzetta dello Sport. "I was always told that we cannot pass a
driver by putting all four wheels off the track and I think that
everybody knows that rule, including Michael. When he came back on the
track, I left him enough space and when he overtook me I told myself
that he was going to hand me back my second position or that the
stewards were going to force him to move over but nothing happened.
I don't want to talk to him about it because I think it is more
appropriate to review the situation with the FIA," added Trulli.
"Briatore told me that he was going to make a formal complaint about
it but finally it wasn't necessary."
8/4/03
Brickyard 400 - more hype than
substance This Sports Illustrated
article says that the flat Indy track is not really good for
the type of racing NASCAR does and the race is nothing more than hype.
The author says it does not yet have the history to back all the
elevated hoopla it is given.
8/4/03
Impressed with Toyota A reader
writes, Dear AR1, I was impressed by Toyota's solid performance in
yesterday's German GP. It looks like they finally put cars together;
the next step for them is to be competitive. They have a tremendous
driver lineup with da Matta and Panis. Both in perfect formation
throughout the entire race (I could picture da Matta learning from
Panis' lines) also the pit stops were done by the book. This team will
be a force to be reckoned with in a very short period of time. I can
see them outclassing Jaguar next year right behind Renault.
Regards, Roberto Reyes
8/4/03
Brickyard 400 ratings down slightly
Sunday's broadcast of the Brickyard 400 garnered an overnight rating
of 5.5, according to Nielsen Media Research as reported by Sports
Business Daily. This is down 3 1/2% from last year's 5.7 overnight
number. Last year's race got a solid small market bump to finish with
a 6.3 final rating.
MotorsportTV.com
8/4/03
Politicians vie for NASCAR "Dads"
This Washington Post
article says, In 2000, it was soccer moms. Today, the
demographic that's most in demand by political strategists converges
at racetracks Sunday afternoons to whoop, holler and shake a fist at
the souped-up Fords and Chevys whizzing past. They're called "NASCAR
dads." "They are middle- to lower middle-class males who are family
men, live in rural areas, used to vote heavily Democratic but now
usually vote Republican," explains Larry J. Sabato, director of the
University of Virginia's Center for Politics. "That's the definition
of a NASCAR dad, and there are a lot of them." And the National Rifle
Association, as well as Senator Bob Graham (D-Fla.), are staking
considerable sums on the belief that if NASCAR can sell its fans on
Pennzoil motor oil and Budweiser beer, why not the Second Amendment
and the next president of the United States? The NRA, whose billboards
now adorn a half-dozen NASCAR speedways, sees stock-car racing as a
means of bypassing the mainstream media and appealing directly to the
Americans who support its agenda. Graham, whose presidential campaign
fields the "Bob Graham for President" NASCAR truck, sees auto racing
as a way of forging a connection with rural voters by tapping into the
passion they feel for American-made cars and the hardscrabble racers
behind the wheel. It makes eminent sense to Virginia-based political
strategist David "Mudcat" Saunders, who is credited with identifying
the potential significance of NASCAR dads and developing the first
successful statewide strategy to woo them. The beneficiary was
Virginia gubernatorial candidate Mark Warner, who slapped "Warner for
Governor" on the side of a Ford F-150 for a 2001 NASCAR race at
Martinsville Speedway as part of his Saunders-inspired campaign
strategy. Warner went on to claim 51.4 percent of the rural vote,
becoming the first Democrat to carry Virginia's rural electorate in a
generation. "If you're going to send a message of hope to rural
America, there is no better vehicle than NASCAR," says Saunders, now
an adviser to Graham's presidential campaign.
More.....recommended
8/4/03
Junqueira to head new nightly SPEED
show
Bruno Junqueira has just returned to his Miami home from
his best weekend of the 2003 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World
Series Powered by Ford, and is spending his first full day as series
points leader by headlining SPEED Channel’s new daily racing show.
Tonight, Junqueira will join SPEED Channel’s Dave Despain on a new
venture as the Despain-hosted Wind Tunnel program moves to a nightly
format that will see the show broadcast each evening from Monday
through Thursday at 9 p.m. Eastern Time. The Newman/Haas Racing pilot
will join the program from his Miami home, discussing Sunday’s victory
that moved him into the points lead for the first time in his career.
Junqueira captured all 23 championship points at last weekend’s Mario
Andretti Grand Prix at Road America Presented by Briggs & Stratton,
claiming his first win of the year and moving into the series points
lead by three digits over Paul Tracy.
8/4/03
Failure is not an option for
CART's Gentilozzi This Mansfield, Ohio newspaper
article says, Paul Gentilozzi has been a part of CART
just six months and already he's one of its best spokesmen. As
the owner of Rocketsports Racing, the team which fields the
Johnson Controls Lola for Alex Tagliani, Gentilozzi could do
for the Champ Car World Series what Colonel Sanders did for
chicken. A new breed of owner, he could become a voice for the
sport, a charismatic personality which people latch onto. Mark
Cuban did it for the Dallas Mavericks and the NBA, maybe
Gentilozzi can do the same for CART. "I've been an
underachiever, so you've gotta do the best you can," he joked
during a June test session at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. He
was a hockey player at Michigan State who played "penalty box"
for the Spartans. After graduation, Gentilozzi built a
commercial real estate empire in mid-Michigan. He also found
his competitive outlet in sports car racing, and before long
was rewriting the Trans-Am Series record book. Now 53, he
bought the Trans-Am marketing rights with plans of bringing
that historic series back to its glory days. But that wasn't
enough. He wanted to start an open-wheel team for his longtime
sponsors at Johnson Controls who were ready for a more
high-profile sponsorship. Yeah, he's an underachiever and Bart
Simpson is an overachiever. "The business deal was right. For
years I made a lot of decisions based on emotion and was
determined not to do that this time," Gentilozzi said. "We had
two choices, do the IRL or this. The IRL has a lot of great
things about it, and the Indianapolis 500 is a great race, but
it's one race. We could have flown in customers from all over
the world and if we would have had a bad day, there is no
redemption. Here I get 18 chances to shine." But before he
made the move, he consulted a couple of old friends, Bobby
Rahal and Paul Newman. "Bobby was especially helpful. Paul
Newman lobbied really hard, and Paul can be a persuasive guy,"
Gentilozzi said. So he came to CART, one of five new teams,
ready to take on his buddies Rahal and Newman as well as the
other established teams.
More...
8/4/03 F3000
Wirdheim gets Jordan test Newly-crowned
F3000 champion Bjorn Wirdheim has been offered a test drive by
Jordan. Wirdheim, who wrapped up the title with two races
still to run, will test for the team at Monza in early
September, as well as driving the team’s third car in Friday
testing at the Italian GP. Wirdheim said: "I feel really
relieved. It feels extra good to win the championship with two
races to go because I can now focus more on the next step."
8/4/03
Battle between two factions continues This
Mansfield, Ohio newspaper
article says, The question was inevitable. Those three
letters -- I-R-L -- are always brought up at fan gatherings.
At the Cleveland Grand Prix, America's other open-wheel series
was asked about again, only this time under the guise of some
comments made by longtime open-wheel team owner Roger Penske
about Champ Car's inevitable doom. Paul Gentilozzi has only
been a team owner in CART for six months, but he was ready.
Everybody in Champ Car is ready when the topic turns to what
many CART fanatics call the "evil empire." "I've known Roger
Penske and have done business with him for more than 20 years.
Racing is a game of musical chairs, and Roger is the smartest
guy because when the music stops, he's going to have a chair.
You cannot forget that," Gentilozzi said, just getting warmed
up. "He has huge involvements with Toyota and Daimler. He's
doing what he has to do for his business, and I completely
respect that." Then came the kicker for the crowd. "It wasn't
so long ago that he had the pom-poms and the skirt on cheering
for CART. The economy and the flow of money went the other
way, and now he's doing what he has to do." Gentilozzi was
working the crowd like a Sunday preacher. All that was missing
from the tent revival was a chorus of amens from the CART
crowd. "Tony George (founder of the IRL and owner of
Indianapolis Motor Speedway) is a great friend," he continued
for the congregation. "I like Tony, but I'm over here in CART,
and I believe in what we're doing. I know we'll be here in
'05." Open-wheel racing's holy war is in its eighth year. It's
just as contentious today as it was in 1996 when the first
Indy 500 was held without the stars of the day.
More...
8/4/03
Schuey rips Villeneuve Here
is another article which
quotes Michael Schumacher saying Jacques Villeneuve is
not good enough to be his teammate.
8/4/03
New Ford NASCAR engine
This Roanoke Times
article says, Ford officials said they have talked to
NASCAR about submitting a new engine. "We're heading towards
submitting a piece of hardware by the deadline, which we're
shooting for a September-October time frame," said Greg Specht,
North American Operations Manager, Ford Racing Technology.
"It's going to be nothing radical and, frankly, nothing they
haven't seen before, but it's going to give our engine
builders some new ground to work on and to catch up with our
competitors."
Breuers makes debut in Toyota
AtlanticMarc Breuers
will return to the site of his first Barber Dodge Pro Series
win, this time behind the wheel of a Toyota Atlantics car.
Marc has signed a deal with Brooks Associates Racing that will
put him in the team's car for three races, starting at
Mid-Ohio -- the site of that first win -- on Aug. 10. Last
year Marc started fifth in the BDPS race and quickly moved up
through the field to take the lead and drive on to victory.
Next up for Marc is a test session this weekend in Oklahoma as
he and the team try to get a feel for one another. It's not
the first time Marc has tested a Toyota Atlantics car. He
tested in the off-season, posting impressive times in his
first time behind the wheel. After Mid-Ohio, Marc will contest
the final two U.S. races on the schedule, Denver (Aug. 31) and
Miami (Sept. 28). All three races will be shown on Speed
Channel. Television times will be posted when they become
available.
8/4/03
NASCAR TV ratings continue to climb
No, NASCAR's TV ratings haven't plateaued yet, NBC's Mike McCarley
said. In fact, Winston Cup racing has more viewers today than ever,
and it is on its way to a third straight season of ratings growth,
which would be remarkable in the world of sports . . . 'A plateau is
going to come at some point,' McCarley said. 'But last year was the
first time any sport had grown in back to back seasons, as far as
ratings, since Michael Jordan's NBA comeback season. NASCAR did that
last year, and Fox was up two percent this year, and we (NBC) were up
16 percent for Daytona and up two percent for Chicago, so it is
continuing to grow . . . However, the downside on the TV front at the
moment is economic - neither Fox nor NBC has yet made any money on the
NASCAR package. The $400 million a year being paid to Daytona simply
is not being recouped by Sunday ad sales. 'We try to squeeze in as
many ads as we can during cautions. But you have to play the cards
you're dealt at each race,' McCarley said. 'Over the course of the
season you'll see the percentage for this season and last season and
the years before NBC and Fox took over will be pretty similar.'
Winston-Salem Journal
8/4/03
Germany crowd down slightly Attendance
for the German GP was over 100,000 despite very hot conditions.
Attendance was off 17,000 and many visible empty seats were evident.
Biela and Werner win in Canada
Frank Biela and Marco Werner drove the Infineon Team Joest Audi R8 to
a dominating win in today's American Le Mans Series Le Grand Prix de
Trois-Rivieres on the historic Trois-Rivieres street circuit in
Canada. The German duo scored their third American Le Mans Series win
of the 2003 season in the LMP 900 class, leading all 169 laps that
comprised the three-hour timed event on the 1.521-mile circuit. "I
have a lot of experience on street circuits, and you have to like
street circuits in order to do well on them," said Werner, a veteran
driver who is in his first full season on the series. Werner had
qualified the Audi R8 on the pole in Saturday's qualifying and drove
the first hour of the event. "JJ Lehto pushed me really hard in my
stint," he said. "I could never get more than four or five seconds
ahead of him. It was a difficult stint with the traffic, and there was
a lot of pressure." Johnny Herbert and Lehto finished second in the
ADT Champion Audi, falling out of contention due to pitting just
before a full-course yellow and losing a lap. Although Herbert was
able to pass Biela late in the race and make up the lap, he did not
have time to challenge for the win.
8/3/03
More feedback on HDNet A reader writes, Dear
AutoRacing1.com, A friend of mine with whom I watch all CART and F1
races got HDnet in time for the race at Road America. We watched it
back to back with a TIVO recording (no loss in resolution) of the F1
race at Hockenheim. Despite the rain delays, I have seen the future of
sports broadcasting. The F1 race was blurry and artifacted (jagged) by
comparison. Nothing can compare with how spectacular the clarity is
with an HD feed. It was like being trackside and watching through a
crystal clear pane of glass. I'm sure not many people got to see it,
but it's fitting that CART is charting these waters first.
Thanks for the excellent coverage, as always... Patrick Harte
8/3/03
Mid-Ohio
fans start petition Fan efforts to help persuade
CART to keep Mid-Ohio on the Champ Car schedule started today
at the race watching party for Road America at Frog, Bear and
Wild Boar in Columbus, OH. A petition has been started to ask
CART to keep Mid-Ohio on the schedule for 2004 and beyond. The
petition will be circulating at the Columbus, OH,
CART/Mid-Ohio Fan Fest at PromoWest Pavilion on Thursday,
August 7. The petition will also be available for signatures
at Mid-Ohio all weekend starting Thursday at the campgrounds.
If you'd like to help save the race, look for the banners
indicating a petition signing location or for the people
circulating the petition anywhere on the grounds. Photo is of
the first signature.
8/3/03
Road America race broadcasts
standing room only It's standing room only with the
crowd flowing outside the doors at the establishments in
Indianapolis that are showing today's CART race live on HDNet.
8/3/03
Road America race restarted
after delay Champ Car officials have restarted the
Mario Andretti Grand Prix at Road America, reducing the number
of laps to 34. The officials plan to get the race in yet this
evening.
8/3/03
Road America live on the web
If you have broadband, here is a link to a live broadcast of
the race from Road America from the Brazil TV folks RedeTV
8/3/03
Road America updateUPDATE CART just announced
a target starting time somewhere between 5:30 and 5:45. The
teams have been notified. 8/3/03 - Champ Car
officials have put the Mario Andretti Grand Prix at Road
America on hold because of rainy conditions. Drivers are
unable to see because of the heavy spray the cars kick up. The
officials hope to get the race in yet this evening, with the
possibility of starting as late as 6:30 p.m. It's still
raining steadily with a grey, featureless sky. Adam Saal and
Beaux Barfield, a race steward, held a brief update at 3:50.
Beaux - We made our best efforts to get the track dry, but
we've stopped all of our efforts to get the track back. Until
the rain let's up, I couldn't give you a time. Question - Any
estimated time for a restart? Adam - You have to get the track
dry. Beaux - We haven't gotten that far into it (as to
discussing a restart condition). The drivers are giving input.
Adam - The ground effects sprays water up and visibility is 0
at 60 mph. Water stays in the valleys. Beaux - We're looking
at a range of options. There's a possibility of running
tomorrow morning. Adam - Carl Haas suggested that. A few years
ago, we would have pulled the plug by now. Question - What
about water on the track in Canada Corner? Beaux - There is no
specific problem area. It's just standing water everywhere. If
we go tomorrow, we'd start 8 laps in. We've only just begun to
discuss the possibilities. Adam - we haven't given up on today
yet. Question - I think in 1995 when Zanardi won, if my memory
serves me right, we started at about 5:00 and ended at 7:30.
How late will we wait? Beaux - 6:00 or 6:30. Adam - our TV
partners are staying with it around the world; the day isn't
over yet. Paul Josephson
8/3/03
Allmendinger holds off Dalziel CART
Toyota Atlantic Championship points leader A.J. Allmendinger
(#4 RuSPORT) moved another step closer in his quest for the
series crown by going flag-to-flag en route to a 0.465-second
victory over his next closest challenger in the points race,
Ryan Dalziel (#28 Pro-Works/Discovery Lake/Daily Record) in
the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres. It was Allmendinger's third
consecutive victory and his fifth of the season, making the
rookie the first driver since Hoover Orsi in 2001 to win three
straight races, and he was also the first driver to win five
races in a season since Orsi won five on the way to taking the
'01 series title. He also became the first rookie to win five
races in a season since Alex Barron won five on his way to
winning the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship crown in 1997.
After taking his third consecutive $1,000 Toyota Pole Award in
qualifying, Allmendinger kept the field at bay going into Turn
1 on the opening lap, and motored off to a comfortable margin
in the middle stages of the event. However, on Lap 35,
Allmendinger got caught up behind the lapped car of Kyle
Krisiloff (#7 U.S. Grand Prix Formula One), which allowed
Dalziel to close the gap to within half a second of
Allmendinger. Once Allmendinger dispatched Krisiloff, he
managed to open up another gap of over a second, but made a
slight mistake on Lap 42 that allowed Dalziel to again close
up dramatically. Nevertheless, Dalziel was not able to get
close enough to make a pass, and Allmendinger sped off to the
victory. It was his series leading sixth podium finish in
eight races thus far this season.
1. (1) A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota/Swift, 45.
2. (3) Ryan Dalziel, Toyota/Swift, 45.
3. (2) Michael Valiante, Toyota/Swift, 45.
4. (7) Joey Hand, Toyota/Swift, 45.
5. (4) Danica Patrick, Toyota/Swift, 45.
6. (6) Luis Diaz, Toyota/Swift, 45.
7. (8) Jonathan Macri, Toyota/Swift, 45.
8. (9) Stephan C. Roy, Toyota/Swift, 45.
9. (12) Louis-Philippe Dumoulin, Toyota/Swift, 45.
10. (15) Philip Fayer, Toyota/Swift, 43.
11. (14) Eric Jensen, Toyota/Swift, 43.
12. (13) Alex Garcia, Toyota/Swift, 41.
13. (11) Kyle Krisiloff, Toyota/Swift, 41.
14. (5) Aaron Justus, Toyota/Swift, 38.
15. (10) Alex Figge, Toyota/Swift, 12, mechanical.
Time of Race: 45:14.076.
Average Speed: 90.787 mph.
Margin of victory: 0.465 seconds.
Lap leaders: Allmendinger, 1-45.
Caution Flags: None.
8/3/03
Road America fans hail Andretti
as hero This Chicago Tribune
article says, Road America is a jewel of a place, a
4-mile permanent road course that wends through the trees of a
countryside in the heart of northeast Wisconsin. It is a track
that challenges even the best drivers, who love it in return,
and beckons even the most casual fans, who can picnic and
party on its rolling hills as a race unfolds below them. It
was back in 1982 that CART first ran, and for the next 20
seasons, the place was always a part of its schedule. But
then, early this year, money intruded and positions were taken
and lawsuits were filed and it was announced that this summer
the series would not run. "I'm sure, inside, they had
compelling arguments for doing so," Mario Andretti said. "But
once we started talking about it and expressing our
disappointment [in the media], it was amazing to go on-line
and see the response the fans were providing. It was something
you could not ignore. When you have a series like CART that
has been very strong in road racing, you must cultivate not
just the street events, not just the temporary events, but
also events that have been with you from the beginning.
Elkhart Lake is certainly one of those. It is really
important." It was important enough that Andretti, still his
sport's most luminous name, set out to save the event. He
talked to CART head Chris Pook and to the track's board
members. He pushed the sides through two weeks of
negotiations, and finally, in mid-May, pushed them into
reaching an agreement......"Grazie Mario" read the buttons
many fans wore on Friday night under a tent set up on its
grounds. The Osthoff Resort will host a "Grazie Mario!" party
that includes free admission and food and Andretti wines. "The
race's impact is significant. It means literally millions of
dollars for the community," says Lola Roeh, the resort's
general manager. Yet the dispute involving this year's race
did not come without negative consequences. The track could
not reclaim its traditional race date in late August. CART
lost its traditional window on SPEED Channel, leaving Sunday's
race to be carried by HDNet. And any number of fans, believing
the traditional race gone, either turned in their tickets for
refunds or traded them in for other events at the track. "This
would have been my 10-year anniversary for attending the race.
. . . I have always looked forward to planning my vacation
around the event," one of those fans wrote the track in an
e-mail. "Unfortunately, due to previous issues that CART has
had with Road America, I will no longer make an effort to go
to the race. . . . The way CART is running a business is very
questionable at times and has caused a lack of interest in
their product." Sunday's crowd, then, figures to be smaller
than those of the past, but that was of little concern to
Andretti on Friday afternoon. He had salvaged Sunday's race
and guaranteed that CART would run at Road America next year
as well, and that was enough for now. "I don't think you can
hang your hat on tents alone. Just the word temporary means
exactly that," Andretti said. "To maintain the criteria that
has been so strong for CART, we must become partners in
promotions with venues like this. "Just walking around today,
it's amazing. I've never, ever felt in my life like I did
today with the fans saying thank you for bringing the race
back. That outpouring of emotion is just unbelievable . . .
[and] not just the fans love to be here, but the competitors
as well. Their satisfaction in being here, that's great
payback in and of itself. "It's heartwarming, and if the event
is successful, who knows? The two years can be 20. It'll all
be driven by the facts. We'll see what the response will be."
8/3/03
Road America declared a wet
raceUPDATE:
Race has been red-flagged due to standing water on the
track. Jet dryers have been sent out. The race has
been shortened to 47 laps. 8/3/02 -It is raining here
at Road America and although the downpour has letup and the
rain is light right now, the clouds are ominous. The
start has been declared a wet start and all cars must start on
rain tires and in single file. Mark C.
8/3/03
CART drivers have big day in
Germany A
pair of former CART Champ Car World Series champions displayed
their considerable talents today in the Formula 1 German Grand
Prix with 1999 series winner Juan Pablo Montoya claiming his
third career F1 victory in a dominant performance at
Hockenheim. Montoya was joined in the top six by
2002 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered
by Ford title winner Cristiano da Matta, who scored his best
finish since winning last year’s Vanderbilt Cup as a Champ Car
driver with Newman/Haas Racing. Montoya took his second win of
the year and the third of his career, winning Sunday’s German
Grand Prix by more than a minute over David Coulthard. The
victory draws the Colombian to within six points of the F1
championship lead. Da Matta finished sixth and climbs into the
top 12 in the season standings. “Myself and everyone in CART
are very proud of Juan Pablo and Cristiano and what they
accomplished today,” said Fittipaldi-Dingman team co-owner
Emerson Fittipaldi, who himself won championships both in F1
and CART Champ Car. “Juan Pablo is world championship material
and Cristiano is proving himself to be ahead of the learning
curve for rookies. They both have a great deal of talent and
we are proud to have had them as champions in our series.” Da
Matta and Montoya are the latest in a series of former CART
Champ Car World Series champions that have also competed in
the Formula 1 World Championship. The list of elite drivers
includes Fittipaldi as well as Mario Andretti, Jacques
Villeneuve and Alex Zanardi. Mark C.
8/3/03
Castroneves in a major drought
This Chicago Tribune
article says that Helio Castroneves has been grounded.
The driver nicknamed "Spiderman" has not climbed a fence in a
victory celebration since winning his second straight
Indianapolis 500 last year. Castroneves has been competitive
over his past 19 races, but he has failed to win in the Indy
Racing League. Marlboro Team Penske President Tim Cindric said
if Castroneves' celebratory maneuver was not so well known,
his winless streak wouldn't be noticed. "People look forward
to how he appreciates a win by expressing himself with so much
enthusiasm," Cindric said. "After some time, fans miss that
and I know he misses it. But he's been second or third six
times this season, so if we just keep knocking at the door,
good things will happen." Castroneves kept thinking that too,
even as his competitors raced around Michigan International
Speedway last week while a hole in his radiator ended his day
on the 71st of 200 laps. "I can't get frustrated and I can't
lose the faith," he said from pit row. Castroneves also
insisted he's not tired of answering questions about his
winless streak. "This is a natural thing that happens to
athletes in every sport," said Castroneves, who has nine
career IRL and CART victories. "We all go through ups and
downs. We've been close all year, so I know we're going to
break through with a victory soon." Castroneves and the rest
of the IRL have the week off. The series resumes Aug. 10 at
Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill. "I have no
doubt Helio will win again soon," team owner Roger Penske
said. "Even Tiger Woods has streaks without a win, so it can
happen to even the best in any sport." While Castroneves has
gone 14 months without a victory, he isn't in a horrible
slump.
More.....
8/3/03
Attempted
murderer apprehended at Road America A 20-year
old man stabbed another man this week between the town of
Elkhart Lake and the Road America track. The man then
ran onto the Road America track trying to get away where
President George Bruggentheis happened to spot him running
across the karting track as a storm approached.
Authorities were called and the man was caught by the Sargento
Bridge. The track then replayed the video from its
security cameras and spotted where he entered the facility.
Dogs were sent on the trail and they found the knife the man
had dropped. Mark C.
8/3/03
FIA slaps Ralf with penalty The
FIA has slapped Ralf Schumacher with a penalty which will see
him start 10 positions back in Hungary for causing today's
first turn accident in Germany. Ralf moved left to
improve his line and caused Barrichello and Räikkönen to spin
wildly and drop out of the race. Ralf was also eliminated.
8/3/03
Nemechek: NASCAR should use F1
pit lane According to this Indy Star
article, Joe Nemechek has become a fan of Formula One
at Indy, if for no other reason than envy. The Winston Cup
veteran and No. 7 starter for today's race wants to use the
pavement strip that F-1 uses for pit road. Nemechek contends
Indy's oval-track pit road is too narrow at 39 feet wide. The
F-1 pit road is 50 feet wide. "I want to ask (Speedway
president) Tony George if we can use the F-1 road," Nemechek
said. "The one we've got is so narrow that you've really got
to be careful. It's one of the narrowest we've got." A narrow
pit road requires precision on entry and exit. If a team
pitting in the middle of pit road decides to take fewer tires
than its competition, the driver must dodge incoming and
outgoing traffic. But there are no plans to use the F-1 road.
The Speedway has temporary bleachers there and has sold all of
the tickets. Plus, the grandstands in the area closest to the
fourth turn are permanent.
8/3/03
A gauge of the health of Indy
Car Racing A reader writes, Dear AR1, I am
watching pre-race coverage on WTHR out of Indianapolis in
preparation for the Brickyard 400. All the vendors that they
have spoken with are talking about how well things are selling
this year. This is just the opposite that was reported during
the "500". The 500 coverage was all doom and gloom and they
were blaming the economy - I don't think the economy has
changed much since May. When will people realize that
open-wheel racing is really struggling - and not just CART?
Thanks, Tim Clingenpeel, Lafayette, IN
8/3/03
Williams admits McLaren trying
to steal Juan This BBC
article says, Formula One team owner Frank Williams
has admitted that rival McLaren is pursuing his driver
Juan Pablo Montoya. The BBC Sport website revealed this week
that McLaren wanted to sign the Colombian after his Williams
contract expires next year - or even for 2004 if possible.
Williams said on Sunday: "Juan has a contract with this
company until the end of '04 - after that it is an open
market. "We'd love to see him stay with us forever, but I
repeat it is an open market and other teams, including McLaren
we believe, are after him. "Humans always tend to think the
grass is greener somewhere else. I really don't know which way
he is going to jump."
8/3/03
Future of Mid-Ohio and CART in
doubt This Mansfield, Ohio News Journal
article says, A 24-year-old relationship could
come to an end after next weekend. In the final year of its
con- tract, CART and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course have yet to
start talks about the future. "What I'd like to say is, yes,
we are working this out, and yes, we are having on-going open
dialog about what our options are jointly," said TrueSports
President Michelle Trueman Gajoch, the owner and operator of
the track. "But to be honest, I've had no communication from
(CART CEO Chris Pook). I've made very unsuccessful attempts to
reach him and have had no direct communication from him for
well over nine months. That's highly unusual." Typically, the
track and a sanctioning body begin working out a future deal
at least a year before the end of the contract. Trueman Gajoch
said they simply renewed their 2002 agreement for 2003 at last
year's CART Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio. "We worked out a very fair
and equitable situation going forward for this year as did
many of the permanent facilities in this country as well as
the temporary circuits. I would say the majority did
renegotiate their situations," Trueman Gajoch said. CART
agreed to be a co-promoter for this year's Champ Car Grand
Prix of Mid-Ohio, which starts Friday with qualifying and ends
Sunday afternoon with the race on the 2.25-mile, 13-turn
permanent road course. But Mid-Ohio's future on CART's
schedule is suspect at best and bleak at worst. Under Pook's
leadership, CART has leaned more toward sanctioning temporary
street courses in major market cities, calling it CART's urban
policy. "I think the test is over. The races have been so
successful this year, every single one," Pook said of CART's
street festivals. It is CART's way of bringing its product to
potentially new and larger fan bases that corporations and
sponsors crave. McDonald's signed up to sponsor rookie
Sebastien Bourdais for four urban races, starting in
Cleveland. Pook would not say if he's optimistic the series
will return to Mid-Ohio. "I'll tell you after the race," he
said. "I have stuff cooking all over the place. Some of it
gets overcooked, and some of it gets undercooked. Mid-Ohio is
one of the traditional racing courses in America, but
unfortunately business times change. You have to adjust the
way you do business. That means Mid-Ohio probably has to
adjust the way they do business, too." Trueman Gajoch said she
doesn't know what she's supposed to adjust. "Perhaps if we
were communicating with each other I would have a much better
understanding of what his perspective is," she said. "I read
everything. I understand his vision and respect it because
Chris has been a longtime promoter of races (at Long Beach)
just as I have. I should make it clear my comments are with no
disrespect to him, but it's the process by which they are
doing business right now that I'm criticizing as far as the
promoter-sanctioning body relationship." "It would
be nice if emotion
would pay the bills. Tradition is nice, but ..." Pook said. "I
think when any good business person looks at the product
they've invested in and was a part of helping grow, you're
just not going to throw it out the window," she said. At CART's Columbus Town Hall Meeting in July, CART board member
and team owner Derrick Walker approached Trueman Gajoch and
reassured her no decision about Mid-Ohio had been made. "I
don't believe they will make a decision until the race is
run," she said. "We're selling tickets (for this weekend). Our
ticket sales are certainly not significantly down and they're
not up. They're on par with where they were a year ago." As
for speculation IRL will take CART's place on the Mid-Ohio
schedule, Trueman Gajoch said she hasn't talked to IRL's Tony
George and any other IRL official. "I have no doubt they are
going to go road racing. We have made no plans to go road
racing with the IRL," she said. Does she expect to get a phone
call from Indianapolis next Monday? "No, that's not his
style," she said. "Mid-Ohio is going to be fine. We're not
going to blow away," Trueman Gajoch said. But a 24-year-old
relationship could blow away after this weekend.
This is a related
article - can Bobby Rahal save Mid-Ohio like Mario
Andretti saved Road America?
News briefs from Hockenheim Drivers,
cars and Formula One tires will be tested to the limit today
at Hockenheim as ambient temperatures are expected to soar.
Team chief Peter Sauber said the forecast, tipped to top the
mercury at 34, would make 'tire performance a deciding
factor.' Power Boost Struggling team
Jordan praised a new specification of customer Cosworth V10
engine for a boost in pace at Hockenheim on Saturday.
Slow on Friday, the Silverstone outfit fitted the new
powerplants for final qualifying yesterday boosting Giancarlo
Fisichella to 12th on the grid. 'We used the new spec
engines for the first time and it obviously helped,' said
technical director Gary Anderson, 'which is a good thing.'
Williams' New Aero Meanwhile, BMW-Williams
praised aerodynamic improvements for yet another one-two
qualifying with the always improving FW25 chassis. Chief
engineer Sam Michael, 32, said the improvements - which put
Juan Pablo Montoya on pole - were 'clearly another step
forward.' First F1 Test Hockenheim
paddock whispers suggested that Bentley's Le Mans 24 Hour
victor Guy Smith is being lined up for a test in the FW25 some
time later this year. Guy hung around in the Silverstone
paddock a couple of weeks ago and is provisionally penciled
for a try in the BMW-powered Williams car, sources say.
8/3/03
HD broadcasts are awesomeUPDATE
According to the HD.net website, Dish Network is providing the
Road America race for FREE on Channel 9425 - any sports bar
that has Dish Network and HD equipment should be able to get
it. They don't need a subscription to the HD.net channel.
8/2/03 - A
reader writes, I feel bad for those who do not have access to
the Elkhart Lake broadcasts this weekend. And I understand why
fans are so disappointed and upset that the broadcasts are not
on network or cable TV. I would feel the same way! However, as
someone who has HDNet in my home, I must say that the viewing
is absolutely AWESOME. The pictures and sounds are something
that words cannot adequately describe and regular television
broadcasts will now always pale in comparison. I realize that
it is not good for the series that so few fans have access to
the programming, but I have to admit, I am having the time of
my life watching every session. Mark Maslona, Cleveland, Ohio
8/3/03 F3000
Townsend Bell learning the
European way of driving Arden team boss
Christian Horner was delighted to have the title secure with
two races still to run: “I’m delighted that we got this one
sewn up early. Bjorn has proved to be the class of the field
all year. After qualifying he set his sights on second. He
didn’t really want to get into a fight with Sperafico, as he
knew that eight points with Pantano behind him would probably
be enough. He got his head down and did a great job. The next
step is to get him an F1 race seat. I think this was
Townsend’s best race this year. If you look at it his pace
from start to finish was extremely good and it’s starting to
come together very nicely now. He drove a great first couple
of laps – he certainly has picked up the European way of doing
things! His times were good and we should see him on the
podium before the end of the year.”
8/2/03
Werner nabs pole in Canada
Marco Werner led a record-shattering qualifying session
Saturday to take the pole for Sunday's American Le Mans Series
Le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres. A new track qualifying record
was set in all four classes of competition. Werner, driver of
the Infineon Team Joest Audi R8, turned the 1.521-mile street
racing circuit in a record time of 57.740, the fastest lap
ever run on the track by any type of car. He earned his first
career ALMS pole and will co-drive with fellow German Frank
Biela in a car that was rebuilt overnight after Werner crashed
it in Friday's testing session. "There is a lot of pressure on
my shoulders," said Werner, who joined the ALMS this season
driving for the very successful Joest team and was driving in
qualifying for the first time. "Fortunately the team gave me
an outstanding car to drive after my mistake of (Friday) in
hitting the inside wall. The car was good to drive and it ran
faster and faster." Johnny Herbert and JJ Lehto will start
second in the ADT Champion Racing Audi R8. Olivier Beretta and
David Saelens were third-fastest in the LMP 900 class in the
JML Team Panoz Panoz LMP01 and will start fourth overall.
Butch Leitzinger led the LMP 675 class with a lap of 58.806 in
the Dyson Racing Lola EX257-MG. He and co-driver James Weaver
will start third overall. The second Dyson car of Andy Wallace
and Chris Dyson qualified second in the LMP 675 class,
followed by the Team Bucknum Racing Pilbeam MP91 of Jeff
Bucknum, Bryan Willman and Chris McMurry. "We weren't sure if
our car would work as well on this circuit as it did last
week," said Leitzinger, from State College, Pa. He and Weaver
made history last week by winning the ALMS event held at
Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., the first overall race win
in series history by a car from the LMP 675 class. "The Audi
is going to be very hard to beat on this track because they
can really put the power down, but James and I will do our
best to take the fight to them."
8/2/03
Government employee fired for
taking free NASCAR tickets According to this
AP
article, A top state Department of Motor Vehicles
official was fired Friday after he was accused of accepting
free pit and garage passes to NASCAR races. The state Ethics
Commission said there was reasonable cause to believe Donald
LaHart had violated the gift provisions of state law by
accepting 55 passes for the stock car races valued at $11,000.
Most of the passes, good at 15 races run in 2001 and 2002,
were used by friends of LaHart, the commission said. LaHart,
an associate commissioner at DMV, had managed the state
program under which NASCAR fans can get custom license plates
that carry the car number and signature of their favorite
driver. The plates cost New Yorkers an extra $43 with some of
the revenue going to NASCAR. DMV officials said about 3,500
New Yorkers have obtained the NASCAR plates. The officials
weren't immediately able to say how much the state and NASCAR
had made off the program. LaHart's firing eliminated the
possibility that he could have faced possible penalties of up
to $10,000 from the commission, commission spokesman Walter
Ayers said. LaHart, DMV's associate commissioner for marketing
and new product development, declined to comment on the ethics
investigation. He had been with DMV for seven years and was
paid $78,039 a year. His attorney, John Poklemba, called the
firing "ridiculous,'' but said he and his client had not yet
decided whether to take the state to court. He said his
client's problems stemmed from the Ethics Commission
misinterpreting state law.
8/2/03
NASCAR still considers point
system overhaul According to this AP
article, The current NASCAR points system was created
by Bob Latford, who died on July 23. Latford invented the
system on a request from NASCAR head Bill France Sr., first
drawing it up on a cocktail napkin at the Boot Hill Saloon in
Daytona Beach, Fla. NASCAR is considering changing its
championship points system to give bigger rewards for winning
poles and races. The current system favors consistency over
winning. The system, which began in 1975 and is often
criticized, has been under attack this season while Matt
Kenseth has built a whopping 232-point lead in the
championship race with just one victory but a string of top-10
finishes. "We are reviewing the points system, as we often do
when there is talk about one driver having so big of a lead
that it looks like the championship will be decided before the
season is over," NASCAR vice president Jim Hunter said
Saturday. "So we will look at every viable option and at the
end of the year apply it to the point standings and see how
things might have been different." One of the scenarios NASCAR
is looking at is awarding a sizable points bonus to the race
winner - anywhere from an additional 10 points to 50 - and
giving a bonus for winning the pole. Other options include
awarding the same amount of points to drivers who finish 30th
through 43rd, or not awarding any points after 36th position.
Both of those scenarios would make it pointless for damaged
cars to return to the race track. NASCAR has already applied
all those scenarios to past seasons and found that it never
changed the series champion, Hunter said.
8/2/03
Herbert says Jacques should
blame himself According to this Toronto Sun
article, Johnny Herbert drove for 10 years in Formula
One and he doesn't feel the least bit sorry that Canada's
Jacques Villeneuve may not get a ride next season. The British
racing star said Villeneuve's choice of signing a long-term
deal with BAR back in 1998 was his undoing. "Jacques' decision
to stay with one team for that length of time hurt his
career," Herbert told The Toronto Sun yesterday. Herbert's own
F-1 career included stints with Benetton, Sauber, Jaguar and
Arrows. "When it became clear in the third year at BAR that
the team was not improving, Jacques should have moved on,"
Herbert said. But the three-time F-1 winner did admit that
Villeneuve's spat this season with teammate Jensen Button has
been good for both drivers.
8/2/03
Jordan tried to drop lawsuit According to this
Planet F1
article, Just hours before Mr Justice Langley was due
to hand down his judgment in Jordan's case against Vodafone,
the F1 team applied to drop its High Court action, saying that
they did not believe they were going to win anyway. Jordan had
taken the mobile phone company to court, claiming that they
had wrongly pulled out of a sponsorship deal after agreeing to
it. Jordan also offered to pay Vodafone's legal costs.
"Regretfully, it is clear that we are not going to win and for
the good of Formula One and the team it is my decision to
withdraw," team boss Eddie Jordan said. "We'll take the
judge's ruling on the chin and then put this behind us. I must
now channel all my energy into getting Jordan Grand Prix back
on track for the rest of this year and for many years to
come."
8/2/03
Pruett wins thriller at Trois-Rivières Scott
Pruett came into the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières
uncharacteristically uneasy about his chances at the tough
French Canadian street course. However, the driver of the No.
7 Jaguar R Performance XKR put his fears to rest by earning
his 19th career victory and his fifth triumph this season in
Round 7 of the 2003 Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires
Cup championship, held Saturday in Trois-Rivières, Quebec.
Pruett, in fact, dominated the event at the 1.52-mile course,
where he had only one previous start. Leading from the
pole—his sixth in seven races this season and first for a
Jaguar XKR here—Pruett held off a charging Johnny Miller and
held the point for all 65 laps. In the process, Pruett also
gave Jaguar its first Trois-Rivières victory, and earned the
$2,000 Flowmaster American Thunder Challenge Award for winning
the pole, leading the most laps, setting the fastest
lap—1:04.843—and winning the race. Pruett also won the
BFGoodrich Tires Take Control Award for leading the most laps.
“I was pretty nervous into this race at Trois-Rivières,” said
the two-time Trans-Am Series champion. “Johnny (Miller) was
tough all day long. He really turned the heat on and picked up
the pace. He’s got a lot of experience in these cars and was
able to run us hard. “One of the things we learned this
year is you can’t run these cars too hard, because you’ve got
to have a good enough car at the end,” added Pruett. “But the
Rocketsports team did a really good job to have three cars up
here today.”
As exciting as Pruett’s charge to victory was, equally
impressive was his nearest pursuers performances. Miller (No.
64 Eaton Cutler-Hammer Jaguar XKR) finished second, his fifth
podium this season, and Tomy Drissi (No. 5 Stuck on You Jaguar
XKR), finished third after starting 14th on the grid.
8/2/03
Allmendinger takes 3rd
consecutive pole A.J. Allmendinger (#4 RuSPORT)
did not go faster than his time from provisional qualifying on
Friday, but turned a lap quick enough to pace final qualifying
and add to his championship lead heading into Sunday's Grand
Prix de Trois-Rivieres (SPEED Channel, Live, 1 pm ET). In
Saturday's final qualifying session, Allmendinger clocked a
best lap of 59.338 seconds (92.278 mph) to head the field of
15 qualifiers, and earned an additional championship bonus
point. He now leads Ryan Dalziel (#28 Pro-Works/Discovery
Lake/Daily Record) by 29 markers heading into Round 8 of the
12-race 2003 CART Toyota Atlantic Championship. He starts from
the pole position, however, based on his track record speed of
59.296 seconds (92.343 mph) from Friday's provisional round of
qualifying. Allmendinger will start from the pole position for
the third consecutive race and the fifth time overall this
season. In each of the previous four races that he started
from the pole, he went on to win the race, and it was also the
sixth consecutive Toyota Atlantic qualifying
session that he has positioned himself atop the time charts.
Starting second will be defending Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres
champion Michael Valiante (#19 Lynx Racing), who paced the
final qualifying session for the first two-thirds of the
session before Allmendinger turned his fast
lap late in the running. Valiante posted a best lap of 59.454
seconds (92.098 mph), and starts inside the top three for the
third consecutive event. It is his fourth straight top-five
starting spot. Dalziel starts third after clocking a best lap
of 59.526 seconds (91.987 mph). It was the Scot's seventh
consecutive top-four starting spot, and his ninth top-four
starting position in 10 races dating to a third place
qualifying performance at Montreal in 2002. He goes into the
race looking to continue his streak of top-five finishes to
six consecutive races. Team Rahal's Argent Mortgage Company
driver Danica Patrick will start fourth for Sunday's Le Grand
Prix de Trois-Rivieres marking her best starting position of
the season. It is Patrick's second top-five start of the
season and she surpassed the fifth place start she had in the
season opener at Monterrey Mexico. At Monterrey she started
fifth and finished third claiming the first podium result of
her Atlantic career. Patrick ended Saturday qualifying fifth
overall but her fast lap from Friday stood up to claim the
outside of row two. The final session started on the wrong
note as Patrick clipped the wall and sustained suspension
damage. The Argent crew worked quickly and the Argent car
returned to the track and came within a tenth of a second of
matching her Friday time. ""The morning session was a
challenge for us, but the engineers made a few changes and the
car was much better this afternoon," said Patrick. "We went
back to what we knew worked yesterday and we found our way
back towards the front. I asked the engineers to improve the
turn in and they improved it so much I hit the wall. The crew
did a great job and they had me back on track in no time.
Tomorrow will be a long race (45 laps) and the guys in front
of me (Allmendinger, Valiante and Dalziel) are very fast. I
just have to make sure I get my tires up to temp and that I
pull a gap so I can run with them. I know my engineers are
looking at a couple of ways to improve the car and who knows
what can happen in the race."
1. (4) A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota/Swift, 59.296, 92.343 mph.
2. (19) Michael Valiante, Toyota/Swift, 59.454, 92.098 mph.
3. (28) Ryan Dalziel, Toyota/Swift, 59.526, 91.987 mph.
4. (24) Danica Patrick, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.052, 91.181 mph.
5. (3) Aaron Justus, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.053, 91.179 mph.
6. (33) Luis Diaz, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.231, 90.910 mph.
7. (27) Joey Hand, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.251, 90.880 mph.
8. (84) Jonathan Macri, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.390, 90.671 mph.
9. (16) Stephan C. Roy, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.478, 90.539 mph.
10. (69) Alex Figge, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.763, 90.114 mph.
11. (7) Kyle Krisiloff, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.944, 89.846 mph.
12. (17) Louis-Philippe Dumoulin, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.236,
89.418 mph.
13. (9) Alex Garcia, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.462, 89.089 mph.
14. (2) Eric Jensen, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.752, 88.671 mph.
15. (8) Philip Fayer, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.937, 88.406 mph.
8/2/03
Hunter-Reay
likes Reynske front wing For the first time
this year, CART rookie driver Ryan Hunter-Reay finally got to
use the Reynske front wing at Road America and it paid
immediate results for him. He qualified 8th fastest
right behind his veteran teammate Jimmy Vasser. Ryan
told us that for his style of driving, the new front wing paid
huge dividends, enabling him to shave 9/10ths of a second off
his time from Friday. He was just a whisker slower than
Vasser who said "our cars are good this weekend and Ryan is
doing a real good job." Vasser tried the Reynske front
wing but reverted to the Players front wing as it seems to
suit his style better. In photo top right, Hunter-Reay talks
with team PR rep Katie Brannan Mark C.
8/2/03
Normand Legault slams Chris
Pook, says he mismanaged CART money Today's
Journal de Montreal reports from Hockenheim, Germany that
Montreal race promoter Normand Legault was attending a summit
along with other big F1 names such as Bernie Ecclestone, etc.
He was quoted as saying that after looking at CART's assets
and previews on the potential buyout, Legault thinks that time
will run out, as will the money, before CART could be sold and
restructured. The problem is that the money went away too
fast, losing $90 million this year alone. CART had to buy the
TV exposure and support many teams. He puts the blame on
internal feuds, with Pook being accused directly for spending
that much. He said going to Europe wasn't a good idea either
as it cost the series $8 million, and that the Tracy episode
did nothing to help credibility either. He said "unless
something big happens, I can't see myself helping the series
at this point." The title of the article was "The
Titanic is Sinking."
8/2/03
NASCAR drivers win IROC again,
make IRL drivers look like losers We have long
maintained that the IROC series heavily favors NASCAR drivers
and the open wheel drivers are fools for accepting an
invitation, only to come
out looking like losers and elevating the status of NASCAR
drivers. It happened once again this year, with NASCAR
driver Jimmie Johnson wining today's race in Indy, and IROC
rookie and NASCAR Winston Cup regular Kurt Busch winning the IROC
XXVII championship, scoring 69 points. Sam Hornish finished
eighth with 30 points (the highest IRL driver), while Sharp
and Giaffone finished 10th with 24 points. Giaffone scored 9
points in the first two IROC races of the year, while Sharp
scored 15 points in the final two races. Castroneves finished
12th (dead last) with 23 points. Some guys will never learn.
8/2/03 F3000
Sperafico wins race, Wirdheim
the title Ricardo Sperafico won the 8th round
of the International F3000 Championship this afternoon at
Hockenheim, but it was Swede – Bjorn Wirdheim who stole the
show to capture the 2003 title with 2nd place. It was the
perfect result for the 23 year old, who, in his 2nd season of
F3000 has proved to be the class of the field with 2 wins and
only a single race where he has failed to score points (Nurburgring).
“Today is like a dream for me,” said Wirdheim after the race.
“The team have been fantastic all year and today is the
realization of a lot of very hard work. I am overjoyed to have
beaten so many really top drivers and I just want to say a big
thank you to everyone who has believed in me during my
career.” Wirdheim becomes the first Swede to have won the
title, eclipsing Kenny Brack’s runners up position in 1996.
Bjorn will now aim to follow in the footsteps of countrymen
Ronnie Peterson, Gunnar Nielsen and Stefan Johansson to become
a full-fledged F1 driver. His prospects look good as all but three F3000 champions, since the series’ inception in 1985,
have gone on to become Grand Prix drivers. Arden International
also notched their first ever championship win after coming
close last season with Tomas Enge. The team, which was set up
by Christian Horner in 1997, was overjoyed at the victory that
rewarded the team's consistency during a stellar season for the Banbury based squad. It was a joyous podium at the end of the
32-lap race that saw the drivers tested to the limits in their
Lola B2/50 chassis as temperatures hovered around the
30-degree mark. Ricardo Sperafico, who started from pole,
scored a convincing victory in his Coloni Motorsport entry,
mirroring his win at the A1 Ring earlier in the 2003 campaign.
The Brazilian led home Wirdheim by just over 3 seconds and
said afterwards; “It was a great race, but demanding, as in
the first part I wasn’t allowed to make mistakes because
Wirdheim was very close. I’m pleased with my second place in
the drivers standings and we are confident about a great
result at Budapest and Monza too.” Joining Sperafico and
Wirdheim on the podium was Red Bull Junior driver Patrick
Freisacher who leaped from 4th on the grid to overtake teammate Vitantonio Liuzzi and score his best result since
finishing 2nd at the season opener at Imola back in April.
Liuzzi eventually came in 4th, closely followed American
Townsend Bell who scored points for the third race in
succession in 5th place. Tony Schmidt (Astromega) did well in
his home event claiming 3 points for 6th, ahead of Italian
Giorgio Pantano who lost out in a furious opening lap battle
with Bell and Schmidt. Results:
1 Ricardo Sperafico
2 Bjorn Wirdheim
3 Patrick Friesacher
4 Vitantonio Liuzzi
5 Townsend Bell
6 Tony Schmidt
7 Giorgio Pantano
8 Jaroslav Janis
9 Zsolt Baumgartner
10 Raffaele Giammaria
11 Yannick Schroeder
12 Will Langhorne
13 Sam Hancock
14 Valerio Scassellati
15 Michael Keohane
16 Enrico Toccacelo
8/2/03
F1 might have its first Indian
driver According to this Hindustan Times
article, It was a case of so near and yet, so far, for
Indian speed king Narain Karthikeyan. The 26-year-old Narain,
currently second in the Formula Nissan World Series, came very
close to racing for Minardi in the last five races of Formula
One this season. Unfortunately for the Indian, the time that
Minardi had given him to raise 800,000 Euros ($900,000 approx)
through his sponsors was short. "My principal sponsors Tatas
were very interested and I could have been racing this weekend
in Hockenheim (Germany). But in the world of F1, nobody waits
and I could not make it," said Narain on Thursday from
Coimbatore. The situation is basically this. Narain, who has
done very well to be placed second in the highly competitive
Formula Nissan World Series, is good enough to be called by
Formula One teams, but is cramped by a lack of resources. But
it doesn't have him down. "People might say that time is
running out for me but the fact is that F1 teams still do
recognize me. The Nissan Series has six former F1 drivers, and
I am happy that I am competing with them and doing well." The
fastest Indian behind wheels believes that in the
ever-changing world of F1, it might still be possible for him
to drive for Minardi in the last two races at Indianapolis
(USA) and Suzuka (Japan). "I am very familiar with the Suzuka
track as I had raced there in the Formula Nippon series. I am
sure things will pan out well and hopeful that the money
required will be raised," added Narain. "There is every
possibility that there will be huge pressure on Kiesa to
perform. And if he is two seconds off their No.1 driver
Verstappen, the ball could be rolling for me," said Narain.
8/2/03
For John Andretti, justice is
served Petty Enterprises fired driver John
Andretti several weeks ago because the results just were not
there. Meanwhile the Petty team remains one of the
slowest teams in Winston Cup, with Kyle Petty and Christian
Fittipaldi, who took over for Andretti, back in 50th and 52nd
in yesterday's practice for the Brickyard 400. John
Andretti, driving a one-off race for DEI, was fastest on the
day. This backs up his excellent qualifying performance
at Pocono last weekend. Conclusion - John Andretti is a
very good driver, it's the Petty team that needs a complete
overhaul. Firing Andretti was the best thing Petty could
have done for Andretti. Perhaps Kyle should have fired
himself as team owner and put someone in place who can turn
the team around. Kyle should stick to driving.
Although never a superstar driver, he's clearly better at that
than running a team. Mark C.
8/2/03
Pruett wins pole at Trois-RivièresUPDATE
The No. 8 Don Q Rum Jaguar XKR of rookie Jorge Diaz, Jr. will
start last in today’s Le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, Round 7
of the 2003 Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup
championship. Diaz’s time was disallowed after his team
elected to make an engine change. Diaz qualified ninth Friday.
Diaz was cited under rule 1.7.10.1 in the Trans-Am Series
Rulebook: “…If a driver changes engines after qualifying, the
driver must forfeit his starting position and start at the
back of the grid. The entire grid moves up, filling the vacant
positions…” 8/1/03 - Scott Pruett didn’t let lack of
experience or even gearbox troubles get in the way of him
earning his sixth pole this season, and 26th of his career,
during Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup qualifying
Friday at Le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières. Pruett, who has
made just one Trans-Am Series start here prior to this
weekend, earned the pole with a 1:03.890-minute lap at 85.687
miles per hour. The pole was also Jaguar’s first pole here.
For his efforts, Pruett, driver of the No. 7 Jaguar R
Performance XKR, won the Jaguar Pole Award, a
performance-based initiative that rewards drivers who earn the
pole at each of the Trans-Am Series’ events this season.
Polesitters will receive a key—regardless of what type of car
they race—which, at the culmination of the season, they will
use to attempt to open the door to a 2004 Jaguar XK8, during a
formal ceremony. The driver whose key opens the vehicle will
win a one-year lease on the car. Johnny Miller (No. 64 Eaton
Cutler-Hammer Jaguar XKR) qualified second, ahead of French
Canadian driver Claude Bourbonnais, driving the No. 3
Rocketsports Jaguar XKR. Michael Lewis (No. 12 Westward
Tools/The Crank Jaguar XKR) and Bobby Sak (No. 10 Revolution
Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette) completed the top five:
1. Scott Pruett, Jaguar XKR, 1:03.890, 4, 85.704.
2. Johnny Miller, Jaguar XKR, 1:04.055, 7, 85.483.
3. Claude Bourbonnais (R), Jaguar XKR, 1:04.423, 7, 84.994.
4. Michael Lewis, Jaguar XKR, 1:04.520, 7, 84.867.
5. Bobby Sak (R), Chevrolet Corvette, 1:04.786, 10, 84.518.
6. Stu Hayner, Chevrolet Corvette, 1:04.829, 12, 84.462
7. Randy Ruhlman, Chevrolet Corvette,1:05.032, 7, 84.199.
8. Max Lagod, Chevrolet Camaro, 1:05.646, 8, 83.411.
9. Bob Ruman, Chevrolet Corvette, 1:05.966, 6, 83.006.
10. John Baucom, Jaguar XKR, 1:06.451, 11, 82.401.
11. Joey Scarallo (R), Chevrolet Corvette, 1:06.502, 13,
82.337.
12. Simon Gregg, Chevrolet Corvette, 1:07.791, 3, 80.772.
13. Garrett Kletjian (R), Chevrolet Corvette, 1:10.859, 6,
77.275.
14. Tomy Drissi, Jaguar XKR, No Time.
15. Jorge Diaz, Jr (R)*, Jaguar XKR, 1:05.653, 7, 83.402.
*Moved to the back of grid per rule 1.7.10.1: ³ŠIf a driver
changes engines after qualifying, the driver must forfeit his
starting position and start at the back of the grid. The
entire grid moves up, filling the vacant positionsŠ²
8/2/03
Ralf stays atop charts on
Saturday morning
Position/Driver Team Fastest Lap
1 Ralf Schumacher Williams 1m15.387s
2 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1m15.495s
3 Juan Pablo Montoya Williams 1m15.716s
4 Fernando Alonso Renault 1m16.277s
5 Jarno Trulli Renault 1m16.305s
6 Kimi Raikkonen McLaren 1m16.320s
7 Mark Webber Jaguar 1m16.474s
8 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1m16.493s
9 Jenson Button BAR 1m16.954s
10 Jacques Villeneuve BAR 1m16.957s
11 Olivier Panis Toyota 1m17.169s
12 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber 1m17.334s
13 Cristiano da Matta Toyota 1m17.426s
14 Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan 1m17.583s
15 Nick Heidfeld Sauber 1m17.647s
16 Justin Wilson Jaguar 1m17.766s
17 Ralph Firman Jordan 1m18.403s
18 Jos Verstappen Minardi 1m19.533s
19 Nicolas Kiesa Minardi 1m20.408s
20 David Coulthard McLaren -m-s
8/2/03
CART botched Road America
telecastUPDATE:
It’s an amazement! A miracle! Within moments of your printing
my note I was advised by another frustrated Chicago CART fan
that we now have one(1) viewing venue:
Stanley's Kitchen & Tap- *NEW LISTING
(312) 642-0007
1970 N. Lincoln
Chicago
Gee Stanley, thanks for having us! Boy, I hope Stanley has a
lot of room for all the Chicago fans that I’m sure will show
up! J.N. Anderson, Chicago “We're-Such-An-Important-Market-We-Get-One-Viewing-Party-But-Indianapolis-Gets-Three”,
Illinois8/2/03 - A frustrated reader writes, Dear
AR1.com, Just wanted to take a moment to express how
disappointed I am in CART for botching the R/A broadcast. It’s
one thing to do an experimental HD broadcast in parallel with
some kind of regular broadcast but pure stupidity to only do
an HD feed. With so few outlets or “viewing parties” available
I’ll wager no one will see what is arguable CART’s “Crown
Jewel” road course event! I have spent two days dialoging with
DirecTV (DTV) in the hope of convincing them to offer some
kind of analog feed either as a low cost pay-per-view event or
on tape delay. I was told they will be broadcasting the HDNet
feed but one needs to be a subscriber to DTV’s high def
service and have a hi def satellite system to receive HDNet
programming. I don’t recall seeing this information anywhere
on CART.com (no big surprise) and I think it was only
mentioned in passing at HDNet’s site. J.N. Anderson,
Chicago (No Viewing Parties ‘Cause We're Too Small An Urban
Market), Illinois
8/2/03
Mario: CART must keep different
tracks As
noted in this AR1 Story
by Paul Josephson, and reiterated in this AP
article, America's greatest racing driver says that
the CART series must promote and nurture different types of
race tracks if it wants to survive, board member Mario Andretti
said Friday. ``I feel that CART can only stand out alone in a
strong way if they stay and diversify the series,'' he said at
Road America, site of Sunday's Mario Andretti Grand Prix.
Andretti said the league must promote its permanent road
course tracks, such as Road America, as well as its temporary
street courses and oval tracks. Andretti was the catalyst that
brought Road America and CART together. CART cancelled the
race this year, but was able to settle its differences with
the track and also will return next year. Road America
officials named the race in honor of the racing great. Andretti's love for the track - he won three races there -
was the primary reason he got involved. He also said part of CART's attraction is its diversity. ``I think that is what
made CART the series that it was, still is,'' he said.
Andretti said fans would support the different races and
expected the work he did for Road America to pay off. "If the
event is successful like anything else, two years can be 20,''
he said.
Tagliani & Haberfeld escape
injury in big wreckAlex
Tagliani went flying through the air at Road America Friday
afternoon when he ran into the back of a slowing Mario
Haberfeld, who was trying to avoid Tiago Monteiro.
"Unbelievable. I was coming up over the ridge at 160mph.
Monteiro was trying to pass Haberfeld
and went off course. Monteiro was on one side of the track and
Haberfeld slowed on the other side of the track and must have been
in first gear. I tried to brake and turn, but I locked up the
brakes and had nowhere to go. It’s incredible; I’ve had it with
these [Mi-Jack Conquest Racing and Fittipaldi-Dingman Racing]
teams. These guys are not conscious of where other guys are on the
track. They think they are the only ones out there. The probation
that was handed down was not enough. Points should be taken away.”
Neither driver were able to qualify on Friday due to damage to
their cars.
Photos by Paul Strak/Players Racing
8/1/03
Tagliani & Haberfeld escape
injury in big wreckAlex
Tagliani went flying through the air at Road America Friday
afternoon when he ran into the back of a slowing Mario
Haberfeld, who was trying to avoid Tiago Monteiro.
"Unbelievable. I was coming up over the ridge at 160mph.
Monteiro was trying to pass Haberfeld
and went off course. Monteiro was on one side of the track and
Haberfeld slowed on the other side of the track and must have been
in first gear. I tried to brake and turn, but I locked up the
brakes and had nowhere to go. It’s incredible; I’ve had it with
these [Mi-Jack Conquest Racing and Fittipaldi-Dingman Racing]
teams. These guys are not conscious of where other guys are on the
track. They think they are the only ones out there. The probation
that was handed down was not enough. Points should be taken away.”
Neither driver were able to qualify on Friday due to damage to
their cars.
Photos by Paul Strak/Players Racing
8/1/03
John Andretti quickest at Indy
Friday
1 #81 John Andretti Chevrolet
Kraft Foods 100th Anniversary 182.708 49.259 Leader
2 #48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 182.645 49.276 -0.017
3 #25 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet UAW/Delphi 181.389 49.617 -0.358
4 #77 Dave Blaney Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions 181.148
49.683 -0.424
5 #15 Michael Waltrip Chevrolet NAPA Auto Parts 181.105 49.695
-0.436
6 #29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service 181.068
49.705 -0.446
7 #17 Matt Kenseth Ford DeWalt Power Tools 181.036 49.714
-0.455
8 #31 Robby Gordon Chevrolet Cingular Wireless 180.959 49.735
-0.476
9 #20 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Home Depot 180.930 49.743 -0.484
10 #40 Sterling Marlin Dodge Coors Light 180.596 49.835 -0.576
8/1/03
News from Hockenheim - I F1
rookie Ralph Firman made it clear that he's keen on staying at
the ailing Jordan team for another year. Firman
Wants To Stay 'I'm happy with the team,' he
said, 'and I want to stay.' He said disillusioned teammate
Giancarlo Fisichella has 'made it clear' that he wants to
leave. Michelin proved they have the measure of
tire rivals Bridgestone, who supply Ferrari, at a hot and
sunny Hockenheim circuit on Friday. Michelin Set
Pace Motorsport director Pierre Dupasquier
fended off claims that his Japanese rivals might bounce back
to the top when the pace settles into longer runs on Sunday.
'No,' said the Frenchman. 'In practice, we did 12 to 15 laps
at a time and we had no problems at all with wear rates. It
makes me very positive.' Bridgestone technical manager
Hisao Suganuma admitted that his product and the Ferraris (8th
and 9th) are in trouble. 'Obviously there's some
work to do,' he said, 'but the track was still quite green
this afternoon. There is certainly some improvement yet to
come.' No one, with the possibly exception of the rookie
himself, was more pleased for Justin Wilson's 7th on Friday at
Hockenheim than former boss Paul Stoddart. Wilson
Praised The Minardi chief, who was instrumental
in the Norfolk-born ace's switch to Jaguar, said his pace
'goes to show all the faith we had in him was justified.'
Wilson's new boss, head of Jaguar performance Mark Gillan,
also praised the Englishman who turned 25 today.
'Justin's lap was simply superb,' he said. 'He handled the
pressure with both composure and focus and was rewarded with
an excellent P7 spot.'
8/1/03
News from Hockenheim - II Michael
Schumacher can forget about a charge for pole position in
front of his home fans at Hockenheim, the Ferrari team has
admitted. The reigning world champion, struggling for
pace on sluggish Bridgestone tires, could only manage ninth in
the Friday one-lap dash. No Ferrari Pace
'That's not what we're used to,' said team chief Jean Todt.
Technical boss Ross Brawn added that neither driver was
satisfied with his F2003's setup. 'We know we have room
to improve,' he said. 'We may not be on the front row
tomorrow, but we can still be confident about Sunday's race.'
Ailing privateer F1 team Jordan tried to drop its landmark
court case against potential sponsor Vodafone on Friday.
Jordan Drop Case Irish chief Eddie Jordan
issued a statement admitting defeat to the telecommunications
brand, who sponsor champion team Ferrari. 'It is clear
we are not going to win,' it read. 'So for the good of ... the
team it is my decision to withdraw.' Jordan
offered to pay Vodafone's legal costs but the disgruntled
company isn't playing ball - it wants the court judgment to be
made public. The United States Grand Prix will be
run in June, not September as it has since the inaugural 2000
race, starting from 2004. Indy Gets New Date
'This is exciting news,' said Indy circuit chief Tony George
of the provisional date. 'The summer date will be good and set
up a North American swing for F1.' Jacques Villeneuve
and his management are in 'deep discussions' with BAR over a
new Formula One contract. JV Wants To Race
The Canadian will have to take a massive pay cut but
he insisted that a year off is not an attractive option. 'I
still want to race,' he said. 'There is no plan or
a date for when we will make a decision. Until something is
done you talk with everybody.'
8/1/03
CART stock watch Shares
of CART stock (MPH) continued to plummet today, closing at
$1.50 per share on speculation of more bad news in the 2nd
quarter.
8/1/03
Allmendinger, Valiante &
Patrick top qualifying The juggernaut that is
A.J. Allmendinger (#4 RuSPORT) and the first-year RuSPORT team
continued in Friday's first round of qualifying for Sunday's
Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres (SPEED Channel, Live, 1:00 p.m.
ET)., as the rookie blistered the previous track record and
put his car on the provisional pole position. Allmendinger
posted a best lap of 59.296 seconds (92.343 mph) and broke the
two-year-old track record of 1:00.663 (90.263 mph) established
by 2001 series champion Hoover Orsi. As a result, Allmendinger
has guaranteed himself a front-row starting position for
Sunday's race and also earned a championship point to extend
his lead in the point standings to 28 over Ryan Dalziel (#28
Pro-Works/Discovery Lake/Daily Record). Qualifying second on
the provisional grid was defending race champion Michael
Valiante (#19 Lynx Racing), who posted a best lap of 59.905
seconds (91.405 mph). Valiante heads into Saturday's final
qualifying session looking for his second career pole position
(his first came at Trois-Rivieres last year) and also to
extend his streak of consecutive top-three starting spots to
three races, dating to a second place qualifying performance
at Cleveland. Third on the provisional grid was rookie Danica
Patrick (#24 Argent Mortage Company), who clocked a best lap
of 1:00.052 (91.181 mph). If Patrick is able to maintain or
improve her position in Saturday's final round of qualifying,
it will be her best career starting position, topping a
previous best start of fifth at the season-opening Tecate
Telmex Monterrey Grand Prix. In that race, Patrick went on to
finish third and became the first woman in series history to
finish on the podium.
1. (4) A.J. Allmendinger, Toyota/Swift, 59.296, 92.343 mph.
2. (19) Michael Valiante, Toyota/Swift, 59.905, 91.405 mph.
3. (24) Danica Patrick, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.052, 91.181 mph.
4. (3) Aaron Justus, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.132, 91.060 mph.
5. (28) Ryan Dalziel, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.202, 90.954 mph.
6. (84) Jonathan Macri, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.211, 90.940 mph.
7. (33) Luis Diaz, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.515, 90.483 mph.
8. (69) Alex Figge, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.763, 90.114 mph.
9. (27) Joey Hand, Toyota/Swift, 1:00.782, 90.086 mph.
10. (7) Kyle Krisiloff, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.369, 89.224 mph.
11. (16) Stephan C. Roy, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.467, 89.082 mph.
12. (2) Eric Jensen, Toyota/Swift, 1:01.994, 88.325 mph.
13. (8) Philip Fayer, Toyota/Swift, 1:02.048, 88.248 mph.
14. (9) Alex Garcia, Toyota/Swift, 1:02.237, 87.980 mph.
15. (17) Louis-Philippe Dumoulin, Toyota/Swift, 1:02.458,
87.669 mph.
8/1/03
CART puts two drivers on
probation for blocking CART Champ Car Stewards
have taken action against two Champ Car World Series drivers
in a response to actions during last weekend’s Molson Indy
Vancouver. Tiago Monteiro (#7 Fittipaldi-Dingman
Ford-Cosworth/Reynard/Bridgestone) and Mario Dominguez (#55
Herdez Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) were placed on
probation following last weekend’s Vancouver event, as a
result of incidents that took place while the drivers were a
lap down and involved lead-lap cars. The probations for
Monteiro and Dominguez will go into effect only in the event
that they become lapped cars during an event and their conduct
concerning lead-lap competitors will be monitored carefully by
CART Champ Car Stewards. The pair will need to be aware of
lead-lap cars and make every effort possible not to interfere
with those cars on the lead lap. The length of the probation
has yet to be determined and any violations of this probation
will result in added penalties up to and including the loss of
championship points pursuant to Chapter 10 of the CART Rule
Book.
8/1/03
Lavín
celebrates birthday Rodolfo Lavín spent his
birthday, 30 July, like so many other days during the busy
summer months of the Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World
Series – traveling from one race venue to the next. The
Mexican rookie spent his 26th birthday flying from Vancouver,
British Columbia, Canada to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin for this
weekend’s Mario Andretti Grand Prix at Road America. While
making a Corona sponsor appearance at Siebkens, a local
restaurant and bar, on Thursday, 31 July, members of the #5
Corona Walker Racing crew took the opportunity to help the
young driver celebrate his birthday presenting him with a
cake. Photo: Lavín with members of #5 Corona Walker Racing
team: (left to right) Derek Higgins, crew chief Les Channen,
Robert Gue, Rodolfo Lavín, Ryan Negron, Herbie Williams, Matt
Schuett, Gavin Hamilton and Toni Calderone. Photo credit Dan
R. Photography.
8/1/03
Ford extends contracts with
three teams
Dan Davis, director of Ford Racing Technology, announced
five-year contract extensions today with Robert Yates Racing,
Roush Racing and the Wood Brothers. The announcement was made
today at Indianapolis Motor Speedway prior to practice for
Sunday's Brickyard 400. "We wanted to send a strong message to
everyone that we're committed to NASCAR racing long-term, and
continuing our association with these three teams does that,"
said Davis. "We feel the NASCAR Winston Cup Series will
undergo even more changes over the next few years, and we
wanted to ensure that the continuity and chemistry we've
developed with these three organizations would continue." All
three teams have been synonymous with Ford since becoming
involved in the sport. The Wood Brothers, led by the legendary
Glen Wood, began their racing relationship with NASCAR in 1953
and have driven nothing but Ford products in that time. The
team, which is now led by Glen's sons - Eddie and Len - have
amassed 97 series victories, which includes at least one win
in five straight decades. Roush Racing has posted 65 NASCAR
Winston Cup Series triumphs since beginning competition in
1988 with driver Mark Martin. The organization boasts a
series-high five teams, including that of current points
leader Matt Kenseth. Robert Yates Racing became a NASCAR
Winston Cup owner after purchasing the team from Harry Ranier
in 1989 and has won 54 races. Recognized as one of the top
engine builders in the sport, Yates led Ford to only its third
driver's championship in the modern era (1972-present) when
Dale Jarrett won the title in 1999. "We couldn't be prouder to
have these three organizations represent Ford," Davis said.
"We're grateful for their loyalty to Ford, and we feel this is
a way of showing how much we appreciate that loyalty. These
teams are the teams we are going to go forward with in the
future, and we wanted to publicly state that fact." In
addition to continuing its relationship with current programs,
Davis also emphasized that Ford remains open to expanding its
roster. He noted the days of one manufacturer having as many
as 20 cars in a field on any given Sunday are likely over.
"The sport of NASCAR is continually changing and we're looking
to position ourselves so we'll be able to adapt to those
changes," said Davis. "As we look toward long-term development
and long-term projects, we know who we will be working with,
and we know there's a level of trust there from both sides.
"We've picked our dance partners for the future. And now it's
time to dance."
8/1/03
CART drivers to visit President
Fox Mexican newspaper La Reforma reports that
after Elkhart Lake this weekend, all four Mexican drivers,
Michel Jourdain Jr., Adrián Fernández, Mario Domínguez and
Rodolfo Lavín will travel to Mexico City and on Tuesday they
will be received by Mexican President, Vicente Fox at the
official residence known as Los Pinos. The drivers will
personally invite the Mexican leader to attend the CART race
at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez this coming October.
8/1/03 F3000
Sperafico takes pole in
Germany, American Bell 6th American Townsend
Bell will start Saturday’s FIA F3000 race at Hockenheim from
sixth place on the grid, three spots behind Arden teammate
and championship leader Bjorn Wirdheim. As usual Bell had to
spend the practice and qualifying sessions learning a new
circuit, and he was beaten only by four drivers with at least
a season of F3000 behind them, and Vitantonio Liuzzi, who
knows Hockenheim well from his time in German F3.
Pole went to Brazil’s Ricardo Sperafico, ahead of Liuzzi,
Wirdheim, Patrick Friesacher, Giorgio Pantano and Townsend.
The closely packed grid and the nature of the track – with
several big braking areas – means that the race could be
rather more exciting than the last two events in France and
Britain. Townsend was relatively pleased to make the top six
again, given the difficulties of learning the track in such a
short time. “I think my position is not terrible, not
fantastic, just kind of average,” said Bell. “It reminds me of
the infield road course on an oval. It has that feel about it.
I’m sure after the race tomorrow I’ll be able to say, ‘I can
see where I can get a little more time here, a little more
time there.’” It’s definitely not an easy track to learn:
“Into Turn One you definitely get a big appetite, and go for
it, although I don’t know whether it’s worth a whole lot of
time. I think the time is in a couple of the braking zones.
It’s tricky, because if you lock a tire or slide a bit too
much it’s like falling down a hole. You really have to be very
precise but aggressive at the same time when the tires are
just right. It’s a track where you get one lap that’s good. It
looks like a place where you might be able to pass a little
bit more. There’s a slow corner leading to a long straight and
another slow corner. That’s a good combination. I’m sure it’ll
be chaos as usual!” Wirdheim was squeezed off the front row
for the first time this season, and indeed for the first time
since the race at Spa last year. He was not too unhappy as he
will start on the ‘clean’ side of the track and feels that he
will have an advantage going into Turn One. “I outbraked
myself into the second corner,” he said. “I don’t know how
much time I lost, but it was really tight.” Despite losing the
front row streak, team boss Christian Horner was happy with
progress: “Bjorn felt that he made a small mistake at Turn Two
on both the laps within the window, and just ran a little bit
wide down there. That cost him the tenth or so that he’s away.
We had a cloud come over that we could see was coming and we
waited for that. The temperature dropped two degrees, but the
problem was that Sperafico and Liuzzi were out there at the
same time. “But third place is OK. The guys ahead of Townsend
have got the experience, and Liuzzi has got the advantage of
being here and knowing it inside out. I think it’s a very
respectable performance from him. It could be an interesting
race, and I’ll be pleased if we come home with plenty of
points and two cars intact!” In other news Nick Kiesa has
moved up to the Minardi F1 team, leaving the second seat at
Super Nova to British driver Sam Hancock. Meanwhile Coloni’s
Zsolt Baumgartner took part in the Friday morning F1 session
in a third Jordan. Times
1. R Sperafico…1m29.829s
2. V Liuzzi…1m29.916s
3. B Wirdheim…1m29.953s
4. P Friesacher…1m30.012s
5. G Pantano…1m30.297s
6. T Bell…1m30.389s
7. E Toccacelo…1m30.667s
8. J Janis…1m30.937s
9. Z Baumgartner…1m31.068s
10. T Schmidt…1m31.109s
8/1/03
Will CART's stock price be
driven down further? Since we are hearing of a
possible Aug 7th date for something to be announced with
regard to CART, and we know CART would likely choose to
release Q2 earnings before any deal is announced and is
additionally bound by an Aug 15th SEC deadline for filing
their second quarter financial statements, we decided to do a
little further analysis. Given that CART issued two earnings
warnings in the span of weeks and given that they clearly
burned through a fair amount of cash in the second quarter, we
expect a pretty bleak earnings release for Q2. We phoned major
CART shareholder Jon Vannini to see if he would comment on the
situation. Vannini said, "In my judgment, Chris Pook appears
to me to be doing everything that is humanly possible to talk
down the stock price of CART. Therefore, I would expect the
second quarter earnings release to be cast in as negative a
light as CART's seemingly comatose Board will allow. Given
what they have allowed to date, I imagine he will have pretty
wide latitude to paint an ugly picture and I expect him to
exploit that. It's pretty obvious Pook has an agenda and in my
opinion that agenda has nothing to do with fulfilling his
fiduciary duties to the shareholders...at least the current
ones. I expect that to be made clear in the coming days."
8/1/03
No shorter Pocono races
Ryan Newman's bumper-to-bumper duel with Kurt Busch during
Sunday's Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway was riveting.
Newman's victory woke up many in the crowd of more than
100,000 who had been lulled nearly to sleep by the lack of
passing for the lead. The race lasted almost 4 hours, again
prompting the thought that Pocono should trim its two annual
races to 400 miles. As expected, the suggestion triggered a
loud response from Dr. Joseph Mattioli, Pocono's board
chairman and founder. "I've been getting this question for 20
years, and I'm getting fed up with it," Mattioli boomed over
the phone Tuesday. Mattioli's research shows that some of
Pocono's 500-milers don't last as long as races at shorter
distances at such tracks as New Hampshire and Martinsville.
Mattioli said that 90 percent of fans polled during a Fox
telecast of a Pocono race want 500-milers at the 2.5-mile
Mount Mattioli track. The former Philadelphia dentist also
insists that NASCAR never has pressured him to shorten races.
- The Philadelphia Daily News
8/1/03
NBC to use 79 cameras
NBC will deploy 79 cameras including cameras unique to
Indianapolis Motor Speedway: Squash-Cam, Wall-Cams and the
"Eye-Full Tower Cam." An extra bank of 11 monitors will be
added to the NBC Sports production truck to accommodate the
additional cameras for the Brickyard 400. "Squash-Cam" is a
lipstick-size camera buried in the grass just inside Turn 1.
The camera often shows a car moving over or extremely close to
the camera lens to give the audience the feeling of being
"squashed," especially on starts and restarts. "Wall-Cam" is a
lipstick-size camera embedded inside the outside wall of Turn
2 and Turn 4. The cameras shoot cars in Turns 1 and 3
respectively and give the viewer the sense of speed of the
cars when they drive past the cameras. The "Eye-Full
Tower-Cam" is a robotic camera atop the scoring pylon 92-feet
in the air overlooking the infield and providing viewers a
sense of the magnificent spectacle of Indianapolis Motor
Speedway with its "Canyon of Fans" in the grandstands on
either side of the racetrack's frontstretch. "We always have a
'fan-cam' shooting fans in the stands. But the Brickyard is so
much more - it deserves a unique camera," said Mike Wells,
director, NASCAR on NBC & TNT. "It's the only track we go to
where there are these huge grandstands on both sides of the
frontstretch. The grandstands create this canyon of fans
surrounding the pits - there are so many people it really
blows you away. This track is so big you can't cover it with
one camera, the entire scene at Indy is just an eyeful."
NBC Sports Press Release
8/1/03
Villeneuve: Damage to career
has been done According to this Fox Sports
article, JACQUES VILLENEUVE admitted here today that
the damage done to his reputation by the management at his
BAR-Honda team could force him out of Formula One at the end
of the year. Villeneuve, speaking ahead of Sunday's German
Grand Prix, appeared downbeat after putting up with constant
jibes against him throughout what has been his toughest year
in Formula One. The Canadian former world champion has been
out of favour since current boss David Richards ousted his
manager Craig Pollock as team principal at the start of last
season. Villeneuve admitted: "There has been a lot of negative
undercurrents and I have been living with that for a while
now. The damage has been done so there is no need for it any
more." Asked if the damage was terminal, Villeneuve pondered
cautiously before adding: "No, it is just that my reputation
has been damaged by it all and I will just have to pay the
price for it."
8/1/03
2004 USGP will run in JuneUPDATE
Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Formula One Management (FOM)
officials have agreed to a change on the 2004 FIA Formula One
World Championship schedule that will move the United States
Grand Prix from its traditional September date to Sunday, June
20 next year. The change is subject to the approval of the
National Sporting Authority, the Automobile Competition
Committee for the United States (ACCUS), the FIA Formula One
Commission and the FIA World Motor Sport Council. Though the
fourth running of the United States Grand Prix is two months
away, Speedway officials wanted to make the 2004 date change
official due to the event’s significant impact. “This is
exciting news for race fans, for IMS and for the city of
Indianapolis,” said Tony George, president and CEO of the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “This new summer date will be
good for travelers, both U.S. and international. If the FIA
keeps its other traditional dates, this will set up a North
American swing for F1.” The FIA and FOM have released a 2004
schedule with only dates. Locations of the other events have
not been confirmed. In June 2003, the Canadian Grand Prix was
June 15, and it traditionally follows the Monaco Grand Prix by
two weeks. The city of Indianapolis and IMS will now play host
to three of the largest sporting events in the world in less
than three months. “Next summer will be extremely exciting as
Indianapolis becomes the worldwide center of attention three
times in three months,” Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson said.
“This new timing will bring a fresh new look to Indianapolis,
and we look forward to making next year’s United States Grand
Prix a continuing success.” Speedway officials admit that
changing the facility from an oval circuit to a road course
and then back to an oval will present challenges, but they
have equal concern for city leaders preparing for the new
date. “It was important for the Speedway to announce this date
change as soon as it became official,” George said. “The
United States Grand Prix is an international sporting event
that not only has a prominent place on the world motorsports
calendar, it is major event here in the state of Indiana. This
change could impact several events regionally, so we wanted to
make it official immediately.” Other city leaders see the
benefit of the new date and expect a June United States Grand
Prix to augment the Indianapolis summer calendar of events.
“Welcoming the Grand Prix into our summer lineup presents many
exciting opportunities for visitors,” said Bob Bedell,
president and CEO of the Indianapolis Convention & Visitors
Association. “The hospitality community appreciates the
continued commitment to our city by both the Indianapolis
Motor Speedway and Formula One.” Officials believe the shift
to the June date will also increase the visibility of the
United States Grand Prix and Formula One in America because
the event will not compete for media coverage with the
National Football League or American college football.
8/1/03 - According
to this Indy Star
article, The Indianapolis Motor Speedway will hold its 2004
Formula One race on June 20, track president Tony George confirmed
Thursday. George received the news from F-1 boss Bernie Ecclestone in
a telephone call Wednesday. George said it was Ecclestone's decision
to move the U.S. Grand Prix from its usual late-September weekend.
This year's fourth annual USGP is Sept. 28. Next year's event will be
three weeks after the Indy 500, which is set for May 30. Ecclestone,
who could not be reached for comment Thursday, will pair F-1's two
North American races together. The Canadian Grand Prix, held in
Montreal, is expected to be June 6. F-1 typically places a week
between its events to allow teams to test. "I'm happy with that,"
George said of the new F-1 date. George's staff will be placed in high
gear next summer, with less than three weeks to convert the historic
oval track into a road-racing circuit. Then, the Speedway is expected
to host its 11th NASCAR race, the Brickyard 400, during the first week
of August. That's just seven weeks after the USGP, requiring officials
to sell about 750,000 tickets for three major races within a
three-month period. "We hope that people will have their money in
early anyway," George said.
8/1/03
CART race also on FOX For
those of you who get FOX Sports Espanol, you can watch the
race live, unlike the rest of the USA which must watch it on
HD Net, if they can get it.
8/1/03
Bristol a fan favorite
A majority of more than 96,000 fans reaffirmed on Wednesday
that the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway is the hottest
ticket in Winston Cup racing. NASCAR Online polled site
visitors asking them, "If you could attend just one Winston
Cup race, which would it be?" In addition to the Sharpie 500,
choices included the Daytona 500 (Daytona International
Speedway), the Brickyard 400 (Indianapolis Motor Speedway) and
the Coca-Cola 600 (Lowe's Motor Speedway). A total of 96,081
NASCAR Online visitors voted. Numbers provided to BMS by
NASCAR.com show that the Sharpie 500 collected 50,043 votes
(52%), placing the August night race classic at the top of the
list. The Daytona 500 followed with 30,191 votes (31%). The
sport's longest race, the Coca-Cola 600 placed third with
9,369 votes (10%). The Brickyard 400 picked up 6,478 votes
(7%) in the poll.
8/1/03
Stewart takes Lauer for a lap
Reigning NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion Tony Stewart gave
NBC "Today" show host Matt Lauer a ride around Indianapolis
Motor Speedway in his signature #20 Home Depot Chevrolet. The
two then swapped seats, with Lauer showcasing his driving
skills as Stewart rode shotgun. The segment for "Today" was
taped and will air today during the three-hour morning show.
When asked if the experience was what he had expected, Lauer
responded, "When I was driving, it was about what I expected.
But when Tony was driving, it wasn't even close to what I
expected. The straightaways didn't kill me because they were
just kind of a blur, but when he would start heading into the
turns my whole body would tighten up. And then I watched him
working the wheel through the corners, constantly adjusting,
and it was just amazing to me the speed we carried into those
turns and through them with the fact that he was on the gas
for half the corner." Lauer, who had flown to Indianapolis
after completing Thursday morning's edition of "Today," arrived at
the historic 2.5-mile oval shortly after 12 p.m. CDT. Taping
wrapped two hours later, and Lauer was soon back on an
airplane en route to New York City. "The cab drivers in New
York are nothing now," said Lauer, shortly after climbing from
the two-seat Home Depot Chevrolet, made available by the
Richard Petty Driving Experience. "You know what's great - you
go fast in your own car without the skills of a race car
driver and it's completely nerve-wracking. You go fast in a car
with a guy of Tony's skills, and it calms you down a lot. It
still scares the hell out of you, but you know he has the
skills to handle whatever he sees. That makes a huge
difference."
8/1/03
Coulthard fastest in opening
practice David Coulthard and Jarno Trulli were
1-2 in opening practice for the German GP at Hockenheim today.
Fernando Alonso was 3rd fastest, both drivers benefiting from
Friday morning testing. The Renault team was fastest in
the Friday AM test session.
Position/Driver Team Fastest
Lap
1
David Coulthard McLaren 1m15.523s
2 Jarno Trulli Renault 1m15.617s
3 Fernando Alonso Renault 1m15.797s
4 Mark Webber Jaguar 1m15.799s
5 Juan Pablo Montoya Williams 1m15.890s
6 Cristiano da Matta Toyota 1m16.109s
7 Jenson Button BAR 1m16.187s
8 Ralf Schumacher Williams 1m16.401s
9 Justin Wilson Jaguar 1m16.568s
10 Olivier Panis Toyota 1m16.602s
11 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1m16.814s
12 Jacques Villeneuve BAR 1m16.945s
13 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber 1m17.137s
14 Kimi Raikkonen McLaren 1m17.284s
15 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1m17.361s
16 Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan 1m17.507s
17 Ralph Firman Jordan 1m17.842s
18 Nick Heidfeld Sauber 1m18.121s
19 Jos Verstappen Minardi 1m18.791s
20 Nicolas Kiesa Minardi 1m19.030s
8/1/03
IRL will not poach CART races Tony
George says in this Indy Star
article that the IRL will not poach road races from CART, but
if CART folds, they will be there to pick up the pieces. He says
the IRL will never run more than 3 or 4 road races in a given year, so
if CART folds, a lot of existing CART venues will be without a race.
As it stands right now, if CART survives, the only existing races of
CART's that the IRL will get are the rejects, i.e. those races that
don't draw very well. Chris Pook maintains CART must race in
urban locales only, so as long as he is President (there are rumors
Pook will step aside if the company is sold), races such as Mid-Ohio
and Road America are in jeopardy. While we here at AR1
understand why Pook wants to stay in urban environments (they draw
huge crowds), it's important that CART does not lose sight of
its heritage, for to know where you're going, one must know from
where one came. CART should work as hard, or harder, to make
great circuits like Road America a success, as they work to make the
urban street races a success. NASCAR has not dropped all their
short track races and replaced them with Superspeedways, even
though the big tracks can seat more paying customers.
NASCAR understands its heritage, and the importance of its
history. Mark C.
IRL team testing updateBuddy
Rice and the Red Bull Cheever Racing team tested the new Gen IV Chevy
Indy V-8 engine July 30-31 at Gateway International Raceway. The
engine made its debut in the Firestone Indy 400 July 27 with Sam
Hornish Jr. Hornish led 126 laps and finished second, .0121 of a
second behind Alex Barron. Per the IRL ruling on July 19,
Hornish and Panther Racing will use the Gen III engine at Gateway,
while Red Bull Cheever Racing, the Chevy team with the second most
points, will use the new engine during the Emerson Indy 250 Aug. 10 at
GIR. Story
8/1/03
The real Craig Pollock This
UK Press and Journal
article is an interesting life story about CART team owner
Craig Pollock. You will never believe how he got involved in
racing.
8/1/03
Canadians having all the luck with Road
America Canadians seem to be having all the luck on
this one. First, regular TV coverage of the race will be provided by
TSN and now Bell Expressvu, the major satellite provider in Canada,
has announced that they will be showing all practice and qualifying
sessions as well as the race in High Definition.
AutoRacing1 is an independent internet online publication and is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by CART Inc., NASCAR, FIA, FedEx, Winston, or any other series sponsor. This material may not be published, broadcast, or redistributed without permission. User agreement & disclaimer
Much
More...click on 2002 archives button below
