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Champ
Car Lexmark 300 game QANTM, an Australian company,
created a 3D car race for the official game site for the
Lexmark Indy 300 Surfers Paradise street circuit. You can
select one of three Champ Cars, race through the streets of
Surfers Paradise, and compete with others from around the
world. Click here
to register (for free) and play. Game requires Shockwave and
nimble fingers using the arrow keys. Prizes are provided with
the overall winner getting free passes to this year's race.
10/11/03
Monteiro making headlines back
in Portugal Tiago Monteiro's fast time in Saturday's
Champ Car qualifying really got the Portuguese people excited.
People were calling him from Portugal minutes after he got out
of the car and there were quite a few media members from
Portugal on-hand who were ecstatic. "Yes, it's going to be crazy-like here, the Mexican fans for
the Mexican drivers, I mean, even for me, they are crazy for
me so imagine in Portugal. It's going to be a big day in
Portugal definitely. I already had some people on the phone. I
couldn't hear what they were saying they were shouting so much
on the phone. We have to take advantage of those moments, very
good moments in your career," said Monteiro.
Mark C.
10/11/03
Bernie didn't say it
We had heard that Bernie Ecclestone told Kevin
Kalkhoven that he really didn't want CART in Europe if he
bought into the series, didn't want the competition or
confusion for the fans with F1. We quizzed Kevin today
in Mexico City about that and he said Bernie never said any
such thing. In fact he was working with CART trying to
line up races. "He even was working on Spa for CART
before F1 decided to go back there," stated Kalkhoven.
Given that, there is still some hope that EuroSpeedway will
get the CART date they are hoping for. That is
contingent there is another track who will also pay CART to
go.
Mark C.
10/11/03
Medeiros wins IPS finale
Thiago Medeiros won his first Menards Infiniti Pro
Series race. The margin of victory was .0694 of a second, the
fourth-closest finish in Menards Infiniti Pro Series history.
The closest was .0170 in Sept. 2003 at Chicagoland when Mark
Taylor defeated Ed Carpenter. Medeiros got lucky to win
after a crash took out the front runners. Afterward he
admitted - “It’s almost a Christmas present. I’m very
happy with the result. I have to say thanks to the crew,
Genoa; Thomas Knapp my engineer, Angelo Ferro the team owner,
my spotter John Martin, he gave me a lot of help. We just were
trying to find a partner to run higher, because it’s very hard
to find a good car to overtake somebody if you have too much
drag in the car, and that’s what we were trying to do. I had a
very good car. I could run high and low and everywhere I
want.”
MARK TAYLOR: “It was exciting out
there. We had a good car. The problem is that you just can't
get past the car in front of you. The restart is a prime time
to get past people, so I had a run on Arie and tried to get
past on the outside. I just went on the outside to see if I
could get past him. He just seemed to turn right, and I was
where he wanted to be. We touched, it turned him around and
you saw what happened. It's just a racing thing. Luckily, I've
wrapped up the championship. It was an enjoyable race to that
point. Things like that just happen.”
Results Saturday of the dreamerscandles.com 100 IRL Menards
Infiniti Pro Series event at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor
Speedway, with order of finish, starting position in
parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason
out (if any):
1. (7) Thiago Medeiros, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
2. (11) Jeff Simmons, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
3. (5) Cory Witherill, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
4. (3) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
5. (2) Aaron Fike, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
6. (12) Rolando Quintanilla, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
7. (10) G.J. Mennen, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
8. (13) Billy Roe, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
9. (6) Dane Carter, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
10. (8) Gary Peterson, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
11. (16) Tony Turco, Dallara-Infiniti, 67
12. (9) Marty Roth, Dallara-Infiniti, 65
13. (1) Arie Luyendyk Jr., Dallara-Infiniti, 38, accident
14. (4) Mark Taylor, Dallara-Infiniti, 38, accident
15. (15) Brad Pollard, Dallara-Infiniti, 2, accident
16. (14) Matt Beardsley, Dallara-Infiniti, 1, accident
17. (17) Taylor Fletcher, Dallara-Infiniti, did not start
Race Statistics
Winner's average speed: 128.975 mph.
Time of race: 00:45:21.0318.
Margin of victory: 0.694
Cautions: 3 for 18 laps.
Lead changes: 2
Lap leaders: Luyendyk 1-37, Fike 38-63, Medeiros 64-67.
10/11/03
IRL announces new TV/Radio
broadcasters for BrazilUPDATE There
appears to be some confusion with this announcement.
According to Emerson Fittipaldi, who we spoke to in Brazil, he
has an exclusive agreement with Rede to broadcast all CART
races live. This means that the IRL broadcasts will
primarily be on Band (which is the smallest over-the-air
network). Perhaps Rede will carry the races on
tape-delay. The announcement by the IRL fails to state
that the broadcasts will be live. Rede is the #3 largest
network in Brazil. 10/10/03 - Comments from Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing driver Felipe
Giaffone and team owner Morris Nunn regarding today’s
announcement that IRL IndyCar Series race broadcasts in Brazil
will be carried beginning next season on free-TV channels BAND
and Rede 21, two of the country’s leading national networks
owned by Grupo Bandeirantes de Comunicacao, as well as the
country’s leading radio network, Radio Bandeirantes. FELIPE
GIAFFONE “I think this is great news because it is everything
that my sponsor Hollywood wanted. Now, in addition to the
high-end cable subscribers who could watch our races in Brazil
this year, the TV viewership now will cover the whole
population base down there, and sponsors like Hollywood see
that as a lot of purchasing power. Now, we will be seen by the
mainstream population, and that will increase interest in the
IRL IndyCar Series in the biggest way ever. Hollywood is
happy. I am happy. The IRL is happy. This is a win-win for
everybody involved.” MORRIS NUNN “This is a huge
breakthrough for our sponsor Hollywood, which is a leading
Brazilian company that has been with us since we started our
team four seasons ago. We’re talking about 150 million in
potential viewership for our races beginning next year, which
considerably increases the value of the IRL sponsorship in
Brazil. That is good for Hollywood, and I’m certain many more
Brazilian companies will follow suit.” Mo Nunn Racing
PR
10/11/03
CART's TV coverage in Mexico
A reader writes, Dear AR1, I just wanted to pass along
some information on the excellent coverage of CART on Mexico's
TV Azteca. I live on the South Texas border with Mexico so I'm
fortunate to get the Azteca channel. Azteca has been
broadcasting from the track since Thursday with promos for the
race. They've been broadcasting their daily sports show from
the track and their weekly variety show on Saturday morning.
Additionally, they broadcasted Friday qualifying and now
Saturday qualifying. Tomorrow they'll start broadcasting at
11:00am with some of the prelim races. On another note, there
have been commercials running from Sky and apparently they've
got exclusive coverage of the race in Pay Per View with an
additional channel for race stats. The Mexicans truly
love CART and they know how to promote the race coverage.
Thanks for your excellent site. I'm addicted to AR1. Reggie
Corona, Brownsville, Texas Dear Reggie, The
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez circuit is full of electricity.
It's very much like a NASCAR race in the USA - full
grandstands (last year there were over 175,000 people here on
race day. We hear this year might be more) and the
drivers are the heroes. NASCAR is popular in the USA
because the drivers are the heroes. CART is popular in Mexico
because the Mexican drivers are heroes to the Mexicans.
There is no secret to having a successful race series.
It's quite simple really - NASCAR sponsors feature their
drivers in their advertising and the drivers become household
names. Ditto for the Mexican sponsors in CART and the
Mexican drivers. CART has yet to figure out that it must
sit down with each sponsor and convince them why
it is to everyone's benefit to make the drivers the heroes.
NASCAR's success is largely a result of getting all its
sponsors to understand the benefits of this strategy.
Mark C.
10/11/03
Chevy extends sponsorship of
TMS races
They do things big in Texas, from cattle ranching to
building speedways. In keeping with the expansive spirit of
the Lone Star State, Chevrolet has extended both its status as
the Official Vehicle of Texas Motor Speedway and its
sponsorship of two autumn events at TMS: the Silverado 350
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race and the Chevy 500 Indy
Racing League IndyCar Series season finale. Chevrolet and
Texas Motor Speedway officials announced the multi-year
agreement today in a press conference at the Texas track.
"Chevrolet is proud to continue as title sponsor for these
exciting events at Texas Motor Speedway," said Chevrolet
Racing Marketing Director Jim Campbell. "Texas is a key market
for Chevy, and we have a strong partnership with this great
facility that every race fan can appreciate. Texas Motor
Speedway consistently produces some of the most competitive
wheel-to-wheel racing in motorsports. Continuing Chevrolet's
support for the Silverado 350 and the Chevy 500 further
solidifies our relationship with fans, the track and the
NASCAR and IRL organizations. "Chevrolet's involvement in
these events goes far beyond putting the Chevy Bowtie on the
marquee," Campbell continued. "Chevrolet vehicles and engines
compete on the track, the GM Racing engineering staff works
hard to put Chevy products in the winner's circle, and the
South Central Region does an outstanding job of involving
Chevy dealers and customers in the excitement of a big event."
10/11/03
Scheckter to drive for Panther
Racing
IndyCar Series veteran Tomas Scheckter will drive the
No. 4 Pennzoil Panther Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone in 2004,
Panther Racing officials announced Oct. 11.
Scheckter, 23, from Cape Town, South Africa, will take over
for two-time IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish Jr., who
announced earlier this year that he was leaving Panther for
Penske Racing Inc.
“After competing against Pennzoil Panther Racing for two
years, I understand that in order to win on any given race
day, you have to beat the yellow car to the finish line,”
Scheckter said. “Knowing that I will have the benefit of the
team’s reliability and race-day performance is very exciting.
I am really looking forward to 2004.”
Scheckter has driven for Target Chip Ganassi Racing in 2003
and has scored five top-five finishes, including four in the
last six races. He scored his only IndyCar Series victory in
2002 at Michigan driving for Red Bull Cheever Racing. In 27
races, Scheckter has led 934 laps, seventh all-time in the
Indy Car Series.
“Tomas has proved to be one of the fastest drivers in the IRL
over the last two seasons, and we believe our driver
development program, with input from our engineering staff and
our spotter/coach program, will help showcase Tomas’ true
ability as a prolific race winner,” said John Barnes, co-owner
of Panther Racing. “There are a lot of talented drivers out
there, but in our mind, Tomas is the one driver that best fits
what our program has developed into over the last few years: a
team that likes to lead, isn’t afraid to run side-by-side and
gives 110 percent every lap of the race.”
10/11/03
Fittipaldi vs. Castroneves
lawsuit going to court
Three years in the making, look for the CART Champ Car
team owner Emerson Fittipaldi lawsuit against IRL driver Helio
Castroneves to finally go to court in Miami-Dade County
Florida in about five weeks. The basis of the lawsuit is
thus - Fittipaldi USA was contracted by Castroneves to act as Helio's agent. When Greg Moore was killed at Fontana
several years ago, Castroneves was signed by the mighty Penske
Team soon thereafter as a replacement to Moore.
Meanwhile Castroneves informed Fittipaldi that he was
terminating his 5-year contract early, thus cutting Fittipaldi
USA out of any commission they would have made from Helio's
signing with Team Penske.
10/11/03
News from Lowe's
Prilosec OTC has signed on as an associate sponsor the #40
Coors Light Dodge driven by Sterlin Marlin beginning with the
2004 Nextel Cup season. The sponsorship will be highlighted by
a unique one-race paint scheme that will transform the silver
Coors Light Dodge into a purple Prilosec OTC machine. Prilosec
OTC will also receive logo placement on Sterling Marlin’s
firesuit and a logo position on the #40 Coors Light Dodge.
Financial terms and length of sponsorship contract were not
disclosed
PPI Motorsports announced Saturday it has extended its
contract with driver Ricky Craven as driver of the #32 Tide
Pontiac Grand Prix in NASCAR’s top division through 2006. The
announcement coincides with Tide’s renewal of its sponsorship
agreement with PPI Motorsports, through 2006. Now in his ninth
Winston Cup season, Craven, the 1995 Winston Cup Rookie Of The
Year, joined PPI Motorsports in 2001, picking up two Winston
Cup victories.
Richard Childress Racing has extended its partnership with
OKUMA America, a leader in CNC (Computer Numeric Technology)
machinery and technology, though 2009. The original agreement
between RCR and OKUMA was announced in May of 2000. All five
RCR cars will carry OKUMA logos in the 2004 NASCAR season.
10/11/03
Kenseth withdraws from Busch
race
Roush Racing driver and current Winston Cup point leader Matt
Kenseth has made a decision to withdraw from today’s running
of the Little Trees 300 Busch Grand National event at Lowe’s
Motor Speedway. Citing his position in the Winston Cup point
standings and the length of running two events in one day, he
had the following to say: “I talked it over with Robbie [Reiser]
and Mark [Martin] and just decided that it’s best to
concentrate on the DEWALT team right now with where we are in
the points,” said Kenseth. “800 miles in one day is a lot and
I want to make sure I’m fresh at the end of the Cup race if I
need to be,” he added. He went on to address the possibility
of running the Busch race if it gets postponed Saturday
morning. “If the weather turns out to be a problem today and
they run the race tomorrow, I’ll still run the car,” he
stated.
10/11/03
Mexican drivers lead Saturday
AM practice
Much to the delight of the local crowd, Mexican drivers
Michel Jourdain Jr. and Mario Dominguez turned almost
identical lap times (within 0.007 sec. or about a 1-foot
difference on this 2.786-mile circuit) to lead the Saturday
morning practice session in Mexico City. Oriol Servia
put in a fast lap right at the very end of the session to go
3rd quick, followed by Tiago Monteiro and Bruno Junqueira.
10/11/03
Weather update from Mexico City
It was raining when we arrived at the track this morning
in Mexico City. However, by 8:00 AM the showers had
stopped and the sun broke out. This morning's warm-up
session started with a damp track and most cars on rain tires.
Now half-way through the morning practice session and the
track is almost all dry and all cars are on slicks.
10/11/03
Ford statement on Kasey Kahne
There has been a lot of conversation and rumors this past week
regarding the status of Kasey Kahne and his contract with Ford
Racing and Robert Yates Racing. Greg Specht, Ford's North
American Racing Operations Manager, made a statement regarding
Kahne's contract status with the manufacturer and outlined
Ford's history with Kasey and its future plans for him.
GREG SPECHT, Manager of North American Racing Operations, Ford
Racing Technology
"I've been hearing a lot of speculation around Kasey's status
and, as far as Ford Racing is concerned, we have a multi-year
contract in place with him and we intend on honoring that.
"We feel Kasey Kahne is a future star in this sport. That's
why we went ahead and signed him to a multi-year contract.
We're flattered that other teams and manufacturers are
interested in him because that means we must know how to
evaluate promising young talent.
"We've developed a plan for Kasey, along with Robert Yates
Racing, and that includes having him run a full Busch Series
schedule next season because we feel he's primed for a run at
the championship. In addition, he would compete in seven
Nextel Cup events for RYR with the plan being that he would
run a full-time series schedule in 2005.
"We've been up front with Kasey from the very beginning and
have fulfilled his wishes from the first day he showed an
interest in becoming a professional race car driver. We
organized special test sessions, at our own expense, with
Bobby Rahal's CART team and the ppc Busch team so Kasey could
compare both types of cars and decide which career path he
wanted to pursue. We told him that it was his decision as far
as what road he wanted to go down, but that we would be there
to support him and provide him the necessary funds to develop
his skills with competitive teams.
"At the time he wanted to give the open-wheel series a try, so
we arranged for him to compete in both the Toyota Atlantic and
Formula Ford Series. After that experience, Kasey decided he
preferred stock cars, so we went to one of our top teams in
Robert Yates Racing and developed a timetable. We helped
coordinate and fund a Busch program with Robert and
Channellock for Kasey to compete in 20 races last season. We
then increased our tech support and funding with the Akins
team for this year so they could become more competitive and
that has obviously paid off because Kasey is currently in the
top 10 in the Busch Series standings.
"All the while we told Kasey that he was welcome to continue
racing sprint cars because that's something we know he loves
to do. We've even helped pay for some of his travel costs to
get back and forth from various tracks just so he could run in
multiple events on any given weekend.
"Kasey has told us in the past that Ford has delivered on
every promise it has made to him, and we intend on continuing
with that by ensuring he remains in competitive equipment with
an eye towards becoming a future champion."
10/11/03
Paddock News from Suzuka
Saturday 1
DAVID COULTHARD sacrificed his McLaren race-car in Suzuka on
Saturday for the title hopes of his team-mate. The Scot sat
out most of the second practice session after Kimi Raikkonen,
who earlier smashed up his MP4-17D, took over the racer. 'The
team took the decision in view of the championship position,'
said a spokeswoman. DC will race the rest of the weekend in
the T-car.
CRISTIANO DA MATTA was delighted after sampling the fabled
Suzuka circuit for the first time on Friday. The Toyota ace,
from Brazil and rumored to be running low fuel in final
qualifying, said it was 'one of the best' he's driven all
season. He qualified a season-best third on Saturday
afternoon.
Thunder-storms are on the cards for Sunday's JAPANESE GRAND
PRIX. Local weather reports near the Suzuka circuit say there
is a 70 percent chance of rain for race-day, particularly in
the afternoon. Bridgestone's runners won't be disappointed
with the news, particularly as Michelin appear to have the
upper hand on a dry track.
Jaguar's head of vehicle performance MARK GILLAN is 'a little
disappointed' with Justin Wilson's pace at Suzuka. 'But in all
fairness,' he said, 'his times have been steadily improving
all day. But we might have expected him to be a bit closer to
Mark [Webber].' This is the Yorkshireman's first visit to the
fabled Japanese circuit, and he qualified 10th in final
qualifying (Webber 6th).
10/11/03
Paddock News from Suzuka
Saturday 2
MINARDI tried a new design of barge-board at the Suzuka
circuit on Friday. The privilege was Italian Friday tester
Gianmaria Bruni's: 'The program went well,' he said.
Suzuka pole-sitter RUBENS BARRICHELLO said the newly-revised
chicane near the end of the lap is now 'more fun' and has a
better flow. 'We used to brake for longer there,' said the
Brazilian, 'and the feel is now very different.' McLaren's
David Coulthard added: 'It's very difficult as you need to
ride the curbs.'
RALF SCHUMACHER reckons changes to the fabled 130R corner,
which is now easily taken flat-out, have nonetheless made the
curve 'too bumpy.' The BMW-Williams ace added: 'But I think,
generally, they've done a good job here.' Schumacher spun on a
slippery track in final qualifying and lines up on the last
row.
TAKUMA SATO is enjoying his first race weekend with BAR-Honda
and is being guided by Jacques Villeneuve's friend and regular
engineer, Jock Clear. 'I just want to take things steady,'
said the Japanese, 'as I'm still coming to terms with being
here and racing!'
HONDA's 'Suzuka Special' V10 engine got off to a dismal start
in Japan on Friday - it blew up and caused damage to many
components with a fire. 'I lost 45 minutes,' said Jenson
Button, 'which mucked up my qualifying.' Team boss David
Richards added: 'After just 8 laps, that was the last thing we
needed.'
10/11/03
Paddock News from Suzuka
Saturday 3
JARNO TRULLI has taken three Friday 'poles' this season but
has so far failed to convert them into a Saturday triumph or a
race win. 'I want one on Saturday now,' smiled the Italian,
who described his Renault R23B as 'very strong' in Japan. 'If
we can do that, we'll be looking good for the race.' The
30-year-old aborted his lap in final qualifying and will start
the Japanese GP from dead-last.
Suzuka's fabled but revised 130R corner can now be taken
'easily' with full-throttle, according to Michelin's F1
manager Pascal Vasselon. 'That certainly wasn't the case 12
months ago,' he said.
F1 fans in Germany are fed up with MICHAEL SCHUMACHER,
according to a 'Premiere' TV survey in the world champion's
home country. Over 48 percent of those surveyed reckon the
34-year-old should retire if he wins a sixth title in Japan on
Sunday.
According to paddock speculation at Suzuka, Sauber sponsor RED
BULL is looking to switch camps to Jaguar Racing in 2004. Some
wags suggested that it might prove to be Jacques Villeneuve's
way back into F1, as Red Bull chief Dietrich Mateschitz is a
fan of the French-Canadian.
Australian F1 ace MARK WEBBER is the Grand Prix Drivers'
Association's latest director, it was revealed in Japan on
Friday. The GPDA works closely with the FIA particularly on
improving safety at circuits. Webber, Jaguar driver, joins
fellow directors Michael Schumacher, David Coulthard and Jarno
Trulli.
10/11/03
Paddock News from Suzuka
Saturday 4
PAUL STODDART reckons his team's 2004 contender will be 'the
best of both worlds' after recent back-to-back tests with the
old Arrows A23 chassis. 'A few of the results have been quite
impressive,' said the Minardi chief, 'but it hasn't blown our
car away.'
Hinwil-based F1 chief PETER SAUBER distanced himself from
comments made by outgoing driver Heinz-Harald Frentzen at
Suzuka. The German racer, HHF, referred to Sauber's 'new
manufacturer' in a press conference. Sauber said: 'Yes, I
heard that too. But which manufacturer? Volkswagen? I don't
know why he said that.'
How will KIMI RAIKKONEN celebrate if he becomes Formula One's
youngest-ever world champion in Japan on Sunday? 'I will take
the vodka,' came his typically-simple response. The Finn has
qualified 8th in final qualifying but his chances took a bound
when Michael Schumacher fell to a slippery 14th on the grid.
Struggling Minardi rookie NICOLAS KIESA, a Dane, didn't do
much impressing at Suzuka on Friday: bottom of the timesheets
and slapped a $1000 fine for crossing the white line at the
end of the Suzuka pit-exit.
What's outgoing Renault tester ALLAN McNISH's secret to his
speed? 'Porridge,' smiled the Scot at Suzuka. 'I eat it before
every track session - and it also lowers my own personal
centre of gravity!'
CART to stay with one engine
and one tire series for now
During a Bridgestone media conference Friday in Mexico City
we asked Kevin Kalkhoven whether he likes the idea of a single
tire in the series or was that an area he would be looking to
opening up to competition in the future. His response
was that they were looking to keep it a single tire and single
engine formula for now. Whether that single engine will
be badged by multiple manufacturers remains to be seen because
CART certainly needs more manufacturer involvement.
10/11/03
American
road courses take note
There isn't a single road course in the United States that
comes close to the garage and pit facilities at the Autodromo
Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City. As can be seen from
the photo to the right, the garages are very large and on par
with F1 standards. They are clean, bright and afford the
teams plenty of space. Note the suites above. A
large number of corporate guests are entertained in the many
suites available. Compare this to the road courses in
the USA which have had very little in the way of major
improvements, sans Sears Point, but even that pales in
comparison overall. Meanwhile the USA has seen a major
investment in magnificent oval track facilities, financed by
the rabid NASCAR fans. NASCAR's popularity has made it
difficult for all other racing series in the USA to prosper.
In Europe and the rest of the world all the investment has
been in magnificent road racing facilities. It's going
to take a lot of work and some big corporations or wealthy
individuals to buy tracks like Road America in the USA to
bring them up to road course standards seen elsewhere in the
world.
10/11/03
Williams duo 1-2 in final
Suzuka practice
If Juan Montoya didn't get the shaft by the Stewards at the
USGP, we would have a real fight for the world title on our
hands this weekend. As it is, Michael Schumacher is
almost a given to win. The Williams team are looking
strong with Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya leading the
way in a much faster second morning session. Ralf in
particular looked to have a car that could take pole.
Michael Schumacher was next along behind the Williams duo, the
Ferrari half a second back from his brother's 1m31.149s lap.
Ralf's best was
Position/Driver Team Fastest
Lap
1 Ralf Schumacher Williams 1m31.149s
2 Juan Pablo Montoya Williams 1m31.422s
3 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1m31.705s
4 Jarno Trulli Renault 1m32.343s
5 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1m32.796s
6 Kimi Raikkonen McLaren 1m32.930s
7 Olivier Panis Toyota 1m33.082s
8 Fernando Alonso Renault 1m33.107s
9 Cristiano da Matta Toyota 1m33.133s
10 Jenson Button BAR 1m33.411s
11 Takuma Sato BAR 1m33.662s
12 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber 1m33.694s
13 Mark Webber Jaguar 1m33.807s
14 Justin Wilson Jaguar 1m33.952s
15 Nick Heidfeld Sauber 1m34.558s
16 Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan 1m35.476s
17 Ralph Firman Jordan 1m35.620s
18 Jos Verstappen Minardi 1m37.379s
19 Nicolas Kiesa Minardi 1m37.884s
20 David Coulthard McLaren No Time
10/10/03
Industry News
New surface finished at
Homestead
The racing surface of the NEW Homestead-Miami Speedway
with 20-degree, variable banking in the turns was completed
Friday under sunny South Florida skies. All that now remains
of the Speedway's reconfiguration project is the paving of
the track's apron and the completion of the SAFER (Steel and
Foam Energy Reduction) barrier around the turns.
The NEW Homestead-Miami Speedway will have its racing debut at
the 2003 Ford Championship Weekend, the season-finales for the
NASCAR Winston Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck Series, Nov.
13-16.
"We're excited to announce the completion of the most
technologically advanced racing surface ever constructed,"
said Speedway President Curtis Gray. "With tickets going fast,
I encourage race fans to secure their seats to Ford
Championship Weekend and the racing debut of this
state-of-the-art SuperSpeedway."
The Homestead-Miami Speedway track reconfiguration project,
estimated to cost in excess of $10 million, was designed
through advanced computer technology never before available to
build a racetrack. The project involved increasing the track's
banking to a maximum of 20 degrees in the turns through an
innovative variable-degree banking system. With the variable
banking system, the degree of banking increases progressively
from the bottom to the top of each turn. At the midpoint of
each turn, there is 18 degrees banking at the bottom, 19
degrees in the middle and 20 degrees at the top. The variable
banking system is designed to create three competitive racing
grooves around the track.
The reconfiguration project, with the added banking, came
after feedback from race fans asking for more exciting,
side-by-side racing at Homestead-Miami Speedway. As a tribute
to the race fans' contribution to this project, the race fans
will actually be the first to drive on the NEW Homestead-Miami
Speedway during Fans First Weekend, Oct. 25-26. To participate
in Fans First Weekend, the fans must purchase a ticket to Ford
Championship Weekend and contact the Speedway for a
registration number.
10/10/03
Rain forces NASCAR double
Mother Nature ruled the evening as rain brought a quick end to
attempts to run the Little Trees 300 Busch Series event at
Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Track officials have rescheduled
the event for 11 am Saturday morning, weather permitting. Once
the race is completed the stands will be cleared with ticket
holders for the UAW-GM 500 able to enter the gates at 3 p.m.
With a 60 percent chance of rain on Saturday officials at the
speedway may have to make plans for Sunday, a day predicted to
be filled with clear skies. Running both the Busch
Series and Winston Cup races on the same day will put Matt
Kenseth, Michael Waltrip and Jeff Green in the position of
having to run 800 miles in a 12-hour period. Stan
Creekmore
10/10/03
Luyendyk Jr. takes IPS pole
Qualifying Friday for the dreamerscandles.com 100 IRL
Menards Infiniti Pro Series event on the 1.5-mile Texas Motor
Speedway, with starting position, car number in parenthesis,
driver and chassis-engine:
1. (5) Arie Luyendyk Jr., Dallara-Infiniti, 186.282
2. (91) Aaron Fike, Dallara-Infiniti, 185.978
3. (14) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Infiniti, 185.183
4. (4) Mark Taylor, Dallara-Infiniti, 184.744
5. (92) Cory Witherill, Dallara-Infiniti, 184.680
6. (41) Dane Carter, Dallara-Infiniti, 183.543
7. (36) Thiago Medeiros, Dallara-Infiniti, 183.043
8. (27) Gary Peterson, Dallara-Infiniti, 182.833
9. (3) Marty Roth, Dallara-Infiniti, 182.594
10. (25) G.J. Mennen, Dallara-Infiniti, 182.348
11. (20) Jeff Simmons, Dallara-Infiniti, 182.077
12. (11) Rolando Quintanilla, Dallara-Infiniti, 181.983
13. (24) Billy Roe, Dallara-Infiniti, 181.785
14. (12) Matt Beardsley, Dallara-Infiniti, 181.517
15. (99) Brad Pollard, Dallara-Infiniti, 181.048
16. (33) Tony Turco, Dallara-Infiniti, 180.747
17. (9) Taylor Fletcher, Dallara-Infiniti, 178.439
10/10/03
CART NYSE listing
The New York Stock Exchange said that trading of Championship
Auto Racing Teams Inc.'s common stock will be extended to
before the opening on Wednesday instead of Monday. The
extension will allow for additional time for the company to
make an orderly transition to another market. On Monday,
Championship Auto said it advised the exchange that it was
pursuing listing of its stock on the over-the-counter Bulletin
Board. The NYSE notified Championship Auto that it had fallen
below NYSE continued listing criteria for market
capitalization and trading price. The company said it didn't
expect to submit a plan to comply with the requirements.
Shares of Championship Auto closed unchanged Thursday at 56
cents, after hitting a 52-week low earlier in the day.
10/10/03
Bridgestone will be back with
CART
Mark Robinson of Bridgestone stated today that
Bridgestone will be back with CART in 2004. "The deal
isn't signed yet, but we'll be back."
10/10/03
Ecclestone has yet to invest in
Minardi
According to this Reuters
article, Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone has yet
to invest any of his money in Minardi despite being announced
as a shareholder in June, team boss Paul Stoddart said on
Friday. "Bernie's influence has helped the team...and although
he hasn't invested any actual money that's largely because the
team has actually improved its position since Canada in terms
of sponsorship," Stoddart said at the Japanese Grand Prix.
"But certainly having Bernie in the background has done no
harm at all."
10/10/03
Massa confirmed at Sauber
Felipe Massa is on his way back to Sauber for 2004. Owner
Peter Sauber all but confirmed the Brazilian will partner
Giancarlo Fisichella next season as the team makes wholesale
changes in its driver lineup. "We drove one year with
Felipe Massa. He was fast, he was a little bit young, not a
lot of experience, especially on the technical side, and now
he could improve very well with Ferrari, do a lot of mileage,
learn a lot on the technical side and now we will drive again
with him," said Sauber.
10/10/03
Industry News
SAFER Barrier recognized by R&D
Magazine
Research & Development Magazine, a leading publication
covering the latest breakthroughs in practical, hands-on
technology, has named the SAFER Barrier to its prestigious
“R&D 100 Awards” list for 2003.
The SAFER (Steel And Foam Energy Reduction) Barrier, developed
at the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln, was first installed in May 2002 at the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The barrier was created in
collaboration between the Indy Racing League and UN-L that
began in 1998. NASCAR joined the effort in September 2000.
R&D Magazine, based in Oak Brook, Ill., caters to scientists,
engineers and administrators in the private business, public
administration and academic sectors that engage in applied
research and development.
The magazine cited two key reasons for including the SAFER
Barrier in its R&D 100 Awards list: the reduction of the
severity of driver injuries resulting from high-speed impacts
with the barrier instead of a traditional concrete retaining
wall and the barrier’s proven ability to absorb energy in a
crash without causing the car to “bounce” back into the path
of other cars.
10/10/03
Whatever became of Keith Allo
Some were wondering whatever became of CART's former TV
honcho Keith Allo. Allo went to work with the Olympic
Committee and has been promoted several times. He is now
very high up in the organization and one of only five
"Chiefs." His latest position is Chief of Entertainment
Properties and Brand Marketing. As Chief of
Entertainment Properties, Allo is responsible for identifying
and developing an expanded portfolio of broadcast properties
that showcase America’s athletes and generate incremental
revenue. This effort includes current and new mediums such as
television, internet, broadband and other broadcast platforms.
Allo, 37, came to the USOC in November 2001 after serving as
Vice President of Broadcasting for Championship Auto Racing
Teams Inc. (CART), one of the premiere open-wheel motor sports
series in North America, where he managed every aspect of
CART’s involvement with television, radio and film. Prior to
joining CART, Allo was executive producer for Pass Sports, a
regional sports cable channel serving Michigan and parts of
Northern Ohio. Properties under Pass Sports include the
Detroit Tigers, Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Pistons, Big Ten
football and basketball, the University of Michigan, Michigan
State University and the Central Collegiate Hockey
Association.
10/10/03
Andretti believes CART/IRL
merger possible
This AzCentral
article says, In the eyes of Mario Andretti,
perhaps the greatest driver in history, there is only one
solution to the open wheel mess created nearly a decade ago
following the CART/IRL split: A merger. Is it possible?
Andretti thinks so.
"I'm trying to find a way to give reason for these two sides
to come together and have some talks about merging these two
series," Andretti said Tuesday in a telephone interview. "I'll
work to dead end as long as I can because I see that would be
the best possible scenario for open wheel racing in North
America.
"At one time, I didn't think it was possible because the IRL
side was so dug in (against it). But I have reason to believe
that they would be willing to talk, and as long as that crack
in the door is open, we need to go forward and talk about it."
10/10/03
Cialis finally arrives in CART
UPDATE Cialis can't
be on the cars in Australia because there are restrictions on
drug advertising, even though Cialis is sold in Australia.
The car will keep the same color scheme as it has here in
Mexico City. We asked why? Because each coat of
paint adds 8 pounds to the car's weight was the answer.
10/10/03 - As can been by these AutoRacing1.com photos, Sebastien
Bourdais' car and his crew are finally decked out in the long
rumored Cialis sponsor colors here in Mexico City where Cialis
can be legally sold already. They can run with Cialis in
Australia too, but when they return to the USA the name must
come off until the FDA approves its sale in the USA.
Photos copyright 2003 Mark
Cipolloni/AR1
10/10/03
Rain tires will be needed in
Mexico City
UPDATE We spoke to a
Bridgestone rep here in Mexico City about our criticism of
CART's hard rain tires. To clear up a few things - 1)
Bridgestone and CART may go to a softer rain tire for natural
terrain road courses in 2004, but not until around mid-year
when the current inventory of rain tires is depleted (for cost
reasons). Don't look for an Intermediate and a soft rain
tire, just one, softer rain tire with a better tread pattern.
We don't agree that having two rain tires will cost much money,
but we'll make that case with CART off-line, 2) Teams have the
option of paying for their tires up-front before the year
starts and for that they get a substantial price discount, 3)
Bridgestone is committed to the series and will work with CART
until it's right, 4) Bridgestone subsidizes about 40% of the
cost of the tires. The teams pay the rest. 10/9/03 - The weather forecast for Mexico City calls for showers and
rain throughout the three day weekend. Rain tires will
be needed and with the high altitude, downforce will be
significantly reduced. Each car receives up to four new
sets of grooved-tread Potenza rain tires per weekend on road
and street courses, as needed. In addition, each car may use
two sets of same-spec rain tires issued at a previous event.
Bridgestone has two rain-tire specifications at its disposal,
one for the faster permanent road circuits and another for the
slower, tighter street courses. The road-course rain tire is
available this weekend. Since the CART Bridgestone rain
tires for natural terrain road courses are very hard, we
expect a lot of drivers will go off course throughout the
weekend and possibly bend up a lot of equipment, i.e. it could
be a very expensive weekend for CART. Hopefully in 2004,
CART will follow F1's lead and Bridgestone will make a
very soft full-wet rain tire for CART as well as a harder
intermediate tire so they can be prepared for all conditions.
Like tire warmers, which are also not permitted either, one
destroyed car is more than enough to pay for tire warmers for
the entire field. Since the teams are paying Bridgestone
a hefty price (upfront by the way, before the season starts)
for tires, we would hope that they also demand better rain
tires for 2004. Mark C.
10/10/03
Miami by the numbers
Under a blue South Florida sky and blazing sun, some 75,000
spectators saw cars racing down Biscayne Boulevard at speeds
close to 180 MPH during the 2nd annual Grand Prix Americas
presented by Sportsbook.com, held September 26 – 28, 2003 in
the streets of Downtown Miami. Fans witnessed Mario Dominguez
win his second career race, enjoyed concerts by Kid Rock and
Elton John and were able to catch glimpses of stars such as
Grand Prix Americas Grand Marshal Niki Taylor, Paul
Newman, Paris & Nicky Hilton, Ryan Seacrest, Tara Reid and Liv
Schreiber of “Scream” fame among others.
“The second annual Grand Prix Americas was a huge success,”
said Chuck M. Martinez, president and general manager of Grand
Prix Americas. “While the forecast for the weekend weather was
gloomy and the rain in some parts of South Florida may have
kept some people away, the sun did not stop shining at the
track. We had three days of racing with four races, two
concerts and a host of celebrities that made this year’s
international celebration another Blast by the Bay. We saw
marked increases in general admission tickets, an increase in
sponsors and we sold out all of our premium suites.”
In addition to attracting thousands of spectators to downtown
Miami, the final television rating for Sunday’s CBS broadcast
of the Grand Prix Americas presented by Sportsbook.com was
1.3, reaching 1.45 million households. Similar to last year,
this year’s broadcast was the largest television share for any
CART race this season.
According to Greater Miami Convention and Visitor’s Bureau
officials, downtown hotel occupancies for September 25 – 28
(race weekend) increased to 80 percent. This is in stark
contrast to last year’s occupancy averages of the same hotels
for the same four days (non-race weekend) that were slightly
more than 50 percent.
10/10/03
CART mega teams have taken over
the IRL
Perhaps one of the funniest things we have read in
awhile. Here's a Dallas Morning News
article about the CART teams killing the original IRL
squads. The funniest part is where AJ Foyt claims to have
beaten Penske and Ganassi as many times as they have beat him
and when you scroll down to look at the numbers, AJ has no
wins. AJ never beat those teams in CART. Anyone
notice how AJ's team is performing in the IRL now, even with
Toyota engines? It's really no different than when he
was in CART. Every series must have their backmarkers we
suppose. Mark C.
10/10/03
Engines would lose over 100 HP
in Mexico City
We quizzed Ken Deagle from Cosworth about how much HP
the Champ Cars would lose if they were normally aspirated,
rather than turbocharged, here in Mexico City, which is 1.5
miles above sea-level. "I didn't do the computations
but it would be at least 100 HP and probably more." In
others words, if Champ Cars had a normally aspirated IRL
engine in them they would be running under 600 HP (pathetic)
or so. Thank God for turbos. Mark C.
10/10/03
Barber Dodge Pro Series to run
doubleheaders
The CART-Champ Car Barber Dodge Pro Series officially
announced that for the 2004 season, it will increase the
number of races comprising the championship by going to a
double-race weekend format. Current plans call for races at
seven or eight venues, making for a 14- to 16-race
championship. From the series’ inception in 1986, Barber Dodge
was a 12-race championship, shifting to 10 races in 2002 and
2003. “A primary motivation behind the increase is to attract
more European drivers to the CART-Champ Car Driver Development
System,” says Rick Ratajczak, driver relations manager the
Barber Dodge Pro Series. “The open-wheel ladder series in
Europe typically conduct something on the order of 14-to-18
races. Now we can offer an equivalent amount of points races.” Ratajczak adds that “the best value in professional open-wheel
racing gets even better: The entry fee will be nominally
increased, but the per-race cost will go down dramatically.
And that’s not even mentioning the big decrease in overall
travel costs for the competitors.” Barber Dodge Operations
Director Steve Sewell says it’s important to note that the
double-race format requires no more weekend track time than is
currently set for Champ Car’s support series. “The short and
long of it is, at most venues we are essentially replacing a
Saturday qualifying session with a race; a driver’s result in
that race becomes his or her starting position for Sunday.”
Regarding a specific schedule, it is too early to announce,
Sewell says, “but of course we’ll be working with Champ Car to
firm things up as it defines next year’s dates and venues. We
expect our 2004 schedule to be substantially similar to
2003’s.”
10/10/03
Mexico City sold out
AutoRacing1.com has been told here in Mexico City that
as of yesterday all the tickets for this weekend's race were
gone. There is absolutely nothing left. The
promoter is scrambling to put up two more bleachers in time
for Sunday.
10/10/03 F3000
Arden to test James Rossiter
British Formula Renault ace and McLaren Autosport finalist
James Rossiter has been confirmed within the Arden Team's
Driver Evaluation Program. James (20) from Oxford
finished 3rd in this year's Formula Renault Championship
taking one win and remained in contention for the Championship
Title until the penultimate Round. James will test with the
team for two days in Jerez on the 6th and 7th of November.
Christian Horner commented: "James has had an impressive
season in Formula Renault and I am pleased to provide him with
a test. We are always keen to look at talented British
Driver's and I'm sure that he will quickly adjust to the much
more powerful F3000 cars performance".
10/10/03
Night racing lights up local
economy With an
event record 163,000 fans expected to attend Saturday night's
UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, prime-time racing
under the lights is priming the pump for the area economy. The
inaugural nighttime running of the UAW-GM Quality 500 NASCAR
Winston Cup race and its preliminary events will be worth more
than $106 million to the local economy, an increase of nearly
$21 million from last year's daytime events. According to John
Connaughton, Ph.D, an economist and professor at the
University of North Carolina at Charlotte, fans attending this
week's race events will contribute $106,818,134 to the
economies of Cabarrus, Mecklenburg and Iredell counties.
Connaughton based his new findings on formulas used in an
extensive 1999 study on fan expenditures. The estimated
economic impact of the 1999 and comparable 2002 fall events
was $85,594,043 for the three-county area. Speedway officials
are expecting nearly 300,000 fans from around the country and
a few foreign countries to attend activities this week. Ticket
sales for Saturday night's UAW-GM Quality 500 are up nearly
15-percent from last year. While in the Charlotte-Concord
area, fans will spend more than $16 million on entertainment,
food and drink; nearly $4 million on gasoline and auto
expenses; $13.6 million in retail; $14.3 million on souvenirs
and another $6.4 million for lodging. Not included in the
impact study is the fact that a large majority of a record
$5.5 million race week purse for competitors will stay in the
area since nearly 90 percent of NASCAR's Winston Cup teams are
based within a 50-mile radius of the speedway. UAW-GM Quality
500 Week also produces jobs. On-site and off-site race-related
activities support a total of 1,411 full-time jobs in the
three-county area. Nearly 6,000 full and part-time people,
from concession-stand operators to pit crews, are needed to
produce Saturday night's event. LMS PR
10/10/03 Industry News
Richmond to expand
Richmond International Raceway is embarking on another round
of expansion and upgrades as part of its ongoing commitment to
fans who visit "The Action Track" three times each season for
some of the best side by side racing in all of motor sports.
More than 1,400 seats will be added for the 2004 season,
bringing the track's capacity to 107,097. The project includes
new seats in the Veranda Grandstand in turn one, development
of 55 new acres of parking on the north side of the track's
property and the addition of a second spectator care center
outside of turn two next to the amphitheater. The
amphitheater, which is used for Speed Channel and QVC shows on
race weekends as well as concerts and special events on
non-race weekends, is being remodeled. Gravel roads are also
being added to several parking lots which will help with
traffic ingress and egress, especially during inclement
weather. Including this round of projects, the track has spent
more than $40 million on improving the facility over the last
few seasons. Priority will be given to fans on the waiting
list who wish to purchase a full-season ticket package. Fans
who would like to be added to the waiting list can visit
www.rir.com for details. All
races at "The Action Track" are "Under the Lights." For more
information, contact the Richmond International Raceway ticket
office at 804-345-RACE (7223). Richmond International
Raceway PR
10/10/03
Mark Green in #14 next two
races Mark Green
will drive A.J. Foyt Racing's #14 Harrah's Dodge this weekend
at Lowe's Motor Speedway and at Martinsville next weekend.
Green replaces rookie Larry Foyt, who continues to suffer from
a kidney bruise suffered in an accident at Talladega two weeks
ago, according to a Foyt team spokesman. Doctors advised Foyt
to sit out the next two weeks, meaning he'll return to the car
for Atlanta. Green has served the past couple seasons as a
driver coach and consultant to Foyt. Mark Green's regular job
this season has been as a shock specialist and driver coach at
Akins Motorsports, working with promising newcomer Kasey Kahne.
He has also made three Busch Series starts.
NASCAR.com
10/10/03
F1 paddock news from Suzuka 1
RALPH FIRMAN, who wrapped up the 2002 Formula Nippon
championship right here at Suzuka, outpaced rated team-mate
Giancarlo Fisichella in first qualifying on Friday. 'But
there's still more time to find,' said the Jordan ace, who
added that 17th was 'disappointing.'
ALLAN McNISH farewelled Renault on Friday with his final
'Heathrow' test session by going faster even than his rated
team-mates Fernando Alonso and Jarno Trulli. In spite of an
engine failure, the Scot said: 'The car is very good here. I
want to thank the team for a great year - and I've had some
fun, too!'
JUSTIN WILSON says Jaguar Racing will decide if he's done
enough to keep his seat in 2004 'within a month.' The
Yorkshireman acknowledged the importance of scoring points
here at Suzuka. 'We all know there are financial gains for
finishing higher in the constructors' standings,' he said.
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA reckons his wife Connie was more
disappointed than him about missing out on the 2003 drivers'
world championship. 'I was OK,' he said. 'I told Connie,
'look, that's racing, get on with it.'' Connie Montoya wore a
T-shirt at Suzuka yesterday that read 'Always On Top.'
10/10/03
F1 paddock news from Suzuka 2
Jarno Trulli and Fernando Alonso's RENAULT racers are sporting
a fresh look at the Suzuka circuit this weekend - team sponsor
Mild Seven have a new logo. The novel 'S' symbol has been
christened the 'Blue Wind'.
Jaguar's vehicle dynamics boss MARK GILLAN reckons the pitlane
at Suzuka this year is particularly bumpy. 'Quite a few
drivers were locking up and overshooting,' he said, 'so it's
something we're wary of.'
BAR-HONDA chief David Richards and team driver Jenson Button
will travel to China after this weekend's Japanese GP. The
two-day tour, ahead of China's inaugural F1 race in September
'04, will see Richards meet senior government officials and
business leaders. 'China offers so many new and uncharted
opportunities [for F1],' said DR.
GIANCARLO FISICHELLA prepared to farewell the Jordan-Ford team
at Suzuka on Friday before he switches to Sauber in 2004. The
Roman, just 18th quickest on Friday, said: 'I'll do my best
because in two years here, I've had a good time.'
10/10/03
F1 paddock news from Suzuka 3
JENSON BUTTON could have finished on the podium at
Indianapolis, but his BAR car's Honda V10 failed. So is he
looking forward to more revs and horsepower this weekend at
Suzuka: 'The important thing's not speed but reliability,' the
Briton said. 'But I think they've sorted the problem.' JB was
16th on Friday.
A Minardi spokesman rubbished speculation this morning that
Friday tester GIANMARIA BRUNI will take Nicolas Kiesa's place
in the race line-up at Suzuka. Bruni was significantly faster
than young Dane Kiesa in the final 'Heathrow' session in
Japan.
SATOSHI MOTOYAMA, the 32-year-old Japanese driver who debuted
in F1 for Jordan-Ford in Friday testing at Suzuka, got the
thumbs-up from the team's engineering chief Gary Anderson. 'He
had quite a lot of fuel,' said the Irishman, 'so I think it
was commendable.' Motoyama marvelled at the F1 car's 'engine
power and speed.' .
Agent Denies JV-Axe Conspiracy
Sato 'Thrilled' To Re-Start Career At Suzuka
Button Warns Sato Of Suzuka Pressure
Montoya To Raikkonen: Expect No Help
F1 Shoot-Out Is 'Ridiculous': Irvine
Schu Won't Cruise For Title, Warns Brawn
Ice-Cool Raikkonen Not Letting Pressure Show
Frustrated Schu Says No Again To Early Bath
Raikkonen: MP4-18 Saga Affected Title Bid
Villeneuve: Never Given A Chance By BAR
Rubens To Win Suzuka Race, Says Schumacher
Brawn: Leave F1's Format Alone
Button Criticizes Suzuka Modifications
Schu Not Sad To Farewell Friday Qualifying
Barrichello: I Did A Better Job In 2003
No Motivation: Pollock On JV's Decision
Schu Losing Interest? No Way, Says Brawn
Schumacher: Jacques Was 'Very Strong'
Rubens: No Supporting Role At Suzuka
JV's Engineer Tried To Persuade Him To Race
Ralf Can Lift World Title, Says Berger
Germany To Lose Grand Prix
Montoya Slams 'Inconsistency' In F1 Penalties
Frentzen Eyes Future In Touring Cars?
1010/03
Tidbits gleaned from CART
buyout
UPDATE I just read
your comments on the recent article on the CART buyout and
felt compelled to write you. In your article you compare
CART's former CEO Andrew Craig's performance to Chris Pook's.
This being done exclusively by looking at profits and losses
for the company. This comparison is not a fair
comparison as the situation, timing, competition in
the market place, etc., were as different as night and day.
I wholeheartedly agree that Andrew Craig was one of CART's top
CEOs and his record proves it. He increased the company's
profits from prior years. Took the company "public," and
managed a steady ship very skillfully. On the other hand,
Chris Pook came in at a time that was short of a "disaster."
1. Three of the most successful team owners in CART had
decided to take their teams and money and go play with CART's
competition, this having an incredibly negative impact on the
company.
2. Major car manufacturers decided to also follow the path to
the IRL taking with them their sponsorship and most important
their advertising and promotional dollars.
3. One of our best known drivers also announces that he is
leaving CART and jumping to the IRL. All of these team
defections including Andretti's further depleted CART's
credibility in the marketplace as they took about 10 of our
"best known" and marketable drivers out of our series. These
10 drivers, plus the ones we lost to F 1 made up about 50% of
the starting fields and about 90% of the "sponsor paid" media
campaigns (to be replaced with mostly unknown drivers with
little or no promotional support).
4. Because of the above and the IRL's war on CART, sponsors at
all levels started to flee.
At that point, the CART Board of Directors made a decision to
continue with the series and "fight" rather than fold the
company. The only way to do this, was to make sure there were
sufficient teams (18 entries minimum at every race) and this
could only be realistically accomplished by offering teams a
GUARANTEED CASH package. These team support programs are the
reason for the overwhelming losses. The balance is directly
attributed to the sponsorship and TV losses.
In addition, Chris Pook came in at a time when former CART
management had mismanaged CART's TV rights, and the company
went from making money on TV to taking huge losses. Prior
management had failed to foresee the coming changes in the TV
industry and had allowed the company's TV rights deals to
lapse.
Basically, there was NO GOOD NEWS on any front when Chris
Pook arrived and he has been "putting out fires" since the day
he arrived. Anyway, I could go on and on, but since it is 5:00
AM. I need to go
back to sleep. I just want to set the record straight as I
know there's a lot of mudslinging now and with more to come
and I want everyone to know that the problems in which CART is
today are not related to any action taken recently. The die
was cast years ago with wrong decisions by some of the former
CEOs. Sincerely, Name Withheld by Request (A past or
present CART Board Member)10/10/03 - Little tidbits gleaned from the recently filed Proxy
Statement by Open Wheel Racing Series LLC.
Say what you might about CART's
ex-President Andrew Craig, but when he was President CART made
a healthy profit. Under Craig CART had $15 million profit in
1998, $18.9 million profit in 1999 and $15.1 million profit in
2000. Compare that for example, to the $83 million loss this
year under the current regime.
CART will cut Administration costs
by 1/3, which we assume means a 33% reduction in staff.
CART will continue team support in
2004 (ESP) at the tune of $6 million (a 25% reduction), but
THE $31 MILLION in team assistance will be reduced to $2
million, which means any teams left in CART will pretty much
be paying their own way through sponsorship or their owner's
checkbook.
CART will continue to lose money
in 2004 ($14.9 million ) and 2005 ($2.47 million) before
turning a profit of $2.2 million in 2006.
Management has observed that teams
have become disenchanted with management, and teams are likely
to leave absent a fundamental change in management of the
Company - i.e. some heads will roll.
10/10/03
Suzuka hard on tires
Suzuka is an extremely complicated circuit, and one needed to
be tackled with care. Just like for the drivers, the Japanese
track is one of the most interesting circuits of the year for
the engineers and here Renault’s Executive Director of
Engineering Pat Symonds lets us into some of its secrets.
“We saw two weeks ago in Indianapolis that the extra running
the Heathrow Agreement gives us is useful, even at the end of
the season. During that test, we even managed to test tires
for Japan,” explains Pat.
After two days of tire development at Barcelona just before
the US Grand Prix, the team spent part of the Heathrow session
in America working on tires for this weekend. The reasoning
behind it is simple…
“Suzuka is a very tough track on tires,” confirms Pat. “They
undergo enormous lateral loads, and the corners flow in such a
way that the tires have very little time to rest. For example,
the front right absorbs 75% more energy than at Monza. At the
right rear, this is more like 50%. What’s more, the nature of
the circuit can also bring about high operating temperatures.
The tires we have brought to Japan may entail using different
strategies, depending on our choice. I don’t think that we
will necessarily see a Bridgestone advantage here either: that
would be like assuming Magny-Cours automatically suits
Michelin! We have gambled on a fairly aggressive tire choice,
and that may prove decisive.”
As for car set-up, this is just as challenging. The most
difficult part of the circuit is undoubtedly the series of
Esses behind the pits:
“You can lose lots of time there, and that’s also the case in
130R, where you need very good stability. This corner has also
been modified though, and we will have to take a close look at
the modifications.”
The final element to look at will be the compromise between
downforce and top speed.
“Overtaking at Suzuka is always hard, but there is still an
opportunity at the chicane,” concludes Pat. “You therefore
need to be able to defend your position, with a good top
speed. But the rest of the circuit requires relatively high
levels of downforce: finding the right compromise can be
tricky.” Renault
1010/03
Players Forsythe team sports
new look
Canadian driver Paul Tracy sits in his new look
Lola/Ford Champ Car for the first time before Friday's first
practice sessions for Sunday's Champ Car Grand Premio
Telemex-Gigante in Mexico City. For the final three races of
the season the names of loyal team fans will appear on the cars
of both Paul Tracy and Patrick Carpentier as a thank you for
their support of the Canadian racing team.
Photos by Paul Strak
1010/03
***Reader Opinion***Hates to
see de Ferran retire
UPDATE Another
reader writes, Dear AR1, My late husband, Chuck Matthews, had
the opportunity to work with Gil on the Jim Hall Racing and
Walker Racing's teams. Chuck had the utmost respect for Gil's
exceptional driving talent and superb technical skills. Gil is
an engineer's dream! Chuck was proud to have Gil as one of his
dear friends, and to be a part of his remarkable career. All
the best to you, Gil! Sincerely, Jenell Matthews, Austin,
TX Yet another writes, I am happy for Gil de Ferran.
It is good to see him walk away while he is at his prime and
is not forced to retire due to injuries so common in the IRL.
Michael Crane10/9/03 - A reader writes, Dear AR1, I hate to see Gil retire, he
is really a class act. His fans can hope he will turn up in
another series, maybe CART, maybe sportscars. By the way, you
might have mentioned that he held (and possibly still holds)
the world Closed Course Speed Record, 241.428 m.p.h., set at
Fontana when he was in CART. To me that's a mind bending
speed. Good Luck Gil. Thanks AR1, Mike Collins Tulsa, OK
10/10/03
Could be 18 races or France
might get axe
This grandprix.com article
says, There has been talk in recent days that the Formula 1
team bosses might agree to having 18 Grands Prix next year to
allow Canada back on to the World Championship calendar. It
seems that the Canadian promoter Normand Legault was told to
raise more money and F1 would return and we hear that he has
done this rather successfully. The problem is that the teams
are saying that to make it worth their while they each want
$2m for an extra race and that would mean that Formula One
Management would have to kick in another $20m. In order for an
18th race to take place all the teams would need to agree and
that almost never happens as team bosses tend to use such
situations to try to force through things that they would like
to see. Putting Canada back on the calendar makes a great deal
of sense - if only because it would increase F1's visibility
in North America and cut costs of the United States GP as the
two events would be able to share costs - but the teams seem
to be more interested in losing France and thus getting Canada
back in.
10/10/03 Industry News
State of Illinois demands return of $750K of pork UPDATE [Editor's Note:
We are not sure if IRL team owner Chip Ganassi will get drawn
into this investigation or not. At one time he was part
owner of the race track, but he may have sold out before these
activities took place] This NBC5 News
article says A federal grand jury in Chicago has
launched a criminal probe into a $750,000 state grant that
former Gov. George Ryan awarded to the owners of a shuttered
racetrack just before he left office, according to a published
report. A subpoena was delivered to the state on April 3
seeking all records pertaining to the grant, a source familiar
with the investigation told the Chicago Tribune. Another
source said federal agents have also made inquiries about the
grant, the newspaper reported Thursday. Ryan gave the grant to
the politically powerful National Jockey Club as reimbursement
for some of the construction costs incurred years earlier in
converting the 11,000-seat Sportsman's Park in Cicero into a
70,000-seat dual-use stadium for horse and auto racing. The
project was a failure and the Jockey Club, a generous campaign
contributor to Ryan and other Illinois politicians, had
already closed the facility before obtaining the grant in
January. Disclosure of the probe comes as Gov. Rod
Blagojevich's administration is demanding repayment of the
money. The Jockey Club is fighting that request. Ed Duffy, a
former Sportsman's official who is now a Jockey Club
consultant, defended the propriety of the grant, adding that
officials of the organization were unaware of a federal
inquiry. "None of us have been contacted (by federal
authorities)," Duffy said. 10/6/03 - This
Chicago Tribune
article says that the (Rod) Blagojevich administration has
demanded the return of a $750,000 state grant that former Gov. George
Ryan awarded three days before he left office to the owners of the
shuttered Sportsman's Park in Cicero. Ryan gave the grant to the
politically powerful National Jockey Club to reimburse the group for
some of the construction costs incurred years earlier in a conversion
of the 11,000-seat horse-racing track into a 70,000-seat dual-use
stadium for horse racing and NASCAR-type events. The conversion turned
into a financial disaster. By the time Ryan handed it the state money
in January, the Jockey Club had already closed the horse track,
transferred racing dates to nearby Hawthorne Race Course and announced
it would schedule no more auto events at its Chicago Motor Speedway.
The Jockey Club has since sold the site to Cicero for $16 million.
More... (Requires registration)
10/10/03
Mexicans increasingly drawn to
CART
This AP
article says, The CART series once was synonymous with
American open-wheel racing. Now it has an increasingly Mexican
flavor. Six of the 20 starters in Sunday's race in
Mexico City will be driving in their native country, including
the winner of last month's race in Miami. President Vicente
Fox invited all six drivers to a meeting at the presidential
residence this week. "This event is significant for
Mexico," driver and team owner Adrian Fernandez told Fox.
"This began in the dreams of many years ago and now it is a
reality." But the heart of the issue may lie as much in
free trade agreements as on the track. Many potential
American drivers and sponsors have been drawn toward other
sports, or NASCAR. Only three drivers from the United States
are in Sunday's lineup. But Mexican companies have seen
CART as a way to promote products that are increasingly
exported to the United States, as well as to win the hearts
and pocketbooks of fans -- often relatively rich ones -- in
race-crazy Mexico. The list of team and race event
sponsors at this event includes Mexico's main telephone
company, its top cell phone company, its largest bank, a major
supermarket chain with U.S. outlets, a food company that
exports to the United States and two widely exported Mexican
beers. Nearly 90 percent of Mexican exports go to the
United States.
More....
10/10/03
Weather forecast good in Japan
The weather forecast for the Japanese Grand Prix, the crucial
race in the 2003 World Championship for Drivers and the World
Championship for Constructors, continues to be favorable.
Temperatures will again reach around 24 degrees Celsius (75
Fahrenheit) today, which will continue to be partly cloudy.
That will be the case tomorrow and Sunday too, with very
little chance of rain.
10/10/03
Trulli fastest in Japan Friday
AM practice
Pos No Driver Team Time
1 7 Jarno Trulli Renault 1:30.727 *
2 1 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:31.009 *
3 5 David Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes 1:31.019 *
4 2 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1:31.217 *
5 8 Fernando Alonso Renault 1:31.276 *
6 6 Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:31.303 *
7 3 Juan Pablo Montoya Williams-BMW 1:31.654 *
8 14 Mark Webber Jaguar -Cosworth 1:31.977 *
9 20 Olivier Panis Toyota 1:32.011 *
10 21 Cristiano da Matta Toyota 1:32.133 *
11 4 Ralf Schumacher Williams-BMW 1:32.208 *
12 16 Takuma Sato BAR-Honda 1:32.295 *
13 10 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber-Petronas 1:32.422 *
14 9 Nick Heidfeld Sauber-Petronas 1:32.694 *
15 15 Justin Wilson Jaguar -Cosworth 1:32.735 *
16 12 Ralph Firman Jordan-Ford 1:33.306 *
17 11 Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan-Ford 1:33.956 *
18 17 Jenson Button BAR-Honda 1:34.445 *
19 19 Jos Verstappen Minardi-Cosworth 1:35.180 *
20 18 Nicolas Kiesa Minardi-Cosworth 1:35.900 *
10/9/03
Earnhardt signs with Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt, Inc. has reached an agreement with
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. for the next five years to remain as the
driver of the No. 8 DEI Chevrolet. The young Earnhardt has
been driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. since 1998 and entered
NASCAR’s premier Winston Cup Series as a rookie in 2000.
The agreement between Teresa Earnhardt, CEO and president of
Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and Earnhardt, Jr., solidifies the
driver’s future with the organization created by his father,
seven-time NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt, and his wife,
Teresa.
“Dale and I built this organization with a long term plan in
place,” Teresa said. “Dale Jr. has always been an intricate
part of that plan and this agreement represents our commitment
to one another in reaching the goal of winning championships.”
The agreement is Earnhardt Jr.’s first ever Winston Cup
contract as a driver, the terms are private, and is based on a
five-year partnership through the 2007 season. Currently, he
holds a career-high ranking of third place in the Winston Cup
Series, matching his career best of 17 top-10 finishes with
six races remaining.
“This is the first time I have had a contract in four years,”
Dale Jr. said. “We had a handshake and that was sufficient.
But, in today’s business world you need written agreements and
now we have one. It was an interesting process that was very
educational. What it really came down to was Teresa and myself
being in the same place at the same time and sitting down to
talk about it. Once that happened, it was taken care of in no
time at all.
“We have a lot of good people here at DEI that are committed
to this company. Now we can set out to achieve those goals
without any distractions.” DEI PR
10/9/03
NBC spends money, spins wheels
with NASCAR
For all of its continued growth on television -
ratings up 2 percent this year on NBC/TNT (59 percent overall
since 2000) - NASCAR still isn't a moneymaker for the
networks.
This is the third year of NBC/TNT's six-year deal to carry
half of the Winston Cup Series, and NBC Sports President Ken
Schanzer admitted yesterday he doesn't see his network
breaking even any time soon.
"We're getting closer, but we're not there," Schanzer said.
"We've got a ways to go . . . [and] I suspect we're not going
to catch up in this contract."
Sounds as if NBC is debating whether to remain on board with
its share of the $2.6 billion NASCAR package, doesn't it? This
is the network that let go of the NFL (in 1998), major-league
baseball (2000) and the NBA (2002) because there simply was
too much red ink to justify carrying on. (In the past four
years of its pro hoops package, NBC watched ratings fall 39
percent and lost about $300 million.)
More.....
10/9/03
Montoya calls for full-time
Steward
Juan Montoya was given a drive-thru penalty after coming
together with Rubens Barrichello in the USGP - a ruling he
felt cost him the World Championship. "I still believe the
decision was unfair," the Williams driver told reporters at
Suzuka. "It was a racing incident. The biggest problem we have
got is that every race you have got different stewards. I
think it is sad to see that such a big series as Formula One
is still messing around with different stewards in every race.
All you need is more consistency. The rules are there and you
have got to know what is right and what is wrong. You have got
to have someone who goes to every race and they know what is
right or wrong. What Michael did to Alonso at Silverstone was
a very unfair thing to do. He knew that he was going to pass
and he knew the only way to stop him was pushing the other guy
off," Montoya complained. "I think that deserves a much bigger
penalty than what happened with Rubens. If you don't have the
same stewards every race you are always going to get that
difference."
10/9/03
BAR prepares for China with
2-day tour
Following this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, Lucky Strike BAR
Honda Team Principal, David Richards and race driver, Jenson
Button, will embark on a two-day tour of China, ahead of the
country’s inaugural Formula One race on 26 September 2004.
Jenson will be carrying out interviews and appearances for
Chinese press and broadcast media in Shanghai and Beijing, and
will also take the opportunity to explore some of China’s
spectacular landmarks.
David will be meeting with senior Government officials and
business leaders, and investigating plans for promoting next
year’s Chinese Grand Prix, to be held at the Shanghai
International Circuit.
In July this year, BAR announced a long-term partnership with
Chinese Internet portal SINA. The leading online media
information service will host the Chinese language team
website which is due to go live in early November.
Speaking ahead of the visit, David Richards commented: “This
is a very exciting trip for myself and Jenson, because China
offers so many new and uncharted opportunities. The potential
there is enormous, in fact next year’s race has the
opportunity to almost double the sport’s existing audience."
“We have already formed a close partnership with SINA, who
have realized the potential Formula One has to offer as a
worldwide marketing tool. We are now looking at ways to expand
further into the market and to raise BAR’s profile in China.”
BAR F1
10/9/03
Ward Burton to the NetZero team
in 2004
NetZero HiSpeed and Haas CNC Racing announced today
that NASCAR veteran Ward Burton will be behind the wheel of
the #0 NetZero HiSpeed Pontiac during the 2004 Nextel Cup
Series season. "This is a great opportunity for me to bring my
experience to an up and coming, young team," stated Burton.
"I've watched the team grow and progress in its first year and
it's definitely come a long way in a short time. Gene Haas
runs a first-class organization, NetZero HiSpeed is a great
sponsor and Tony Furr is an outstanding crew chief. I feel
like we can take this team to the next level together and I'm
thrilled to be a part of it. There's no end to the
possibilities for this race team." "We're thrilled to have
someone of Ward's caliber joining our team. It says a lot for
our race team," said Haas, owner of Haas CNC Racing. "The
experience that he brings is something that will help us in so
many ways. I just can't say enough about how excited we are
about our future. We've had a lot of great people come on
board our organization this year and we've made steady
progress in our efforts to be successful. Ward Burton is the
icing on our cake." In a related move, Haas CNC Racing and
NetZero will expand their partnership for 2004, with NetZero
joining the team's new Busch Series program for current
NetZero driver Jason Leffler as an associate sponsor for all
2004 events and primary sponsor of the effort for three races.
"We've been really impressed with Jason's performance so far,
and look forward to being with him and Haas CNC Racing in the
Busch Series next year as they compete for race wins and the
championship," said Woods. "Jason is going to be a force to be
reckoned with in the Busch Series next year, and the
experience he gains there will certainly help when he returns
full time to the Nextel Cup Series in the future." "The
combination of Ward Burton and Jason Leffler is going to be a
tremendous boost to our entire program," said Haas. "Jason
will have a tremendous resource in Ward's experience, and Ward
is committed to helping Jason in any way he can. Our long term
goal would be to have Jason and Ward running together as
teammates in the Nextel Cup Series, and I'm confident that in
the not too distant future, that's exactly what we'll do."
NetZero Racing PR
10/9/03
Johansson team announces Mexico
deal
American Spirit Team Johansson is pleased to announce their
partnership with Gonher de Mexico for this weekend’s Gran
Premio Telmex/Gigante Presented by Banamex/Visa, round 17 of
the 2003 Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series
Powered by Ford. The partnership includes primary sponsorship
for the #31 American Spirit/Ford-Cosworth/Reynard, driven by
Champ Car rookie, Ryan Hunter-Reay. “We are very pleased to
welcome Gohner de Mexico to the American Spirit family,” said
team owner, Stefan Johansson. “With this weekend’s Grand Prix
being one of the largest sporting events in North America, it
offers the ultimate audience for a progressive company like Gonher. We are proud to carry their name in their native
country and to introduce Gonher de Mexico to racing fans
around the world.” Founded in 1953, Gohner de Mexico is the
leader in the Mexican auto parts industry. With 30 stores
nationwide, the 100% Mexican company manufactures and sells
auto filters, lubricants, car batteries, brake pads, shock
absorbers and additives. “Gonher is proud of its 50 years of
existence in Mexico and we are excited to share it with the
North American racing fans and American Spirit, at Mexico’s
largest sporting event. On behalf of everyone at Gonher, we
hope you enjoy this great event of International motor sport,”
commented Enrique Escobedo, Director of Marketing, Gohner de
Mexico.
10/9/03
SEM sponsors BAM at Lowe's SEM Products, Inc., celebrating its 50th year of
automotive product research, production, manufacturing and
distribution, will sponsor the #49 BAM Racing Dodge of driver
Ken Schrader in the upcoming NASCAR Winston Cup stock car race
at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. SEM Products sponsored BAM earlier
this season in the second races at Brooklyn, Mich., and
Bristol, Tenn. “We are very pleased SEM Products will return
to our car for the race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway,” said Beth
Ann Morgenthau, who owns BAM Racing along with her husband
Tony. Morgenthau is the only female owner in motorsports who
is not involved because of previous family ties. The
successful Coral Gables, Fla., investors, who have fully
funded the team for the complete 2003 season run, have built
the BAM (Beth Ann Morgenthau’s initials) team from the ground
up. General manager Eddie Jones is a veteran of the NASCAR
Winston Cup wars, is enjoying a championship career as a crew
chief, mechanic and team leader. Crew chief Scott Eggleston is
one of the few active crew chiefs in the business to have won
a Daytona 500.
10/9/03
Vickers to attempt Cup debut
Brian Vickers will attempt to make his NASCAR
Winston Cup Series debut in the UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's
Motor Speedway on Saturday, driving the No. 60 Hendrick
Motorsports Chevrolet. Lance McGrew, Vickers' NASCAR Busch
Series crew chief, will call the race-day shots for the
19-year-old, who is also scheduled to compete in the final
four races of the 2003 Winston Cup season in the No. 01 entry.
Three weeks ago, the No. 60 Hendrick Motorsports team tested
at Lowe's Motor Speedway in preparation for this week's
Winston Cup festivities. In simulated qualifying runs, Vickers
posted lap times better than Jimmie Johnson's track qualifying
record of 186.464 mph, set in May of this year. Vickers will
race Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 2547 on Saturday, which
is typically used by the No. 25 UAW-Delphi team. The same car
was used for the No. 60 team's test at Lowe's Motor Speedway
three weeks ago and has been entered this season at Las Vegas
Motor Speedway, Darlington (S.C.) Raceway and California
Speedway. "It's a dream come true. To be able to try and
qualify for my first Winston Cup race at Charlotte with
Hendrick Motorsports is pretty unbelievable. It's going to be
great to have my family and friends there to cheer me on. I
wouldn't be where I am today without their support over the
years. First and foremost, we have to qualify. There's no
guarantee that we'll make the race. Once qualifying is out of
the way, the focus will shift to the race and making laps. If
we can stay out of trouble and complete as many laps as we
can, everything will work out just fine."
10/9/03
Foyt is hottest bachelor
Larry Foyt, driver of the No. 14 Foyt/Harrah's
Racing Dodge, has been named North Carolina's hottest bachelor
by Cosmopolitan magazine. Foyt, a rookie in the NASCAR Winston
Cup Series, and 49 bachelors representing the 50 states are
revealed in the November issue of Cosmopolitan which hits
newsstands nationwide on October 14. Cosmopolitan conducted a
state-by-state search for its feature entitled "Cosmo's
Bachelor Bonus." Each bachelor was photographed in California
or New York and the article reveals the inside track on each
bachelor's interests. In addition, readers across the country
will be able to contact the bachelor of their choice through
special e-mail addresses created by the magazine. "I didn't
quite know what to say when they told me I was selected," said
the 26-year-old Foyt. "I had a blast in New York when I did
the interviews and photo shoot. I also got a chance to meet
some of the other bachelors and they were all pretty cool.
It's a huge honor for me and the experience is something I'll
never forget." [Editor's note - this contest must not be based
on the contestant's ability to excel at their job, Larry is
currently 42nd in the points standings and many times fails to
qualify for a Winston Cup race]
10/9/03
Holland quits Stars of Tomorrow
The Champ Car Stars of Tomorrow national karting series announced
today that Glenn Holland is leaving the company immediately to pursue
new opportunities in racing media and marketing.
Holland, of Diamond Bar, Calif., served as director of communications
and marketing for the Champ Car Stars of Tomorrow since 2002 after
establishing himself as national karting media representative for many
years.
"This is a difficult time to have Glenn leave us and he will be
missed," said Paul Zalud, Cart Stars Director Of Operations. "I see
Glenn as a personal friend and wish him and his family the best in the
future. I appreciate all that he has contributed to this organization
and we are better for it."
Holland's ownership interest via E Enterprises, LLC, which also owns
the popular Ekartingnews.com karting website and eRacingoutlet.com
racing products store, is unaffected by his departure from Stars of
Tomorrow.
"Karting and the Stars concept is close to my heart and one on which
I've spent a great deal of time and effort," said Holland. "I believe
I have helped push the awareness and packaging of karting higher and
have strong hopes that can continue. I want to thank the great people
of Snap-on, RACER, Bridgestone and CART as well as our other sponsors
for their support of our promotional programs. I have met many great
people as a result of this endeavor, and I will be thrilled to soon
see a Bobby Wilson, Jason Bowles or Kevin Glover competing among the
very best in the world at the top levels of motor racing."
Key personnel within Stars organization will expand their roles of
responsibilities. Kevin Williams will be responsible for regional
development as well as some national operational roles. Williams will
remain as our National Race Director. Scott Evans' role of National
Tech Director will remain but also will be expanded into a regional
role of support. Announcements for all of Stars 2004 series will be
coming out very shortly. Tom Blattler will continue to assist in the
Stars media relations program and the upcoming Stars Karting
Championships in Fontana, Calif.
10/9/03
Villeneuve pulls out of Suzuka finale
Jacques Villeneuve will not race in this weekend's season-ending
Japanese Grand Prix after his recent dumping from the 2004 BAR-Honda
line-up.
Team chief David Richards informed his team in Suzuka on Thursday that
the 32-year-old French-Canadian had asked to be released from his
contract.
Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, was furious when Richards
telephoned him with the news last week and reportedly hung up.
Richards said at a press call today that a few hours ago JV's manager
Craig Pollock phoned him and said his charge could not conjure the
motivation to race. “Jacques is extremely disappointed not to be
staying with the team next year, and he simply felt that his heart
would not be in it for the coming weekend,” Jacques manager Craig
Pollock explained. “As a result he asked that he be allowed to stand
down. We are grateful to David Richards, and the team, for releasing
him early from his contract.”
'Reserve' driver and Villeneuve's '04 replacement Takuma Sato,
a Japanese national, will step into the Honda-powered car for
tomorrow's free practice.
After Tuesday’s announcement that Takuma Sato will drive for the team
in 2004, and given that he is the team’s current third driver, it was
natural that he would take over as Jenson Button’s team-mate, albeit
rather earlier than anticipated. Expressing his surprise and delight,
Takuma commented: "This was not what I was expecting this weekend, and
I cannot express how excited I am to be making my debut for B·A·R in
front of my home crowd. It is going to be pretty crazy, but I am
confident that I can do a good job."
In 2002, whilst driving for the Jordan Honda team, Takuma produced a
widely admired result at the Suzuka circuit. After qualifying in a
personal best seventh position, he followed it up with a sparkling
drive to fifth place and his first Formula One points. Given his
background in the Suzuka Racing School, he knows the Suzuka circuit
intimately, and it will provide an ideal environment for his debut. In
addition, having completed over 7000 kms of testing with the team in
2003, he knows the B·A·R Honda 005 race car extremely well.
David Richards commented: "Well the end of our season has been rather
dramatic, and I certainly was not expecting this, but you have to
respect a driver’s decision if he feels he cannot give his best when
facing these circumstances. Clearly, as we had already decided on Taku
for 2004, we have faith that he will deliver for the team this
weekend, and I am pleased that he should start racing with us on a
track he knows so well. Now we have to focus all our resources on
getting the result we need to secure fifth place in the championship."
Fittipaldi: NASCAR is the best
Christian Fittipaldi has made his living in open-wheel
racing. But Fittipaldi, now on the Petty Enterprises payroll, says
nothing compares with driving on the Winston Cup stock car circuit.
The nephew of open-wheel legend Emerson Fittipaldi, Christian drove
eight seasons in the CART IndyCar series, where he won twice, and
three seasons on the Formula One circuit.
"In America, NASCAR is the best racing organization there is,"
Fittipaldi said. "If you are going to race in America and want to race
against the best, then you need to be in NASCAR and the Winston Cup
Series.
"It's the toughest and most challenging racing series there is. It
also continues to be the fastest- growing and most popular series
there is. Coming from CART, they are almost in survival mode over
there. In NASCAR, it's almost the opposite."
Fittipaldi, a 32-year-old who was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, has
started 14 Winston Cup races this season. He ranks 44th in the
standings, and his best finish was a 24th in the Pennsylvania 500.
And that brings up the obvious question about the difference between
driving an open-wheel car and a stock car.
"Besides all the obvious answers, some people might not realize that
Winston Cup races are a lot longer than most other series races," he
said. "In CART or Formula One, we were only racing for maybe 2 ½ hours
at the most. In Winston Cup racing, we are out there for three or four
hours.
"The cars get very hot. In open- wheel racing you are not confined to
a close space. Even in a (NASCAR) night race, the cars get pretty hot
inside. It's not as bad, but with the heavy fire suits and the helmet,
it's tough to get cool air inside the car and into your body. By the
end of the night you're all sweat."
Rocky Mountain News
10/8/03
Forbes: NASCAR pulls into prime time
Excerpt: But as NASCAR's value to both broadcasters and
advertisers grows, it loses the very characteristic that originally
made the sport so appealing to them: relative affordability. For
years, the media saw NASCAR as an inexpensive way to land the valuable
but elusive young male demographic, while the cost of broadcasting
rights to other sports continue to spiral upward. NASCAR is now in the
third year of its $2.4 billion, six-year contract with General
Electric-owned NBC and AOL Time Warner's TNT, which together air half
of the season, and News Corp.'s Fox and F/X networks, which air the
rest. That's a lot of money, but it pales in comparison to the $18
billion that the National Football League scored in its eight-year TV
deal, which expires in 2005. NBC and TNT say that NASCAR's ratings
jumped 59% over the 2000-2002 period, and that the numbers continue to
grow this year. With such televised success, the broadcasting bidding
war that will take place three years from now is bound to escalate
sharply . . . Traditionally, NASCAR races have been Sunday afternoon
television fare for fans, but as the sport grows in popularity, and as
that popularity has become more widely recognized by the media, it
looks as if NASCAR might someday be as much of a network sports
fixture as the NFL. An NBC spokesman says that in 2003, NASCAR will
have had seven out its 38 races broadcast in prime time, and that next
year there will be at least eight prime-time races.
Forbes
10/8/03
Richard Petty sees a change
Below is a quote from Tuesday's Wind Tunnel with Dave
Despain on SPEED Channel from seven-time NASCAR Winston Cup Series
champion Richard Petty. Petty on the biggest change he has witnessed
in NASCAR over the years: "Once we get on the race track, it's gotten
so technical. The cars are so close that you have to depend on gas
mileage or you gotta depend on position on the race track on a pit
stop in order to get yourself in a good position. Back in the good old
days, if you had a fast car and you got behind, you just run hard and
you caught up. I think it was more plain, raw racing than what you see
today. You go to Daytona or Talladega and they throw the green flag
and 43 cars all run together. That's not racing to me. They might pass
each other, but they get in the wrong line and a bunch of people come
back by 'em. Racing is where you run up there and beat on someone, and
you get by them and then you go onto the next guy. That's what racing
is all about. To me, the complexity of racing is so much different
than what I grew up in -- not saying it's wrong -- I'm just saying
that's the big change I see."
10/8/03 Industry News
Dean Thompson, 53, Died; Sprint Car Racer Won
Three Titles
Dean Thompson, one of Southern California's most popular
and successful sprint car drivers, died Tuesday of a ruptured aneurysm
at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Torrance. He was 53.
10/8/03 Industry News
Lighting of California Speedway to
begin
The lighting of California Speedway in anticipation of next
year's "Finish Under The Lights" Pop Secret 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup
Series race on September 5th will commence on Monday, October 13th,
speedway President Bill Miller announced today. The tentative
construction schedule by Musco Lighting will begin with the
construction of pole foundations around the exterior of the speedway's
two-mile oval and quarter-mile Street Legal Drag Strip, California
Dragway, from October 13-November 14. The next phase of the project,
beginning November 17, is for the installation of pole foundations in
the infield portion of the speedway. According to Musco Project
Manager Mark Flesner, other phases on the road to completing the
lighting project include: installation of pit road poles and lights;
installation of oval perimeter poles and lights; installation of drag
strip poles and lights; installation of grandstand poles and lights;
installation of infield lights, with a projected completion of the
project in the Summer of 2004. Season ticket packages for 2004 are on
sale now, featuring the Ultimate Season Package, the NASCAR Six Pack
and the Pick Your NASCAR Weekend packages. For purchasing and event
information, log on to
www.californiaspeedway.com or call 1-800-PITSHOP
10/8/03
Ward out of #22, Wimmer in
Scott Wimmer, the current Busch Series driver for Bill
Davis Racing, will make the move to NASCAR's premier series effective
October 20, 2003 and compete in the final four races of the 2003
season before becoming the full time driver of the #22 Caterpillar
sponsored entry in 2004 and beyond. It is a natural progression for
Wimmer into the Winston Cup Series. Wimmer, a native of Wausau, Wis.,
began racing three-wheelers at age eight and progressed to racing
stock cars by the time he was 15. He raced around the state of
Wisconsin racking up accolades at all the local short tracks, ranging
from rookie of the year at State Park Speedway to Driver of Tomorrow
at State Park Speedway to the Miller Triple Crown Champion. Wimmer
then moved to Hooter's Cup in 1997, where he won rookie of the year
before moving onto American Speed Association (ASA) in 2000. Wimmer is
a logical fit for Caterpillar, as well as Bill Davis Racing. His
family owns a construction company and they own and operate CAT
equipment.
Bill
Davis Racing Ward Burton and team owner Bill Davis
reached an agreement Wednesday that will put BDR's Busch Series
driver, Scott Wimmer, in the #22 CAT car at Atlanta Motor Speedway in
two weeks. Burton will drive the car this weekend at Lowe's Motor
Speedway and the following weekend at Martinsville Speedway. Wimmer
will be the driver of the #22 car for the rest of the 2003 season and
full-time in 2004. Wimmer previously tested both a Chevrolet and a
Dodge at Atlanta for the Oct. 26 Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500. BDR has no
current agreement with a manufacturer that would require it to run a
certain body style.
NASCAR.com
10/8/03
English ASCAR team buying into NASCAR
team
[Editor's Note: More fuel to the fire that NASCAR's stock
car racing is starting to get worldwide attention. Crowds are
rising for ASCAR events in Europe. This team will increase
public awareness of NASCAR in Europe] Leading Days of Thunder
racing team Torquespeed UK/dsiAnyDoc have announced the sensational
news that they will be racing on the US ovals as well as in the 2004
Days of Thunder at Rockingham. The team have also announced that
dsiANYDOC boss Asa Burrows has taken over the major shareholding of
Torquespeed UK [www.torquespeed.com].
In preparation for a full-blown assault in oval racing on both sides
of the Atlantic in 2004, Torquespeed will join forces with a major
NASCAR Winston Cup team to become the first British team to race in
the world's leading saloon car championship. The NASCAR Winston Cup
Series is the pinnacle of North American Stock Car Racing. The series
will have a new title sponsor in 2004, when North American
communications giant NexTel Communications take over the proud legacy
of Winston. The 2004 NexTel Cup will be contested over 37 rounds and
starts with the blue-riband event on the calendar, the Daytona 500 in
February. Asa Burrows, Managing Director of Torquespeed UK's 2003
partners dsiAnyDoc, has purchased a major shareholding in Torquespeed
UK Limited and joins the board as Commercial Director. Burrows
acquired the controlling interest in the NASCAR team in his first
major decision since taking over the role. The launch will be
announced officially at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 10. "I am
very excited about the global future of Torquespeed," said Burrows.
"We have some clearly defined plans for the future and a strategy that
will ensure these plans are brought to fruition." Torquespeed Managing
Director and Days of Thunder driver, John Mickel said: "I am delighted
that Asa is now a formal figurehead within the company. He brings
experience and new skills that will be of major benefit to the
Torquespeed organization." (ASCAR
Days of Thunder site)
10/8/03
Dale Jr. lends name to Volvo trucks
Greensboro-based Volvo Trucks North America's new model
tractor-trailer trucks will be autographed by NASCAR racer Dale
Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt will be autographing the new, limited-edition
long-haul models of Volvo's VN670 and flagship VN780 trucks as they
roll off the assembly line in Dublin, Va. The
limited-edition version of these trucks will come with either a Volvo
VED12 or Cummins ISX engine, each of which produce up to 565 horsepower, as well as special features inside the cab like a refrigerator
with freezer, compact disc player and deluxe speakers, power remote
door locks and lots of chrome.
The Business Journal
10/8/03
Ganassi Racing might move
Chip Ganassi Racing is considering moving its
headquarters to Concord from Mooresville, Concord city
officials announced Tuesday. The move would add to Concord's
racing credentials, giving the city three of the largest
NASCAR racing teams. Already, Winston Cup teams Roush Racing
and Hendrick Motorsports have their headquarters in Concord.
The city is also home to Lowe's Motor Speedway and a NASCAR
research and development complex. Ganassi is looking at a
59-acre site at Poplar Tent and Derita roads adjacent to
Concord Regional Airport. The land is large enough for
expansion or for the company to sell off to related
businesses, said City Manager Brian Hiatt. The company would
invest $15.5 million and employ 150 initially. That could grow
to 350 within five years, Hiatt said. In addition to a
headquarters building, the company also would build an airport
hangar at Concord Regional, a city-owned airport. Construction
is expected to be finished in 2004, according to the city. In
return, Concord is likely to dangle a total of $242,690 in
grants over four years for real and personal property taxes.
That follows the city's incentive policy for this size
investment. The council will consider the incentives Oct. 20,
and Padgett said he expects them to be approved. An official
with Ganassi declined to comment.
Charlotte Observer
10/8/03
Duracell to sponsor Surfers
pitlane
Battery firm Duracell has agreed to sponsor the pit lane
at this year’s Lexmark Indy 300 in Australia. Part of the
Gillette group, Duracell has acquired the naming rights to the
pit lane for the CART race staged between October 23-26. Said
Lexmark Indy 300 general manager James Ashworth: “Gillette has
been a wonderful partner of the Lexmark Indy 300 and we
gratefully acknowledge its support of Queensland’s premier
event. “We welcome the naming right’s sponsorship of Duracell
for the pit lane which is always the center of racing activity
over the four days.”
10/8/03
Earnhardt almost signed
Contrary to recent reports, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. has
signed no contractual agreement with Dale Earnhardt, Inc., a
source close to DEI told NASCAR.com Tuesday. The source said
that, while the deal is nearly done, Earnhardt's "name is on
no papers yet." Earlier this week, it was reported that
Earnhardt had two meetings with Teresa Earnhardt -- DEI team
owner and Junior's stepmother -- and that he had signed a
five-year contract with DEI.
NASCAR.com
10/8/03
***Reader Question***What's up with RuSPORT?
A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com, I was under the
assumption that RuSPORT & AJ Allmendinger were headed to CART
either next year or the following year. I have heard in
interviews that AJ wants to go to CART, not the IRL. But
lately I've been seeing reports that RuSPORT is headed to the
IRL. Is this true? I hope not. Thanks, Mark Gresock
Dear Mark, Carl Russo has maintained that he will race in
either the IRL or CART. We do know that RuSPORT has been
talking to folks in the IRL, and we would not be surprised if
one of the engine manufacturers is waving a lot of money at
them to steal them away from CART. Since CART has no
engine manufacturers, they have no money to counter offer.
Absolutely AJ prefers CART and road racing, but he signed a
contract with RuSPORT. However, Carl Russo has indicated
that he would not force anyone to do something they did not
want to do, so we suspect he would release AJ from his
contract to pursue road racing if that is what he prefers.
Our sources tell us Carl will run a Champ Car in 2004....but
things can change. We shall see. Mark C.
10/8/03
NASCAR Preview in Daytona
NASCAR announced plans today for a new preseason
fan-oriented event that will coincide with the annual NASCAR
Preseason Thunder test sessions in January at Daytona
International Speedway. "NASCAR Preseason Thunder Fan-Fest at
Daytona" will involve drivers from all three of NASCAR's
national series' the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, the NASCAR
Busch Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Those
three series test Jan.6-22 at Daytona. All three series open
the 2004 season at Daytona International Speedway in February.
Combining the preview event with the other activities
surrounding NASCAR Preseason Thunder will give fans more
opportunities to enjoy NASCAR in the city where the sport was
founded in 1948 in Daytona Beach. Fans will be able to watch
their favorite teams test cars for the new season, see and
interact with their favorite drivers, visit the Daytona USA
attraction and tour Daytona International Speedway. In
addition, the new event will continue to benefit multiple
charities. NASCAR will release more details on the NASCAR
Preseason Thunder Fan-Fest at Daytona in the near future.
NASCAR PR
10/8/03
NASCAR tops in marketing
NASCAR leads all major sports by a substantial
margin when it comes to innovative and aggressive marketing,
according to the 2003 League Report Card from Street & Smith's
SportsBusiness Journal. NASCAR scored at least a 4 or 5 on the
5-point scale from 83 percent of the 195 sports marketing
executives who filled out a 12-page survey that was mailed to
1,290 sports marketers nationwide. The score was slightly
better than the 81 percent who gave the sanctioning body the
same grades in the weekly magazine's initial survey in 1999.
The National Football League ranked second this year, scoring
a 4 or 5 from 59 percent of respondents. It was followed by
minor league baseball (56 percent) and the NBA (51 percent) on
the list of 16 organizations, which included all major
professional sports and the NCAA.
Winston Cup Scene Daily
Newsletter
10/8/03
Final night race of yearThe final night race of the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup season is
scheduled to take place this Saturday as Lowe's Motor Speedway hosts
the UAW-GM Quality 500. It will mark the first time this race is held
under the lights and Ford drivers Elliott Sadler, Ricky Rudd and Todd
Bodine gave their opinions about the change. More.....
10/8/03
De Ferran career stats This weekend's Chevy 500 at Texas
Motor Speedway will be the final race in Gil de Ferran's career. Not
only has de Ferran amassed two CART Championships and an Indianapolis
500 win, but he also set the World Closed Course Speed Record at
California Speedway with a lap of 241.428 mph while qualifying for the
2000 Marlboro 500. De Ferran has unquestionably left an indelible mark
on the world of open-wheel racing as one of the greatest ambassadors
of the sport. With just one race to go in his career,
following is a look at what the 35 year-old Brazilian has been able to
accomplish in his nine full seasons of IndyCar racing:
* Back-to-Back CART Championships
(2000 and 2001)
* 1 Indianapolis 500 Win (2003)
* 159 career starts
* 11 race wins
* 20 poles (13%)
* 3 wins from the pole
* 49 top-three finishes (31%)
* 57 races led (36%)
* 96 top-ten finishes (60%)
* 2251 laps led
To pay tribute to the racing career of 2003 Indianapolis 500 winner
Gil de Ferran, Brazilian-based Embraer, one of the world's leading
aircraft manufacturers, will provide de Ferran with a plane home to
Ft. Lauderdale after the final race of his career. De Ferran and his
family will be guests on the fitting "Embraer Legacy" aircraft as they
leave Texas and the 35 year-old begins the next chapter in his life.
10/8/03
IRL points battle one of best ever
With 15 of 16 races completed in the 2003 IRL IndyCar Series season,
just 30 points separate the five drivers eligible for the series
championship. Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves
and Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver Scott Dixon are tied for the
lead with 467 points. Andretti Green Racing driver Tony Kanaan is
third with 460, followed by two-time IndyCar Series champion Sam
Hornish Jr. at 448 and two-time CART champion Gil de Ferran at 437.
More.....
10/8/03 Industry News
South Florida Motorsports report now
online
You can now find all of the latest news about racing in South
Florida in one place!
http://www.sfmReport.com The South Florida Motorsports Report is
the only show that covers all forms of racing in South Florida. From
the pros to the amateurs the South Florida Motorsports Report is the
only show to watch. Now with our Internet website you can log on
whenever you want to learn about all that is happening in the area.
Results from all of the events. Racing news with a South Florida
emphasis. Schedules of upcoming events in the area. Previews of
upcoming shows. Sign up to win tickets to upcoming events. Links to
various professional and amateur racing series that appear in South
Florida. Coming soon: The South Florida Motorsports Report store where
you can purchase exclusive action videos and products. So log on the
http://www.sfmReport.com and
get your fill of all the RACING ACTION in South Florida. The South
Florida Motorsports Report can be seen at 12 noon on VibTV! COMCAST CABLE OUTLETS
South Broward Ch. 37
North Dade Ch. 37
Miami Ch. 30
South Dade Ch. 23
Key West Ch. 8
Telemedia North West Ch. 22 OVER AIR
WWTU Key West Ch. 8
WVEB Miami Ch. 21
For more information about the SOUTH FLORIDA MOTORSPORTS REPORT or if
you want to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, call: Tony
Castaneira at (305) 962-1829, Fax. (305) 248-9467 or e-mail us at
info@sfmreport.com
10/8/03
F1 news briefs
Scottish F1 veteran DAVID COULTHARD will take a 'couple of weeks
off' following the weekend's season-ending Japanese Grand Prix. 'I
won't rest for long,' he said, 'before focusing again for what will be
my tenth season in F1 in 2004.'
Ferrari tester FELIPE MASSA, who will almost certainly race a
Ferrari-powered Sauber in 2003, completed the final pre-Suzuka test
yesterday. The Brazilian tried some electronic solutions which will be
used in the race and covered 15 laps in a F2003-GA car.
Mercedes-powered F1 team McLAREN has announced that 3D Systems, a
world leader in rapid prototyping technology, has joined its portfolio
of technology partners. The long-term agreement will see 3D's systems
produce components from CAD models for wind tunnel and car build
development work.
DAVID COULTHARD has wished young McLaren team-mate Kimi Raikkonen 'the
best of luck' for the Japanese Grand Prix. Raikkonen, the Finn, is
still in with a (slight) mathematical chance of beating Michael
Schumacher to the ultimate prize of becoming world champion. 'It is
going to be an interesting race,' said Coulthard, 32.
Interview with Keith WigginsOne of the longest
standing teams in the Champ Car paddock dons the red, white and green
colors of Herdez Competition. While the Herdez name might be new to
Champ Car, the team has been in existence since 1986 in its previous
form as Bettenhausen Racing. The team has undergone many changes over
the past few years and one of the people who has aided in the growth
and rebuilding of the team has been Keith Wiggins. Wiggins joined the
team in 2000 after serving as President of Lola International, Inc.
Wiggins weighed in on the impressive one, two finish by Herdez
Competition drivers Mario Dominguez and Roberto Moreno in Miami, on
the difficulty of taking over an existing team and on the decision to
have Roberto Gonzalez drive for Herdez in Mexico City. More.....
10/7/03
***Reader Opinion***Engines are the key
A reader writes, Dear AR1, After reading the proxy statement released
today regarding the CART buyout and taking it private, it seems that
the “weird” decisions about engines was what sank CART. When
Honda and Toyota left, the money left. Without financing from
manufacturers the series has no chance. It is a losing operation,
without the slightest hope. This seems obvious to me (now), but should
have been obvious to the board at the end of 2001 when Penske bolted.
The stockholders should have been given the option to liquidate back
then. Pook could have sold all the advertising on the cars, tracks and
television. CART would still not have been profitable. I don’t see how
it can ever be profitable without engine manufacturers who spend money
in the series. Why is Open Wheel Racing Series paying even $0.56 per
share? Are they going to fund the series out of their own
pockets just for the thrill of it? I should have done my
homework 18 months ago. The bottom-line is so simple: No manufacturer
support, no profit, no series. Also, if the $31,825,000 in Team
Assistance can be reduced to 2,000,000 in 2004, why was so much
necessary in 2003? Paul Pension, Southland, California
Dear Paul, Now you understand why we made such a big deal about
badging of the current Cosworth engines by multiple manufacturers.
Ford simply isn't spending the kind of money that Honda and Toyota
were and the series is hurting financially because of it. So
yes, as long as they don't implement the badging concept, Open Wheel
Racing Series LLC will be digging deep into their bank accounts to
keep the series afloat, and they are willing to do that to a certain
extent. If they land the big (and we do mean big) series title
sponsor we know they are courting, the series will get a very big shot in the
arm from that, but at the end of the day, they still need manufacturer
support, sooner rather than later. We do know that they have
discussed the badging concept with some manufacturers, but we don't
believe they ever really pushed the concept. We can't say for
certain why the big drop in team assistance in 2004, but we suspect
it's because many of the teams will be able to fund their own teams
through sponsorship. Mark C.
10/7/03
New Molson Indy Director
Robert Singleton, VP/GM of Molson Sports & Entertainment
announced that Steve Smith has accepted the role of Director
of Operations Molson Sports and Entertainment effective Monday
October 6, 2003. Mr. Smith's primary responsibility will be to
run the day to day operations of the Molson Indy Toronto and
Vancouver.
10/7/03
Malaysian Prime Minister
squashes rumors
Malaysian PM Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad has moved to quash
speculation that the Malaysian GP at Sepang International
Circuit, and other major sporting events that he has initiated
in the country, could be under threat after his retirement
from office on October 31. Speaking about the F1 event, Dr
Mahathir said: "It will go on. It doesn't make a difference
whether I am still Prime Minister or not."
Autosport
10/7/03
Mika Salo meets with Bombardier Jet Train media tour
Champ Car driver Mika Salo (#27 PK Racing
Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) was on hand in Miami today to
address a group of South Florida decision makers about
bridging the gap between America’s fastest road technology and
America’s fastest rail technology. Coming off his recent
podium finish in the Grand Prix Americas in downtown Miami,
Salo spoke on behalf of Bombardier’s JetTrain, which is
bidding to implement its high-speed passenger rail system
through the Tampa-Orlando-Miami area.
Salo opened the media tour in South Florida as the lead
speaker, explaining the similarities between the high speed
passenger rail system and the 750hp turbocharged Champ Car he
recently negotiated through Miami’s Bayfront Park. Salo then
introduced Bombardier vice president Lecia Stewart who
addressed the media regarding JetTrain technology and the high
speed rail.
The Champ Car rookie claimed the third spot in Miami two weeks
ago, moving up 12 spots on the day after starting 15th. Salo’s
podium finish came in just his second Champ Car start, making
him the first driver since Nigel Mansell in 1993 to earn a
podium finish in one of his first two series starts. The run
also gave the first-year PK Racing squad it’s first-ever
podium, and marked its highest finish of the 2003 campaign.
Bombardier also serves as an official sponsor of the
Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by
Ford as the series’ Preferred Private Aviation Solution
through their Skyjet division.
Serving a diversified customer base around the world,
Bombardier Transportation is the global leader in the rail
equipment, manufacturing and servicing industry. Its wide
range of products includes passenger rail vehicles and
complete rail transportation systems. It also manufactures
locomotives, freight cars, propulsion & controls and provides
signaling equipment and systems. Bombardier Transportation has
been involved in the development or manufacturing of most of
the world's advanced technology and high speed passenger rail
systems.
10/7/03
Another CART SEC filing
In addition to the SEC proxy statement that was filed
this morning, another SEC form 13E3 Going Private form was
filed today and can be viewed here.
10/7/03
Road America renews sponsor
Road America has renewed three sponsorships, according
to George Bruggenthies, president and general manager. The
companies are Ocala, Florida-based Emergency One, which
provides the track with fire trucks; the Kohler Company,
Kohler, Wisc., title sponsor of the Kohler/SCCA June Sprints®;
and Safety-Kleen, which provides environmental products and
services. Sponsorship terms were not disclosed. "We're
delighted to renew our relationships with these companies,"
said Bruggenthies. "The racing industry is a great way to
showcase products and services to loyal race fans. We're very
pleased that these businesses will be a part of the 2004
racing season at Road America." Road America is selling season
tickets for the 2004 race season for $250 until Dec. 15, when
the price goes to $275. Season tickets are available at
www.roadamerica.com or by calling 1.800.365.7223 (RACE). Road
America's 2004 spectator race dates are May 14-16, Sports Car
Vintage Racing Assoc.; June 3-6, American Motorcyclist Assoc.
Suzuki Superbike Doubleheader; June 17-20, Kohler/SCCA June
Sprints®; July 15-18, Brian Redman International Challenge
featuring Historic Grand Prix F-1 cars; Aug.5-8, Grand Prix at
Road America featuring the Trans-Am Series for the BF Goodrich
Cup (CART is yet to be finalized); Aug. 19-22, the Road
America 500 featuring the American Le Mans Series, plus
STRANA, the Super Truck Racing Assoc. of North America, racing
18-wheeler cabs; Sept. 17-19, the Elkhart Lake Vintage
Festival, with a tour of one of the original Elkhart Lake race
circuits held on public roads.
10/7/03
Marco
Andretti wins 2nd rung on CART ladder Marco Andretti
of Nazareth, Pa., clinched the 14-race Skip Barber 2.0- liter
Formula Dodge Eastern Region championship during the season
finale at Lime Rock Park after taking a flag-to-flag win over
his two closest title contenders. The rookie’s victory in the
first of two championship-deciding races this past weekend
gave the 16-year-old son of Michael Andretti enough points to
secure the title before Race Two on Saturday. Andretti crashed
in the rain in the second race, but by then it was too late
for Peter Ludwig of New Paltz, N.Y., and Tom Sands of New
Canaan, Conn., who finished second and third in the
championship.
Andretti
won eight times in 14 starts, and finished on the podium five
other times to finish with 239 points. Third-year man Ludwig
(this year’s Most Improved Driver) scored six wins and 215
points, while Sands (same honor in 2002) scored three wins and
201 points.
“This was fantastic, a really great season. The instructors
taught me so much, I really couldn’t have done any of this
without them,” the youngster said, somewhat uncomfortable
under the spotlight during the awards banquet Saturday evening
as he learns what it feels like to be a rising star. Since the
season- opener at Lime Rock Park in late April, either Dad
Michael or Grandpa Mario made it to many of the race weekends,
and Michael said, “I am extremely proud of the job Marco did
in the very competitive Skip Barber Series. The experience
Marco is getting is invaluable, and at the age of 16, he is
already two years ahead of where I was at his age!” Mom Sandra
was at the banquet with a huge smile and thanked “everybody at
Skip Barber for helping make this happen.”
A
multiple regional karting champion, Marco is formally climbing
the CART-Champ Car Ladder System, having starred in the Stars
of Tomorrow karting series last year and this. Jeff Andretti
-- Michael’s brother, and the Eastern Region champion exactly
20 years ago -- has been Marco’s primary chaperone and advisor
this year and told the Skip Barber Race Series organizers that
“Marco is definitely entering the Formula Dodge National
Championship (FDNC) Presented by RACER” in 2004, adding that
Marco’s Eastern Region Skip Barber title “is a huge deal.” In
a one-off to prepare for next year, Marco will compete in the
2003 FDNC season finale this weekend (Oct. 10-12) at Mazda
Raceway Laguna Seca.
Notes: It was also revealed this weekend that IRL star Tony
Kanaan and fellow Brazilian and F1 leading light Rubens
Barrichello asked Marco to complete the three-man team that’s
competing in a prestigious charity endurance karting event in
Sao Paulo Nov. 8… Marco joins the growing list (going back 20+
years) of Andrettis -- Michael, John, Jeff and Adam -- whose
fathers chose to send their kids to Skip Barber for race
schooling and race series competition… There were a total of
19 Andretti-family members at the Eastern Region banquet
Saturday night, most of whom had to leave immediately
afterward to get home to help celebrate Michael Andretti’s
40-something birthday on Sunday.
10/7/03
ALMS Notes of interest
The sixth annual Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta Oct. 15-18 will
ring out the 2003 season for the American Le Mans Series in
grand style. The second-longest race on the series schedule
will begin at 11:30 a.m. (ET) and continue well into the night
as teams race for 1,000 miles or 10 hours, whichever comes
first, on the 2.54-mile Road Atlanta circuit.
In only six years, the Petit Le Mans has become one of the
world's most important sports car races and was an instant hit
when ALMS Founder and Road Atlanta owner Don Panoz started the
event in 1998 as a "petit" version of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
More....
10/7/03
Irish investors buy into Jordan team
A group of Irish investors have bought a 49.9 per cent stake in the
Jordan team. Clients of stockbrokers Merrion Capital have
purchased the shareholding of investment bank Warburg Pincus, the team
confirmed on Tuesday. It is hoped the move will give
Jordan the necessary funds to improve. Eddie Jordan said: “I
would firstly like to thank Warburg Pincus for their support over the
past five years, during which time we won four races and finished
third in the championship. Looking ahead, I very much welcome my
new partners to Jordan Grand Prix and I am very excited to have a
stable platform to propel the team to even greater achievements and to
proudly wave the Irish flag in Formula 1”. John Conroy of
Merrion Capital said: “The new investors are attracted by Jordan’s
proven ability to win races in this most competitive of sports and by
the vibrant, can-do culture of the Jordan brand and Eddie Jordan.”
10/7/03
NBC bullish on NASCAR ratings NASCAR on NBC is ready for
primetime this Saturday as the UAW-GM Quality 500 from Lowe’s Motor
Speedway in Charlotte is run under the lights for the first time. The
shift of races to primetime (the 2004 season adds a Sunday primetime
race at California Speedway on Labor Day weekend) is only the most
recent evidence of NASCAR’s continued growth.
“Primetime racing represents the continuing national acceptance of
NASCAR as a mainstream sport,” said Ken Schanzer, President, NBC
Sports. “NASCAR is America’s second-most popular sport. Its appearance
in primetime with a regular season race is further testimony to the
broadening appeal of NASCAR.”
NBC Analyst Benny Parsons: “The move to primetime is actually a
throwback to NASCAR’s roots. Most of these guys grew up racing on
short tracks on Saturday nights. It probably seems natural to them.”
Here are some numbers showing evidence of NASCAR's continued growth:
* Ratings on NBC & TNT are up again this season, even after 59 percent
growth from 2000-02. NASCAR is the No. 2 television sport behind the
NFL.
* The EA Sports 500 from Talladega on Sept. 28 delivered a
record-breaking 5.5 national rating - the best number ever posted by
an auto race up against pro football competition.
* The July 5 primetime Pepsi 400 from Daytona International Speedway
was the fourth-most watched program among adults 18-49 on network
television that week. Overall it was the seventh-most watched show and
attracted 20 million viewers. NBC Sports Press Release
10/7/03
Helton tells Oregon track developer no-way In a
tersely-worded letter to developers of a $500 million speedway near
Boardman, NASCAR President Michael Helton warned Racing Unlimited,
developer of the proposed project, not to connect his organization
with the raceway.
A copy of the letter also was faxed to the Tri-City Herald newsroom.
It mentioned a recent story that labeled the project a "NASCAR-style
speedway."
"Unfortunately, that article incorrectly leaves the impression that
NASCAR is affiliated in some capacity with your organization and the
speedway proposal," Helton wrote to Racing Unlimited.
"At this stage, it is critical that any interested parties understand
that NASCAR has no affiliation with your company's proposal. ... and
that NASCAR has made no commitments of any kind with respect to races
at the track."
Tri-City Herald
An ex-Hockey Player, Paul
Gentilozzi can be diplomatic in one breath and put you right in your place
the next. When he enters a room, he commands a presence.
Dan Boyd/LAT
Regarding the IRL, Gentilozzi tells it
like it is
In last week's edition of National Speed Sport News, Paul
Gentilozzi, one of the key players in the buyout of CART, spoke out
about the IRL and the teams who left CART to go to the IRL. In
essence, he called a spade a spade - - Gentilozzi addressed recent
remarks in Racer magazine where IRL President George called for the
need to unify American open-wheel racing. Gentilozzi admitted that he
has a cordial relationship with George, but threw cold water on the
notion that OWRS is trying to acquire CART as a precursor to selling
out to the IRL so that the League can cherry-pick selected road races.
"For two million bucks, I could have been an IRL team owner,"
Gentilozzi said. "This is going to cost me a lot more than two million
bucks, but this is a better product. The guys who were here (Penske,
Ganassi, Andretti, Nunn) that went there know this is a better
product. They went there for a check. Every one of them has made
contradictory statements, whether it's Chip Ganassi, Roger Penske or
people at Andretti-Green. [For years] They bad-mouthed the IRL that
they didn't want to go there. But it's amazing how you change your
opinion when a manufacturer [Honda and Toyota] is waving green in your
face. The IRL wants to be what we are, and the difficult thing is that
we're not leaving.
"They have five good races and we have fifteen," he added. "In the
end, everybody was willing to throw out the bathwater to get to Indy
because that was supposed to be the race. Maybe it was, culturally, 10
years ago or 20 years ago. But slowly they've certainly lost some of
their impact."
Other than guaranteeing a future for open-wheel road racing itself in
North America, OWRS' attempt to save CART is good news for the road
and street race promoters that rely on the Champ Car series for a
significant portion of their business. Although the IRL has stated
that it plans to add a limited number of road races in the future, the
Indy Cars would require substantial modification for that to happen.
"Those venues would be gone and the circuits would fail and go
bankrupt because they can't sell tickets," Gentilozzi said. "Tony
can't go there with his cars. I'd be curious how they would do. If you
really look at an IRL car, how are they going to stop it? They would
need new uprights, new radiators and sidepods, all new front and rear
suspension and gearbox work. There's no way you could do that for
$140,000 [per car]. They want to be in Long Beach and Mexico City, but
the grave isn't dug yet."
10/6/03
Mexico
City Track Talk
The 16-turn, 2.786-mile permanent road course is a unique race
track as Fernandez Racing Race Engineer Chris Finch notes: “Top speed
on the front straight will be close to 200 mph followed by hard
braking into a 72 mph first corner. Turn Six through Turn 13 is a
combination of rights and lefts that keeps getting quicker with each
subsequent corner. It is all about momentum and quick reaction through
this section. The “Stadium” section, Turns 14 through 16, is similar
to a street circuit with rough concrete and slow, 90-degree corners.
“Mexico City is at an altitude of 7500 feet and the barometric
pressure is 23.00 to 23.5 in Hg – meaning thin air. In terms of setup,
you will be required to have good mechanical grip because the low air
density at altitude will rob the car of its downforce.”
Finch estimates top speeds of 198 mph with minimum cornering speeds
around 54 mph. Drivers will shift 28 times per lap throughout the
course of the 70-lap race. The maximum interval for pit stops is set
at 19 laps, requiring a minimum of three stops.
10/6/03
Maia has successful test with RuSPORT,
deserves Atlantic ride for 2004
As the Toyota engine fires up for the first time early Wednesday
morning, tension is noticeably high. 2003 Barber Dodge Pro Series
champion Leo Maia prepares to take to the Sebring track and both he
and the host RuSPORT Toyota Atlantic team are somewhat nervous.
For
Leo, it would be his first time in the Atlantic car. For the RuSPORT
guys, well like we said, it was Leo’s first time in an Atlantic car
and anything could happen. However, as the test wound down on Thursday
afternoon, both driver and team were much more relaxed, more confident
and very satisfied with the results.
Over the two day test, Maia completed 400+ miles in the #3 RuSPORT
Toyota Swift .014.a shod with Yokohama tires, which was driven
successfully to a fifth place championship finish during the season by
Aaron Justus. As the comfort and confidence level grew, the lap times
came down quickly and began to close in on the team’s previous bests
at Sebring with drivers A.J. Allmendinger and Justus a week before the
Miami finale.
That’s when Allmendinger, fresh off his 2003 CART Toyota Atlantic
Championship and on-hand as an advisor only, began to voice his desire
to get back in the car.
“The weather is much better now than we had last week,” the always
competitive Allmendinger repeatedly stated with much volume. “There
were no clouds when we ran and the sun was blistering the race track.
It was at least 20 degrees warmer!”
When Maia surpassed the best time from two weeks earlier by
Allmendinger, everyone thought the Toyota Atlantic champion was
going to grab his helmet and jump into the car. If it were not for
testing rules in place by the series, he might have done just that.
“All kidding aside, Leo did an awesome job in the car,” stated A.J. “I
think everyone on the RuSPORT team was impressed by his abilities,
both on and off the track. I like to give him a hard time but I am
really happy for him to get this opportunity. While this was not a
test for an actual ride, I remember how nerve-wracking it can be the
first time you get into one of these cars.”
“So, I tried to lighten things up a little bit by giving him a little
grief about not soiling his brand new yellow suit and other things
like that,” Allmendinger concluded with a wry smile.
“Leo is absolutely ready to drive in the Toyota Atlantic
Championship,” commented Burke Harrison, Allmendinger’s oft mentioned
lead engineer who worked with Maia on the first day. “Once Leo quickly
got used to the Atlantic car, he was really impressive with his
ability to communicate back to the team and understand the changes we
made on the car.”
“Over the last two days, Leo is showing what we have come to expect
from drivers in the Champ Car (Driver Development) System,” said Barry
Waddell, who heads up RuSPORT’s Driver Development. “His feedback was
excellent. He was very methodical and disciplined in his approach to
getting up to speed.”
Perhaps RuSPORT President Jeremy Dale sums up the two day test most
appropriately and what the future holds for Maia.
“Simply put, Leo is ready for the Toyota Atlantic Championship,”
declared Dale. “Someone needs to give him a chance for next year. With
the right opportunity, he will be one of the drivers to beat in 2004
and that is saying a lot in such a competitive series.” CART
10/6/03
Your
name on the #7 FDR car
Building on the huge success of the fundraising event for World
Childhood Foundation at the Grand Prix Americas in Miami, FDR team
owners James Dingman and Emerson Fittipaldi are now taking their
efforts one step further. Now, fans that make a tax deductible
donation of $500 can see their name scream by on the # 7 FDR car
during one of the final 3 races of the season. 100% of all donations
will go directly to Childhood and its support of at-risk children in
Brazil. James Dingman, in conjunction with World Childhood Foundation,
a worldwide children's charity founded by H.M. Queen Silvia of Sweden,
organized a charity event called 'The Helmet Project' for the Grand
Prix Americas and is now trying to expand the fundraising efforts by
including fans as well as corporate sponsors.
World Childhood Foundation was founded in 1999 by H.M. Queen Silvia of
Sweden in an attempt to right injustices made to children around the
world, especially girls and young mothers that have been victims of
sexual abuse and exploitation. The mission of World Childhood
Foundation is to defend the rights of the child to a secure childhood
and, in particular, to work for better living conditions for children
at risk all over the world. Childhood believes that every child has a
right to a childhood. Everyone has the right to grow up and develop
socially and intellectually. Today, many children are deprived of
these fundamental rights. They are neglected, abandoned, abused and
exploited. The Foundation currently supports projects in Brazil,
Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Russia as well as in Ecuador, Germany,
Moldova, South Africa, Sweden, Thailand, Ukraine and the United
States. For more information about World Childhood Foundation, please
visit www.childhood.org.
FDR's 'The Helmet Project' was designed to bring aid and awareness to
the plight of impoverished children around the world, but focused
particularly on Childhood's Brazilian projects for children. The
initiative was to give 1700 children the opportunity to enter a
competition to design a driver's helmet. The winning design was made
into three helmets, which are being auctioned to raise funds for the
children's projects.
Fittipaldi-Dingman Racing's decision to expand the program to include
fan participation as well as continued alliances with strategic
corporate partners is designed to generate even more excitement for
this charitable project.
For more information on donating funds to the project and getting your
name on the car, please contact:
lauratamsin@yahoo.com or
Trish Donovan at tad@teamfdr.com
10/6/03
Vasser wants to end career as a Champ
Car driver
This LA Times
article says that Championship Auto Racing Teams, or CART,
might be riding to its final roundup Nov. 2 at California Speedway,
but durable Jimmy Vasser, one of its champions, is looking forward to
being there. And he wants to be in on whatever direction new ownership
takes the troubled open-wheel racing series in the future. "I've
dabbled around in a lot of things this year, even took a long look at
NASCAR, trying to sort out what I want to do," Vasser said. "The more
I thought about it, despite all the negative talk, I decided I wanted
to finish my career as a Champ Car driver."
More....(Requires registration)
10/6/03
Kansas overnight TV ratings Sunday's running of the Banquet
400 on NBC garnered overnights of a 4.0 rating and 8 share, according
to Nielsen Media Research as reported by Sports Business Daily. This
is up 3 percent over last year's 3.9 overnight. Last year's race
finished with a 4.4 final rating. Sunday's pre-race show turned in
overnights of a 2.8 rating and 7 share.
MotorsportsTV.com
10/6/03
NASCAR looking to change scoring system NASCAR vice
president Jim Hunter said the sanctioning body has been
looking at ways to upgrade its scoring system after the
current system came under question on the last lap of
Saturday's Mr. Goodcents 300 Busch Series race. The race was
restarted with one lap to go, but a crash between Bobby
Hamilton Jr. and Greg Biffle forced NASCAR to throw the
caution. Under rules implemented two weeks ago, cars don't
race back to the yellow, even on the last lap. But several
drivers, including race winner David Green, raced to the
yellow and checkered flags anyway. That meant the results on
NASCAR's scoring computer -- which records where the cars are
at the finish line -- were incorrect. The new rules dictate
the cars being scored exactly when the yellow flag comes out.
That's the problem. Hunter said NASCAR knew it was going to be
difficult to score the cars "because we cannot freeze the cars
at the exact moment that the yellow is displayed. We're simply
telling all those competitors that we're looking for a better
system," Hunter said. Hunter said NASCAR is considering two
systems. The first will use electronic lines under the
racetrack, just like the one currently at the start-finish
line, in quadrants around the track. The second is an
effective global positioning satellite system that would
freeze the field when the caution is waved. NASCAR has a GPS
system, but Hunter said exact positions can't be determined.
Asked when either of the new systems could come online, Hunter
said. "I think next year is realistic," and "possibly" by
Daytona. Hunter also said NASCAR would not reconsider its
decision to allow racing back to the yellow, even on the last
lap.
NASCAR.com
10/6/03
NASCAR has global dreams Those of you who have been
readers of AR1 for awhile now will know that we predict the War of the Worlds
(an article by Mark Cipolloni) has yet to be fought between
the oval track cartel and the road racing cartel.
Many scoffed at the notion that NASCAR might have their eyes
on conquering the global market, something F1 has a
stranglehold on now. This Sun-Sentinel
article by Ed Hinton sheds more light on NASCAR's
global aspirations. This just solidifies in our mind
that a major strategic error was made by Bernie Ecclestone not
buying into CART and bringing CART and F1 closer together to
solidify road racing's base in North America and around the
world. Open wheel's long-term future is certainly at
risk in our opinion.
10/6/03
Trading on CART stock halted
All trading on CART stock (MPH) on the NY Stock Exchange
was halted today. Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc.
(NYSE: MPH) today reported that it has received formal
notification from the New York Stock Exchange that the Company
had fallen below the NYSE continued listing criteria as the
Company's average market capitalization is less than $15
million over a 30 trading-day period and the average closing
price of its security is less than $1.00 over a consecutive
30-trading-day period.
In order to enhance information available to investors, the
NYSE makes available on the consolidated tape an indicator,
".BC," if a company is below the NYSE's quantitative continued
listing standards. This indicator will be transmitted with the
Company's symbol on and after October 7, 2003.
The Company must notify the NYSE on or prior to October 14,
2003 of its plan to cure the deficiencies or be subject to
suspension and delisting procedures. If the Company does not
submit a plan that is found acceptable by the NYSE, or the
Company cannot affirm an intent to cure, the Company will be
subject to immediate suspension by the NYSE and delisting by
the SEC, in which case the Company would pursue having its
common stock quoted on the OTC Bulletin Board (OTCBB). The
Company does not expect to submit a plan nor does it expect to
be able to affirm an intent to cure the deficiencies.
10/6/03
Drivers snub media in Kansas NASCAR may be
considering penalizing drivers who fail to meet media
obligations following race events, said Jim Hunter, NASCAR's
vice president for corporate communications. Hunter said
Sunday the sanctioning body will review the policies of other
professional sports regarding media responsibilities of
participants. His comments came after driver #9-Bill Elliott
refused to attend a post-race news conference Sunday. Elliott
finished second in Sunday's Banquet 400 at Kansas Speedway.
#42-Jamie McMurray, the rookie of the race, also failed to
attend the post-race news conferences. Typically, the
top-three finishers in each race, along with the
highest-finishing rookie, are required to attend post-race
media news conferences.
ThatsRacin.com
10/6/03
Jordan to run Motoyama on
Friday Japanese Formula Nippon championship leader
Satoshi Motoyama will get his first run in an F1 car at the
Japanese Grand Prix, when he runs in the Friday morning test
session for Jordan. Motoyama won the Nippon title in 1998 and
2001, and currently leads this year's championship. "I would
like to thank the Jordan Ford team for giving me a great
opportunity to drive its third car at Suzuka," said Motoyama.
"I have been dreaming of this chance for a long time. I have
raced in Suzuka many times and I know the track very well, but
it will be my first time driving an F1 car so I think it will
be very different. It will be a big challenge for me, and I
will do my best to show my driving skills in the limited
time."
10/6/03
Tagliani on Wind Tunnel
Catch Alex Tagliani on Wind Tunnel Monday, October 6th at
9:00 p.m. on SPEED Channel. Tagliani, who is currently ninth
in the Champ Car World Series championship with 91 points,
will reflect on his experience with Paul Gentilozzi and the
first year team, and the 2003 Champ Car competition. Forward
your questions for the upcoming show to host, Dave Despain, at
(windtunnel@speedtv.com)
or ask it live by calling 1-866-W-Tunnel from 9:00 – 10:00
p.m.
10/6/03
Suzuka
tidbits This coming weekend the F1 circus moves to Suzuka,
Japan for the season finale. Built by Honda as a test circuit in
1962, Suzuka was designed by John Hugenholtz, a Dutchman who also
produced Zandvoort and Jarama. The circuit is situated on the island
of Honshu, which is also home to Tokyo, Yokohama and Osaka, and is
just one component of a giant amusement park and other facilities.
Suzuka itself has an 18-turn figure-of-eight course that is unique in
F1. It begins with a fast 5th gear bend that tightens to lead into a
series of fast S-bends. Spoon curve and the legendary 130R are the
other great challenges on this popular driver’s circuit.
Overtaking is normally done into the slowest corner on the track, the
40mph Casio Triangle chicane at the end of the lap. More difficult
passing moves can be performed into the 140mph First Corner and very
occasionally at the Turn 11 Hairpin.
In 2002, the circuit was reduced in length, courtesy of some
realigning of several key corners to provide greater run-off areas.
Retaining walls were also moved back and the track slightly altered at
the S-Curves and Dunlop Curves. For 2003, this program of
modernization and reprofiling has continued with 130R, tweaked into a
two-radii sweeper to provide a faster and more fluent corner and an
earlier turn-in. More changes come at the revised Casino Triangle
chicane, which is now more open than before. These alterations have
cut a further 14 meters from last year’s lap, but it is unclear how
much that will affect overall lap times.
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Interview with Keith Wiggins
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