Originally Posted by cecil98:
I think the point being debated here, is whether or not the road racing crowd regaining control of the sport and thus, pulling it back in that direction (again) is a good thing for the growth and development of Indy Car racing, or not. It's my opinion that Tony "sold his soul" for Honda/Toyota/Penske/Ganassi/Andretti and now we simply have a reincarnation of CART. By 2002 the IRL had a very cost effective formula, lots of competitive "small budget" teams, a decent amount of American drivers in the mix (including short trackers!!) and the best racing on the planet...bar none!!!! photo finish after photo finish...
Cecil your valid point about the IRL formula had one
huge flaw, no body came out and saw those races and not many more tuned in on TV. I went to quite a few of the midwest races between 1999-2004 and you always had plenty of room in the stands.
The INDYCAR Series is a business and needs to make money. The street / road races are more "events" than races and allow the IICS, teams, and promoters cater to the sponsors through hospitality.
I consider myself a race fan and will watch just about anything that requires one person to go faster than the other whether it is Indy cars, F1, Nascar, sprintcars, modifieds or street stocks.