Originally Posted by openwheelKT:
I’ve said this once and I’ll say it again. The ONLY way a young open wheel driver gets into the IRL without a bunch of money is to get into Indy Lights first. NO team is going to hire a 20 year open wheel driver straight in….even if it was ALL ovals. Just not going to happen in these times.
HA! Somehow I just don't see these current "star" dirt track midget drivers and their daddies giving up their chance to see their names in the Speed Sport News every week or their $50 prize winnings to start over and spend 2 or 3 years in SCCA Formula Fords, learning what they need to know about driving formula cars.
Originally Posted by mac miller:
usac killed any chances for their short track drivers to "move up" when they, some how, pissed away the "Thursday Night Thunder" TV shows........ usac made it even more difficult for their drivers to be taken seriously, when they put them in the new supersilvercrown cartoon cars.......Now there is talk of usac eliminating pavement sprint car racing from the schedule which will put the final "kabosh" on any usac drivers hopes of making it to pro level racing.
usac no longer understands or remembers that the top pro open wheel drivers were made on the pavement of Raceway Park and the high bank asphalt of Winchester, Salem and Dayton, not the little quarter mile dirt mudholes at paragon, putmanville, gas city or "the burg"............ Sorry, but as hard as I look, I see no little Parnelli, Mario or A.J. embryos, currently racing, who have any chance of making it out of the state of Indiana.......
usac would be far smarter to get rid of the dirt tracks if they want their drivers to have a chance to actually learn something that would be useful to them in a pro level series.
Mac is right.
Another myth thrown around here much of the time is the drivers need dirt experience. The two teams we know in Indycar say that dirt racing teaches drivers bad habits and to avoid it if you want to drive high downforce cars on pavement. Driving karts succesfully on road courses is much more important for the driver looking to indy than any dirt car experience.
Originally Posted by wbr:
Mac is right.
Another myth thrown around here much of the time is the drivers need dirt experience. The two teams we know in Indycar say that dirt racing teaches drivers bad habits and to avoid it if you want to drive high downforce cars on pavement. Driving karts succesfully on road courses is much more important for the driver looking to indy than any dirt car experience.
I would agre with that to a point, but the two most dominate NASCAR Road Racers of the past 10 years are two of the best USAC dirt talents ever. To quote a great movie "What we have here; is a failure to communicate".
Everybody wants to label everyone else. Everything has to be catagorized. This person is this and they only know that. Racers are racers and the best can drive anything. I believe that Montoya could wheel a midget as good as anyone; the same as I believe Jeff Gordon could have been a hell of a F1 driver. Mario for example was a spectacular dirt driver as well as road racer, the same as many of his contemporaries. The reason was is because they just raced. Anthing, everything, anywhere at anytime. Saying a dirt driver picks up too many bad habits is like saying a pavement driver can't "feel" the car because he isn't used to it being loose.
I would like to see what Bobby Santos could do in Danica's ride or Marco's ride. Will he ever get the chance? Not unless he or a family member wins the lottery for $100 mil
Originally Posted by Bostonian:
I would like to see what Bobby Santos could do in Danica's ride or Marco's ride. Will he ever get the chance? Not unless he or a family member wins the lottery for $100 mil
Originally Posted by dirtywhiteboy:
It will never happen as long as the IRL continues to turn it's back on oval racing and the American fanbase by going to places like Brazil and China. China is rumored to be building a copy of the IMS and having a race there.
Now if that doesn't get people PO'd nothing will.
At this point, I'll take another Indy Series oval race ANYWHERE. This may sound "un-American" to some, but I would trade any of the "street course" races for an oval race in China in a heartbeat. And from a business perspective, well, there's a billion reasons (population) to go to China.
I mean, we all hate that the Millwaukee Mile is off the schedule, and Brazil is on it for next year. But last I checked, that Tony Kanaan comercial for Apex Brazil airs like three or four times during every Indy Series broadcast, and I'm pretty sure I don't recall seeing too many commercials for Wisconsin Tourism on the coverage.
HEre we go again. Blaming USAC for pissing away the Thunder and Lightning Broadcasts.
Those died when ESPN signed a major long-term contract with Major League Baseball and didn't need racing any more the fill its time slots. End of story.
How much racing of any kind does ESPN broadcast today?
Originally Posted by mac miller:
usac killed any chances for their short track drivers to "move up" when they, some how, pissed away the "Thursday Night Thunder" TV shows........ usac made it even more difficult for their drivers to be taken seriously, when they put them in the new supersilvercrown cartoon cars.......Now there is talk of usac eliminating pavement sprint car racing from the schedule which will put the final "kabosh" on any usac drivers hopes of making it to pro level racing.
usac no longer understands or remembers that the top pro open wheel drivers were made on the pavement of Raceway Park and the high bank asphalt of Winchester, Salem and Dayton, not the little quarter mile dirt mudholes at paragon, putmanville, gas city or "the burg"............ Sorry, but as hard as I look, I see no little Parnelli, Mario or A.J. embryos, currently racing, who have any chance of making it out of the state of Indiana.......
usac would be far smarter to get rid of the dirt tracks if they want their drivers to have a chance to actually learn something that would be useful to them in a pro level series.
USAC banning rear engine midgets and sprint cars was the beginning of the end for short track drivers...and this happened in the 60's. This problem didn't happen over the last few years, it's been building for a long time.
Originally Posted by bigmojo5:
HEre we go again. Blaming USAC for pissing away the Thunder and Lightning Broadcasts.
Those died when ESPN signed a major long-term contract with Major League Baseball and didn't need racing any more the fill its time slots. End of story.
How much racing of any kind does ESPN broadcast today?
Jim Morrison
Thank you but it fall on deaf ears. In 1992 the late Larry Nuber was staying at a friends house during Copper World weekend and he was telling us how ESPN was cutting back on the USAC coverage because of money. Larry mention that boxing was cheaper to put on the tube than the races and it was getting equal ratings.
