Indy Car Stuff from today.

D.O. · 2/27/08, 4:16 PM

BRIGHT FUTURE AWAITS UNIFIED OPEN WHEEL RACING SERIES

Champ Car, Indy Racing League Work Together To Form Unified IndyCar Series

The future of open wheel racing is bright, according to the owners of Champ Car and the Indy Racing League who stood together publicly Wednesday for the first time since signing an historic agreement in principle to unify the sport.

ClaytonYeley · 2/27/08, 4:57 PM

Thanks for the post D.O., It's a great day for open wheel !!

smbpreformance · 2/27/08, 5:09 PM

Today is a stepping stone towards a great day. The great day will be the start of the 2010 season when everyone is on the same page in the same car and normal schedule can be agreed upon. It will not be until then that we start seeing the prestege come back to open wheel america

Did anyone else notice that Milka Duno has replaced Sarah at D&R and Sarah is going to be fielding her own team for a partial season?

Crankin · 2/27/08, 7:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D.O.

BRIGHT FUTURE AWAITS UNIFIED OPEN WHEEL RACING SERIES

Champ Car, Indy Racing League Work Together To Form Unified IndyCar Series

The future of open wheel racing is bright, according to the owners of Champ Car and the Indy Racing League who stood together publicly Wednesday for the first time since signing an historic agreement in principle to unify the sport!
Joining them were several owners and drivers as well as industry representatives who support unifying the sport. Champ Car drivers present included Franck Perera, Bruno Junqueira, Graham Rahal, Alex Tagliani, Oriol Servia, Simon Pagenaud, Nelson Philippe, Robert Doornbos and Will Power.

...And all 27 members of these guys fanclubs (combined), are just super excited too!!!:rolleyes:

Sorry, way to little,way to late.
Someday, someone over there will wake up and realize that average "Joe American Fan" (and for that matter, average "Joe American Marketer"), will never get excited about a series full of guys named Pagenaud, Doornbos, Junqueira, and Franck (with a C) Perera.
Case in point: Tony Kanaan. Great guy, great racer, great personality, great speaker! Ask 100 people at a NASCAR or NHRA race if they have ever heard of him, and see what the result is?.. Ask those same people today, or say even 20 years ago, if they had ever heard of Foyt, Unser, Rutherford, etc... And I bet you get a much different result... And these guys made their names long before every race was on TV, like today.

Much more than just a unification is needed to bring back even a semblance of the glory days in open wheel racing.

2/27/08, 7:35 PM

So basically we had to wait 12 years to get back to CART circa '95.

I'm glad everyone is back together, but the thought of more street and road courses doesn't excite me. Nor does the thought of going back to turbochargers.

Gregg · 2/27/08, 9:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moses

So basically we had to wait 12 years to get back to CART circa '95.

Pretty much the size of it. At least Eldora is a little more than 5 weeks away.

Z-man · 2/27/08, 9:13 PM

I noticed the milk and donuts change and I also read Sarahs news release. Do you think the IRL is going to meet its EEO quota?

Pat O'Connor Fan · 2/27/08, 9:26 PM

The post by Crankin Craig Dori is absolutely correct!!
While Tony Stewart was still running full-time in the IRL, I took Grandma Kim to her fist and only Indy 500 because every race fan should go to at least one. However, I have no plans to take any of my grandchildren to the Indy 500 (or any other IRL event) until some USAC drivers get hired to drive at Indy. Obviously, that means I'll never be taking any of grandkids to an Indy 500 :thumbsdown:

Z-man · 2/27/08, 9:38 PM

"Beginning in 2008, the program will award a minimum of $1.2 million to each car entered to compete the entire season, including the Indianapolis 500. By implementing IndyCar TEAM, the Indy Racing League is dissolving its existing event purse formula."
Does this mean that some of the money for this is coming from the purse? So running a limited schedule or missing a race would mean no 1.2 mil and the amount you are running for is less also. I wonder how much less.

openwheelKT · 2/27/08, 10:59 PM

No offense to anybody on here, but the IRL could car less about dirt track fans. That's not the target audience any longer. The sprint car to Indy Car progression isn't the same anymore. The champ car/sprint car back in the day WAS bascially the Indy Car for the 500 so it made sense. Same car being a front engine car. Most times it was the exact same car. The machine is totally different today and that's how owners see it. I see it as TOTALLY wrong because a GOOD race car driver can drive anything on any surface or layout. They don't seem to see it that way so they aren't going to hire them. If you don't like the IRL at all because there are no dirt track drivers, the IRL doesn't care. Not their audience anymore. I like the racing so it's cool with me. Not exactly what I wish it was...wish it was more like when I was a kid and first started watching it. It is what it is so you either like it or you don't I guess.

If you think about it, Nascar has changed with their driver choice too. The dirt track driver has a place so you don't notice it as much. Hell, I remember when Billy Joe Nascar fan hated Geoff Bodine because he was a yankee. Now the drivers come from all states. That wasn't so cool back in the day. Changed, just not as much foreign invation....that's changing too though. The days of anything on the major level of racing in the U.S. being american drivers only is coming to an end. So if that's your major problem, I guess it's "local" racing only. Everybody has their choice. :checkered:

2/27/08, 4:16 PM	#1 Indy Car Stuff from today.
D.O. Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 2,915	BRIGHT FUTURE AWAITS UNIFIED OPEN WHEEL RACING SERIES Champ Car, Indy Racing League Work Together To Form Unified IndyCar Series The future of open wheel racing is bright, according to the owners of Champ Car and the Indy Racing League who stood together publicly Wednesday for the first time since signing an historic agreement in principle to unify the sport.

2/27/08, 4:57 PM	#2 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
ClaytonYeley Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 644	Thanks for the post D.O., It's a great day for open wheel !!

2/27/08, 5:09 PM	#3 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
smbpreformance Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 458	Today is a stepping stone towards a great day. The great day will be the start of the 2010 season when everyone is on the same page in the same car and normal schedule can be agreed upon. It will not be until then that we start seeing the prestege come back to open wheel america Did anyone else notice that Milka Duno has replaced Sarah at D&R and Sarah is going to be fielding her own team for a partial season?

2/27/08, 7:35 PM	#5 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
Moses Posts: n/a	So basically we had to wait 12 years to get back to CART circa '95. I'm glad everyone is back together, but the thought of more street and road courses doesn't excite me. Nor does the thought of going back to turbochargers.

2/27/08, 9:13 PM	#7 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
Z-man Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 879	I noticed the milk and donuts change and I also read Sarahs news release. Do you think the IRL is going to meet its EEO quota?

2/27/08, 9:26 PM	#8 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
Pat O'Connor Fan Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 8,029	The post by Crankin Craig Dori is absolutely correct!! While Tony Stewart was still running full-time in the IRL, I took Grandma Kim to her fist and only Indy 500 because every race fan should go to at least one. However, I have no plans to take any of my grandchildren to the Indy 500 (or any other IRL event) until some USAC drivers get hired to drive at Indy. Obviously, that means I'll never be taking any of grandkids to an Indy 500 :thumbsdown:

2/27/08, 9:38 PM	#9 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
Z-man Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 879	"Beginning in 2008, the program will award a minimum of $1.2 million to each car entered to compete the entire season, including the Indianapolis 500. By implementing IndyCar TEAM, the Indy Racing League is dissolving its existing event purse formula." Does this mean that some of the money for this is coming from the purse? So running a limited schedule or missing a race would mean no 1.2 mil and the amount you are running for is less also. I wonder how much less.

2/27/08, 10:59 PM	#10 Re: Indy Car Stuff from today.
openwheelKT Senior Member Race Count Last Year: 73 Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 742	No offense to anybody on here, but the IRL could car less about dirt track fans. That's not the target audience any longer. The sprint car to Indy Car progression isn't the same anymore. The champ car/sprint car back in the day WAS bascially the Indy Car for the 500 so it made sense. Same car being a front engine car. Most times it was the exact same car. The machine is totally different today and that's how owners see it. I see it as TOTALLY wrong because a GOOD race car driver can drive anything on any surface or layout. They don't seem to see it that way so they aren't going to hire them. If you don't like the IRL at all because there are no dirt track drivers, the IRL doesn't care. Not their audience anymore. I like the racing so it's cool with me. Not exactly what I wish it was...wish it was more like when I was a kid and first started watching it. It is what it is so you either like it or you don't I guess. If you think about it, Nascar has changed with their driver choice too. The dirt track driver has a place so you don't notice it as much. Hell, I remember when Billy Joe Nascar fan hated Geoff Bodine because he was a yankee. Now the drivers come from all states. That wasn't so cool back in the day. Changed, just not as much foreign invation....that's changing too though. The days of anything on the major level of racing in the U.S. being american drivers only is coming to an end. So if that's your major problem, I guess it's "local" racing only. Everybody has their choice. :checkered: