Bessie,
I guess I didn't think it was very long considering that IMS has been around for 100 years. I have been learning more and more about racing that I never knew before.
There is a plethera of information about racing and getting through all of it would be impossible. I do think that the more people become aware of the Indy Racing League the more revenues any company involved will be able to generate. hence MSEP can reach their revenue goals even sooner.
Maybe a reunion of CART and Indy is in order:
Champ Car president Dick Eidswick met with Indy Racing League founder Tony George last week in Indianapolis to discuss the sad state of open wheel racing in this country and some possible remedies.
"I called Tony for a meeting and, in my opinion, we didn't get anywhere or make any progress but he was very cordial," said Eidswick. "While we openly disagree of how to go forward, we don't do it with any anger.
"I sense that he believes in having only one series and he's tired of the way things are going but we have different ideas on how to approach things."
George, who said he didn't want to get into the details of their discussion, did offer this: "So far nothing has been talked about that excites me."
And this would include Champ Car's apparent desire of a common chassis and engine -- starting in 2007 when both series are due for news cars and motors.
Mario Andretti began pitching this common rules idea several months ago to IRL COO Brian Barnhart and Eidswick because it would at least allow both series to compete at the Indianapolis 500, if not other selected races.
"The technical side is the first building block," said Andretti. "And it needs to happen quickly."
Tony Cotman, vice president of operations for Champ Car and former team manager for Andretti/Green Racing in the IRL, thinks that plan might have a chance.
"The goal is not to get us together, I mean that would be nice but it probably isn't ever going to happen, so our goal is to have four big shows together. Indy and three others," said Cotman. "But if we don't do it for '07, we never ever will."
Car owner Paul Newman offered: "If we could run four or five races together, that's a beginning. I don't think it would take long before we came together."
Added Eidswick: "I've been talking to Mario a lot because he's so knowledgable and passionate about open wheel racing and that's why I thought getting together with Tony was so important because time is of the essence."
Roger Penske, who tried to orchestrate a unification last summer without success, reportedly proposed a plan to George recently that called for each series to run 10-12 events apart and then come together for a few "majors" like golf, which would obviously include Indianapolis.
But George isn't buying that as a slam dunk solution.
"First of all, if we still have two separate series and we come together for a few races one of the challenges is how do we as individuals, teams and a business, go out and sell sponsorship? We can't spin that to look like one and nobody is going to be any more interested in supporting a fragmented group.
"Besides, both of us have pretty reliable packages that work so the question is: is one of them worth changing?
"I fail to see how having common engines and chassis allows us to get together or eliminates confusion. I don't know the definition of unification but I don't think it's two individual series."
George said even if they agreed on common rules, that hardly opens the door.
"Engines and chassis are the easy part," he said. "The philosophical issues, that's the challenge."
Eidswick said George's solution to unification is to buy Champ Car but that doesn't fly with Open Wheel Racing Series owners Kevin Kalkhoven and Gerald Forsythe.
"Dick tells me Tony still wants to buy us out and only wants to run races in North America so, in my mind, that's the end of the discussion," said Kalkhoven, who owns 45 percent of OWRS along with Forsythe (Paul Gentilozzi owns the other 10 percent).
"I'm not here to let this series be driven into the dust and neither is Gerry. We've got some good things happening, our strategy is laid out and if Tony wants to join us, that's great."
Forsythe echoed his partner's thoughts.
"We met three times last year and he (George) wanted to buy us out so obviously nothing has changed," said Forsythe. "I have no problem with Tony being our partner but he doesn't seem to want a partner.
"I have no problem with giving Tony some playing cards but I don't want to sell him Champ Car. I think three or four good business people are stronger than one person."
Asked about how long he and Forsythe are willing to spend millions of their own dollars to keep Champ Car afloat, Kalkhoven responded: "The amount of money we're spending is very little overall and I can afford to run this thing forever."
George claims he never discussed purchasing Champ Car with Eidswick.
"If that's his intrepretation of what we discussed, then it's flawed," said George. "A lot of things were presented but that was never discussed."
But the Indianapolis Motor Speedway president is convinced that one series is the only way to restore open wheel's fan base, sponsorship and television ratings.
"Anything short of that doesn't accomplish the objective of growing open wheel racing," said George.
Other than a brief handshake following CART's bankruptcy hearing in 2004, Kalkhoven has never met with George. Both say it's time.
"The key is to sit down with the decision makers and have some meaningful dialogue," said George.
Kalkhoven's response: "If Tony is prepared to think about things in a broader manner, I'll be happy to meet with him."
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