Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Knowlesy
No, but then F1 is never short of a star draw is it? It sure as hell doesn't rely on one guy all the time and only the fans of a certain driver rue their eventual loss. Whenever a star leaves, a star/potential star joins. Does anyone even remember Hakkinen, Montoya, Schumacher when they watch a race? No, not really.
|
True but Hornisch has never been the IRL lone star
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Knowlesy
AOWR is a very different kettle of fish. A star name leaving is a problem for two categories already struggling to identify with the American public. Champcar has lost Bourdais and will possibly lose Wilson, leaving it with a grid more miserable than anything I have ever seen. The prospect of Rahal vs Doornbos vs Power, whilst undoubtedly new and fresh, is hardly a riveting thing. Indycar has lost two champs within weeks and I am not sure that Joe Public is jumping up and down excitedly because Ryan Brisoe has filled the breach.
|
Reasonable point, but you got to consider that only F1 and can expect only "already star" drivers to come. Every other series in the world is meant to develop drivers for future bigger ones; their appeal is right in this ability.
After all we all understandably glorify Sam's talent; but was he considered a great addition when he appeared in IRL? He was unknown to most, then he became what we see thanx to IRL.
(Thus, before convicting Briscoe apriori, I'd let him show what he can do on an entire mono-commitment IRL season.)
The same can be said , more or less, about Bourdais, whose more recent wins (2006) have however been tainted by a growing lack of valuable competition, both in terms of drivers and teams.
About Franchitti, that's a very different case, because at the beginning of 2007 he had planned to retire at the end of the season, but the unexpected triumphs convinced him to look for a even higher wage in Nascar.