Racing Rumors

[¡As-de-mim!]

In the escalating battles among car owners to hire away crewmen from rivals, Richard Childress says the bidding war in the NASCAR garage for aerodynamicists, engineers, fabrication specialists and pit crew men is getting way out of hand. Anyone is fair game in this struggle.

Dale Earnhardt Inc. just hired two key pit-road men from the Woods; Doug Yates just hired away a key aerodynamicist from Childress; and Childress just hired an excellent fabrication-shop guy away from DEI.

"Hey, this is a major-league sport," Greg Zipadelli, Tony Stewart's crew chief, says. "You've got to take care of your players."

"It's bad, and we're our own worst enemies, because the salaries have been pushed sky-high," Childress says. "Some salaries have skyrocketed, because of someone trying to hire someone else. Everybody is after the (fabrication) guys now.

"When you lose somebody, you've got to replace them, and it usually winds up costing you more. The price of this sport keeps going up."

[Snrub]

Mr. Pook, pay for this man to have his own team! (Mario)

You really have to wonder why Michael put the team in IRL. I don't see why he couldn't have had sponsorship in CART. He is Michael Andretti! Michael said several times he didn't like oval only/IRL and surely his opinions don't differ too much from his father. By ending his career after indy he's sort of implying that it was over when he left CART. I think he'll do well in the IRL this year, he's still quiet competitive on the ovals.

[mac]

Originally posted by BSchneiderFan
Talking of Australian drivers, didn't Craig Lowndes do a season of F3000 back in '97? It wasn't that successful, as I recall, and I don't suppose he'd be tempted away from Supercars now, but are there any other V8 drivers who would be worth a shot in single-seaters?

Lowndes was teamed with Montoya in '97 and didn't have a hope in hell. Marko threw him in the deep end and he didn't have a chance. Aside from playing sillybuggers with Lowndes' engineering staff, the team was also massively biased towards JPM.

He also tested a Team Green IndyLights car with the intention of possibly racing in 2000. He was every bit as quick as Johnny Kane, but brought less money, therefore missed out on the drive.

Paul Morris also did a season of Lights, with mixed results.

Of the other V8 drivers, I think Bright, Ambrose and maybe Besnard are the only slight possibilities. Bright was very good in Lights and was right in the championship hunt (winning at Portland) until he hurt his back at Chicago, and subsequently lost all momentum (he became the victim of several hits from other drivers and various mechanical failures). His debut at Surfers was outstanding. He was running 5th and was on the same strategy as Fernandez, who won the race, when Moreno spun on a restars, Papis slammed on the brakes, and Bright hit him.

Ambrose was an outstanding junior formulae driver in Britain. He won the Brit FF title (or was it the festival?) and was quicker than Button and Raikkonen in FF. A lack of funds meant that for the following year, he had to take a **** drive in French F3 with Mygale. He had a few races with Alan Docking at the end of the year, but all was lost.

David Besnard won the US FF2000 championship. However, he too lacked the required funding for an IndyLights, or Atlantics drive and returned home.

Aside from these guys, I think Courtney is our best bet. But you could also throw in (in the order of most likeliness) Will Davison, Will Power, Ryan Briscoe, Rob Nguyen and James Manderson.

[macdaddy]

Pook is headed to Europe this week to meet with Bernie.

[¡As-de-mim!]

Nigel Mansell Q&A

"It's the first Champ Car race I've been to since '94"
Nigel Mansell was back in the Champ Car paddock


Back in 1994, Nigel Mansell was rightfully proud when he called himself a double World Champion. Having fallen out with the Williams F1 team during the course of his 1992 Formula 1 title-winning season, Mansell joined Newman/Haas Racing for 1993 and won from the pole on his CART Indy car debut at Surfers Paradise. He added four oval wins to claim the '93 CART crown, but his performance faded in 1994 as he plotted a move back to F1. During his two-year American sabbatical, Mansell purchased a home in Florida where he and his family still spend plenty of time, and he spoke to John Oreovicz Sunday morning in St. Petersburg.

Q: What brings you to the Champ Car opener?

I'm here as a guest of Jim McGee. We've lived over here for a number of years in Clearwater since we were driving the Indycars, so this is just down the road for us. Jim said come on down and see us, and here we are. It's the first race I've been to since '94.

Q: How do you look back on the two years you spent in the States racing these cars?

I enjoyed it very much. It could have been more enjoyable during the last year. Obviously winning in '93 was like a dream come true – winning both world titles back to back was sensational. We had a couple of wins that escaped us in '94 which we should have converted. That was also the year that Mario [Andretti] was retiring, so things in the team weren't the same as before. I loved the time here. I think the people were great. The series has had its share of ups and downs since 10 years ago, but I hope it goes through this period and gets stronger again.

Q: How do you think the Champ Car race at Brands Hatch will go?

Fantastic. I think you'll love Brands Hatch. It's panoramic and you're able to watch most of the track from the grandstands. It's also a very challenging circuit, one of my favourites in the world. So I think it'll be sensational. The cars will do very well and I think you'll be surprised at how big a crowd the event draws from London. That's what you want.

Q: My favourite recollection of your '93 championship was the race at New Hampshire on the weekend of your 40th birthday when you beat Penske team-mates Paul Tracy and Emerson Fittipaldi. Does that race stand out for you?

I can remember that race very vividly – a few laps to go overtaking Paul on the outside of Turns 1 and 2 and just slipping in there. There were just a few laps to go so he couldn't respond. It was a great race and a super birthday present.

Q: Paul's still racing and Emerson is now a team owner. Is there any chance you might get involved in the Champ Car series?

I don't know. I'd be open to any suggestions!

From Autosport http://www.autosport.com/featuresitem.asp?id=22017&s=7

[¡As-de-mim!]

Fittipaldi owns the Brazilian television rights for Champ Car and he is looking to bring the series back to his home country in 2004.

[¡As-de-mim!]

Has anyone heard anymore about the Haas/Newman row over the Indy 497? I read someone saying that Newman would leave Haas and partneer with another CART team if Haas wants to go IRL.

[macdaddy]

Haven't heard a thing. That was a rumour I had originally pulled from ChampWeb, and posted earlier in this thread.

There is plenty of friction between Carl Haas and Paul Newman. The latest rumor has Haas wanting to race at Indy, with Newman stating that IF Haas races at Indy, Newman will buy into another team. Stay tuned...

[Alex K]

Newman/Mansell Racing??

[BSchneiderFan]

Newman/Mansell Racing?? Ye Gods, no! Paul Newman - great actor, good driver, good team boss, all-round top-bloke. Nigel Mansell - whining old malcontent, with an ego larger than that part of him which precluded his initial entry into a McLaren. Don't do it, Paul!

[macdaddy]

Oops!

[¡As-de-mim!]

Psst - Bernie already owns a portion of CART
Has the move begun? Stay tuned!

Posted on arone

[DNQ]

Originally posted by mac
Lowndes was teamed with Montoya in '97 and didn't have a hope in hell. Marko threw him in the deep end and he didn't have a chance. Aside from playing sillybuggers with Lowndes' engineering staff, the team was also massively biased towards JPM.

He also tested a Team Green IndyLights car with the intention of possibly racing in 2000. He was every bit as quick as Johnny Kane, but brought less money, therefore missed out on the drive.

Paul Morris also did a season of Lights, with mixed results.

Of the other V8 drivers, I think Bright, Ambrose and maybe Besnard are the only slight possibilities. Bright was very good in Lights and was right in the championship hunt (winning at Portland) until he hurt his back at Chicago, and subsequently lost all momentum (he became the victim of several hits from other drivers and various mechanical failures). His debut at Surfers was outstanding. He was running 5th and was on the same strategy as Fernandez, who won the race, when Moreno spun on a restars, Papis slammed on the brakes, and Bright hit him.

Ambrose was an outstanding junior formulae driver in Britain. He won the Brit FF title (or was it the festival?) and was quicker than Button and Raikkonen in FF. A lack of funds meant that for the following year, he had to take a **** drive in French F3 with Mygale. He had a few races with Alan Docking at the end of the year, but all was lost.

David Besnard won the US FF2000 championship. However, he too lacked the required funding for an IndyLights, or Atlantics drive and returned home.

Aside from these guys, I think Courtney is our best bet. But you could also throw in (in the order of most likeliness) Will Davison, Will Power, Ryan Briscoe, Rob Nguyen and James Manderson.

I think the only drivers with a chance of a drive are Christian Murchinson (already linked to Rahal), Rob Nguyen (has more money then the rest of them I imagine), Jason Bright (purely because he has raced in CART before and Holden have said before they'd let him break his contract to go overseas) and maybe Courtney (it seems he's only treading water in Europe right now).

Will Power is a fantastic talent, but I don't think he has the comittment to pursue an internation career, and funds are hard to come by.

Davison seems pretty happy with Porsche, and Ryan Briscoe is tied up with Toyota...and we know who Toyota powers in America....

[racer69]

The Toyota connection will probably rule out Courtney as well.

As you say Alex Davison is pretty happy with Porsche, depending on how Will Davison goes this year in BF3, we'll see. I kinda agree about Will Power.
What is Christian Murchison up to this year?
Jason Bright could do well, but there is the track record that once your back in Australia (particularly Touring Cars) you never leave

It'll depend how they do this year, as i can't see any Aussies in CART this year.

[tanalised]

Simon Wills was a damn good Formula Holden driver. His daddy just bought into the aussie v8 racing with Team Dynamik based in Adelaide, to give Simon a drive; maybe he could buy him into a Champcar test

[¡As-de-mim!]

Toyota's first wind-tunnel runs with its NASCAR Truck didn't go well, according to NASCAR sources, who report that Toyota engineers didn't tie the Truck down tightly enough during the runs at the Langley (Va.) wind tunnel a few weeks ago. The Truck tore loose from its moorings and did serious damage to the facility, forcing it to close for two weeks for repairs. No word on how much Toyota had to pay for damages.

[The Snout]

[¡As-de-mim!]

By PAUL GOVER
04mar03

A YOUNG New Zealander being groomed for Formula One by Toyota has taken the first Indy Racing League victory of 2003.

Aussie-born Scott Dixon, who moved across the Tasman with his family as a youngster, won the race at Homestead, Florida, in a Toyota-powered G-Force car.
Dixon is expected to have an F1 test some time this year with Toyota and is part of a driver development group that includes fellow Australian Ryan Briscoe. :confused:

[BootsOntheSide]

Originally posted by ¡As-de-mim!
By PAUL GOVER
04mar03

A YOUNG New Zealander....fellow Australian Ryan Briscoe. :confused:

Geography lesson for Mr Gover needed here - Australia and New Zealand are not the same country.

Is this the real reason why Dixon stayed with Ganassi rather than taking a drive in CART? I was udner the impression that CART persuaded Ganassi to run him after the PWR squad went under (a shame the Entrant Support Program wasn't active then; PWR was an established team who were a sad loss), as they already owned his contract through 2003.

[¡As-de-mim!]

Team News Update
Welcome Barilla: American Spirit Team Johansson is proud to welcome Barilla pasta as an official supplier of the American Spirit Champ Car team. Barilla is the number one pasta producer in the world.

[Jordi]

Ah! Barilla... It was always on Alessandro's cap...

[macdaddy]

Well, tonight it's spaghetti for dinner!

PS - Good memory, Jordi.

[¡As-de-mim!]

"To say the television ratings were a disappointment is an understatement," said Pook. "We've got to help Speed Channel get on more mainstream cable systems. They're our partners. I can understand what happened, but I don't accept it. I've got to fix the TV."
Pook has contracts that almost guarantee CART being around through the end of the 2004 campaign.

"My focus now is 2005 and beyond," said Pook. "I think things will grow move positive over the next two years. We've gotten control of the financial situation. And then in 2005, we'll have a new engine formula. Right now, we're working on making solid building blocks."

[Tailwind]

I've got to fix the TV

I know MR. Pook is a powerful man and is capable of great things, but how is he going to do that? My cable keeps going out at the worst possible times and the cable company can't seem to fix it.

[The Snout]

Uphill climb Tailwind, but one that has to be made. What I'm happy to see is he 100% realises the TV issue and knows it's has to be improved as a priority.