Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II (Montreal, Turkey, IRL to RACE Daytona?!?)

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

That fight between two Canadians should serve notice to all that we aren't always stereotypically polite.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

I wish they would.

Signs point to a merger for 2008. Talks are quietly ongoing, but probably won't really get serious until the 2006 season ends (which is too late for anything to be done for '07).

Both series are adding some venues (CC: street races in Vegas, San Antonio, China while deleting Milwaukee and South Korea; IRL: oval in Iowa, possible street race in Detroit) that might be trial balloons to see which tracks survive and which don't. It also might be an issue if the France-owned ISC (which does a really, really, really, really, really rancid job of promoting the open-wheel races at the tracks it owns and has tried to stop CC races from competing with ISC venues) gets its panties in a bunch about a stronger open-wheel competitor to its NASCAR fiefdom, which seems to be intent on not only dominating motorsports in the U.S., but in getting rid of all other forms of motorsport in the process.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Yeah, but that's how dirt tracks are. And winged sprint cars don't run particularly well on asphalt.


This is why Rahal Letterman Racing is no longer a first-rate team (if, indeed, it ever was): They lose the telemetry on Danica's car before the green flag waves and they can't even come close to figuring out what her fuel range is at the end.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Williams Grove, a place I've been to a few times, does not look like a pile of steaming crap. Some of the tracks the new sprint-car tour is running on, like Susquehanna Speedway in Pa., are absolute jokes. They look like old junior high football fields.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the new sprint car tour (like the last "new" sprint car tour) just another attempt by the Kinsers to suck up more money from the sport? That was the impression I was left with, anyway.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Ooh, it's breaking F1 news!

Alex Wurz is in, Mark Webber out at Williams next year. The team confirmed it this morning.

Webber likely goes to Renault, in part because he is managed by Renault boss Flavio Briatore.

Fisichella is already signed at Renault for next year -- a move I don't get at all -- leaving Kovaleinan screwed, if I'm right about Webber going to Renault. Maybe Renault can pay for Kovaleinen to spend a year at Midland, because he reportedly has a race drive as part of his deal with Renault.

Interesting...

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Webber and Fisichella as teammates doesn't sound good at all. Two dudes who fall short of their potential.

I'm glad Wurz is getting another shot, though Williams has been dog ass-awful for more than a year now. It'll be interesting to see how Toyota helps them.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Webber has actually impressed me a lot more this year than he has in the past. He's frequently been quick in a terrible car, right up until it breaks. Until this season I never really got why people were so high on him.

Having said that... no, Webber and Fisichella won't be striking fear in anyone's hearts. If Raikonnen goes to Renault is Webber out of a ride? I suppose he could get the second McLaren.

Wurz definitely deserves another shot, although I'm pretty surprised he's going to get it.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

I suspect Renault is more interested in Raikonnen than vice versa, especially given the way Renault has failed to perform over the second half of the season.

The Speed TV announce team made an interesting point about the Williams engineers trying to cut too much weight at the expense of reliability last weekend.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

I'm not sure Kimi will have any better options, though.

I don't think Schumacher and Todt want Kimi as their #2 driver, since Massa seems perfect for that role. If Michael keeps driving, Kimi may have a choice of McLaren or Renault. If I'm him, I pick Renault, considering how many times his McLaren has detonated or had significant parts fly off the last few years.

 

Re: Champ Car/Indy/F1 running thread II

Intentional d_b of the other board ...

Cristiano da Matta wrecked head-on with a deer at the CCWS Road America test this afternoon. According to a release from his team, he underwent emergency surgery for a subdural hematoma and is in intensive care.

http://www.rusport.com/news/read/update-on-condition-of-rusport-driver-cristiano-da-matta#read_more