“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.” – Closing Time by Semisonic
Hello Everyone:
As you all should certainly know by now, Champ Car has ceased operations as of Friday and our teams will be “amalgamated” into the Indy Racing League. Overall and in the big picture, this is a very good thing, and I have tried hard during the whole waiting process to remember that.
Because of the generosity and business sense of the IRL, who has offered assistance to our Champ Car teams, as many as 26 cars may answer the bell for the opener at Homestead.
As for what’s next, I could indulge in speculation – but I’ll leave that to those who get paid for such things. I specifically remained quiet during this three week period, as I did not want any of the rumours floating around to come from me and the way I might have been perceiving things as they progressed. For details you should check the websites of the Indianapolis Star, the IRL and Speed TV.
What I’ll address here is what I know for sure. There will be a press conference on Wednesday where the IRL “regulars” will be conducting their Spring testing. I expect that we will get more details on the 2008 schedule at that time.
NEXT STOP LONG BEACH
There will be a Long Beach Grand Prix that bears some resemblance to the LBGP we all were planning on before this came down. It will be the 25th running of the event with Champ Car chassis, but will be sanctioned by the IRL. I will be in my usual spot in race control and Tony Cotman will run race control for the weekend. A skeleton crew of Champ Car World Series officials will run the proceedings on the ground. The Champ Car Medical unit will be there. At least 17 Panoz DP01s will be on the starting grid for what is now the “traditional” standing start.
There are a handful of Champ Car employees left in the office, mostly from the operations department. I had a long conversation on Friday with Scot Elkins, our Technical Director, who along with Tony Cotman, is organizing the efforts for Long Beach.
An announcement will be coming shortly as well about the Atlantic series, which will continue. They will test in Laguna Seca during the second week of March as scheduled and they will open their schedule at Long Beach. They will run as many events as they can that remain on their schedule and also their two stand-alone events in Trois-Rivieres and Salt Lake City.
Beyond that, there’s very little that I know for sure. I’m not speculating on my involvement beyond Long Beach as it has not been discussed.
This “New World Order,” as one scribe has titled it, has my full support and attention, and I hope yours too. I will be watching the first two events at Homestead and St. Pete with thankfulness and renewed vigor. I am spending a lot of thought in imagining the potentials that a 26 car field running a 20-ish number of road and oval races, including the Indianapolis 500, can provide!
On behalf of the entire Champ Car family I want to thank and congratulate all of you that have helped us put on any of our events since 1979. There are a countless number of you and we are grateful for all the blood, sweat and tears you have shed and the sacrifices you have made to uphold your committment to this series.
Hope to see as many of you as possible in Long Beach.
Let’s hit it!
JHS
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Friday, February 08, 2008
INDY STAR ARTICLE
This in today from the Indianapolis Star. The previous blog entry in this space was replaced by this as it's more up to date. Let the last line of the story be our watchword on this.
Senior Indy Racing League officials, including series founder and chairman Tony George, are scheduled to fly to Japan on Saturday to resolve what could be a key component to a reconciliation of the divided open-wheel series.George is hoping to encourage officials at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit to move the April 19 race to another weekend in order to include the Long Beach (Calif.) Grand Prix in the IRL's 2008 schedule.
The Long Beach race, which has been held annually by the Champ Car World Series since 1984, has a contract with the city to stage a race that weekend.If Motegi officials agree to move their race, the dominoes to a reconciliation could fall quickly. IRL officials are in discussions with other tracks on its schedule about adjusting their dates to accommodate a handful of Champ Car events.
Both sanctioning bodies are based in Indianapolis, but the IRL would be the leader of a unified series.
But George, who will be accompanied on the Japan trip by IRL presidents Terry Angstadt and Brian Barnhart, said today that he doesn't want to get too optimistic that a deal could be reached.
"Because it seems that every time we've been close, some new obstacle seems to get in the way," he said.
Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven stressed that no offer has been made from either series and, therefore, no deal has been agreed to, as has been reported on the Internet.
"I sent Tony a text (message) last night to find out what is going on," he said.
George said he would like to accommodate the Champ Car events that make sense, both from a calendar and a financial standpoint. But he compared this situation to discussions that occurred in 2002 when the assets of Champ Car's parent company (CART) went to bankruptcy court."That was in January, and it was too late in the year to make all these (schedule) changes," he said. "You just can't go changing all the dates around when you have contracts."
International Speedway Corp., which owns several tracks that host races on the IRL's schedule, recently refused a request to move the April 27 race at Kansas Speedway in order for the Japan race to take that date.
The latest round of talks began last fall when Champ Car officials met with George about making the switch to the IRL. George offered to assist Champ Car's teams in acquiring cars and engines if they could prove viability to operate them.
Kalkhoven wants everyone not involved in the discussions to get out of the way.
"Once again, as has happened previously in the past four years, somebody has leaked a story to the press, and the press has turned it into a tornado," he said. "Now it has everyone running around in a circle. It's almost malicious, and it disappoints and infuriates me.
"We were very close to a deal a couple of years ago and everything got leaked. Then instead of the key people working it out, everybody gets involved in the discussion.
"If people are trying to help unification, silence is the best thing."
Indy Star
Senior Indy Racing League officials, including series founder and chairman Tony George, are scheduled to fly to Japan on Saturday to resolve what could be a key component to a reconciliation of the divided open-wheel series.George is hoping to encourage officials at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit to move the April 19 race to another weekend in order to include the Long Beach (Calif.) Grand Prix in the IRL's 2008 schedule.
The Long Beach race, which has been held annually by the Champ Car World Series since 1984, has a contract with the city to stage a race that weekend.If Motegi officials agree to move their race, the dominoes to a reconciliation could fall quickly. IRL officials are in discussions with other tracks on its schedule about adjusting their dates to accommodate a handful of Champ Car events.
Both sanctioning bodies are based in Indianapolis, but the IRL would be the leader of a unified series.
But George, who will be accompanied on the Japan trip by IRL presidents Terry Angstadt and Brian Barnhart, said today that he doesn't want to get too optimistic that a deal could be reached.
"Because it seems that every time we've been close, some new obstacle seems to get in the way," he said.
Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven stressed that no offer has been made from either series and, therefore, no deal has been agreed to, as has been reported on the Internet.
"I sent Tony a text (message) last night to find out what is going on," he said.
George said he would like to accommodate the Champ Car events that make sense, both from a calendar and a financial standpoint. But he compared this situation to discussions that occurred in 2002 when the assets of Champ Car's parent company (CART) went to bankruptcy court."That was in January, and it was too late in the year to make all these (schedule) changes," he said. "You just can't go changing all the dates around when you have contracts."
International Speedway Corp., which owns several tracks that host races on the IRL's schedule, recently refused a request to move the April 27 race at Kansas Speedway in order for the Japan race to take that date.
The latest round of talks began last fall when Champ Car officials met with George about making the switch to the IRL. George offered to assist Champ Car's teams in acquiring cars and engines if they could prove viability to operate them.
Kalkhoven wants everyone not involved in the discussions to get out of the way.
"Once again, as has happened previously in the past four years, somebody has leaked a story to the press, and the press has turned it into a tornado," he said. "Now it has everyone running around in a circle. It's almost malicious, and it disappoints and infuriates me.
"We were very close to a deal a couple of years ago and everything got leaked. Then instead of the key people working it out, everybody gets involved in the discussion.
"If people are trying to help unification, silence is the best thing."
Indy Star
Thursday, February 07, 2008
BUCKING THE ODDS
A Nicely done assessment of where we stand...
MIKE HARRIS
Associated Press
February 6, 2008 at 12:12 PM EST
Paul Tracy smiled as he looked up and down the surprisingly busy pit road during last week's Champ Car World Series preseason test at Sebring International Raceway.
"Looks pretty good, doesn't it?" the series' elder statesman said. "We're already ahead of where we were last year."
Fourteen car-and-driver combinations were on hand for the first test of the season and optimism filled the hot, heavy Florida air.
Against all odds, Champ Car is getting ready for another far-flung season as an American-based series visiting Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia.
Sponsorship dollars remain in short supply, the series owners continue to cut the budget for TV and marketing, and none of the drivers — except perhaps the 39-year-old Tracy, causes a stir in America's national consciousness.
Almost anyone with knowledge of the situation will quickly volunteer the belief that the only way to save Champ Car would be for the circuit formally known as CART to merge with or sell out to its open-wheel rival, the Indy Racing League and its IndyCar Series.
Numerous negotiations between the two entities over the years have all broken down, mostly over who would control the merged series.
IndyCar has its own troubles — particularly losing stars such as Dario Franchitti and Sam Hornish Jr. to NASCAR. But it also has the popular Indianapolis 500 as part of its schedule — a fact not lost on sponsors and drivers.
But don't tell Champ Car president Steve Johnson it's time for the series to fade away quietly.
"We're sitting in a better position now than we were a year ago," Johnson said during the Sebring test. "Overall, I'm optimistic with the future.
"Last year here we might have had eight or 10 cars and not a (sponsor) decal on any of them," Johnson added. "This year, we have cars and more sponsors and there are a lot of good things happening that I can't talk about yet."
The 14-race Champ Car schedule begins April 20 in Long Beach, Calif., and Johnson said he expects to have at least 17 cars in the lineup.
The driver lineup is expected to include Tracy, a Canadian, 19-year-old American Graham Rahal, the son of longtime racing star Bobby Rahal, and a United Nations of returning stars such as Will Power of Australia, Justin Wilson of England, Robert Doornbos of The Netherlands, Bruno Junqueira of Brazil, Oriol Servia of Spain and Simon Pagenaud of France.
"Look at our driver lineup," Johnson said. "Up and down the paddock, it's the strongest they've seen in a long time."
Gone, though, is Sebastien Bourdais, the Frenchman who dominated the series by winning the last four championships before choosing to take his shot at Formula One in 2008.
But Johnson even found hope in that big loss.
"Everybody out there wants Sebastien's championship," he said. "It's a different intensity out there. You can see it in their eyes."
Even Tracy, whose title came in 2003, Bourdais' rookie season, is hoping he can be a factor in the championship after a disappointing 2007.
Tracy, who drives for Gerald Forsythe, was unhappy last year, complaining openly that he wasn't being given the tools to win.
All that changed the day after Christmas when he met with Forsythe and other team officials and a new plan of action was set out, including replacing all of the team's engineers and most of its mechanics.
"For us, right now, it's a big learning experience," Tracy said. "I'm pretty happy with what we've done over the winter. They've hired the best people they could find out there and we're all on the same page now."
As for the future of the series, Tracy has been through all the ups and down since making his CART debut in 1991, and he prefers to ignore all the rumors about the future and concentrate on the present.
"Everybody's talking about merger, no merger," he said. "I don't know what's going to happen. All I'm concentrating on is this. ... Just look around at all these cars for this first test. I'm looking forward to this year."
MIKE HARRIS
Associated Press
February 6, 2008 at 12:12 PM EST
Paul Tracy smiled as he looked up and down the surprisingly busy pit road during last week's Champ Car World Series preseason test at Sebring International Raceway.
"Looks pretty good, doesn't it?" the series' elder statesman said. "We're already ahead of where we were last year."
Fourteen car-and-driver combinations were on hand for the first test of the season and optimism filled the hot, heavy Florida air.
Against all odds, Champ Car is getting ready for another far-flung season as an American-based series visiting Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia.
Sponsorship dollars remain in short supply, the series owners continue to cut the budget for TV and marketing, and none of the drivers — except perhaps the 39-year-old Tracy, causes a stir in America's national consciousness.
Almost anyone with knowledge of the situation will quickly volunteer the belief that the only way to save Champ Car would be for the circuit formally known as CART to merge with or sell out to its open-wheel rival, the Indy Racing League and its IndyCar Series.
Numerous negotiations between the two entities over the years have all broken down, mostly over who would control the merged series.
IndyCar has its own troubles — particularly losing stars such as Dario Franchitti and Sam Hornish Jr. to NASCAR. But it also has the popular Indianapolis 500 as part of its schedule — a fact not lost on sponsors and drivers.
But don't tell Champ Car president Steve Johnson it's time for the series to fade away quietly.
"We're sitting in a better position now than we were a year ago," Johnson said during the Sebring test. "Overall, I'm optimistic with the future.
"Last year here we might have had eight or 10 cars and not a (sponsor) decal on any of them," Johnson added. "This year, we have cars and more sponsors and there are a lot of good things happening that I can't talk about yet."
The 14-race Champ Car schedule begins April 20 in Long Beach, Calif., and Johnson said he expects to have at least 17 cars in the lineup.
The driver lineup is expected to include Tracy, a Canadian, 19-year-old American Graham Rahal, the son of longtime racing star Bobby Rahal, and a United Nations of returning stars such as Will Power of Australia, Justin Wilson of England, Robert Doornbos of The Netherlands, Bruno Junqueira of Brazil, Oriol Servia of Spain and Simon Pagenaud of France.
"Look at our driver lineup," Johnson said. "Up and down the paddock, it's the strongest they've seen in a long time."
Gone, though, is Sebastien Bourdais, the Frenchman who dominated the series by winning the last four championships before choosing to take his shot at Formula One in 2008.
But Johnson even found hope in that big loss.
"Everybody out there wants Sebastien's championship," he said. "It's a different intensity out there. You can see it in their eyes."
Even Tracy, whose title came in 2003, Bourdais' rookie season, is hoping he can be a factor in the championship after a disappointing 2007.
Tracy, who drives for Gerald Forsythe, was unhappy last year, complaining openly that he wasn't being given the tools to win.
All that changed the day after Christmas when he met with Forsythe and other team officials and a new plan of action was set out, including replacing all of the team's engineers and most of its mechanics.
"For us, right now, it's a big learning experience," Tracy said. "I'm pretty happy with what we've done over the winter. They've hired the best people they could find out there and we're all on the same page now."
As for the future of the series, Tracy has been through all the ups and down since making his CART debut in 1991, and he prefers to ignore all the rumors about the future and concentrate on the present.
"Everybody's talking about merger, no merger," he said. "I don't know what's going to happen. All I'm concentrating on is this. ... Just look around at all these cars for this first test. I'm looking forward to this year."
AND THE ATLANTICS
The Champ Car Atlantic Championship kicked off its 35th season with two days of testing at Sebring. Here are the happy combined totals:
(pos., driver name, team, best lap time, mph, total laps):
1. James Hinchcliffe, #3 Forsythe Championship Racing, 57.366 sec., 104.738 mph, 151 laps.
2. David Garza, #7 Forsythe Championship Racing, 57.413 sec., 104.652 mph, 201 laps.
3. Jonathan Bomarito, #6 Sierra Sierra Enterprises, 57.542 sec., 104.418 mph, 196 laps.
4. J.R. Hildebrand, #17 Genoa Racing, 57.712 sec., 104.110 mph, 204 laps.
5. Markus Niemela (R), #8 Brooks Associates Racing, 57.762 sec., 104.020 mph, 207 laps.
6. Simona De Silvestro, #34 Newman Wachs Racing, 57.948 sec., 103.686 mph, 219 laps.
7. Jonathan Summerton (R), #36X Newman Wachs Racing, 57.971 sec., 103.645 mph, 90 laps.
8. Kevin Lacroix, #25 Walker Racing, 58.004 sec., 103.586 mph, 255 laps.
9. Daniel Morad (R), #70 Eurointernational, 58.013 sec., 103.570 mph, 228 mph.
10. Sebastien Chardonnet (R), #18 Conquest Racing, 58.062 sec., 103.482 mph, 165 laps.
11. Carl Skerlong, #28 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 58.116 sec., 103.386 mph, 179 laps.
12. Alan Sciuto, #26 Mathiasen Motorsports, 58.167 sec., 103.296 mph, 217 laps.
13. Dane Cameron (R), #9 Sierra Sierra Enterprises, 58.273 sec., 103.108 mph, 231 laps.
14. Greg Mansell (R), #5 Walker Racing, 58.303 sec., 103.055 mph, 219 laps.
15. Juho Annala (R), #21 Conquest Racing, 58.446 sec., 102.803 mph, 193 laps.
16. Mike Forest, #32 PR1 Motorsports, 58.540 sec., 102.638 mph, 242 laps.
17. Adrian Herberts, #45 Paladin Motorsports, 58.594 sec., 102.543 mph, 228 laps.
18. Frankie Muniz,#29 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 58.711 sec., 102.339 mph, 215 laps.
19. Filip Salaquarda (R), #10 Brooks Associates Racing, 58.714 sec., 102.333 mph, 144 laps.
20. John Edwards, #36 Newman Wachs Racing, 58.787 sec., 102.206 mph, 107 laps.
21. Leo Mansell (R), #15 Walker Racing, 58.881 sec., 102.043 mph, 204 laps.
22. Tim Macrow (R), #2X Jensen MotorSport, 58.924 sec., 101.969 mph, 102 laps.
23. Larry Connor (R), #27 Genoa Racing, 59.042 sec., 101.765 mph, 173 laps.
24. Brett Van Blankers (R), #13 Jensen MotorSport, 59.047 sec., 101.756 mph, 172 laps.
25. Imran Husain, #37 Genoa Racing, 1:00.800, 98.790 mph, 104 laps.
(pos., driver name, team, best lap time, mph, total laps):
1. James Hinchcliffe, #3 Forsythe Championship Racing, 57.366 sec., 104.738 mph, 151 laps.
2. David Garza, #7 Forsythe Championship Racing, 57.413 sec., 104.652 mph, 201 laps.
3. Jonathan Bomarito, #6 Sierra Sierra Enterprises, 57.542 sec., 104.418 mph, 196 laps.
4. J.R. Hildebrand, #17 Genoa Racing, 57.712 sec., 104.110 mph, 204 laps.
5. Markus Niemela (R), #8 Brooks Associates Racing, 57.762 sec., 104.020 mph, 207 laps.
6. Simona De Silvestro, #34 Newman Wachs Racing, 57.948 sec., 103.686 mph, 219 laps.
7. Jonathan Summerton (R), #36X Newman Wachs Racing, 57.971 sec., 103.645 mph, 90 laps.
8. Kevin Lacroix, #25 Walker Racing, 58.004 sec., 103.586 mph, 255 laps.
9. Daniel Morad (R), #70 Eurointernational, 58.013 sec., 103.570 mph, 228 mph.
10. Sebastien Chardonnet (R), #18 Conquest Racing, 58.062 sec., 103.482 mph, 165 laps.
11. Carl Skerlong, #28 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 58.116 sec., 103.386 mph, 179 laps.
12. Alan Sciuto, #26 Mathiasen Motorsports, 58.167 sec., 103.296 mph, 217 laps.
13. Dane Cameron (R), #9 Sierra Sierra Enterprises, 58.273 sec., 103.108 mph, 231 laps.
14. Greg Mansell (R), #5 Walker Racing, 58.303 sec., 103.055 mph, 219 laps.
15. Juho Annala (R), #21 Conquest Racing, 58.446 sec., 102.803 mph, 193 laps.
16. Mike Forest, #32 PR1 Motorsports, 58.540 sec., 102.638 mph, 242 laps.
17. Adrian Herberts, #45 Paladin Motorsports, 58.594 sec., 102.543 mph, 228 laps.
18. Frankie Muniz,#29 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 58.711 sec., 102.339 mph, 215 laps.
19. Filip Salaquarda (R), #10 Brooks Associates Racing, 58.714 sec., 102.333 mph, 144 laps.
20. John Edwards, #36 Newman Wachs Racing, 58.787 sec., 102.206 mph, 107 laps.
21. Leo Mansell (R), #15 Walker Racing, 58.881 sec., 102.043 mph, 204 laps.
22. Tim Macrow (R), #2X Jensen MotorSport, 58.924 sec., 101.969 mph, 102 laps.
23. Larry Connor (R), #27 Genoa Racing, 59.042 sec., 101.765 mph, 173 laps.
24. Brett Van Blankers (R), #13 Jensen MotorSport, 59.047 sec., 101.756 mph, 172 laps.
25. Imran Husain, #37 Genoa Racing, 1:00.800, 98.790 mph, 104 laps.
Monday, February 04, 2008
DIDN'T I TELL YOU LAST TIME?
Here are the final aggregate times from the three days down in Sebring. Franck Perera of Conquest Racing comes out on top!
Pos Car Driver Hometown Team Best Time
1 24 Franck Perera (R) Montpellier, France Conquest Racing 49.8062
2 Graham Rahal Hilliard, Ohio Newman Haas Lanigan Racing 49.950
3 21 Alex Tagliani Las Vegas, Nevada PKV Racing 50.173
4 22 Oriol Servia Miami, Florida PKV Racing 50.178
5 1 Justin Wilson Denver, Colorado Newman Haas Lanigan Racing 50.207
6 7 Franck Montagny (R) Grand Vaux, Switzerland Forsythe Pettit Racing 50.209
7 19 Bruno Junqueira Miami, Florida Dale Coyne Racing 50.507
8 29 Alex Figge Denver, Colorado Pacific Coast Motorsports 50.521
9 34 Simon Pagenaud Indianapolis, Indiana Conquest Racing 50.702
10 8 Enrique Bernoldi (R) Curitiba, Brazil Rocketsports Racing 50.714
11 3 Paul Tracy Las Vegas, Nevada Forsythe Pettit Racing 50.732
12 28 David Martinez (R) Monterrey, Mexico Pacific Coast Motorsports 50.736
13 4 Ernesto Viso (R) Caracas, Venezuela Minardi Team USA 50.800
14 11 Mario Moraes (R) Sao Paolo, Brazil Dale Coyne Racing 50.930
Notice that all 14 cars are within 1.1 seconds. Harumph!! Please have a look at the Champ Car website for all the latest news on the Sebring test! Spring Training at Laguna Seca is up next!
HIT IT!
JHS
FLEET FRANCK FLIES IN FLA
Times from Day 2 of Sebring open test (pos., driver name, team, lap time, mph, total laps for the two days):
1- Franck Montagny, #7 Forsythe/Pettit Racing, 50.209 seconds, 119.668 mph, 183 laps
2- Justin Wilson, #1 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 50.448 seconds, 119.101 mph, 200 laps
3- Graham Rahal, #2 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 50.474 seconds, 119.040 mph, 179 laps
4- Franck Perera, #24 Conquest Racing, 50.495 seconds, 118.990 mph, 150 laps
5- Oriol Servia, #22 PKV Racing, 50.505 seconds, 118.966 mph, 212 laps
6- Alex Taglianii, #21 PKV Racing, 50.594 seconds, 118.757 mph, 214 laps
7- Alex Figge, #29 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 50.707 seconds, 118.493 mph, 176 laps
8- Simon Pagenaud, #34 Conquest Racing, 50.792 seconds, 118.294 mph, 139 laps
9- Paul Tracy, #3 Forsythe/Pettit Racing, 50.892 seconds, 118.062 mph, 127 laps
10- Bruno Junqueira, #19 Dale Coyne Racing, 51.122 seconds, 117.531 mph, 171 laps
11- Ernesto Viso, #4 Minardi Team USA, 51.295 seconds, 117.134 mph, 143 laps
12- Enrique Bernoldi, #8 Rocketsports Racing, 51.313 seconds, 117.093 mph, 197 laps
13- Mario Moraes, #11 Dale Coyne Racing, 51.346 seconds, 117.018 mph, 180 laps
14- David Martinez, #28 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 51.432 seconds, 116.822 mph, 203 laps
I don't mean to downgrade the abilities of Messr's Bourdais or Montagny, but maybe the fastest man in the paddock these last years has been Kenny Sieweck... Montangny went one half second faster on Sunday than any car last year at the same test.
In other news, Pat Caporali returms to the series as Champ Car's new PR director, coming over from the Ganassi Grand Am program. Pat did the PR for Forsythe back in the Greg Moore/Patrick Carpentier days.
Another half day of testing on Monday in Sebring.
JHS
1- Franck Montagny, #7 Forsythe/Pettit Racing, 50.209 seconds, 119.668 mph, 183 laps
2- Justin Wilson, #1 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 50.448 seconds, 119.101 mph, 200 laps
3- Graham Rahal, #2 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 50.474 seconds, 119.040 mph, 179 laps
4- Franck Perera, #24 Conquest Racing, 50.495 seconds, 118.990 mph, 150 laps
5- Oriol Servia, #22 PKV Racing, 50.505 seconds, 118.966 mph, 212 laps
6- Alex Taglianii, #21 PKV Racing, 50.594 seconds, 118.757 mph, 214 laps
7- Alex Figge, #29 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 50.707 seconds, 118.493 mph, 176 laps
8- Simon Pagenaud, #34 Conquest Racing, 50.792 seconds, 118.294 mph, 139 laps
9- Paul Tracy, #3 Forsythe/Pettit Racing, 50.892 seconds, 118.062 mph, 127 laps
10- Bruno Junqueira, #19 Dale Coyne Racing, 51.122 seconds, 117.531 mph, 171 laps
11- Ernesto Viso, #4 Minardi Team USA, 51.295 seconds, 117.134 mph, 143 laps
12- Enrique Bernoldi, #8 Rocketsports Racing, 51.313 seconds, 117.093 mph, 197 laps
13- Mario Moraes, #11 Dale Coyne Racing, 51.346 seconds, 117.018 mph, 180 laps
14- David Martinez, #28 Pacific Coast Motorsports, 51.432 seconds, 116.822 mph, 203 laps
I don't mean to downgrade the abilities of Messr's Bourdais or Montagny, but maybe the fastest man in the paddock these last years has been Kenny Sieweck... Montangny went one half second faster on Sunday than any car last year at the same test.
In other news, Pat Caporali returms to the series as Champ Car's new PR director, coming over from the Ganassi Grand Am program. Pat did the PR for Forsythe back in the Greg Moore/Patrick Carpentier days.
Another half day of testing on Monday in Sebring.
JHS
Sunday, February 03, 2008
A CALL FOR MARSHALS
I am relaying this to you all from Bryan Gregory, our new F&C Chief of Houston:
Greetings fellow F&C Workers and Happy New Year,
On behalf of the F&C leadership team for the 2008 Grand Prix of Houston, it is my pleasure to invite you to participate in what promises to be a fun and exciting experience. We have been hard at work planning this year's race event, and I believe that some key changes that have been made for the benefit of all F&C workers will make this race one of the most desireable to attend as a worker. Key changes for this year include:
You may register online if you wish at: http://www.dlbracing.com/clubs/champcar/workers.aspx?EventID=3117
Please be specific about your shift preference on page one of the application form by checking off your preference and providing written comments on the line provided. I need as many qualified/experienced captains and communicators as possible in order to adequately staff two shifts.
Finally, I want to make sure that everyone understands the experience prerequisite which is required to work F&C at the Grand Prix of Houston. A minimum race experience of two SCCA and/or PCA race weekends within the last calendar year is required. I am looking forward to this year's Grand Prix of Houston and to seeing all of you there! If you have any questions, please call me at (281) 415-6478.
Bryan Gregory
2008 GP of Houston Flag Chief
Greetings fellow F&C Workers and Happy New Year,
On behalf of the F&C leadership team for the 2008 Grand Prix of Houston, it is my pleasure to invite you to participate in what promises to be a fun and exciting experience. We have been hard at work planning this year's race event, and I believe that some key changes that have been made for the benefit of all F&C workers will make this race one of the most desireable to attend as a worker. Key changes for this year include:
- A split shift schedule for Friday and Saturday which will shorten work (on station) time to 7 hours.
- A worker party on Saturday evening with a hot meal provided.
- Coffee, muffins, and donuts will be provided and available prior to the first corner worker meeting each morning.
- An official Grand Prix of Houston event patch will be provided to all F&C workers.
- Corner assignments will be published in advance of the event and captains will be encouraged to communicate via e-mail with team members.
- Free hotel rooms will be provided to travelers of 50 miles or more, but will be assigned double occupancy and allocated on a first-come first serve basis. Space will be limited.
You may register online if you wish at: http://www.dlbracing.com/clubs/champcar/workers.aspx?EventID=3117
Please be specific about your shift preference on page one of the application form by checking off your preference and providing written comments on the line provided. I need as many qualified/experienced captains and communicators as possible in order to adequately staff two shifts.
Finally, I want to make sure that everyone understands the experience prerequisite which is required to work F&C at the Grand Prix of Houston. A minimum race experience of two SCCA and/or PCA race weekends within the last calendar year is required. I am looking forward to this year's Grand Prix of Houston and to seeing all of you there! If you have any questions, please call me at (281) 415-6478.
Bryan Gregory
2008 GP of Houston Flag Chief
CARS ON COURSE!!!
Hi all:
Times from day 1 of Sebring open test (pos., driver name, team, lap time, mph):
1- Franck Montagny, Forsythe Pettit Racing, 50.788 seconds, 118.304 mph
2- Oriol Servia, PKV Racing, 50.856 seconds, 118.145 mph
3- Justin Wilson, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 50.927 seconds, 117.981 mph
4- Franck Perera, Conquest Racing, 50.986 seconds, 117.844 mph
5- Alex Figge, Pacific Coast Motorsports, 51.097 seconds, 117.588 mph
6- Graham Rahal, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, 51.104 seconds, 117.572
7- Alex Tagliani, PKV Racing, 51.228 seconds, 117.287 mph
8- Bruno Junqueira, Dale Coyne Racing, 51.228 seconds, 117.287 mph
9- Mario Moraes, Dale Coyne Racing, 51.346 seconds, 117.018 mph
10- Paul Tracy, Forsythe Pettit Racing, 51.347 seconds, 117.016 mph
11- David Martinez, Pacific Coast Motorsports, 51.950 seconds, 115.657 mph
12- Ernesto Viso, Minardi Team USA, 51.973 seconds, 115.606 mph
13- Enrique Bernoldi, Rocketsports Racing, 52.019 seconds, 115.504 mph
14- Simon Pagenaud, Conquest Racing, 52.118 seconds, 115.285 mph
Snippets:
One member of the press at the circuit feels: “Without a doubt the Champ Car series is in better shape this year than at the same time last year here at Sebring. There are more car/driver combinations that appear to be ready to go versus last year, the bugs are worked out of the Panoz now whereas last year at this time there were a number of issues that had to be resolved.”
http://www.champcarworldseries.com/News/Article.asp?ID=12503
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