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CART
Mar 11, 2002 7:57:54 GMT -5
Post by ozcar on Mar 11, 2002 7:57:54 GMT -5
if my trusted telly guide is any accurate guide - the cart series kicks off this season. ;D that little snippet may be hardly news to any of you and may well prove my ignorance but I loved the cart racing last year and look forward to more of the same. 8) mexico looks like a great track – lets hope for some fantastic racing. for myself and any other cart newbie can you guys shed some light on what’s happening this year any major changes in regulations, car or racing? something about changing the “pit windows” as in regulating when they can stop for fuel and rubber. cheers
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CART
Mar 11, 2002 9:35:53 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Mar 11, 2002 9:35:53 GMT -5
Ozcar,
Must say that I share your interest in the CART series, but would go further and say that I actually enjoy more the CART races than F1. Being somebody who likes racing above everything else, I find much more of this in CART. Now, I am extremely upset as I missed the race last night since no TV broadcast agreements have been made yet for Europe. I was speaking with some officials from CART the other day, and they are working on it, and hope to have things ironed out by Long Beach, so last night I just listened to the race on CART.com.
About rule changes, well there are a number of changes taking place this year. I can't remember all of them, but some significant changes are:
1. Traction control is now implemented (can't say I agree with this one, but what the hell). 2. Fuel...This is a big one. First of all, the cars do not need to fill the fuel cells completely before the start. Previously they all had to start with a full tank of gas, but now they can put as much or as little as they want to. Also, prior to the race, it is determined that all cars must refuel after a certain number of laps. If you followed the race yesterday, they could not do more than 27 laps before refueling. If you go beyond that, you get a stop and go penalty. The idea is to promote out and out racing, and not fuel economy runs. You may have seen Carpentier having to do a stop and go as he did not refuel in time.
3. The qualifying has changed considerably too. Qualifying now takes place both on Friday and Saturday. Each qualifying session is 45 minutes, and each driver is allowed 15 laps. If you cause a red-flag during a session your best time is removed. A point is awarded for the best qualifying position in each session. If you use one car on Friday, and then another on Saturday, the Friday's times are removed. The person who gets best time in Friday's qualifying is guaranteed a slot on the front row.
I'll try to think if there are other changes.
Henrik
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CART
Mar 11, 2002 19:34:52 GMT -5
Post by ozcar on Mar 11, 2002 19:34:52 GMT -5
agreed henrik - and i was hoping you would rpely as I am well aware of your enthuisiasm for Cart. ;D I only watched it in patches as I had work to do and our telecast is at midnight. admittedly, the network hositng Cart in Australia does much better than channel nine who (mis) handle out formula one.... 8) I didnt know about TC - but hate it anyways. The fuel and pit window regulation is fantatsic and i actually think it has merit for formula one - obviously they are now the key to the outcome of a race (F1) and should be utilised accordingly. To start off on an F1 tangent (and Ill post this in that section to maximise posts ) what if they introduced smaller fuel tanks and regulated levels so that we dont have people streaking off into the distance on economy runs - thus erradicating the amnbiguities in fastest race laps and the inevitable argument sover who is faster. This might mean we have a mandatory 3 pit stops at set intervals - meaning albert park for instance has pit windows for laps 15-25, 30-40 and 45-58 or somethign like that. then you have lighter cars - more even weight and more room for error in the pits. i know many people are against refuelling but what about this theory to even up racing...? also Bernie is happy because the pit stops are the best vehicle for advertising - at least 25 malrboro logos are on screen in a ferrari pit stop. anywyas, the cart race rocked - poor old andretti pulle d agreat 360 and poor jimmy vasser - reaolly like that guy but mr townsend arrived "way too hot" into that corner...maybe he should be renamed ralf...?: :Rant: cheers :Beer
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CART
Mar 25, 2002 6:11:30 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Mar 25, 2002 6:11:30 GMT -5
I'll put this one under CART, as my only interest in the IRL is the two former CART guys de Ferran and Castroneves. There was a race yesterday at Fontana. Sam Hornish won (he seems to be the only one that really stands a chance against the the Penske boys) Gil finished fourth and Helio fifth. Here is a nice pic just before the start. Notice how packed the grandtsands are. Seems like a really popular sport in California!
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CART
Mar 25, 2002 8:24:43 GMT -5
Post by ozcar on Mar 25, 2002 8:24:43 GMT -5
HAHAHAHAHAHA ;D nice one Henrik - I didnt really understand the whole IRL / CART caperbut was mighty peeved to see Penske and his boys float across leagues. So instead of shelling out 500 bucks to sit in the grandstands at the grand prix and only see a handful or remotely close cars - there you have empty straights with much tighter racing. I reckon you might be right Henrik - people will drift from forumla one until the only ones left are those who enjoy the glamour and the spectacle. 8) keep us posted on how the IRL goes - Ill be watching the Cart racing for sure but cant get into the speedway style... and is that picture of the Philip Morris Cup? Looks like a who-dunit at the Marlboro factory when the foreman gets killed and everyone is on line up... ;D cheers
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CART
Mar 25, 2002 8:26:34 GMT -5
Post by greg99 on Mar 25, 2002 8:26:34 GMT -5
What a refreshing picture Henrik! And so self-explanatory!
I remember the Fontana CART race last November to be a bit more crowded. I meant to import a picture but I'm afraid I am not exactly a computer wiz - just take a look at the pictures archives at crash.net, under the CART section (there's even a great one of TT!).
The only conclusion I can draw from this is that CART & IRL should get their act together and start working on a merge. I know there are talks about it everywhere but maybe they should do it sooner rather than later?
:Bounce:
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CART
Mar 25, 2002 8:58:07 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Mar 25, 2002 8:58:07 GMT -5
Well Greg, Here is a picture showing the grandstand at the Fontana 2001 CART race. Seems a little bit more crowded...no? Glad to be of service
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CART
Mar 28, 2002 7:19:56 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Mar 28, 2002 7:19:56 GMT -5
Time for a little CART update! Okay, after having hit bottom last year, CART fired their former CEO Heitzler, and decided on employing Chris Pook for the post. Now Chris is the man that has successfully organized the LOng Beach CART race for a long time, probably the most successful CART event. He was actually involved with F1 as well in the days they raced there. So, Mr. Pook has been very busy since his appointment. There have been the rule changes I have mentioned previously, helping to spice things up a bit. However, one big problem that occured last year was that basically all the ngine producers were pulling out of CART at the end of 2002. Honda had been quite clear on pulling out, Ford basically agreed, and the only one left was Toyota, who would provide an engine for both the IRL and CART. Well, it has been confirmed that Ford will remain under the Cosworth name, so there would at least be two engine suppliers. Now for the big recent rumour. Having been on a trip around Europe, Chris Pook has been negotiating TV contracts and the promotion of the European events. But he also stopped by at Porsche. It seems that he has managed to convince Porsche to join in as en engine supplier. That will certainly bring some credibility to the series. I would say with the creation of the new races, such as the downtown Miami combined with an ALMS race in October, and the St. Petersburg (Fla) street circuit race that will open the next season, CART is really heading in the right direction. Now if he could only get the TV broadcast arranged in Europe! Well, here's to the new CART Oh, and for those (like greg99) who doesn't like beer
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CART
Mar 29, 2002 18:30:00 GMT -5
Post by greg99 on Mar 29, 2002 18:30:00 GMT -5
Thank you for remembering the non-beer drinkers!
As to CART, after having heard that long interview Chris Pook gave at the Monterrey press conference, I feel very reassured for the future. He still has a lot on his plate but in a short few months he has already done way more than his predecessor had during his entire stint.
I also hope that this year, the Rockingham race week end won't be spoiled by the poor conditions of the track. I still cannot believe that Rockingham got the go ahead from CART when we know all the problems they faced on qualifying (which were cancelled, thank you very much) and race day. The race ended up being spectacular, but it almost didn't happen.
And as to poor TV broadcast in Europe, that's my excuse to hop on a plane and go to the races to be at the very heart of REAL racing. If anyone plans to attend any, please let me know, the more the merrier.
bye
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CART
Jun 3, 2002 5:19:11 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Jun 3, 2002 5:19:11 GMT -5
Things are continuously changing within Champ Car racing, and it seems the future is becoming all the more uncertain each day. As always, the primary source is the battle that’s raging between CART and IRL, and as much as I hate to say it, it seems that the IRL is beginning to have the upper hand.
What is painfully clear is that in the US, it is not so much a racing series that is important, it is a race. The Indy 500 has such incredible importance that it can on its own outshine two racing series. If we look at the interest that IRL races other than the Indy 500 are stirring within the US spectators, one can only state that it is non-existent. In the races held until now in the championship, they have had spectator figures that are well below what most cynics would have dared to suggest. Basically the only people present are those that have received free invites from the big sponsors. The TV viewer numbers are no better. Yet, then comes the Indy 500. The cars are the same, the concept of ovals the same, and half a million spectators show up. This passion the American audience has for the Brickyard is really beyond me. However, this one single race is sufficient to sustain an entire season of what is at best a lackluster racing series.
CART is suffering severely because of the importance of the Indy 500. However, the individual CART races are gathering a much greater interest than the ordinary IRL races. The level of the racing is much higher, with famous drivers, and a very even competition. Races such as Monterrey and Long Beach were huge successes. Yet the key players of CART are beginning to move to the IRL. Penske made the move at the end of last year, and others already have a partial team established over there, such as Mo Nunn and Walker Racing. Last week another thing happened that caused me to discuss this.
Pac West, or PWR as they are now known, has been an important team within the series, with Bruce McCaw being very influential. However, in the middle of May, they announced they were letting one of their drivers go, Oriol Servia. Last week, their other driver, Scott Dixon, an extremely promising young New Zealander, jumped ship and signed with Chip Ganassi. So, PWR did not race this weekend, and the CART field was down to 19 cars. The rumours I was able to get from the weekend paints an even darker picture. It seems Toyota paid Ganassi to take on Dixon, under the agreement that they would then race in the IRL next year. The planned driver line-up would be Bräck and Dixon, as Junquera does not want to join the IRL.
Should this happen, CART will indeed take another very strong blow, one that might just be fatal. The other strong teams are Team Green and Newman/Haas. Team Green seems set to lose their title sponsor Kool for next year, and might just have some serious financial problems.
I don’t want to be too pessimistic here, but it is not looking promising. I would hate to see Tony George win this battle, destroying what was and still is an amazing racing championship combining all types of tracks, just for one single race. With F1 down the drain as far as racing interest is concerned, us racing fans are facing the possibility of losing yet another series. I hope I’m wrong.
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CART
Jun 3, 2002 5:59:32 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Jun 3, 2002 5:59:32 GMT -5
Now that I have painted such a bleak picture with regards to the future of CART, perhaps we should try and look at the other options that are available for the future.
Let’s first look at the positive sides of CART. Apart from the obvious interest of a championship combining ovals, street courses and permanent tracks, CART has a very strong international popularity. All their races held outside the US, be it Canada, Japan, Mexico, Australia or Europe, are always huge successes, with the fans turning out in very respective numbers. Judging by some persistent rumours, the current management is looking at expanding this further, by holding races in even more countries. There have been discussions held with Imola to race there, should they lose their spot on the F1 calendar. Other potential venues in Europe are Estoril and Jerez. China is being looked at too.
What is clear is that the current management, headed by Chris Pook, is very committed to ensuring the survival of CART. I would not be at all surprised to learn that several new contracts are being signed or have already been signed.
Another positive piece of news to emerge recently is that Lola was turned down by the IRL. They had been investing a lot of money to produce a chassis to race there for next year, only to be refused. This, if anything, will only make their commitment to CART stronger. One could hope that perhaps Swift could again build chassis for this series, replacing the Reynards.
Now here is another wild idea that could perhaps strengthen CART. We know that Minardi is seriously struggling in F1, and it is possible they will not be able to complete the season. Perhaps the answer for them would be to switch to a new series, and make the move from F1 to CART together with Arrows. Not only would this improve further the international interest, but it would also weaken F1. Such increase in international interest is likely to draw new sponsors in to the sport as well.
Okay, these are just ideas from a rambling middle aged guy who has a burning passion for motor racing. Let me hear your thoughts.
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CART
Jun 10, 2002 3:33:34 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Jun 10, 2002 3:33:34 GMT -5
In light of the CART race held yesterday at Laguna Seca, I feel the need to dwell a bit further on the potential future of this RACING series. Before I get to ranting about certain issues and constructors, a short word about the racing from this weekend.
I mentioned in the F1 thread that I enjoyed the Montreal GP, and although I only listened to the Laguna race (still no TV coverage in Europe!), it certainly did not seem all that exciting in comparison. It is a fact that the Laguna track, in all its beauty, tends to produce boring races. The track simply does not allow for any real overtaking, especially since they banned the Zanardi maneuver in the Corkscrew. As such, grid position often determines the outcome of the race, and this weekend was no exception. The upcoming Portland race should prove much more interesting, the circuit allowing for several overtaking spots and the often changing weather conditions of the area adding an element of surprise.
So back to ranting….
The first issue I wanted to rant about is Honda’s attitude towards CART. Last year when the official announcement was made that engine specs would be changed from the old turbo engines to 3.5 l normally aspirated V8 as of 2003, Honda was furious. At that point, they announced that there was not enough time for them to develop such a new engine, and so they would be pulling out of CART as of 2003. CART’s intention had been to try and reduce the gap with the IRL, with the secret hope of being able re-unite the two series again. So, what has Honda done since?
At the Motegi race this year, a track owned by Honda, Tony George was invited to attend. What resulted was an announcement that IRL would be racing at Motegi next year, and that Honda would be joining the IRL as an engine supplier. Now I ask you, what engine specifications does the IRL have? You guessed it, 3.5 l normally aspirated V8s. So, Honda claims they are unable to produce such an engine in 18 months, but now with 8 months to go, they announce they are joining IRL. Thank you very much Honda! It seems they will be buying engines from Ilmore and re-badging them Honda!
Well, all this might just end up hitting Honda back in the end. The recent rumors from CART, and they are becoming more persistent each day, is that they will not change the engine specs for next year. Having initially decided upon new chassis rules, in another attempt to align with the IRL, CART has now decided to can that idea upon the refusal from Tony George to race with them in any case. As such, in a move to reduce the development cost, chassis design has now been frozen for the near future. Given the total lack of interest from IRL to join with CART, CART no longer needs to worry about the specifications of the IRL. Instead they can continue down their own path entirely. And so, next year is likely to see CART running 2002 chassis with a Cosworth turbo engine like the one some of the teams are running today.
This is shaping up to be an interesting fight between the two series. Anybody who loves racing will have no difficulty in choosing his favorite, and so let’s hope the sponsors feel the same!
P.S. Next time I’ll rant on Toyota!
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CART
Jun 11, 2002 2:27:02 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Jun 11, 2002 2:27:02 GMT -5
Okay, I promised a rant on Toyota, and I am always one to keep my promises!
Since joining CART, Toyota has become a sort of “driving” factor behind the series. The managers at the time obviously saw the potential of getting such a major player in their group, and have since stopped a very little in order to please the Toyota management.
At an early stage, they were having some trouble, and did not really interest any of the big teams. This was only natural as it does indeed take a while to become competitive in motor racing, especially in such a high-level series as CART. They had however started of by doing a deal for the Toyota Atlantic championship, now the primary “school” category for CART.
It was not long before the ruling powers began to throw some weight around the existing teams, lobbying for a major team to sign on with Toyota. Success was reached when Chip Ganassi, clearly one of the dominant teams after racking up 4 consecutive championship victories (Vasser, Zanardi, Montoya), signed with Toyota. No doubt there were considerable financial advantages involved here for Chip, but it was a huge boost for Toyota.
Last year when the announcement was made for the new engine specs, Honda and Ford were very upset, whereas Toyota seemed to confirm their commitment to CART. It had been a major gamble for the CART management to make this change, as indeed it put them in a tough position with regards to engine suppliers. However maintaining their new-found friend and partner Toyota provided a clear sense of security for the future.
Since then things have begun to get seriously out of hand. Toyota began by announcing they would also supply engines to the IRL. This seemed like a fairly logical step for them to take as the new CART specs resembled very closely the IRL specs. Also, they wanted to fight Nissan in the IRL. Now Toyota is announcing that they are no longer committed to CART, and it seems more than likely that they will only be competing in the IRL.
So, after having sweet talked CART, been getting huge favors to progress there, and actually begun to be very competitive, they announce they are leaving at a time when CART would really need them. Thank you very much Toyota!!
In the end, it might just come back and bite them though, as the new Cosworth turbo engine rumours seem more and more likely. They could potentially have lost out on a huge engine deal for the future of what still remains the most competitive series in the world.
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CART
Jun 13, 2002 4:57:39 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Jun 13, 2002 4:57:39 GMT -5
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CART
Jun 13, 2002 10:21:03 GMT -5
Post by Henrik on Jun 13, 2002 10:21:03 GMT -5
Okay, now that the Indy 500 is over, the IRL is back to business as usually, and really packing in the crowds!! I thought this pole victory pic was funny too. Real highclass and racing like environment!
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