Irl Champ Car Merge

[Diamond Jim]

The IRL-Champ Car (formerly CART) fued is over. Details below.

The leaders of U.S. open-wheel racing unified the sport today.


Indy Racing League officials said a news conference to announce the details of the deal with the owners of the Champ Car World Series will be laid out sometime next week, perhaps at the league’s test at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway, which begins Wednesday.
“We want to have as positive of a press conference as possible when we do have one,” IRL founder Tony George said. “We don’t want to have questions without answers.”

Still to be resolved are issues regarding Champ Car races that will be on the IRL’s schedule this season. Three are expected (Long Beach, Calif.; Edmonton, Alberta; and Surfers Paradise, Australia) to go with the IRL's 16 previously announced events.

IRL spokesman Fred Nation said George and Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven signed their part of the contract during dinner Thursday night at the Eagle’s Nest restaurant at the Downtown Hyatt Regency hotel, but unification wasn’t complete until Gerald Forsythe, Champ Car’s other majority owner, signed today.

After meeting with George for a couple of hours this morning, Kalkhoven left Indianapolis for his home in California. George decided to fly to Chicago to meet personally with Forsythe.

George contacted his staff at Indianapolis Motor Speedway about 3 p.m. to say the deal was completed, ending 12 years of struggle between the two Indianapolis-based series.

Forsythe could not be reached for comment, but Nation said he was pleased that George, who said he was “anxious” before boarding his company-owned jet, made the trip.

“It had the effect of getting it done,” Nation said of Forsythe’s signing.

Contacted in California, Kalkhoven chose his words carefully, insisting all parties remain under the non-disclosure clause. But he seemed pleased to have the sport unified for the first time since George started the IRL in 1996.

“I am (pleased),” he said

 

[ripnbigc]

It's about time!

 

[Cyclone]

The trouble is that they are keeping those god awful IRL cars and engines and dropping the cool kick ass DP01 and Turbo charged cosworth engines.

 

[ripnbigc]

The trouble is that they are keeping those god awful IRL cars and engines and dropping the cool kick ass DP01 and Turbo charged cosworth engines.

Yep, that sucks.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

It's about time!

More like a day late, and a dollar short. NASCAR will forever be looking in it's rear view mirror at open wheel racing. Sad.

 

[Diamond Jim]

230mph is fast no matter what kind of car they are driving. I think NASCAR is at it's peak and will be starting down the backside. I used to love NASCAR, but here in the last 10 years Daytona is about it for me. Paul, you are right, it's like shutting the barn door after the horses have left. This should have never lasted more than 2 or 3 years tops.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

In it's heyday, open wheel racing was as exciting as it got. 200MPH+, racing 4 across at MIS, your life hanging just inches away from ending at the wall. When the INDY 500, with Mears , Foyt, Andretti, etc... meant something.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

So what is this racing association called now?

 

[ripnbigc]

Don't know, there is a press conference scheduled for wednesday.

 

[Diamond Jim]

So what is this racing association called now?

Indy Car Series. Scanctioned by the Indy Racing League.

 

[Diamond Jim]

In it's heyday, open wheel racing was as exciting as it got. 200MPH+, racing 4 across at MIS, your life hanging just inches away from ending at the wall. When the INDY 500, with Mears , Foyt, Andretti, etc... meant something.

The racing is still the same at Indianapolis, just the names have changed. This is the 5th era of name changes I've been through. From from the 50s through the 00s. It would have been great if they could have raced forever!!!!! Foyt tried to.

 

[Ramy]

These 2 racing divisions split some years ago was what really put NASCAR in the limelight and really gave them a boost in ratings. The Indy 500 doesn't even sell out every year, but the Brickyard 400 that NASCAR runs there does.

 

[markh]

Watching Wind Tunnel, I thought they said there would be a new car for the 2010 season and the details weren't hammered out yet. I hope they bring back the turbos so the cars sound like Indy Cars. It seems popular, yet one thing I thought was silly on Champ cars was the power to pass button or whatever they called it. Just too video game like. Let them crank the power to as much as they can get out of them and hope it doesn't blow.

 

[Diamond Jim]

The Indy 500 doesn't even sell out every year, but the Brickyard 400 that NASCAR runs there does.

Sorry Ramy,
The Brickyard hasn't sold out in the last 5 years. I went to to the first 3 and worked one as a photograher for the Speedway. That was enough for me....a real snoozer. For some time now the Speedway has been running adds on local TV stations all over the state up until two days before the race trying to sell the remaining tickets. They also have ticket booths set up at the entrence gates trying to get rid of the unsold tickets. Every year I get a letter from them wanting to know if I want to renew my ticket application. They have gone as far to offer me a discount for Brickyard tickets because I that been a 30 year ticket holder for the 500.

 

[Diamond Jim]

Watching Wind Tunnel, I thought they said there would be a new car for the 2010 season and the details weren't hammered out yet.

I wish they would go back to letting anyone build their own car and use any make engine they want, as long as it meets the spec. Over the years there have been some great inovatons, from the first rear engine car in the late 30s to the 6 wheeler and the car with the double midget engines (one in the front and one in the back) of the 40s, the side car and the turbine of the 60s and Ken Hamilton's crop duster of the 80s. Those were the days.

 

[Ramy]

Sorry Ramy,
The Brickyard hasn't sold out in the last 5 years. I went to to the first 3 and worked one as a photograher for the Speedway. That was enough for me....a real snoozer. For some time now the Speedway has been running adds on local TV stations all over the state up until two days before the race trying to sell the remaining tickets. They also have ticket booths set up at the entrence gates trying to get rid of the unsold tickets. Every year I get a letter from them wanting to know if I want to renew my ticket application. They have gone as far to offer me a discount for Brickyard tickets because I that been a 30 year ticket holder for the 500.

I thought all NASCAR races sold out, guess not.

 

[dodge]

Watching Wind Tunnel, I thought they said there would be a new car for the 2010 season and the details weren't hammered out yet. I hope they bring back the turbos so the cars sound like Indy Cars. It seems popular, yet one thing I thought was silly on Champ cars was the power to pass button or whatever they called it. Just too video game like. Let them crank the power to as much as they can get out of them and hope it doesn't blow.

That would be the overtake switch

 

[Diamond Jim]

I thought all NASCAR races sold out, guess not.

The first 8 or 10 Brickyards were big sellers. Here in Terre Haute, big wheels that have major connections with the Hulmans could not get tickets. I lucked out and won mine in a lottery drawing that the Speedway held. They figured that was the fairest way to to divide them up, which I agreed with. After I quit going I had no problems selling my tickets, at the face value I might add, no scalping here, then the newness wore off and boredom set in and I couldn't give them away. I actually offered them for free to a friend of mine that is a big NASCAR fan, he turned them down. I gave the rights to my tickets to a friend who lived in Indianapolis who has since let them go. Every now and then he gets the urge to go. When he does he waits right up until race time and takes advantage the scalpers who are going to have to eat their merchandise. Not too long ago he got an $85.00 tower terrace seat for $20.00. I don't know about other NASCAR races, since I am not that big of fan, but t is not that big of deal anymore, here locally.

 

[Ramy]

I wouldn't want to go to a track like Indy because you see them go by and then have to wait like 2 mins for them to come back around.
Maybe not 2 mins but you get the idea.

 

[stogie5150]

I'll consider going to the Indy 500 when they have new, more modern cars, with or without Turbos is fine with me, but an old tech series already exists, its called NA$CAR. I want my Indycars high tech and fast, and I want them to be able to turn left AND right.

Until then they have a lot to sell me on. But I'll give the merged series a chance. :up