AR1 update #15

[mlj]

Champ Car /IRL merger - on or off? UPDATE #15 The wild rumors on this merger continue today. According to AutoRacing1.com sources, and as we reported about 8 hours ago, Gerald Forsythe pulled out of the merger deal last night. He and Paul Gentilozzi are trying to rally enough cars to go it alone as Champ Car. We hear that Kevin Kalkhoven and Dan Pettit are moving on to the IRL. We hear that an approach from Gentilozzi to Panoz to buy in and save the contract is waiting a reply. We also hear that Forsythe may be trying to prevent the Long Beach race from falling in the hands of the IRL.

[Andrewmcm]

Club racing series at best if it happened.

[ChaimWitz]

Champ Car /IRL merger - on or off? UPDATE #15 The wild rumors on this merger continue today. According to AutoRacing1.com sources, and as we reported about 8 hours ago, Gerald Forsythe pulled out of the merger deal last night. He and Paul Gentilozzi are trying to rally enough cars to go it alone as Champ Car. We hear that Kevin Kalkhoven and Dan Pettit are moving on to the IRL. We hear that an approach from Gentilozzi to Panoz to buy in and save the contract is waiting a reply. We also hear that Forsythe may be trying to prevent the Long Beach race from falling in the hands of the IRL.

First off, someone should remind CC propaganda minister Cippolini that everyone but him can see that this is isn't a "merger".

Secondly, he should know that Paulie-G String and the handful of "Gerry's Kids" from ****wagon.com aren't going to have a prayer of making a real series happen in 2008.

My hunch is that this is just good old Paulie-G String doing what he does best. He is stirring the s**t to see if he can find a better angle for himself. My guess is that this has everything to do with how much money Paulie thinks he is due or owed. I still remember him explaining how the OWRS was going to get paid to get out of the way (by TG, BE or the Frances) if things didn't work out. He tried to convince me that there was no risk to the Amigos in buying CC. Funny how it has all worked out, eh Paulie? Good luck getting that big payday.

I still think the IRL/CC consolidation will happen much sooner than later and Paulie G-String will be quickly be the forgotten man he deserves to be. We will probably only hear about him when he tries to sue everyone and everything in the aftermath CC's inglorious end. I also suspect that he will be on the receiving end of a lawsuit or two himself. Like I wrote elsewhere on these boards: your character defines your destiny. So, I have no doubt what destiny lies in store for the littlest Amigo.

As for the Panoz connection, don't bet on it unless PG and Gerry pay cash and back monies owed to take the whole DP1 project off Elan's hands. I suspect that Mr. Panoz and Mr. Atherton know all to well who they are dealing with when it comes to Mr. Motorock.

[mikiec]

If this is true, then you would seriously have to look at what the hell these guys think they can achieve!

Firstly, PG allegedly ran the TransAm series into the ground and has a reputation as a bad payer. He's also been referred to within these forums as a bully and allegedly treated his 'pay-drivers' poorly by giving them the second-rate equipment. Apparently he's never actually paid for his shares in CCWS and he claims that he can't afford to make the switch to the IRL (should a unification happen) even with TG's handouts.

Forsythe, for all his money, announced before last season that he wasn't going to field a second car in 2007 as he didn't have a sponsor, despite being apparently the wealthiest of the 'amigos' and being a majority shareholder in Champ Car. He also apparently only turned up to three of the races in 2007 - way to build confidence in your own series!

Yet now, these two arse-clowns seem interested in trying to salvage the series and probably believe that they can run it successfully... their reputations suggest otherwise!

IMO

[F1boat]

GF tries to win the championship - and because he can't do it even in a weakened CCWS he waits N/H/L to leave, thus being able to fight for victories. ;)

[CCFan]

...Forsythe, for all his money, announced before last season that he wasn't going to field a second car in 2007 as he didn't have a sponsor, despite being apparently the wealthiest of the 'amigos' and being a majority shareholder in Champ Car. He also apparently only turned up to three of the races in 2007 - way to build confidence in your own series!...

I agree, mikiec. For the lack of interest that Forsythe has shown the past year, it makes no sense that he would try to keep CC afloat on his own (I say "on his own" because, from what I've read, PG never invested much of his own money in supporting CC).

Maybe this is just another unfounded rumor.

[infoxicated]

This is the fanatics - most probably from CCF - throwing FUD at AR1 in the vain hope of undermining the merger deal at the 13th hour.

Their pied piper was calling on them all to PM him the other night so that he could organise a last ditch attempt to save Champ Car. For my money this looks like all they could come up with - feeble rumour mongering.

Think about it - how does a guy who barely attended any events last season go from that to taking responsibility for running the whole shooting match?

Champ Car - hurry up and die.

[ChaimWitz]

This is the fanatics - most probably from CCF - throwing FUD at AR1 in the vain hope of undermining the merger deal at the 13th hour.

Their pied piper was calling on them all to PM him the other night so that he could organise a last ditch attempt to save Champ Car. For my money this looks like all they could come up with - feeble rumour mongering.

Think about it - how does a guy who barely attended any events last season go from that to taking responsibility for running the whole shooting match?

Champ Car - hurry up and die.

Indeed, its the Pied Paper at work. I have seen the fanatics goon squad tactics before and I doubt we have seen the last of them. They seem to act on the command of the almighty Dark Lord G-String and his court jester, SJ. Does it strike anyone else here that this might be what actually influenced and fueled the past four years of wasteful and delusional behavior by the Amigos? Pathetic if true.

[bblocker68]

I call shenanigans! I think some people dont want to go peacefully.

[PTCrash3]

If this is true, it still makes business sense. There is a large gap between Formula 1 and the Indycrap Series that could be filled, especially with international races. CC, A1GP, and Superleague are all attempts at filling that gap. We'll see if CC soldiers on or not.

[ChaimWitz]

If this is true, it still makes business sense. There is a large gap between Formula 1 and the Indycrap Series that could be filled, especially with international races. CC, A1GP, and Superleague are all attempts at filling that gap. We'll see if CC soldiers on or not.

We sure will see if CC soldiers on or not. I'd put my money on not.

[nigelred5]

If there is an ounce of truth to it, then take all of it off-shore and leave The US totally so at least one of the series CAN survive in this country. With a continued divide, Open wheel racing just continues to die a slow painful death. As much as I prefer the majority of the CC schedule ot that of the IRL, Open Wheel will never succeed from a business standpoint in this country in the direction it is going. Leave this country, base the series in Toronto and Concentrate on Canada, Mexico and Europe. They are more than half way there as it is.

[cartpix]

I call shenanigans! I think some people dont want to go peacefully.

blocker called shenanigans, grab your brooms.

I think this is one of PG's tricks, to sabatoge the merger. If Champ Car disappears, so does Paul. He won't be an owner, an Amigo. He will just slip into obscurity.

Jeff

[Pat Wiatrowski]

I hope AR1's rumor is correct. Go GF and PG.

[Rex Monaco]

I'm waiting for the made for TV movie. This soap opera is certainly more entertaining than some of the racing recently.

[SoCalPVguy]

The sanguine fanatics are now going to have to change their mantra to...

"It's all about the rumours and the rumous are good".

[garyshell]

I hope AR1's rumor is correct. Go GF and PG.


Go? Go do what? Run a series without Newman/Hass/Lanigan, PKV and Walker? How many promoters, track owners and sponsers will remain loyal to OWRS without those three teams?

Gary

[cartpix]

Go? Go do what? Run a series without Newman/Hass/Lanigan, PKV and Walker? How many promoters, track owners and sponsers will remain loyal to OWRS without those three teams?

Gary

They do that & the CC field, at Long Beach, will make the last Indy lights field, there, look like the starting lineup fot the Indy 500.

BTW, there were only 10 Indy Lights started their last Long Beach GP.

Jeff

[keysersoze]

If this is true, it still makes business sense. There is a large gap between Formula 1 and the Indycrap Series that could be filled, especially with international races. CC, A1GP, and Superleague are all attempts at filling that gap. We'll see if CC soldiers on or not.

Uh, it's been tried from many angles.

Races in Mexico, then Germany, then England, then additional Canadian races, then other parts of Europe. Then they tried scheduling a race in China or Korea but, hey, who remembers because the race was cancelled. The schedule, with two 6-week gaps, was the laughing stock.

They went to rev-limited engines. That Lola wound up being one of the oldest chassis ever, having been in use since at least 1998. Then they tried a new chassis--that didn't help the series.

Sponsorship went steadily downhill. Remember Lilly? WTF! And they were the primary sponsor of a top team. Paulie the porno plugger tried AVN. AVN!

The TV package? Does anything need to be said here?

So tell us how CCWS still makes business sense. Do it quickly, as I can barely stand the anticipation of this brilliant answer that the Amigos never got wind of.

[keysersoze]

They do that & the CC field, at Long Beach, will make the last Indy lights field, there, look like the starting lineup fot the Indy 500.

BTW, there were only 10 Indy Lights started their last Long Beach GP.

Jeff

And that's why the series folded.

And it was a support series, in any event. How many cars were on the CART grid that year? Probably 26 or 28.

[cartpix]

And that's why the series folded.

And it was a support series, in any event. How many cars were on the CART grid that year? Probably 26 or 28.

28 cars ran Long beach, in 2001. 29 cars competed in CART, that year, with 32 drivers. IIRC, that was the season PacWest went south, but they did run LB.

Jeff

[just been watching]

PG=POS

there's only one person that'd dispute that, and thats the guy PG sees in the mirror. His Grand Am exploits/results showed that the fact he has the most wins in Trans Am (he did much worse in series that he didn't own) was in effect taking a du p on Donahue's legacy. But this guy doesn't care. He had any semblance of class removed at birth, if not shortly after.

Hopefully he'll fade away to go back and focus on strip club ownership where he got his start.

[Chaparral66]

blocker called shenanigans, grab your brooms.

I think this is one of PG's tricks, to sabatoge the merger. If Champ Car disappears, so does Paul. He won't be an owner, an Amigo. He will just slip into obscurity.

Jeff

Damn skippy, Jeff. Hope the door doesn't hit him on the way out...

[jwhite9185]

28 cars ran Long beach, in 2001. 29 cars competed in CART, that year, with 32 drivers. IIRC, that was the season PacWest went south, but they did run LB.

Jeff

PacWest went in 2002. I believe the reason was that the team had no sponsors and Bruce McCaw didn't want to put any of his own money into funding a team in a series that was on its way out of business. Sort of a case he jumped before he was pushed. Makes me think he should have been in charge of CC all along - least it would seem that he would have made an effort to correct things before they went wrong rather than after...

[cartpix]

PacWest went in 2002. I believe the reason was that the team had no sponsors and Bruce McCaw didn't want to put any of his own money into funding a team in a series that was on its way out of business. Sort of a case he jumped before he was pushed. Makes me think he should have been in charge of CC all along - least it would seem that he would have made an effort to correct things before they went wrong rather than after...

You may be right. As I remember, his drivers were "taken in" by other teams & I didn't see them listed, with other teams, in 2001. 2001 was the first year, I covered CART. The first "event" , I covered, was the "sneak peak", at Fontana. I was having lunch & who sits down, at the table across from me? Bruce McCaw, his wife (I'm assuming), & Scott Dixon. We talked & had a grand time.

Jeff

[jwhite9185]

You may be right. As I remember, his drivers were "taken in" by other teams & I didn't see them listed, with other teams, in 2001. 2001 was the first year, I covered CART. The first "event" , I covered, was the "sneak peak", at Fontana. I was having lunch & who sits down, at the table across from me? Bruce McCaw, his wife (I'm assuming), & Scott Dixon. We talked & had a grand time.

Jeff

Both cars ran at Motegi 2002. Then Servia was sacked before Milwaukee. Then a couple of days before Milwaukee, Toyota put Dixon at Ganassi and Servia was rehired by PWR. Servia did the Milwaukee race but the team folded after that.