A Year Ago...

[Chamoo]

We finally got back to one series around this time last year. It was needed to bring credibility back to AOWR and help begin the healing process.

Are you happy with the way things are progressing? What are your feeling about the situation we were in, and now the situation we are facing looking forward.

I'm surprised no one else on here has really brought this up as it is a major date in AOWR history, probably only eclipsed by the split to begin with.

If your interested in my opinion, check out the blog posting.

[SarahFan]

We finally got back to one series around this time last year. It was needed to bring credibility back to AOWR and help begin the healing process.

Are you happy with the way things are progressing? What are your feeling about the situation we were in, and now the situation we are facing looking forward.

I'm surprised no one else on here has really brought this up as it is a major date in AOWR history, probably only eclipsed by the split to begin with.

If your interested in my opinion, check out the blog posting.

clearly having one series is better than two...

read your blog... besides a quick blurb about hopefully seeing ratings increase you didn't mention the Versus 10 year TV deal...

I'm not very optomistic about it.... reminds me of CC on spike x2.....

ratings make the sponsorship dollars go round and round.... and in this economy sub 1's aren't going to inspire wallets to open....

[Wade91]

yeah, one seres is alot better that two

[methanolHuffer]

I'll not be negative (the economy has everything covered in that category).

I'm excited for this season. Any money that I can justify spending going to a race (or two) I will.

No Road America again, and No Detroit (I wish I would have been to the ALMS/ICS double last year).

So far, probably only Indy and Mid-Ohio if the weather looks good. Anywhere else in the Indy area I can ride a motorcycle to for cheap will be considered.

As far as commercial success, I hope for the best for the series sake. But I really only want to see some very good racing, and salad days of yore have produced some.

[dataman1]

One series will be better than 2 in the long term. Could have been handled much better by both sides.

Still a little bitter after loosing my racing job after 25 years. Unlikely that it will ever come back with the global economy. Don't feel the ICS appreciates any of us from the CART/CC side. Can't get any respect or acknowledgement of our contribution to the sport from IRL or ICS.

I feel all forms of racing will struggle for some time to come which might open some doors to small teams to shine more when the big guys have less cash. Las Vegas race for Nascar had lots of empty seats. If they can't fill the stands what chance does AOWR have?

TV contract is not the best but it might pick up some new folks as fans. Diehards will follow no matter which channel it is broadcast.

Looking forward to a new chassis/engine combination. Hope the whole thing survives long enough to see that come to a reality.

[SarahFan]

I'm excited for this season. .

I'm also excited...

I expect to see a very competitive championship battle between Dixon and Briscoe...

[coogmaster]

As long as open wheel race cars are circling the Brickyard every May, I'm happy.

[millencolin]

It's all good to have one series instead of two. Its also good to see two Australians racing for the most famed team in US open wheel racing...

But sorry, without Surfers... my interest has waned big time. Plus, with most races now on versus, im pretty sure that ESPN Australia just wont bother showing any races...

Its a good thing Formula One is going to be supremely interesting this year

[ShiftingGears]

The new series hasn't been the sum of its parts.

[DirtDevil5]

first off,, it wasn't a merger, it was a takeover
and the biggest problem is its still the IRL decision
making process. As long as TG is associated with
the Indy Car Series it is destined to fail;
The Takeover was a prime opportunity to make
sweeping changes to the formula, schedule and
especially the promotion of the series, and as everyone
now knows none of that has or ever will happen with
the current ownership/management organization.
The current TG/IRL/I500 product is unwatchable to me & many,
many others

Long Live USF1

[garyshell]

first off,, it wasn't a merger, it was a takeover
and the biggest problem is its still the IRL decision
making process. As long as TG is associated with
the Indy Car Series it is destined to fail;
The Takeover was a prime opportunity to make
sweeping changes to the formula, schedule and
especially the promotion of the series, and as everyone
now knows none of that has or ever will happen with
the current ownership/management organization.
The current TG/IRL/I500 product is unwatchable to me & many,
many others

Long Live USF1

As much as I despise King George, how was/is it destined to fail? He had the deepest pockets and the only asset that REALLY mattered to the sponsors. As for the "opportunities" how would you propose the teams pay for a "sweeping change to the formula"? How would you propose to negate the contracts that were already in place with venues, as that would be required to make "sweeping changes to the schedule"? I agree with you there has been a missed opportunity for a change in PR. But as for the rest, I think you're dreamin'. Formula and schedule changes take time.

Gary

[DirtDevil5]

As much as I despise King George, how was/is it destined to fail? He had the deepest pockets and the only asset that REALLY mattered to the sponsors. As for the "opportunities" how would you propose the teams pay for a "sweeping change to the formula"? How would you propose to negate the contracts that were already in place with venues, as that would be required to make "sweeping changes to the schedule"? I agree with you there has been a missed opportunity for a change in PR. But as for the rest, I think you're dreamin'. Formula and schedule changes take time.

Gary

yah but,, the IRL is out of time- the unfortunate timeing of
the economic downturn will prove to be the knock-out punch
for INDY CAR.
The current IRL big thinkers are incapable of any kind of
different thinking, thanks to TG...
I predict no new engine mfg. for 2010,11,12... further
don't forget Honda can & will bail after 2010 then what???
There won't be many teams left by then anyway.
GAME OVER...

Long live the USF1

[garyshell]

yah but,, the IRL is out of time- the unfortunate timeing of the economic downturn will prove to be the knock-out punch
for INDY CAR.
The current IRL big thinkers are incapable of any kind of
different thinking, thanks to TG...
I predict no new engine mfg. for 2010,11,12... further don't forget Honda can & will bail after 2010 then what???
There won't be many teams left by then anyway.
GAME OVER...

Long live the USF1

Playing the "economy now" card is a cop out. You said "The Takeover was a prime opportunity to make sweeping changes to the formula, schedule and
especially the promotion of the series". The operative word there is "was". So let's turn the clock back to the point of the takeover last year. What would you have done THEN to make sweeping changes to the formula and schedule? How would YOU have proposed to fund it, based on the economy THEN. How would YOU have dealt with changing the schedule? It's easy to take shots without offering solutions.

Look, I deplore the mess that King George got us ALL into. But I am realistic enough to know that in the first year of reunification/take over, whatever the hell you want to call it, that there were not going to be any substantive changes. I am realistic to know those require time, measured in a scale of years, not weeks or even months.

Gary

[champcarray]

I am hanging in there as a fan. I don't particularly like spec racing (CCWS, IRL, whatever), but will watch at least part of many races this season and continue to hope for a better future.

There are obviously a host of troubles ahead for the series, but I would love to see AOWR rebound so that my daughter, who is 9, can enjoy it as much as I did when I was in my 20s and 30s.

[Rex Monaco]

All sides agree that a unified series is a step in the right direction. And all sides agree that's really all we got so far.

[indycool]

Yep, Rex, we all agree on that one.

Racing is going to be touched by the economy like everything else is, including each and every one of us. F1 has enough cost control problems that Mosley posed the idea of spec Cossies. NASCAR made flower pots out of 700 race cars worth millions of dollars and cost the teams millions of dollars more for the Car of Tomorrow, an absolutely worthless, costly move. CC did the same with the DP-01 and blew itself up. No matter how much some profess to despise the Dallara, the IRL is helping the teams by leaving it alone, which puts it in a stronger position in the economic climate. But nobody is immune to it.

[anthonyvop]

All sides agree that a unified series is a step in the right direction.

You are so wrong. Many involved were not happy and still are not happy. They will explain quite eloquently how it was a terrible step in the wrong direction.
You may disagree with them (I don't) but it it discount your statement that "all" approved.


And all sides agree that's really all we got so far.
Scott Sharp, Bobby Rahal, Sebatien Bourdais and soon Paul Gentilozzi would argue that one as well.

[anthonyvop]

CC did the same with the DP-01 and blew itself up. .
Champ Car had no choice. The Lola's were worn out and they weren't going to make any more.
The new Panoz did nothing to hasten the demise of Champ Car. I don't want to start that argument again but the new chassis was just a cost that most teams would have had to spend anyway on other chassis.

[Rex Monaco]

You are so wrong. Many involved were not happy and still are not happy.

Ok, I'll accept that. I was just trying to be conciliatory.

But I still stand by the sentiment that "All we have is a unified series and nothing more."

Because there is nothing else. And there probably won't be for anything else for years. I think it will take decades to get this sport back to where it was the day before the split. And I'm not happy about that at all.

[anthonyvop]

Ok, I'll accept that. I was just trying to be conciliatory.

But I still stand by the sentiment that "All we have is a unified series and nothing more."

Because there is nothing else. And there probably won't be for anything else for years. I think it will take decades to get this sport back to where it was the day before the split. And I'm not happy about that at all.
There is something else.

Ever hear of the ALMS?

Scott Sharp and Bobby Rahal have. Paul G has.

[garyshell]

There is something else.

Ever hear of the ALMS?

Scott Sharp and Bobby Rahal have. Paul G has.

Oh, when did they start allowing open wheel chassis in ALMS?

Gary

[indycool]

Ever hear of Indianapolis? Some others have.

[Rex Monaco]

Ever hear of Indianapolis? Some others have.

But more car's enter, and the TV ratings are higher, for NASCAR at Daytona, Charlotte and a few other tracks. Even in todays economy.

So we can't place Indianapolis in the success column. It's still in the needs to be repaired column.

And since it needs repairing, it's not as important to as many people as it once was.

So again, all we have is a unified series and not much else.

[Rex Monaco]

There is something else.

Ever hear of the ALMS?

Scott Sharp and Bobby Rahal have. Paul G has.

I agree with Gary, this was about the ICS. Otherwise we can start discussing why NASCAR has so many former open wheeled racers who wouldn't even think of coming back to the ICS.

And the ICS is weak. The war left AOWR in such a weakened state, that repairing the damage will take a generation to accomplish. And that's if it can survive through the economic downturn.

So one year later, all we have is unificiation. It's still going to be an uphill struggle. Because just as they have lost former teams and drivers, they have also lost former fans. And holding a Honda spec race at Indianapolis isn't enough to turn it all around.

[Rex Monaco]

I'm not sure Paul G is a name you want to bring up in ANY conversation about smart decisions.

I also feel the same about Bobby Rahal. He was a good driver, but many of his post driving career decisions have been questionable.

[indycool]

Rex, whatever problems Indy has aren't gonna be solved overnight and judging of the millions spent on making flower pots out of 700 race cars and building Cars of Tomorrow tells me that NASCAR has wasted a lot of cash that might bite them where the sun don't shine, either. And Daytona's ratings were down a percentage point. And, IMO, the spec series has little to do with it and the Indianapolis 500 has outdrawn the Brickyard 400 every year.

[Chamoo]

Rex, whatever problems Indy has aren't gonna be solved overnight and judging of the millions spent on making flower pots out of 700 race cars and building Cars of Tomorrow tells me that NASCAR has wasted a lot of cash that might bite them where the sun don't shine, either. And Daytona's ratings were down a percentage point. And, IMO, the spec series has little to do with it and the Indianapolis 500 has outdrawn the Brickyard 400 every year.

If your going to compare the I500 to something, I don't think it's fair to compare the IRL's top race to Nascab's 2nd or 3rd most popular race. If you want to compare Apples and Oranges, sure, but you should be comparing the D500 to the I500.

[Rex Monaco]

And, IMO, the spec series has little to do with it and the Indianapolis 500 has outdrawn the Brickyard 400 every year.

When the TV ratings of the I500 surpass the TV ratings of the BY400, then we will know it's on the road to recovery.

A slight dip in Daytona tv ratings does not mean the I500 ratings will rise. In fact, it probably fortells of what is also likely happen in May during this economy. Unless they can figure out a way to get Robbie Gordon and Tony Stewart to pull a double race this year.

And who would pay money in todays economy to see a spec race that is all but inconsequential in motorpsorts? (Notice that it's called MOTORsports and not DRIVERmeets) If 1 car runs or 33 run, Honda still wins. That's just not the tradition that built the Indy 500. And how long can it coast on it's past glory before people write it off all together?

And that's the problem and the challenge. A generation or two has passed that doesn't know about, care about or even heard about the Indy500. Danica Patrick? She's that chick in the godaddy commercials, right? And who's Marco Andretti? Is that a microwave pizza brand?

Imagine if the Superbowl or the World Series was, because of the regulations, played by the same two teams every year. How long would those events survive before people turned the channel and watched the rerun of the Food Networks 10 Best Hot Dog Stands? It's already happened to Indy. And that's not the fault of the economy.

[Rex Monaco]

Rex, whatever problems Indy has aren't gonna be solved overnight and judging of the millions spent on making flower pots out of 700 race cars and building Cars of Tomorrow tells me that NASCAR has wasted a lot of cash that might bite them where the sun don't shine, either. And Daytona's ratings were down a percentage point. And, IMO, the spec series has little to do with it and the Indianapolis 500 has outdrawn the Brickyard 400 every year.

First, I'd like to see a picture of 1 of these NASCAR flower pots, as you call them. I'm sure there are uses for them other than flower pots.

And second, what NASCAR does or doesn't do with their totally different style of race car, has no effect of the ICS.

And lastly, hoping and waiting for NASCAR to fail is just as pointless as hoping that the ICS will succeed through inaction.

[indycool]

Well, the general public identifies with Kobe Bryant, A-Rod, Peyton Manning, et. al. Through them, they identify with the team they play for.

Somewhere down the line of priorities is that use a Spalding basketball, a Hillerich and Bradsby baseball bat and a Rawlings helmet.

[Rex Monaco]

Well, the general public identifies with Kobe Bryant, A-Rod, Peyton Manning, et. al. Through them, they identify with the team they play for.

Somewhere down the line of priorities is that use a Spalding basketball, a Hillerich and Bradsby baseball bat and a Rawlings helmet.

Then Allstar games should have the highest ratings. They don't. Because people root for teams and car manufacturer, not just for quarterbacks and drivers.

[Rex Monaco]

In which case, in horse racing, people should be rooting for the jockey or trainer or stable and not the difference between horses? ;)

And they could always clone the horses so it's just a competiton between jockeys!

Who knows, maybe the next owner of the Churchill Downs might decide this is the way to keep costs down at the Kentucky Derby.

I bet the Japanese would go one step further and clone the riders too!

At which piont the Chinese would wonder why they don't just run a virtual race where the winnder is determined by a computer program.

[anthonyvop]

Oh, when did they start allowing open wheel chassis in ALMS?

Gary
It seems that no-fenders are not a pre-requirement to be America's premier racing series.

[anthonyvop]

Ever hear of Indianapolis? Some others have.
But that number has been declining every year.

[indycool]

They fill 'er up on Race Day. And in 100 years, anything has its ups and downs.

[SarahFan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCiVXigrjjQ

[Rex Monaco]

It seems that no-fenders are not a pre-requirement to be America's premier racing series.

And it worked out good for NASCAR too! ;)

[Rex Monaco]

They fill 'er up on Race Day. And in 100 years, anything has its ups and downs.

Unlike the last 100 years, it's much more than fillin' up a racing facility on race day. There are 18 racing facilities to worry about and as many teams that need to a healthy series so they can find sponsors.

The IRL won and this was the prize. If they weren't prepared, then they shouldn't have spent so much money to win.

[Wilf]

I guess the open wheel world came to an end. I didn't see it happen; I don't know when it happened but there are just too many people that are living with the idea that there must be some truth to it.

The last I recall we had just finished a season where 25 or 26 drivers competed on a regular basis in order to claim a season long championship. The battle for the championship came down to the last race in an 18 race schedule.

The champion stated he was going to be back to defend his title. The 2007 champion who defected to NASCAR at the end of the previous season said he was coming back to reclaim the IRL crown.

All of the races last year were live on broadcast or cable networks. Unfortunately there were a number of instances in which the cable network either delayed the start or transferred a race's coverage to another channel. In response to complaints the league sought out and arranged for the races previously shown on a cable network to be moved to another cable network. Some were disappointed with the decision, but I thought it was an attempt to provide fans with better coverage as well as additional programming. It is disappointing to see so many give up so easily.

The most amazing part of this collapse was that in response to the hue and cry from fans, two street/road races were scheduled for Canada this coming year.

Just last week, 20 some odd drivers assembled at the Homestead speedway in Florida while two or three other teams said they would be ready to participate in the road course practices.

It's hard to believe all this fell apart so rapidly; I thought for sure a fan would wait to see what else was in store through the SECOND season since unification. Oh well, I guess this really is an instant gratification society; where, if you don't get everything you want right away, you walk away or better yet, bad mouth and condemn.

[downtowndeco]

Great post Wilf, great post....

[Rex Monaco]

Oh well, I guess this really is an instant gratification society; where, if you don't get everything you want right away, you walk away or better yet, bad mouth and condemn.


How many years ago did Toyota leave? And how many more years will it be till Honda has competition, if Honda decides to stick around and wait that long?

Didn't the IRL have any plans for the future that weren't all written last year?

[Rex Monaco]

Great post Wilf, great post....


You're pretty predictable. You are always sitting on the sidelines waiting for other to do the heavy lifting so you can make your single one sentence post before you run off again.

[MDS]

Can we please stop calling this a “merger” or a “Split?” The fact of the matter was it was a strike. What happened was that management (Tony George) locked the players out of the arena (Indy) and brought in a bunch of scabs (Every IRL field from 1996 to 2002) and both sides refused to negotiate. Essentially it was the longest strike in the history of professional sports. The rule of sports is that is rich owners and rich players fighting over a big pile of money, and at the end of the day its rich owners and rich players fighting over a much smaller pool of money. The longer the strike the smaller the pool of money, and since the strike lasted 12 years you can imagine how small the pool of money is.

Had the strike ended in 2002 with a true unification in 2003 taking in the best parts of both series there would have been four manufacturers, probably a 24 race schedule and a dozen strong teams. Instead both ran 20 car fields that were solid at the top but lacked depth and talent.



Because I like playing around with things like this, here’s what we probably would have seen. Ladies and Gentlemen I give you what should have been the Indy Car World Series 2003.

Feb. 23 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
March 2 Toyota Indy 300, Homestead, FL
March 16 Purex Dial Indy 200, Phoenix, AZ
March 23 Tecate/Telmex Monterrey Grand Prix
April 13 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach
April 19 Indy Japan 300, Motegi, Japan
May 25 Indianapolis 500
May 31 Milwaukee Mile Centennial 250
July 6 Bombardier 500K, Fort Worth, TX
June 15 Honda Indy 225, Fountain, CO
June 22 GI Joe's 200, Portland, OR
July 5 U.S. Bank Presents Cleveland Grand Prix
July 13 Molson Indy Toronto
July 19 Firestone Indy 200, Lebanon, TN
July 27 Molson Indy Montreal
Aug. 3 Mario Andretti Grand Prix of Road America
Aug 10 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio
Aug 24 Molson Indy Montreal
Aug 31 Grand Prix of Denver
Sept.7 Delphi Indy 300, Joliet, IL
Sept. 28 Grand Prix Americas, Miami, FL
Oct 12 Grand Premio Telmex Gigante, Mexico City, Mexico
Oct. 26 Lexmark Indy 300 Gold Coast, Australia
Nov 2 King Taco/Toyota Indy 500, Fontana, CA


Going by what I figured to be the real sponsorships at the time this probably a reasonably accurate look at a combined 2003 field. We probably would have seen some different combos, but I have to believe American Spirit would have folded as well as the second cars from a couple of teams. Still, I think there would have been 28-30 full time teams with more than 40 showing up at Indy.

Access Motorsports
13 Greg Ray Trim Spa

A.J. Foyt Enterprises
14 A.J. Foyt IV Conesco

Andretti Green Raging
7 Michael Andretti/Bryan Herta
11 Tony Kannan 7-11
26 Dan Wheldon Jim Beam/Klien Tools

Dale Coyne Racing
16 Geoff Boss/Gualter Salles
19 Alex Tagliani Johnson Controls

Dryer & Reinbold Racing
24 Robby Buhl Purex

Herndez Competetion
55 Mario Dominguez Herndez
50 Roberto Moreno Herndez

Kelley Racing
8 Scott Sharp Delhi
31 Al Unser Jr. Corteco

Ferndez Racing
51 Adrian Fernandez Tecate/Quaker State
54 Roger Yasukawa

Mi-Jack Conquest Racing
34 Mario Haberfeld

Panther Racing
4 Sam Hornish Jr. Pennzoil

Mo-Nunn Racing
20 Alex Barren Hollywood
21 Tora Takagi Pioneer

Newman Hass Racing
1 Bruno Junqueira Pacificare
2 Sebastien Bourdais McDonalds/Lilly

Patrick Racing
98 Oriol Servia Visteon

Team Rahal
15 Kenny Brack Pioneer/Miller Lite
16 Michel Jourdain Jr Gigante

Target Chip Ganassi
9 Scott Dixon Target
10 Tomas Scheckter Target

Team Cheever
52 Buddy Rice Red Bull

Team Menards
22 Vitor Meria Menards
24 Jacques Lazier Menards

Team Penske
3 Helio Castroneves Malboro
6 Gil de Ferran Malboro

Team Players
32 Patrick Carpentier Players
33 Paul Tracy Players

Walker Racing
5 Rodolfo Lavin Corona

[fugariracing]

Can we please stop calling this a “merger” or a “Split?” The fact of the matter was it was a strike. What happened was that management (Tony George) locked the players out of the arena (Indy) and brought in a bunch of scabs (Every IRL field from 1996 to 2002) and both sides refused to negotiate. Essentially it was the longest strike in the history of professional sports. The rule of sports is that is rich owners and rich players fighting over a big pile of money, and at the end of the day its rich owners and rich players fighting over a much smaller pool of money. The longer the strike the smaller the pool of money, and since the strike lasted 12 years you can imagine how small the pool of money is.

Had the strike ended in 2002 with a true unification in 2003 taking in the best parts of both series there would have been four manufacturers, probably a 24 race schedule and a dozen strong teams. Instead both ran 20 car fields that were solid at the top but lacked depth and talent.


It's easy to get nostalgic, but the "strike" as you call it wasn't going to end for 2003 because most of the top CART teams followed the Toyota and Honda money to the IRL prior to that year. So in essence, your "top level" drivers were replacing the "scabs" anyway. And if due process should have happened, than in '04 the OWRS group would not have been awarded the remnants of CART and given birth to CCWS. That's another matter entirely though, and what we're left with is what happened just prior to 08.

Indeed as it is now the pool of money is smaller and great things that could have been captured from both sides have yet to do so. Sure, IndyCar made baby steps in 2008 as much as could be expected from an 11th-hour proposal to contract and for the CC teams to come to grips with their third different car in as many years.

I did a commentary piece last week on the matter, and while it was a bit angst-ridden and depressing for the long off-season, it did more or less say that IndyCar can not afford to repeat the same mistakes that drove its rival to its demise - twice. Sure, TG had the trump card of Indy but the series is more or less too Indy-centric and not focused on growing it beyond the shadows and surrounding area of 16th and Georgetown.

The economy plays a major role sure, but a year later I can't help but notice how so many of the same things are propping up again - ie pay-drivers while established drivers and well-liked and respected in the community, if not popular stars to the general public, are riding the sidelines; canceled races, a lack of impetus on the new chassis/engine and competitors for Honda, the TV contract and what not.

The concern is that a series that has been a money loser for 12 years, centered too much on one race, and with an even bigger loss of interest from potential backers over the TV deal, will be doomed to make the same mistakes all over again since now there's nothing else left. The ball is in TG and his staff's court; and it will take inspired thinking and a specific business plan to ensure that the ship swims, not sinks. That may be a bit cliche but just because unification happened didn't mean everything was fixed in one fell swoop, and it will take time to fix it all.

[millencolin]

Long live the USF1

Let it live first

[indycool]

Well, Rex, I had a boss once who said "Chicken Little didn't get famous for saying the sky was going to stay up."

[Rex Monaco]

Well, Rex, I had a boss once who said "Chicken Little didn't get famous for saying the sky was going to stay up."

And Pollyanna didn't get famous for focusing on reality.

[Rex Monaco]

That may be a bit cliche but just because unification happened didn't mean everything was fixed in one fell swoop, and it will take time to fix it all.

I agree, and I hope it does get fixed. But I just don't see anything other than unification 1 year later. And that's not enough to grow the series. Nor does the lack of activity instill confidence in me that the party responsible for this mess is capable of turning it back around.

And I point to Toyota's departure and the lack of a plan when that happened. It's easy to blame the economy now. But Toyota left during boom times while the series was struggling to find a title sponsor.

By the way, how's that search going? Do we have a title sponsor yet? I hear Walmart is making money. That fits with the middle American low budget image that the IRL seeks for itself. Add some Chinese car makers to the field and bam, you got your self a truly middle American oval series.

[indycool]

And some will never reach their own Pollyannas.

[jimispeed]

It's not the best idea to let a series vanquish another, and act as if it never existed... I hope Tony George doesn't do that.

Bring back Cleveland. Bring back Road America.

Make the cars match the drivers talents again.

Maybe honor "The Vanderbilt Cup" somehow for the road races?

I know it takes time, but acknowledgement goes a long way in the hearts of certain older open wheel fans.

Let's get it back to moments like this one......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBthxGThBkc


Never forget the historical backbone of either series!!!