IndyCar Europe?
By Andrew Cutler
December 17 2008
In a recent interview for the IndyCar.com website, IRL founder & CEO Tony George discussed the state of the IndyCar Series as of the end of the 2008 season. After declaring that the immediate future looks fairly solid - especially good news in light of the current economic situation - he talked a bit about the possible long term growth plans.
While he sees the IndyCar Series sticking to a predominantly North American-based schedule, he did not rule out more international races in the future. "Drivers want to drive every week and if the operating budgets and sponsorships we depend on are there I think you could see us do as many as 22, 24 races a year. Or you could see something like ALMS has done in licensing our specifications, our name and brand for a European schedule."
Obviously, this comment is short on specifics (like; which European venues - if any - are currently talking to the IRL), but it is intriguing nonetheless. CART ran at the oval tracks at Rockingham, UK & Lausitz, Germany for a couple of years, but that came to an end when the series filed for bankruptcy. CART's successor organization, the CCWS, made it back to Europe - at the road courses at Zolder, Belgium & Assen, The Netherlands in 2007, just before they closed up shop as well. For the moment, the IRL seems to be on a fairly good financial footing - especially compared to where those other leagues were when they made their European excursions.
So, could they actually make this work at some point in the future? Could it even happen via an offshoot series, as Tony suggested as an option?
Lets say that, come four or five years down the road, Bernie is still alienating F1's European fans by taking his circus ever farther afield in search of new venues. Furthermore, A1GP is either history or still fighting just to stay in business. In the meantime, the IndyCar Series has come out with a new (and, with luck, cutting edge) chassis and a 1.5 litre, turbo-charged four cylinder engine package: and some of them may be from European auto companies. If these things come to pass, could you see enough room in the European open-wheel "market" for another series, most likey with a mix of oval and road/street races?
More importantly, would YOU be interested in it?
i am tifosi through and through.
as i will be until i die.
as i have been since birth.
membro dalla nascita de tifosi.
2008 FERRARI F1 FORUM PREDICTION CHAMPION.
sessions
Now that money is tight & at least two of the US auto companies may have to - at the least - seriously reign in their motorsports expenditures, I suspect that IndyCar will start looking pretty good to some of the sponsors who have been regulars on the more expensive (for them) NASCAR circut.
If the economy rebounds by mid 2010, I see no reason why the IRL couldn't take a serious look at testing the European market by scheduling a few events, just to see what kind of response they get.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2009:01:01:17:47:25 by IndyAndy.
George surely didn't help the situation when he split the sport and opened the door for the almost complete Nascar domination.
Sure the infrastructure of thousands of ovals are there in the US but if they only host open wheels they are falling like flies in many cases.
Open wheel has to find a direction to re-attract the US population and the current flogging of a dead horse may not be the way. It may take a completely different avenue.
F1 seems to be the only game left in town and an alike American format (might) be the answer.
Who knows maybe F1 may begin to falter with the way the world economics are going, but so far it seems to hold the interest of motor racing fans over the rest of the planet.
sessions
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2009:01:01:20:21:04 by sessions.
Going all road/street would make them look like F1's poor relation, & it didn't work out too well for CART/CCWS in the end (although it probably wasn't their only problem).
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2009:01:01:21:25:43 by IndyAndy.
As long as F1 is the pinnacle of open wheel racing anything the US does to steal it's thunder will not happen,
Add that to the fact Nascar has the market on ovals and there isn't enough room to support the same type racing in the eyes of the US public.
Take the fenders off and the excitement dies in 80% of US viewers. 20% or so isn't enough to run a profitable organisation.
Open wheel has to start from scratch and go down a different road than trying to get a share of Nascar.
If the US focused enough to have a winning team with US drivers in F1 we would see a turn around in open wheel North American racing IMO.
sessions