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Oct292012

Monday, October 29, 2012 at 09:31AM

October 31, 2012

IndyCar: Accelerating toward irrelevance? Or a new beginning?

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

(Posted 10/29, 10:15 a.m.) Detroit. After months of rumblings and off-the-record negativity aimed at IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard, it came as absolutely no surprise when the announcement was made that he and the racing organization had officially parted ways. As I've stated repeatedly in this column I think Randy Bernard was the most positive force to hit Indy car racing in more than two decades. Not a "racer" by definition, nonetheless Bernard was a quick study and a breath of fresh air who had IndyCar headed in the right direction on many fronts. Were there missteps on the part of Bernard along the way? Certainly. But the overwhelming positives he brought to the sport were noteworthy and measurable.

None of that matters now, of course, because the real issue here is does IndyCar - and Indy car racing - have a snowball's chance in Hell of survival?

Make no mistake, the sport has never even remotely recovered from the infamous split between the then CART and Tony George. The fact that the split happened at the most inopportune moment imaginable - when NASCAR was poised to explode into the nation's consciousness - put paid to any notions that Indy car racing would one day be considered to be on par with the NASCAR racertainment machine. And with just 200,000 people watching IndyCar's season finale from the California Speedway on TV - 200,000 people! - I would say that the crisis facing IndyCar now is dire, even life threatening. If a gifted promoter like Randy Bernard could barely keep IndyCar's head up in the shark-infested media waters, what's going to happen if a Tony George-led organization, for instance, takes over?

Besides, history is about to repeat itself in the most inconvenient way possible for IndyCar. After years of acrimony and contentiousness, Grand-Am has bought out the American Le Mans Series and the unified series is kicking-off at the Daytona 24 Hours in February of 2014. Several manufacturers have made no bones about the fact that they will participate in the new racing series with factory-supported efforts. The usual suspects - Porsche, BMW, Ferrari, Corvette - will be present and accounted for in the GT category. But it's the impressive list of new competitors that everybody is buzzing about.

To say that this does not bode well for IndyCar or Indy car racing is an understatement. Factory-supported racing teams in a series that promotes production-appearing GT cars on the country's most prominent road courses with the backing of NASCAR's marketing machine is the worst-case scenario for any future iteration of IndyCar. Now granted, road racing's popularity in this country has been confined to the enthusiasts who love the sport, meaning the TV numbers are as horrifying as those delivered by IndyCar, but the sport of major league road racing in this country has not had a unified front in years, and there's no denying that NASCAR wields a heavy stick.

So what does it all mean?

It means more factory money headed toward the new road racing series - ISCAR - instead of toward manufacturer-supported engine programs in IndyCar. Right now Honda and Chevrolet square-off in IndyCar for the right to boast about winning the Indianapolis 500, because it's still the single most prestigious motor race in the world. But that can't mask the fact that the rest of the IndyCar series simply doesn't matter. And it's this one issue that continues to vex Indy car racing, year in and year out. That's what Randy Bernard was feverishly working on - making the rest of the series matter - when he was ousted.

After writing all of this I was cautioned just a few minutes ago this morning by one high-ranking executive in the Motor City (someone who is deeply involved at the highest levels of decision-making when it comes to a particular company's involvement in racing) that, "good things are to come in IndyCar, stay tuned."

He is not prone to overpromising anything and he has impeccable credibility, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt - for now.

But really, a new beginning for IndyCar?

I would classify that as a giant "we'll see."

Editor-in-Chief's Note: Read Robin Miller's take on the state of IndyCar here. And Gordon Kirby's perspective here. - PMD

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

(Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives and Wieck Media)
Phoenix, Arizona, April 2, 1995. Jimmy Vasser at speed in his No. 12 Target Chip Ganassi Racing STP Reynard/Ford during the Slick 50 200 CART race at Phoenix International Raceway. Vasser would encounter transmission problems and retire out of the race on Lap 131. Robby Gordon (No. 5 Derrick Walker Racing Valvoline/Cummins Reynard/Ford) would win that day followed by Michael Andretti (No. 6 Newman Haas Racing Kmart/Texaco Havoline Lola-Ford) and Emerson Fittipaldi (No. 2 Penske Racing Marlboro Penske/Mercedes). Vasser won four races and the 1996 CART Championship while driving for Ganassi. He had a total of ten Indy car wins, eight poles and 33 podium finishes during his career. Vasser is now co-owner of the KV Racing Technology IndyCar team with Kevin Kalkhoven.

Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" with hosts John McElroy, from Autoline Detroit, and Peter De Lorenzo, The Autoextremist, and guests this Thursday evening, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.