Paul Newman

The world lost one of its greatest individuals today. The death of Paul Newman was inevitable due to an extended bout with cancer, but still very hard to accept.

Newman was one of the rare humans who used their celebrity not to their advantage, but almost hid from it. Instead, he served as a down-to-earth person who used their celebrity to charitable efforts.

His work as a philanthropist is immense and unmatched. The Newman's Own line of products by themselves have netted over $200 million in donations.

On top of that, Newman's Hole in the Wall Camps have served as a home for sick, injured and otherwise ailed children.

I only knew Newman the racer, not as the actor who lit up movie screens many years before my time. It was in 1996 that I first got into the sport, and the same year Newman's driver, Michael Andretti, led the CART series in victories with five. He only just came up shy of a title.

But the Newman/Haas Racing partnership succeeded in a way few formal rivals ever have - over 100 wins, 8 championships, and a staff of crewmembers that stayed largely intact through this year.

They have served as a pipeline for America's best who moved to F1, but also snatched the defending World Champion from the F1 ranks in 1993. Nigel Mansell's championship season in his rookie year was more-or-less the high point for CART.

But this is not a political issue. Newman the individual preferred his racing as much if not more so than his acting, and his time at the track was refuge from the bright lights of Hollywood. Once you catch the racing bug, it's an addiction you carry for the rest of your life.

I can only wish now I had taken the opportunity to introduce myself to Mr. Newman when I saw him in the pits on several occasions this year.

In 2008 the world has lost Tim Russert, George Carlin and now Paul Newman.

Both the entertainment and racing arenas have lost one of their alltime greats. Rest in peace, PLN.

Chicagoland Speedway musings

First time in almost a month since being on here, with school being the main priority naturally that takes precedence.

Anyway I was back on the IndyCar media trail this past weekend, covering the season finale at Chicagoland. Yeah, both titles were decided on the last lap of the last race - Rafa and Dixon as expected securing their championships - but there were two major things to come out of this weekend.

Milka and Marty-mania.

The maligned usual two that prop up the field can thank their engineers for their best runs of the season this weekend, but anything that is better than finishing last is a step up for each.

Roth qualified ninth, quickly dropped to the rear but finished 16th, only a few laps down.

Milka, shockingly, qualified 20th (ahead of her teammate and others), stayed on the lead lap all day, and even LED a few laps. Granted, four of the five circuits out front were under yellow but for one glorious lap, she held the lead under green. A pit stop that occurred just before a caution dropped her down the order a bit but 14th is a respectable result.

The funny thing of all this is that Duno's five laps led are one more than Danica's this season. Just found it interesting.

And for all the folks who think Danica has a good relationship with the media, think again. A quick question wondering how she got up to 3rd in practice was greeted with her taking off her shades, staring at my hardcard, and saying "I'm sorry, no interviews" in a catty, arrogant and snobbish manner.

I wasn't really expecting anything different but it going out of your way to be rude to the media who are nice enough to cover you says a lot about your character. Just saying.

Trials and tribulations

With summer entering its final two weeks and having just returned from Road America, time in the year 2008 is quickly winding down. Lost in the shuffle of the RA weekend, which brought the crowds on Saturday, was an overlooked result of the open-wheel unification.

RA was one of the tracks that, although they lost their Champ Car race, was able to continue with its scheduled events for this season. As such, a plethora of feeder and sedan series stepped up to the plate on Sunday. The problem was, outside of the respective series officials, the media center was even deader than it was last year.

And the fan turnout was substantially less - in part due to ticket prices that were far more than they should have been due to what happened. $50 a pop for seven feeder series events is about double what the price of admission should have been.

A word also about the new television contract for the IRL IndyCar Series from 2009 forward. Versus, a.k.a. a channel no-one has ever heard of, gets the rights for 13 of 18 events for the next ten years. Contrary to many of the series' media, I am not only frustrated with the deal but fail to see how it can be beneficial to the series' growth in the long run. Moving a series from a network that is available in 20 million more homes (at the minimum), plus the avenues of SportsCenter, ESPN.com, and the Bottom Line, fails to catch my eye.

What incentive do sponsors have to commit to a series where so few races are available on network TV? CART/Champ Car tried this and failed - twice - though in both cases they were in a slightly worse situation by not only moving to a network that had less exposure (SPEED and then Spike TV, 2002 and '04) but paying for their airtime to do so. I'm all for better coverage and more exposure, but not on a network that a majority of the race fans don't get.

2009 IndyCar schedule

All told, it was always going to be difficult to put a positive spin on IndyCar's 2009 schedule release. The statement uttered at the unification press conference was that '09 would be a "clean slate", and in hindsight, that was not the greatest choice of words. And of course there were those Champ Car fans who, bless their heart, wouldn't support the IRL for anything unless some of their venues were added and their cars adopted.

Contracts more than anything stipulated who made it and who didn't for 2009. For 2010 and beyond, when several contracts expire, the slate should be more open.

The difficulty in that lies with temporary circuits, a la Cleveland and Houston, that have been abandoned for two years. Resuscitation of events such as these take years to ever restart, if at all, as Houston would know previously. One downtown, 90-degree corner boring circuit was on CART's schedule from 1998-01 and after it went away, it took until 2006 and the new Reliant Park circuit before racing there resumed. Miami 's variety of layouts were on and off on a couple occasions.

So in terms of those, don't hold your breath for 2010. Cleveland was a CART staple for 20 years but it is likely not going to make the cut in the future. Developers want to create high-rise apartments on the Burke Lakefront Airport location, and reportedly the last few years as a Champ Car event it was a financial burden.

Previously here, I suggested that future IndyCar schedules needed to maintain the most long-term financially viable events, and for 2009, it appears they have done so for the most part. Playing to 30 or 40,000 in a 140,000 seat arena such as Las Vegas Motor Speedway would have been an abomination, and I can only hope the marketing "geniuses" at IRL, Terry Angstadt and Zak Brown of Just Marketing, can drum up enough interest in the finale moving to Homestead.

That one more than any other threw me for a loop. The party line was that "Southern Florida is best known for hosting championship events". Okay, but running in Miami during October is asinine for a number of reasons. Mainly, there are other sporting events (Hurricanes football, Dolphins if they can still be considered a legit NFL franchise) going on, it's hurricane season, and it's only a month ahead of the NASCAR finale.

If they don't come to IndyCar to get the season going, what incentive is there for fans in the region to go to the event when NASCAR wraps up right after? Especially with a lack of promotion more than likely.

Another murky area is the Australia race. Its on-again, off-again stance for 2008 has been annoying at best, and while it does rake in a considerable number of fans over the weekend, whether it is in the best financial interest of the teams remained to be seen. Already this year one Aussie backer went belly-up (Conquest's Opes Prime) and in all likelihood, Aussie Vineyards wouldn't be around without this race for Will Power. Does the travel expense justify the return on investment? Just food for thought.

Permanent circuits are the only hope in terms of being added for 2010. It's already a year off but I would like to see races at New Hampshire (oval), Portland (northwest market), Cleveland and Road America added for 2010 with a couple events (Kentucky, Detroit, Homestead) dropped. I'd say I wanted Phoenix too, but I doubt ISC will budge in giving a date with two NASCAR races there.

For what it's worth, I will be spending the weekend with a plethora of great road racing up at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI. Until next week, cheers.

Odds and ends, and TG's suitability

The dog days of summer are drawing ever nearer to a close. IndyCar wrapped up its six consecutive race weekends at Edmonton, the first former Champ Car circuit where all the teams competed (Long Beach was split of course). Some musings about that and future series directions of note:

*For all intensive purposes, the IndyCar championship fight is over. When you consider Scott Dixon has won five races to Helio Castroneves' none, and 65 points is a lot to make up when Dixon has only twice finished outside the top four all season, the Brazilian's chances of his elusive first title are nil. Dixon nearly overcame a 65-point gap to Dario Franchitti last year but he had eight races to close it down, whereas Helio only has half that. Gentlemen, start your engraving...

*Paul Tracy's run to 4th was one of his best efforts the last three years. Driving a car for the first time, with a crew that hadn't doen pit stops since April, in a last-minute deal, Tracy made a number of fantastic moves while keeping his nose clean and earning Vision Racing's best result of the year. I originally viewed it as a mere PR stunt but hopefully this leads to more opportunities for PT in the future.

*The IndyCar Series schedule is due out tomorrow in all likelihood, given the timetables rumored the last few weeks, and an advisory on indycar.com's Up to Speed program some "big announcement" was coming in the next 24 hours. And no, it wasn't that Brett Favre has been traded, ending the month-long nightmare currently encapsulating the state of Wisconsin if not the entire football world. Not yet, at least.

*Finally, depending on what message boards you read, the IndyCar Series is either on the verge of some massive growth announcement or the brink of collapse altogether. Consider this - NASCAR's tire debacle at the Brickyard on Sunday could have far reaching effects beyond the farce it provided for the fans there. And it has a lot to do with power, something that all but killed open-wheel racing the last dozen years.

ESPN, NASCAR's bed partners now that they sold their souls to get back in the game of televising the 3400-lb billboard taxicabs, had one of their analysts Rusty Wallace blame the track for causing the tire issues, instead of Goodyear. The diamond-graining of the track's surface has not held up well to any rubber other than Bridgestone/Firestone, lest one forget the 2005 USGP when Michelin's unsafe tires caused their 14 cars to pull out. I was there and it was not a pleasant experience for my first, and to this point, only Grand Prix.

Put simply, Goodyear did not make a suitable tire for the event, just as they haven't at several other venues this season. They've been weeded out of open-wheel altogether and when a PR rep was asked if he could confirm this wouldn't happen again, he said simply, "No". That's consumer confidence for you.

Now what does this have to do with IndyCar, you ask? If NASCAR and/or its broadcast partner makes overtones to IMS that the track was the reason for the farce and not its own tire maker, what does Tony George do? TG isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, we all know that. And in part, his decision to allow NASCAR at the Speedway allowed the creation of the Indy Racing League in the first place and its catastrophic split of open-wheel.

One IndyCar Series, even with TG at the helm, is more of a threat to NASCAR's superiority complex that two was, and the divided fanbases could only help NASCAR for the last dozen years. If TG gives in to any NASCAR-issued demands, that could possibly impact the history of the track and the Indy 500 to suit NASCAR's benefit, he is only sacrificing himself and his open-wheel series, for the glory of the pre-eminent racing division in this country.

NASCAR's economy is bad but apparently so, too, is IndyCar's. The long rumors of a title sponsor paying $10 million for the rights now can apparently be had for half that according to a recent article in the Sports Business Journal online. And as number two on ESPN's pecking order, IndyCar has no negotiating rights other than the Indy 500, which apparently is all networks want to pay for. It's a case of, have Indy, and get the other races added on for grins and giggles.

ESPN is a catch-22 situation for IndyCar. Yes, it offers more exposure than any other major network because of the far-reaching avenues of coverage - three networks (ABC, ESPN, 2), ESPN.com, SportsCenter and the bottom line. But ESPN treats IndyCar as the unwanted stepchild, and for years has provided some of the most ill-produced and poor coverage, in terms of their on-air "talent" and production value. It's a losing proposition as it is, according to the ESPN execs.

The point of that long-winded diatribe was this: the ball is squarely in Tony George's court. He got what he wanted, which was control of all open-wheel racing. But only he can make decisions that will impact where IndyCar goes in the future, and those decisions will determine whether IndyCar even survives at all. By not standing his ground, TG loses what little modicum of dignity he has left.

IndyCar needs stability in terms of the driver lineup and sponsorship, and inspired direction in terms of its schedule and future chassis and engine combination. It needs a leader who will not give in to demands of its rival, which would only ensure its demise. It needs a TV contract that not only gives exposure and good production value, but also a marketing team that showcases what good IndyCar has to offer, not Gene Simmons.

Put simply, it needs Tony George to become something he hasn't been for the better part of the last twelve years.

A leader with backbone.

Dark Knights and pit fights

I have failed myself. After going through the weekend not seeing the much-hyped and money-making phenomenon that is the latest Batman installment, The Dark Knight, I wonder just how to live with my decision.

In lieu of that, while my eyes weren't fixated on the silver screen, the tube did capture a wealth of attention for the 48-hour period. NASCAR's Sprint Cup division had its final off week before a brutal 17 consecutive race weekend stretch, so the racing fan had many picks to choose from.

The catch was, at some point or another, there was overlap between IndyCar and American Le Mans races from Mid-Ohio, F1's German Grand Prix, and the MotoGP stop at Laguna Seca.

Through the magic of DVR and the "last" button on the remote, I managed to capture viewing of most of those events.

One crucial event of the weekend, though, was the incident during practice for the IndyCar race with Danica Patrick waltzing down to Milka Duno's pit to confront the Venezuelan about blocking.

Ever the drama queen, the princess was actually in the right on this one, because sooner or later someone had to point out that a turtle might run quicker than Duno in a car on a road course, and blocking could have caused an accident. It didn't, but the point was taken.

But naturally, since this was the series' two female drivers in a disagreement, it was bound to raise attention. It was more interesting than the race - the start of which was skipped due to the 40 minutes of post-round coverage at the British Open. Duno throwing towels and yelling? She'll earn more attention for that than any of her on-track performances.

Look at it this way, though. Patrick's act of going up to any male was not only getting old but revealed a catty, disrespectful side where she could just get away with it. A man can't push back but Duno wasn't going to stand for DP going bananas. She can't drive much but she does have a fighting spirit. And a thousand-times better personality.

To outsiders, this will be something to generate attention and a PR buzz because it's already been played up on ESPN and FOX News, where Bill O'Reilly nominated Patrick for a "pinhead" award. O'Reilly is the pinhead emeritus for what it's worth, so it must of been nice of him to lose the crown for one show.

Should Danica be picking fights when she is not that quick on road and street courses to begin with? Not necessarily. Should she keep doing it to generate interest in the series for people that don't appreciate racing for the spectacle but do in case of a fight? Probably.

Would this have received any attention if these were two males? Of course not. One guy notorious for picking fights, Paul Tracy, is back for this weekend's event at Edmonton, to be run on Saturday to as not conflict with the NASCAR race at TGeorge's track. Until next week, cheers.

The subject of returns

Brief entry this week, as most of the local sports here in Wisconsin is engulfed by the fervor over a potential Brett Favre comeback. All I will say about that is both Favre and the Packers management team have done a terrible job of handling things from communications and professional standpoints.

To be fair, though, such a situation as is currently arising in Green Bay has been going on all year in the IndyCar ranks. One of, if not the most prominent absence from the series this year, has been Canadian Paul Tracy, whose experience, candor and aggressiveness is unrivaled anywhere in the paddock.

The will-he, won't-he race saga has gone on since Gerry Forsythe wouldn't let him out of his contract. Tracy limited his own options by saying, A. he wouldn't bring money to a drive, B. he would only consider the top teams (big three, Penske, Ganassi and AGR) and C. previous statements about the IndyCar Series after losing, controversially, the 2002 Indianapolis 500.

PT wasn't at Indianapolis; the only sign of him was a phone call to the most notable open-wheel writer of note, Robin Miller, on bump day. Frankly, racing only one event, as he will in Edmonton in two weeks, is nothing more than a PR stunt to gain publicity for the promoters.

It's unreasonable to expect that in a third car for Vision Racing in conjunction with Derrick Walker that PT will run competitively, or even be in a shot with a win/top five. Conspiracy theorists will claim, though, that there were certain agendas in earlier wins this year by Graham Rahal at St. Pete and Danica Patrick in Japan, and wouldn't be quick to discount a PT triumph north of the border.

I've been fairly critical and not overly optimistic about the unification, but when two egos this big join forces, especially as each has been on polar opposites of the open-wheel divide the last twelve years, come together, this is HUGE. It may only be for one event, but it signals a hatchet between these two is buried.

It's racing's ultimate irony. Imagine if W. Bush and Al Gore collaborated on environmental policies. Or Rosie O'Donnell and Donald Trump going into business ventures. PT and TGeorge on the same team?? Seriously?

When I first got into open-wheel in 1996, I knew there was a greater chance of seeing one open-wheel series again then these two teaming up. BOTH are happening in the same season. Who knew?

Some other notes to pass on in the ranks - Alex Tagliani is in line for a drive at Conquest Racing at Edmonton if not sooner based on Enrique Bernoldi's apathy and lack of results of late. Nashville seems a casuality of the desire to incorporate more road and street course events. And Tracy's sponsor, Subway, may comprise a bigger role in the marketing division of ICS down the road.

Stay tuned on those fronts. Until next week, cheers.