Streets of Long Beach...or how Tracy is the King…of said streets.

Generally speaking, if your name is Tracy, Unser or Andretti, chances are you’re the favorite going in this event, given your track record. Of course, only Tracy remains with the series and despite the increased competition of the Champ Car World Series, he still has to be the favorite going into this event. The winner of back to back races in LB (and a total of 4 career wins on these streets); he manages to utilize the streets like no other driver. If you recall in 04 he started 3rd on the grid behind the powerhouse Newman/Haas boys and outsmarted them and the entire field by using the Push to Pass button right off turn one and jump pass Junquiera and Bourdais to take the lead. It was the only time he used the P2P in the race and I guarantee you that that was one of his MO’s during the race. He outplayed everyone by using the brand new technology before anyone could settle into the race. His team knew that they would catch Newman/Haas by surprise off turn one and boy, did they ever! Of course, in 03, most believe (and rightly so) that Jourdain would have captured his first win had it not been for an engine stalling in the pits late in the race. A heartbreaker, no question about it. But there needed to be a person putting pressure on him all race and taking advantages of any mistakes, and that man was Paul Tracy. Again, he outpaced and outsmarted his opponents by putting enough pressure on Jourdain, but also by waiting and being patient (a characteristic he seems to have discovered that particular year) and fending off the other drivers behind him. Let’s also not forget the good work of his crew on that last pitstop, allowing Tracy to come out ahead of Fernandez and winning the race.

Have I painted a clear enough picture of Tracy’s knowledge on the streets of Long Beach or should I mention his win in 2000 when he started 17th?!

With the mandatory pitstops gone (good rule!) and no pitting on yellow flags, this will change much of the racing that we have seen take place the past few years. It’ll change in strategy that is, not in the fans enjoying the race. I stand by the argument that even if some teams chose a ‘fuel efficient’ run, to the naked eye its still racing pretty damn fast!! It’s not like suddenly cars are going to put-put around the track in order to save fuel. We’re talking about dropping 5mph or the likes. Whether you’re going 180phm or 175mph, nobody will notice the difference and the overall action and enjoyment of the race will increase. This was definitely a good move on the part of Champ Car.

Having said that, their efforts to increase the product-enjoyment cannot be ignored and the fact that they gambled on pit windows and a variety of rules in order to enhance the product is great. It shows that Champ Car is not content with the Status Quo and is trying to improve whenever possible. Some ventures work (P2P), some don’t (Pit windows), but at least they continue to try to find innovative ways to make the product better.

I look for Team Forsythe and Paul Tracy to once again put on a great event in LB and figure something out that the other teams won’t. But I’m sure Bourdais and the rest of the boys will go out there and try to prove me wrong!

Champ Car baby! Champ Car for life!