portland friday

With the Internet working (barely) in my hotel room, I have the opportunity to write on this blog this weekend, which is great. Seeing that its Friday night, its only natural I talk about what happened today at the track.

First of all, a first rate PA announcing team is upon me once again. These guys are fun, knowledgeable, are spread out across the track (including a pit reporter) and are experienced. It’s a breeze working with people of their quality and since the race is actually broadcasted on radio on Sunday, its only natural that they be pro.

All anybody could talk about was the big three way trade and when it was all said and done, we all know who sits at the top! The interesting aspect was that DaMatta was in great spirits afterwards during the autograph session and he really did look like he had a new lease on life. Its important to note that moving from DC to RuSport is a lot more than just moving to a better car. you have a PR rep, you have people who look after you, you have a lot less to worry about and more time to simply focus on the car. despite his poor start, I expect him to bounce back sooner than later. Having said that, wouldn’t it be something if he didn’t? Dominguez looked in good spirits and was offered a lot of ‘relief’ from the fans for remaining in the series. Clearly a track like this doesn’t favor the small team. Nonetheless he did a decent job today and overall cannot be completely upset about his situation. Tonis surprised me a little, although ultimately he was less than 2 seconds behind the leader. Good for him. I hope he improves rapidly.

The crowd seemed higher than normal Fridays, which ultimately I am sure the crazy week leading up to it had something to do with. Lots of merchandisers too.

The Atlantics were pretty darn exciting themselves (at least practice was) as multiple drivers took their time at the front of the pack, including Lewis who was there with his team for the first time. Their qualifying session was mostly rained plagued, so little was actually solved, other than Pagenaud getting the point and the provisional pole. That kid is fast, plain and simple. Like I said today, must be something in their water (France, that is).

Tomorrow is a bizarre day with Warm up taking place in the evening. Not sure I agree with that, but my understanding is that with the early starts, it would push the warm ups too early on Sunday morning. I guess I understand and I guess it saves me from being at the track at 5am, so selfishly, I don’t mind. But the teams have a decision to make. How many changes to do you make after the warm up? Cause although time is on your side, track-time isn’t.

Saturday night, myself and Erik Mauk are speaking at the Inner Circle Fan club dinner. That should be a riot and I believe that they decided to let Eric and I talk at the same time as opposed to the usual one after the other procedure. I guess they think we have good chemistry together. We’ll find out. We also have the first Fan Forum this year with the CTE drivers and Tony Cotman. It’s the first time this season and with all the talk of a possible merger, its going to be interesting what a team like CTE thinks of one.

Alright, although its barely 8pm here, its time for me to hit the hay. Tomorrow is a very busy day and Sunday is going to top it. I hope everybody has a fun weekend!

Portland baby!

This has been a great couple of weeks in the ChampCar news department and I have to say, I am soooo excited for this Portland race. I'm always excited for a ChampCar race, but seldom this excited! I can't wait to hear and feel the buzz in the paddock and pit lane with everything that's happen lately. This is going to be great!

I really think that DaMatta can pull an upset and win this thing. Its not such a shocking statement, given that he's the defending champion, twice over.

interesting article on autosport by Paul Tracy talking about the situation with Mario and AJ. I was surprised that he was so hard on AJ and his temper. I knew AJ had one, but PT made it seem like its beyond controllable. It might be, I don't know. I still think he'll fit in nicely with the team. I am just relieved that he's still in the series. Now, Dale Coyne, get Ryan Hunter Reay in that DC car! Mario might still get it, but between you and me, I am hoping for Ryan. Actually, I want both! I want Mario in the series. I want him in a good car and be competitive! Hopefully it can happen. the guy deserves it.

by the way, you know who is turning out to be the absolutely nicest driver? Jan Heylen. the kid has a constant smile on his face, loves everything about the series and you really get a sense that he's listening to you when you talk. If you ever have a chance to meet him, do so, its worth it. A very pleasant young man. And I should say that amongst the female ChampCar staff, he's quickly becoming the best looking driver too. :)

Mario is out

Mario out at Forsythe:

I have to say, this news is big, but pales in comparison to AJ leaving RuSport. There are many reasons for this, but I think the main reason is that AJ and Carl Russo have had an association since RuSport’s inception into the big leagues of open-wheel racing. But, Mario leaving Forsythe is still big news. The question is, why? And why now? I read somewhere that Mario said something to the effect of not being happy playing 2nd fiddle to Paul Tracy. If that’s true, that’s just plain stupid. I thought I heard that Carpentier had mentioned the same thing. Again, ridiculous. He’s freakin’ Paul Tracy, the driver with the most victories in all of America. He’s a champion. He’s a legend in the sport. Of course if you have the number 7(or 32) you’ll be second fiddle to Paul Tracy. It should be an honor to be second fiddle to PT. anyway, I thought this needed to be addressed, simply because it was supposedly not the first time someone has cried foul about teaming with Tracy.

Now, why did it happen? Simple: that 7 (or 32) or whatever number you want to call it is a winning car. it has done it in the past, it has done it against Newman/Haas’ number 1, it has done it against (or with) the 3 car. And it wasn’t winning anymore. The team, the engineers, the mechanics of that team all had wins under their belts (most of them anyway). Mario did not win last year and this year it was clear (albeit likely by accident) that he was hurting not only himself, but his teammate’s chances at catching Bourdais. FCR isn’t a small team, its not a team that strives for strong finishes and hopes to get collectively better as a team. They want to win, they want to win now and they CAN win now. As good as a driver as Mario is (two career wins), he clearly didn’t fit in all that nicely with the team and since this is a team (and a car) that is expected to finish at the top of the podium a couple of times (at least) a season, they had to end their relationship. Mario likely knew going in that this was the deal. Join our team and perform or else. He got the or else…

Having said that, I hope Mario finds another ride somewhere. He’s a great person, the ladies love him (and he loves them!) and he’s always nice to the media and the fans. He’s a proud Mexican, which is great and a proud ChampCar driver. And yes, even though his first win in Australia was fluky, his second win in Miami wasn’t. In a lot of ways, Mario represents exactly what ChampCar is all about. Big street festivals, the glamorous, good-looking racecar drivers who soaks in a lot of the city before and after hitting the track. a million-dollar smile and a need for speed! He’s not a kid, but a veteran and with a little bit of luck and the right outfit, he can challenge on any given weekend. Unfortunately, it wasn’t with Forsythe and they parted ways.

Now, is AJ getting that Forsythe seat? Is Mario going to Dale Coyne? Things better happen soon, because Portland starts in 4 days and right now I count about 11 cars on the grid! (slight exaggeration, but not by much). I hope AJ does land at Forsythe because I believe that AJ will realize that its Paul’s team and instead of resenting that, will learn from Paul and his success. That car is capable of winning every single weekend, as is AJ. I think the two would fit nicely together!