I think that with the type of attitude that they're bringing to the table right now, which is very professional and quite pleasing to me, it's going to be a very interesting season. I think it's going to be quite sporting with the level of competitiveness that everybody is going to show, and I certainly believe that we've got the group of people to make the very most of the opportunities.
Q.
Speaking again as not just the vice president of Forsythe Racing but as a guy who's been around the sport as a team manager or in a management role for a long time, again, a guy who wins -- not just a guy who wins a championship, but even guys who win one or two races, I think, correct me if I'm wrong, that pretty well singles them out as being pretty serious talents if they're beating, as you say, 24 or 36 other pretty decent drivers.
NEIL MICKLEWRIGHT:
Absolutely it does, and I think that the way that the new Champ Car Atlantic is heading, I think we're going to perhaps see a return to the heady days of the late '70s and early '80s where it is very much the breeding ground for the majority of the very best drivers. I think the series will get an opportunity for the very best to shine. I probably anticipate each of these four young men winning races in this coming year, and at least one of them being the champion.
Q.
Neil, you didn't have the opportunity to test these drivers as far as I know. How did you go about selecting these four young men?
NEIL MICKLEWRIGHT:
Yeah, you're correct, we did not have the opportunity to test them. I'm not altogether convinced that had we been able to test them that we would have learned anything that made it any easier for us to make our decisions. In view of the fact that the car we're going to be using is brand new, that puts everybody pretty much in the same situation. So what we did was to take a very close look at the past performances and what we viewed to be the future potential of these of the people that we selected. It was not an overnight thing.
We also had lists that we narrowed down, and I'm just overjoyed that they were able to get what I viewed as being the best four up-and-coming drivers in the world right now.
Q.
Other than the series being good, a good place to be and to help Champ Car, as far as for your team itself, what is this Atlantic programme going to do for your Champ Car team?
NEIL MICKLEWRIGHT:
Well, there's a great deal of synergy obviously between the Atlantic team and the Champ Car team. I think that the level of support that the owners of Champ Car have put into the Atlantic team, the interest that they've generated I think needs to be looked upon as an indication of their thoughts about the future.
From a team point of view, that commitment is also the same. We've had a reasonably successful Champ Car team that we hope will be for successful in the future, and we're doing our bit not only to be supportive of the new series but also to build relationships with drivers, with mechanics, with engineers, and essentially the ladder system isn't just for drivers; it's for all people that are involved in motor racing. So it gives us an opportunity to eventually get young engineers, for instance, up-and coming mechanics, all of who are just as important as anyone else in the overall team.
So it essentially becomes a system for the Champ Car team as well as being its own entity.
Q.
Any sponsorship announcements on the horizon for these four cars, and will there be any team orders?
NEIL MICKLEWRIGHT:
Let me answer those questions in reverse order, if I may. No, there will be no team orders, with one exception; I don't expect them to run into each other.
And with regards to sponsors, there will be some announcements in the coming weeks, but nothing that we're at liberty to announce at this moment.
Q.
Well, my question for the gentlemen is you excited about the new type car, the series, the way it's going? I just can't believe what is in store for the '06 season for the Atlantic series.
LEONARDO MAIA:
Well, obviously we're all incredibly excited. At least for me, I can't wait to get going. There's a lot of hype around the series right now, a lot of the sort of chat rooms I've been looking at says it's even going to be better than the Champ Car series, and I think it will be. We're going to have an enormous amount of talent that we race against in pretty much every event. So it's going to be tough. You could possibly have a different winner in every single race. That's how competitive I think the series is going to be.
I'm looking forward to a really, really tough fight. I know I've sort of armed myself with the best people and equipment possible, and I just hope we can come out on top.
Q.
Do you feel that a multi-car team is more of a hindrance, or would you prefer to be on like a one-car team?
LEONARDO MAIA:
To be honest, it depends on the situation. With this situation here at Forsythe and with the new car and with the Atlantic programme, it's a huge programme to have more cars just because the testing is so restricted in the series that any extra time or any extra data you can gather is going to be an advantage. There aren't too many situations where it's a disadvantage. There's no downside to it. It's just more for the team, more data, more everything.
ERIC MAUK:
Talk about what you do to stay sharp between now and when you get in that Atlantic car in the middle of March. James, where are you headed?
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE:
Obviously it's going to be a step up between driving last year and Champ Car Atlantic next year. There's going to be a pretty intense workout regimen. Every day it will be something, a lot of cardio, weight training, especially working on my neck a little bit.
Also getting into a go-kart. Shifter carts are great training tools. They are remarkably quick and they keep your reaction times up, keep you on the ball because we don't get the new cars until late March. So it'll definitely be a lot of sweating going on before we even hit the track.
RICHARD PHILLIPE:
Well, I have a trainer that we got from Europe to come over just for a few months from now until the first race. So basically when I'm home, I do an hour -- a session of cardio and a session of weight training every day. Cardio goes from biking to swimming, running, go-kart, and weight training is always at the gym.
You know, the go-kart I haven't been able to do too much of unfortunately, but to keep my driving technique sharp, I think I street race illegally without a license (laughter).
ANDREAS WIRTH:
I mean, workout definitely every day, and I would try to do a lot of mental training between when the season starts because I think that's 50 percent of everything is in your head. I think that's important, that's very important, too. That's just something you can do before the season because I think after the season starts, there's not that much time to do that stuff or to work with stuff like that.
So I try to do as much as I can before everything starts mentally, and physical-wise, so I will definitely be ready.
LEONARDO MAIA:
I'm going to cut my alcohol intake from a 12-pack to a 6-pack. That should be enough (laughter).
You know, go-karting obviously is I think the best way to stay in shape. I like to go go-karting every day. Unfortunately that's not possible. If I can't go-kart I'm on a bike or running or swimming obviously. That's the best way to stay in shape for me.
Q.
I guess this is another question for Neil. There's that $2 million pot of gold sitting out there at the end of the year for somebody to take. A four-car super team, your odds of winning that are pretty good I would say. Have you thought about what -- I'm not sure exactly who gets the money, whether it's the driver who gets the money, but he has to use it to get the Champ Car ride if I understand correctly. Have you thought about if one of your drivers were to win, using that money and put that person into driving the Champ Car?
NEIL MICKLEWRIGHT:
Well, it's an interesting question. I think that the $2 million accrues to the driver that wins the championship and is there and needs to be spent on a Champ Car ride. We have options on all these young men going toward the future, so hopefully depending on how things work out, we could consider in the future running a third car in Champ Car. Who knows what the future brings. But certainly we've got them on board now because we think that they're the wave of the future, and whichever one of them wins the championship and the money that goes with it, then certainly we'll bend over backwards to make sure that they get a top quality ride with somebody in Champ Car.
Q.
You've now announced your four-car team. Any plans to make some announcements in the near future to finalise your Champ Car team?
NEIL MICKLEWRIGHT:
There's no specific plans in place right now, but I do anticipate in the next few weeks being able to make the announcement after it's finalised.
