Everybody wants to be rookie of the year. I mean, any driver who is a rookie who tells you not is obviously not plugged in right. So obviously Roshfrans Rookie of the Year is one of my goals. Like I said, I want to just finish races and show consistent improvement. As long as I'm improving, I'm happy. I just want to keep getting better and better and better and we'll see where that takes me.
MC:
Kevin, what are your expectations for Katherine this season?
KK:
I'm very realistic. History show that is it takes three to four years for Atlantic drivers to become successful in the Champ Car series. It doesn't matter whether you look back to Bobby Rahal, Jimmy Vasser, or to AJ Allmendinger, it's a steep learning curve and it takes two or three years, at least, to become successful in such a car.
So I'm approaching it with some degree of reality, which is that this is not going to be an overnight success. This is going to be a steep learning curve. It's going to be hard, it's going to be tough, and the guys certainly are not going to give her one inch. There won't be any 'After you, Madam' out on the race course.
So, you know, if everyone understands that there is this learning curve, there is this period of at least three years before somebody can really be a race winner. Then I think we'll all be on the same page.
MC:
One of the other significant things to happen last evening was the unveiling of the new Swift 016A Atlantic car. A new three‑year agreement with Mazda was almost announced to serve as the engine supplier along as with Cosworth and the marketing partner for the series. The series will now be known as the Yokohama presents the Champ Car Atlantic Championship powered by Mazda.
Kevin, you referred to last night's announcement as the rebirth of open‑wheel racing in North America. Can you talk about new Atlantic car, the future of the Atlantic Championship which enters its 33rd season in 2007?
KK:
Yeah, one of the things that became very apparent to us as the partners in open‑wheel racing, that's Paul [Gentilozzi] and Jerry [Forsythe] and myself, was that you have to rebuild. If you're going to have a viable structure that that's going to be proud of and develop for many years, you need to build it from a very strong foundation. And one of the things that happened in open‑wheel sports in the United States and North America was that there wasn't really that strong foundation for people to want to come and develop here.
