The Way It Is: The booming Atlantic formula.

Tuesday, 9th May 2006

Here we are in the merry month of May, hand-wringing time for ten unfortunate years about the state of the Indy 500 and American open-wheel racing.

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by Gordon Kirby

Here we are in the merry month of May, hand-wringing time for ten unfortunate years about the state of the Indy 500 and American open-wheel racing. Ten years after the CART/IRL split it’s clear to all that reunification is the best, the healthiest, and the only real way forward, but as everyone knows and as I’ve already documented in this column, powerful personalities remain opposed to a path of progress ahead of their own interests.

I’m encouraged only because Kevin Kalkhoven and Jerry Forsythe are being uncommonly positive. Forsythe is a veteran of the CART/IRL war, deeply familiar with the situation, and I’ve never heard him so confident that something might happen this time. “I’m optimistic,” Forsythe said last week. “This is the first time they [Tony George and the IRL] have been willing to sit down and have a serious discussion. I think we’ll know where we’re going in three or four weeks.”

Meanwhile, the IRL teams are starting practice at Indianapolis this week and Champ Car runs a new street race in Houston this weekend, then goes down to the Monterrey, Mexico road course the following weekend. While both series struggle along, the good news on the American open-wheel scene is all about Champ Car’s revitalised Atlantic series. The key ingredients are a new chassis from Swift in San Clemente, a new engine from Mazda/Cosworth that is cheaper and more powerful than the old Toyota engine, and a $2 million prize for the series champion dedicated to landing him a Champ Car ride.

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