Overheard in Zolder – 2
08/26/07 Further to our speculation below about Trust, AutoRacing1.com has since heard that Trust founder Michael Perridon will buy into Eric Bachelart's Conquest Racing team and place Dutch driver Jos Verstappen in one car with Jan Heylen staying in the other car. So one half the team will be Dutch and the other Belgium. If true, this of course is good news for Bachelart since his team struggled to make the grid this year and with Trust's backing will solidify it into a strong 2-car team. Mark C.
08/25/07 We hear that next year's Champ Car Zolder race will be moved up much earlier in the schedule to the June 1st, 2008 timeframe. There are two reasons for this change. 1) To create more separation between the Champ Car race in Belgium and the F1 race at Spa in September, and 2) To create more separation between Zolder and Assen. It's the same event contract owner (Bart Rietbergen) for both races and because of the close proximity to the two tracks (Zolder and Assen) they draw from the same fan base, and we hear there is a desire to separate the two, with Assen remaining on approximately the same date as this year………If this rumor is true, then the question becomes, which other European races will they pair up with Zolder and then later with Assen? We have heard a number of possible European venues, with Greece, France, Germany and Italy still out there, among others. The Italian GP at Monza runs in September so you know a Monza or a Mugello is never going to happen in late August, or early September, and that's assuming Italy is even in the picture per our other rumor. Imola's traditional date is in late April when the weather is the best, but June 8th could work. Ditto for Mugello or another Italian venue………We heard again today that there is still much interest in Trust buying into an existing Champ Car team and to essentially own 1-car of a 2-car effort. The most logical team is Paul Stoddart's Minardi Team USA. Stoddart has a previous relationship with Trust and with Jos Verstappen, who we hear might still be in the picture for a ride after fellow ex-F1 Spyker Dutch driver Christijan Albers split with his manager and is probably going to DTM. And if Doornbos were to stay with the team (we hear he is angling for the vacated Bourdais seat at Newman/Haas/Lanigan) the team would have two Dutch drivers and could be called Team Holland or Team Netherlands. This all makes too much sense although we did hear that Trust was talking to RSPORTS. The problem there is that Trust and CDW are in the same business so you would never see two competing companies on the same team, which might also explain why RuSPORT and Rocketsports had to split so that CDW could stay with Wilson at RuSPORT while Trust goes with Verstappen at Rocketsports. And if all that isn't enough to make your head spin, what of Wilson angling for the vacated Bourdais' seat?…..We hear the Trust car would look like the old Minardi F1 car – all Black with the Red Trust logos, this from someone who has seen the graphic layouts………..As for Verstappen, he won't be able to test a Champ Car, or any car for that matter, until January 1, 2008 because he punched out another driver after getting a brake check in a karting race recently and had his drivers license suspended until then…………We ran into German Andreas Wirth who says he is bringing two important businessmen to the Assen race in the hope they will sponsor him in Champ Car next year……and today (August 25th) is the lovely Bronte Tagliani's birthday. Happy Birthday Bronte. We kidded with her today that she was a fellow Virgo while the beaming knockout was holding a huge beautiful bouquet of flowers from her husband Alex. Mark C. reporting from Zolder