Will Bruton sue IndyCar if they renege?

UPDATE IndyCar gave away a rumored 100,000 free tickets for this year's race on the Vegas oval and despite those free tickets and all the hoopla surrounding the big prize Wheldon was going after, the grandstands were so empty you could shoot a cannon in them and not hit anyone. So if next year fans have to pay to see the race, how many do you think will buy them? Faced with losing his shirt, Bernard may feel the lawsuit will cost IndyCar less money than the potential financial bloodbath that could result should he have to pay Bruton to rent the track again. Since it is a track rental deal, how much would Bruton win in the lawsuit? Peanuts we suspect.

11/30/11 While IndyCar is pursuing a 'safer' and more glamorous street race in Las Vegas, track owner Bruton Smith says he fully expects the IndyCar Series to return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway next season. Smith says there are two years remaining on the contract between the speedway and the open-wheel series, and he expects IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard to honor the deal.

While he did not say he will sue IndyCar if they do not honor the contract, don't put it past Bruton. He knows how to play hardball.

Smith also wants the series at Texas Motor Speedway next season, but rumor has it Bruton wants to pay IndyCar less than what IndyCar is asking.

At a NASCAR event in downtown Las Vegas on Wednesday, Smith was critical of Bernard's indecision and called on him to honor his agreements with Speedway Motorsports Inc. IndyCar does not have a sanctioning agreement yet with Texas for 2012.