Champ Car schedule to reduce to 12 races?

UPDATE As the Champ Car spokesperson told AutoRacing1.com in December, the approval by the FIA of the two European races by the FIA was just a formality. On Monday the FIA released this revised 2008 schedule (PDF) which now shows Champ Car at 14 races for 2008 and Zolder and Jerez have been added.

12/12/07 A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1.com I have been following the problems with Champ Car this past season and I trust nothing that the ownership and management says without external confirmation of what they claim. With Champ Car recent 2007 cancellations and mind, I recently read the item in your news section about the FIA World Motorsports Council approving the 2008 Champ Car schedule with suspicion. I later checked with the Champ Car World Series web site and saw that they had their full fourteen race 2008 schedule up. Being still untrusting of this, I then went to the FIA site and looked into the calendars section. I found the attached PDF dated today that shows only 12 approved races. I do not see Zolder or Jerez listed. This does not surprise me. From what I have been told by several people I know inside the industry, both races had serious issues that needed resolution and that was unlikely unless the CCWS owners wrote yet another big large check. Apparently that has not happened. It seems like Champ Car has not learned from the disasters of 2007. Buddy Jobe

Dear Buddy, A Champ Car spokesperson told AutoRacing1.com that "Yes, the FIA requested some additional information, and we are complying with their requests and we fully expect the two races in question to get final FIA approval soon." Mark C.