Penske move: What does it all mean?

A reader writes, Dear AutoRacing1, Is the announcement that Roger Penske is going to race in the ALMS rather than Grand-Am a break in the oval cartel? Penske going to ALMS is certainly big news…snubbing the low-tech "NASCAR" sanctioned Grand-Am series. Obviously Porsche is tossing a wad of cash at him, but what do you think this will mean for sports car racing? Could the fans (in the case of Grand-Am the lack of fans) actually be a factor in making a motorsports decision? Hopefully this is the beginning of the end of dumbed-down open-wheel and sports cars! Bob Lowe, Woburn, MA

Dear Bob, It's a bit too early to know for sure what Roger's move means, if anything. The ALMS has made some significant manufacturer gains this year which bodes well for the future of that series. Just as CART was always the superior Indy Car series, ALMS is the superior sports car series. As we have often written, road racing fans have zero interest in dumbed down NASCARized road race cars, hence why the Grand-Am series races attract near-zero race fans despite a valiant effort by its staff. We have told the Grand-Am their model is wrong, but they didn't want to hear it. So while the France family is pumping millions of dollars each year into the series, they might as well pump it down a rathole. When a company has a product the customer doesn't want, the company either makes radical changes or it goes belly up.

Whether Penske's move has anything to do with the rumors that Toyota is leaving the IRL we're not sure. Only Roger knows and he's not talking. Mark C.