IRL contingent impressed with fan turnout

IndyCar drivers are used to spending Friday and Saturday of race weekends looking at empty grandstands. That was never the case for Champ Car, especially when they visited Canada. IndyCar doesn't release attendance figures so we won't know if this year's Rexall Edmonton Indy (former a Champ Car race) attracts as many fans as Champ Car did the last three years. But one thing was certain, even though practice day was moved to Thursday, there were still thousands of fans in the stands and milling through the paddock.

Attendance for the Edmonton race has always been high, even on weekdays

"The crowd, it looks like a Sunday to us," said Tony Kanaan of Andretti Green Racing. "You can barely walk around the paddock. This is the type of events we need."

At the Watkins Glen race earlier this month there probably weren't as many people in the stands on race day as there were in the Edmonton stands Thursday.

Tim Cindric, president of Team Penske, liked the city centre airport setup, as well as the number of fans who turned out on a normal working day.

"I've always enjoyed coming to Canada because of the enthusiasm, the knowledgeable fans. They know more than just the drivers, they know a bit about the sport. They're very knowledgeable fans, which is refreshing."

And Tony George, founder and chief executive officer of the Indy Racing League, whose opinion will be influential in where the IndyCar schedule goes in the future, said he was also very impressed with Thursday's turnout. Edmonton has a three-year contract with the IndyCar Series.