Champ Car’s move to Phoenix timely

Champ Car is adding a race in Phoenix, Arizona at the right time it seems. The county Phoenix is in is the fasting growing in the nation. Maricopa County, Ariz., gained 696,000 residents between 2000 and 2006, the largest numerical increase of the nation’s 3,141 counties, according to estimates released today by the U.S. Census Bureau.

This increase surpasses the total population of all but 15 U.S. cities. Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, has 3.8 million residents, making it the nation’s fourth largest county.

“The dramatic increase in Maricopa County’s population is the main reason Arizona became the nation’s fastest-growing state between 2005 and 2006," said Census Bureau Director Louis Kincannon, referring to the state population estimates released last December. “Maricopa’s growth has been remarkable, adding nearly 3 million residents since the 1970 census."