Miller exposes IRL’s shortcomings

Dear AutoRacing1.com: There is a very interesting article by Robin Miller in the February 8 issue of Autosport magazine on the current state of the IRL, “U.S. Single-seater War Keeps Series Diluted". This is just another example of the damage that Tony George has done to open wheel auto racing in the United States and the somewhat pathetic state of affairs currently in the IRL even with some of Champ Car’s former big teams. Here are some key excerpts from Robin Miller’s article (read closely, there are some very interesting new tidbits of information):

Entering its 12th year of business, the Indy Racing League remains a poor substitute for CART in its ‘90s heyday, an under-developed property that’s thought to be a tax write-off for founder Tony George. Today, it’s a spec series comprised of road racers and foreigners that’s dominated by the men (Penske and Ganassi) that George openly despised in the mid-’90s, It has no title sponsor, pathetic TV ratings and struggles to maintain grid sizes.

HOW MUCH MONEY HAS GEORGE INVESTED IN THE IRL? The conservative estimate, counting cars, engines, purses and marketing, is somewhere north of $300 million. Before Honda and Toyota arrived, George had to spend millions propping up several of his under-funded teams. In 2003, during a round of golf, he complained to one of the car owners that he’d spent “$90m" on purses alone. Another estimated $50m has been thrown at marketing companies trying to raise sponsorships. Last May, the IRL founder is believed to have helped finance 11 of the 33 starters in the Indianapolis 500.

WHAT IS HONDA GETTING OUT OF IT AS SOLE SUPPLIER? Not nearly what it expected when it left CART in 2002. Its very existence is mostly to compete against hated rival Toyota, but its dominance in 2004 and 2005 chased it away. And the low-revving, harnessed horsepower rules hardly challenge its technical skills. Supposedly, there is an escape clause in the contract with the IRL that says unless there is a competitor by 2008, Honda is free to leave.

WHAT ABOUT ALL THAT UNIFICATION TALK? There is no doubt that talks were making headway until they were outed by an American magazine. Now it appears there’s little, if any, communication between the two sides. The bottom line? George doesn’t trust what he perceives as shifty car owners and the Champ Car team bosses are wary of a rich kid they think has questionable business acumen. Jeff Broadstreet, Los Angeles