“AP Source: Homestead off 2011 IRL schedule” plus 1 more |
| AP Source: Homestead off 2011 IRL schedule Posted: 08 Sep 2010 01:29 PM PDT CBSSports.com wire reports Sep. 8, 2010 MIAMI -- Homestead-Miami Speedway is off the 2011 Indy Racing League schedule, a decision that some of the series' top drivers are not thrilled about. A person with knowledge of the IRL's 2011 plan told the Associated Press on Wednesday that Homestead is not among the venues selected to host a race next year. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because IndyCar officials do not plan to release the full schedule for the coming season until Friday. Homestead was IRL's traditional opening site for much of the past decade, hosted the series championship-deciding finale in 2009 and will be where the final race of this year takes place on Oct. 2. "For me, obviously, I don't know the logistics of what happened so it's hard to criticize one part or another," driver Tony Kanaan told the AP. "To me, it's a shame. It's like losing my home race. It's the race all my friends get to see. It's the only race a lot of people here can afford to go see. It's the only opportunity I have to invite people to watch." Kanaan, who said he was previously made aware of IndyCar's decision about Homestead, is one of 10 IRL drivers with homes in South Florida. "It's a shame," Kanaan said. "That's my personal view. It's a shame." Other drivers, including reigning IRL champion Dario Franchitti and longtime Homestead visitor Scott Dixon, said earlier this week they were hopeful South Florida would remain on the series schedule. It's been widely expected for several weeks that Las Vegas will replace Homestead as site of the 2011 IRL finale, but there were talks about Homestead occupying another date on next year's calendar. "I'll be sad if we don't come back here," Franchitti said Monday during a visit to Homestead. Homestead-Miami Speedway President Matt Becherer told the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce at a Wednesday luncheon that the track generates $331 million annually for the South Florida economy, saying $250 million of that came directly from NASCAR's annual championship weekend. Operated by International Speedway Corporation, Homestead hosts the finales for all three of NASCAR's series, and Becherer said there was a "very real" threat made earlier this year by rival track owner Bruton Smith to lure the Sprint Cup championship to his facility in Las Vegas. "He wants our race badly. Very badly," Becherer told the Miami chamber Wednesday. "There's going to come a time where we're going to have to respond to these threats. What's at stake is simply too high." Becherer did not mention anything about the IRL's plans for 2011 and beyond at Homestead in his 12-minute address Wednesday. Smith, the chairman of Speedway Motorsports Inc., said last weekend that Homestead, about a 30-minute drive south of downtown Miami, isn't a worthy site for championship events. He referred to the track's location as "North Cuba" and indicated that he expected the IRL finale to be in Las Vegas for at least 2011. "I've worked really hard to promote the Homestead race," Kanaan said. "I've seen the growth of the public there. We announced the unification of the series there in 2008. It's part of the new history of the new league and it's a track that I heart a lot. We're not filling the place like the Cup guys do, but it's increasing." Kanaan is hopeful something can be worked out for 2012. "I will do whatever it takes," Kanaan said. "I work for my team and I work for the league, but if there's something that can be done, I'll be the first one to do it." This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Big names like Martin won't make Chase for reason Posted: 08 Sep 2010 05:21 PM PDT The field for this year's Chase for the Sprint Cup is all but decided, with only two spots in the 12-driver lineup officially up for grabs. But unless Greg Biffle gets kidnapped before Saturday night's race in Richmond and Clint Bowyer's car breaks down on the pace lap, the final two berths are also sewn up. Many believe the dozen who will compete for this year's championship beginning next weekend in New Hampshire make up one of the closest title fields since the format was introduced in 2004. I'm not going as far as to say it will be a wide-open race to win the crown, but in my mind there are at least a half-dozen drivers who have a legitimate shot. But what about those who were expected to be in this year's Chase and will instead simply watch the championship be decided over the final 10 races? The Chase Class of 2010 will be missing several drivers who looked like locks when the year began in Daytona. There is a variety of reasons some of the biggest names in the sport won't have a chance to compete for a title this season: Mark Martin In many ways, Martin not making the Chase is the biggest shock of the season. After a storybook 2009 in which the popular veteran driver came within an eyelash of his first career Cup crown, Martin seemed like a slam dunk to return for another chance this season. But even the vaunted Hendrick Motorsports camp is susceptible to disappointment, and Martin hasn't been able to show anything close to the consistency he had on nearly a weekly basis last year. Frustration seemed to mount within the Martin camp during the summer months, and the wheels came off completely. Martin will likely fall way short of the elite 12.Ryan Newman The Stewart-Haas Racing driver still holds out hope of making up a 117-point deficit and catching Bowyer for the final Chase spot, but it would take extraordinary circumstances for that to happen. Like Martin, Newman came into the campaign riding high from a stellar 2009, his first driving for Tony Stewart's team. Crashes and mechanical issues have plagued Newman, who, despite winning at Phoenix in April, has rarely been in contention for Victory Lane. Juan Pablo Montoya Last season's Chase darling has fallen on hard times and was never a serious contender for a playoff berth. Montoya and crew chief Brian Pattie put together a perfect, if conservative, regular-season plan in 2009 that earned a spot in the Chase field. The reins came off when the playoffs started, but Montoya faded from contention late in the title run, a trend that unfortunately followed into the start of the new season. Kasey Kahne The bright spot at Richard Petty Motorsports last season, when be brought The King two wins, was the center of controversy from the beginning of 2010. Kahne made rumblings about his unhappiness with RPM's direction early in the year, which snowballed into a much-ballyhooed parting of the ways and tug-of-war with team owner Rick Hendrick, who signed Kahne to a deal that wouldn't start until 2012. Speculation and discussion about where Kahne would spend his limbo season next year, ultimately winding up at Team Red Bull, took the focus off the matter at hand with the No. 9 Ford, and Kahne is doing his best to finish his reign with Petty in the top 20. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Year 3 of the "Great Dale JR Mystery" rolls on at Hendrick Motorsports, with Earnhardt no closer to being a Chase contender than he was at the end of his DEI tenure. Earnhardt sniffed a Chase berth around the midway point of the regular season but fell back into a string of inconsistent performances and poor finishes that will once again keep the sport's most popular driver out of championship contention. Although team owner Hendrick once again gave Earnhardt and crew chief Lance McGrew a vote of confidence a few days ago and vowed not to tinker with the team's chemistry, unless there's marked improvement over the course of the final 10 races, I'd expect Mr. H to change his stance during the offseason. Garage Chatter • Walmart continues its negotiations with NASCAR about a potential marketing and merchandising partnership to begin in 2011. The company had been in negotiations with Hendrick about potentially sponsoring Jeff Gordon's entry but those talks have ended. Speculation is the world's largest retailer will enter into a licensing agreement with the sanctioning body to carry collectibles and other souvenir merchandise. • Also on the sponsorship front, Tony Stewart is close to picking up Mobil 1 backing to fill the void left on his Cup entry by the departure of Old Spice. And Quaker State has signed a four-race deal to adorn Mark Martin's ride in 2011. • An open test will take place at Daytona International Speedway January 17-19 as teams get an opportunity to run on the track's newly installed asphalt surface. NASCAR is also considering a return to some form of limited testing perhaps allowing teams to participate in five or six open sessions held at various facilities throughout the season. Should that policy be put into place, NASCAR would limit organizations from private tests held at non-sanctioned tracks like Georgia's Gresham Motorsports Park, Virginia International Raceway, Rockingham Speedway or The Milwaukee Mile. • Speaking of Milwaukee, the historic track will find its way back onto the IZOD IndyCar schedule in 2011. An official announcement is planned for Friday at which time the entire series slate will be unveiled. Milwaukee had been off the IndyCar slate for two years due to financial issues at the Wisconsin State Fair facility. Chicagoland Speedway will join Kansas, Watkins Glen and Homestead as tracks on this year's schedule dropped by the series. • A 20-race 2011 Formula One Series schedule was announced this week which includes a new stop in India. The lone North American stop remains in Canada on June 12 but plans are still in place for the United States Grand Prix to return in 2012 at a state-of-the-art facility being built in Austin, Texas. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Yahoo! News Search Results for AutoRacing To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 comments:
Post a Comment