What would happen if Forsythe submitted the winning bid for the assests of CCWS?

[nanders]

Could Gerry Forsythe submit the winning bid for the CCWS assets? And if he did, could he continue the CCWS?

And could any of the outstanding money that the series owes him be counted towards his offer?

You know, it's happened before.

[IWUTitan90]

IIRC, the "paperwork" Tony George flew to Chicago to get Gerry's signature on, contained a non-compete for at least 5 years. Can't swear to it as fact, but I remember reading it somewhere.

[garyshell]

IIRC, the "paperwork" Tony George flew to Chicago to get Gerry's signature on, contained a non-compete for at least 5 years. Can't swear to it as fact, but I remember reading it somewhere.

I recall the same thing being said at the time of the paperwork signing.

Gary

[SoTex]

I remember that being said by TG at the Unification press conference on Speed TV. No way would Gerry get paid that kind of money and not sign a non compete clause.

[SarahFan]

signing a non-compete and adhereing to it are two different things....


I don't think it's going to happen......but Gerry is a strange duck

[bennybigb]

I've thought about this. Gerry has strong ties in Mexico. I think he could run ChampCar from Mexico City and a non-compete clause wouldn't be able to stop that.

I was hoping that was why Gerry was holding onto Paul Tracy, but with Tracy's termination, I don't think Gerry will try to bring ChampCar back.

[dataman1]

I thought that I read that the BK Court had already approved the initial sale of the intellectual stuff, the medical center, and payout to GF and KK. If my memory is correct all GF could buy is semi trailers, several old pace cars, DP01-001 chassis (test car) and tons of other things like laptops, orange cones, etc...Not the kind of stuff needed to start another series.

[bennybigb]

Gerry Should team up with Bill Temparo and enter his champcars in the American IndyCar Series. The AIS would be more than happy to race at Mexico, Road America, Cleveland, Laguna, Portland.

Wow, so many great tracks not on the schedule. It's a shame......

[xtlm]

those tracks will be there in the future

and after all of this...how many teams would really follow him back.

[BenRoethig]

Road America, Portland, and Cleveland at least. Laguna's been replaced by the more modern track at the north end of the bay.

[xtlm]

i have no doubt in my mind that they will be back at laguna

[Claus Hansen]

CC has died down, sadly yes, but IRL was on a backburner too, comonsense to merger, i dont like the dallara, think ovals are boring, Indy500 just another race, nothing gained, nothing won in 13 years, okay TG has the key, but to what, another one make formula, and to be starting CCWS again, we just have another one make formula, please dont...

Just what i think...

[FerrrariF1]

Could Gerry Forsythe submit the winning bid for the CCWS assets? And if he did, could he continue the CCWS?

And could any of the outstanding money that the series owes him be counted towards his offer?

You know, it's happened before.

Champcar fans (and teams) would be dancing in the streets and we'd have open wheeled racing in the U.S. again. I pray it will happen.

[BenRoethig]

Champcar fans (and teams) would be dancing in the streets and we'd have open wheeled racing in the U.S. again. I pray it will happen.

We have open wheel racing. We just find formula racing predictable and boring.

[Pat Wiatrowski]

Champcar fans (and teams) would be dancing in the streets and we'd have open wheeled racing in the U.S. again. I pray it will happen.

It just might!

[EagleEye]

It just might!


The fans, teams, sposnors are jumping in the streets for the unified IndyCar Series.

Why are so many sooo very happy, while a few ***** are still sulking. Get over it.

Save for the LBGP/Motegi buzz kill weekend, things are looking great for the rest of the season, and especially 2009.

[garyshell]

Champcar fans (and teams) would be dancing in the streets and we'd have open wheeled racing in the U.S. again. I pray it will happen.


It just might!

Do you see any pigs flying outside your window? Which part of "non-compete" don't you understand? The LAST thing we need in open wheel is another freakin' split. Look I hate "king George" as much as the next guy but I also realize there is no way in hell another open wheel series has a chance of attracting any CONSUMER oriented sponsors that would possibly make it a success.

Gary

[pvtjoker]

It just might!

I doubt it. Closest thing to CC these days will be Atlantics.

[pvtjoker]

Gerry Should team up with Bill Temparo and enter his champcars in the American IndyCar Series. The AIS would be more than happy to race at Mexico, Road America, Cleveland, Laguna, Portland.

Wow, so many great tracks not on the schedule. It's a shame......

Nice problem to have. I'm mainly an oval racing fan but I'd trade Nashville for Cleveland right now.

[tbyars]

Do you see any pigs flying outside your window? Which part of "non-compete" don't you understand? The LAST thing we need in open wheel is another freakin' split. Look I hate "king George" as much as the next guy but I also realize there is no way in hell another open wheel series has a chance of attracting any CONSUMER oriented sponsors that would possibly make it a success.

You know, Gary, I believe historically we may find that one of the most damaging legacies the Amigos gave us with CCWS is that it established in the minds of a few fanatics that there is some sort of god-given right to expect that there is a white knight out there waiting to just ride onto the scene and rescue them from the dreaded IRL.

We're now two races into the unified series, and those folks still believe that, soon, the "white knight" will rescue them before too many more races pass.

Not going to happen this time. There are no more white knights. Just commom sense. They need to come to grips with that, or, frankly, go eleswhere, IMO.

[pits4me]

There is no white knight on the horizon as far as the Indycar style of open wheel racing. Its unified and the oval-centric formula moves on: leaving a solid base of street & road race fans in a quandary. For those poor souls, there's always ALMS until Uncle Bernie finds another way to enter the US market. He has the US sponsors, they just prefer to spend their money in foreign markets.

We don't have to look very far into the future. The GP2 Asia series is now a reality and GP2 Americas poised to sit atop the Mazda Development Ladder. Hmmm?! Is that really feasible?

Are there any assets that would benefit such a plan? Only if Atlantics acquires them as part of the parachute package. So to answer the question, If GF, DP, PS and PG do acquire certain assets, it will likey be to bolster the Atlantic Championship for future growth. That GF can do within the confines of the non-compete. And since he is an owner of Long Beach, ensure the Atlantics are part of the show for as long as its on the calendar. JMO

[nanders]

Nice problem to have. I'm mainly an oval racing fan but I'd trade Nashville for Cleveland right now.

Cleveland will never be a race again. Nashville will be on the schedule as long as Firestone is involved because that's their home race.

[F1boat]

You know, Gary, I believe historically we may find that one of the most damaging legacies the Amigos gave us with CCWS is that it established in the minds of a few fanatics that there is some sort of god-given right to expect that there is a white knight out there waiting to just ride onto the scene and rescue them from the dreaded IRL.

We're now two races into the unified series, and those folks still believe that, soon, the "white knight" will rescue them before too many more races pass.

Not going to happen this time. There are no more white knights. Just commom sense. They need to come to grips with that, or, frankly, go eleswhere, IMO.

I agree! They don't like Indycar, why do they post here? They ruin the discussion...

[nanders]

There is no white knight on the horizon as far as the Indycar style of open wheel racing. Its unified and the oval-centric formula moves on: leaving a solid base of street & road race fans in a quandary. For those poor souls, there's always ALMS until Uncle Bernie finds another way to enter the US market. He has the US sponsors, they just prefer to spend their money in foreign markets.

We don't have to look very far into the future. The GP2 Asia series is now a reality and GP2 Americas poised to sit atop the Mazda Development Ladder. Hmmm?! Is that really feasible?

Are there any assets that would benefit such a plan? Only if Atlantics acquires them as part of the parachute package. So to answer the question, If GF, DP, PS and PG do acquire certain assets, it will likey be to bolster the Atlantic Championship for future growth. That GF can do within the confines of the non-compete. And since he is an owner of Long Beach, ensure the Atlantics are part of the show for as long as its on the calendar. JMO

I thought I had read most everything and I'm not saying I know everything, but I never saw references to this frequently mentioned "non-compete." Does anyone have any linkage? Some of you folks talk like you have actually seen it, or mentions of the details.

[Ironcurtainantihero]

Champcar fans (and teams) would be dancing in the streets and we'd have open wheeled racing in the U.S. again. I pray it will happen.
For those of you who subscribe to the idea that somehow, someone-be it Gerry Forsythe or someone else-should resuscitate Champ Car, I would say that you don't know sports history.

I submit to you the following: The ABA, WHA, AFL, USFL, XFL, ABL. What do all of those acronyms have in common? They are all failed sports leagues that tried to take on the NBA, NHL, NFL and WNBA, respectively. While some teams from the ABA, WHA, and AFL were eventually merged into the NBA, NHL and NFL, respectively, the others died. Why? Failure to understand the sports landscape. Too much money spent, not enough taken in. Bad business plans. A variety of reasons. The bottom line-which is all that matters-is that there is only room for 1 open-wheel racing series and that is the series with the marquee event, the Indianapolis 500. If you wish to believe that Champ Car was more than a Castle Made of Sand-to borrow a tiltle from a Jimi Hendrix song-then you are either naive or seeing what you wanted to see. If you don't wish to support the IRL because of your irrational hatred of Tony George, that's fine as well.

By the way, I was a Champ Car fan but I am a racing fan even more. I support the "blendification"-a phrase coined by a reader of the Indianpolis Star newspaper and website. I love racing, and I am happy there is now one series. I look forward to seeing open-wheel racing here in the states regain its prominence, which I believe can happen. Maybe not back to the CART days, but certainly better than since the split.

[IWUTitan90]

I thought I had read most everything and I'm not saying I know everything, but I never saw references to this frequently mentioned "non-compete." Does anyone have any linkage? Some of you folks talk like you have actually seen it, or mentions of the details.


http://www.crash.net/motorsport/champcar/news/160563-0/champ_car_files_for_bankruptcy.html




The memorandum filed includes a non-compete covenant that states that Champ Car co-owners Kevin Kalkhoven and Gerald Forsythe stand to make $2 million each if they pay certain expenses linked to the final Champ Car race at Long Beach and show a commitment to the IndyCar Series. Forsythe has already said his team will not race this season although it remains to be seen if that means he has given up his share of the money.

I remember reading somewhere that it was for 5 years, and stated "North American based Open Wheel series". I will look for that link also.

[nanders]

http://www.crash.net/motorsport/champcar/news/160563-0/champ_car_files_for_bankruptcy.html





I remember reading somewhere that it was for 5 years, and stated "North American based Open Wheel series". I will look for that link also.

Thanks you .. I missed this.

[BenRoethig]

I agree! They don't like Indycar, why do they post here? They ruin the discussion...

Because they cannot tolerate anything different from a formula series.

[garyshell]

Because they cannot tolerate anything different from a formula series.


Different "from a formula" series or different "FORM of a formula" series?

Panoz/Cosworth vs. Dallara/Honda. Either way you slice it, they are BOTH formula series. ;)

So that doesn't answer the question. Why DO the CCF crowd still want to bother to post here? I haven't a clue. I gave up trying to figure them out months ago when I recieved my "countdown". They couldn't even figure out who the Champcar fans were, they could only figure out who could spew the proper rhetoric.

Gary

[jarrambide]

There is no white knight on the horizon as far as the Indycar style of open wheel racing. Its unified and the oval-centric formula moves on: leaving a solid base of street & road race fans in a quandary. For those poor souls, there's always ALMS until Uncle Bernie finds another way to enter the US market. He has the US sponsors, they just prefer to spend their money in foreign markets.

We don't have to look very far into the future. The GP2 Asia series is now a reality and GP2 Americas poised to sit atop the Mazda Development Ladder. Hmmm?! Is that really feasible?

Are there any assets that would benefit such a plan? Only if Atlantics acquires them as part of the parachute package. So to answer the question, If GF, DP, PS and PG do acquire certain assets, it will likey be to bolster the Atlantic Championship for future growth. That GF can do within the confines of the non-compete. And since he is an owner of Long Beach, ensure the Atlantics are part of the show for as long as its on the calendar. JMO

What fans? How many of us Open Wheel fans are?, How many Open Wheel mainly oval fans are? How many Open Wheel I don´t care what they race fans are?, not many, no one has been watching some years now, TV ratings prove that, it is not as if many of us are sad, and the same would have been true if the IRL was the one closing the shop, that is the real sad story, there are only a few of us left.

But then again, being a fan doesn´t mean you have to attend a race to follow the sport or to be happy, the U.S. is a huge country, it is not cheap to fly to a lot of cities to watch a race, some like my good old friend Tio can, (more power to them, they are spending their hard earn money and many of us wish we could do the same), but many can´t, the same is true of any sport, that is why we have TV broadcasts, I still see every F1 race live (except for the network races, but If I could I would also watched those live), I have a blast, I watch GP2 when I can, some races are very entertaining, all from the comfort of my sofa, don´t get me wrong, if I win the lotto one day (and I play every other week) and become a real millionaire (meaning no tone but 100´s od millions) I will attend many GP´s every year.

There are still options for road course fans, those options are mainly on TV, but the options are there, I feel your pain, but we have options.

[BobbyC]

Cleveland will never be a race again. Nashville will be on the schedule as long as Firestone is involved because that's their home race.

I think Al Speyer would want races both at Cleveland and Nashville. Cleveland is closest to their racing tire plant, and Nashville is their US headquarters.

[nanders]

I think Al Speyer would want races both at Cleveland and Nashville. Cleveland is closest to their racing tire plant, and Nashville is their US headquarters.

Bobby, real estate developers want Burke lake front airport. A friend of mine there says it's not a hopeful situation for racing anymore..

[TioWoody]

What fans? How many of us Open Wheel fans are?, How many Open Wheel mainly oval fans are? How many Open Wheel I don´t care what they race fans are?, not many, no one has been watching some years now, TV ratings prove that, it is not as if many of us are sad, and the same would have been true if the IRL was the one closing the shop, that is the real sad story, there are only a few of us left.

But then again, being a fan doesn´t mean you have to attend a race to follow the sport or to be happy, the U.S. is a huge country, it is not cheap to fly to a lot of cities to watch a race, some like my good old friend Tio can, (more power to them, they are spending their hard earn money and many of us wish we could do the same), but many can´t, the same is true of any sport, that is why we have TV broadcasts, I still see every F1 race live (except for the network races, but If I could I would also watched those live), I have a blast, I watch GP2 when I can, some races are very entertaining, all from the comfort of my sofa, don´t get me wrong, if I win the lotto one day (and I play every other week) and become a real millionaire (meaning no tone but 100´s od millions) I will attend many GP´s every year.

There are still options for road course fans, those options are mainly on TV, but the options are there, I feel your pain, but we have options.

Jose - I'll be at Long Beach. Probably my last American OW outing. But, while I was in Australia I bought myself a really nice SUPER8'S polo shirt. The 8's are even bigger than I thought. Their stuff is in all the stores - like NASCAR stuff here in the USA. And while in NZ we had dinner chats with guys headed to Queenstown (which we had just left) for a weekend of road racing.

I wish all my former CC fans the best in their support and interest in TG's series. Now that it looks like CART maybe it will provide what you want. As for me, I'm going fishing in British Columbia and river-rafting. Next float - the Owyhee in eastern Oregon on May 4th with my old high school buddies.

Tio

[jarrambide]

Take care Tio.

P.S. those Super8 races are real fun indeed.