KVRT and Tracy to announce on Friday

[MDS]

It's being reported in several locations now that Paul Tracy is going to be in the 8 KVRT car for the Indy 500. It's apparently part of a sponsorship deal that includes Indy and at least the two Canadian races.

Personally I hope this develops into a multi-year deal because I think PT probably has another three to five years left of racing left in him.

If a couple of other announcements come about, 3rd KVRT entry, 2nd Coyne, de Ferren, Fernandez, Sheckter w-Rockstar (Which I hear could end up at DCR now), Buddy Rice at Conquest and the Gordon/Childress deal, this could be the first respectable field since the IRL was founded.

What would be great is if Chip would release his backup cars like he used to and put some of these stud free agents in those seats.

http://tsn.ca/auto_racing/story/?id=274903

http://blogs.indystar.com/racingexpert/2009/04/paul_tracy_closer_to_the_indy_1.html

[SarahFan]

cool

[bzcam]

If a couple of other announcements come about, 3rd KVRT entry, 2nd Coyne, de Ferren, Fernandez, Sheckter w-Rockstar (Which I hear could end up at DCR now), Buddy Rice at Conquest and the Gordon/Childress deal, this could be the first respectable field since the IRL was founded.

It doesn't matter. DanicaFan has already announced that Danica Patrick will win the 2009 Indy 500. All others need not start. The race will be for second place (first loser). No need to set the DVR or even tune it - better off watching reruns of dancing the stars.

BZ

[garyshell]

cool


You, sir, are the master of understatement. If this is true, it is far fecking out, totally over the moon, fan-freakin'-tastic!!!!

If it happens I will have to dig out my original PT press kit. It is the one of the very first ones from when he first got started in racing. The photo in it is priceless. He was such a baby faced kid in it. I picked it up years ago at a flea market and had it all prepped to take it with me to PT's last race at Mid Ohio and forgot the damn thing. Indy is only 2.5 hours away, so I will now have to go there durring the week to get it signed. I can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees it.

Gary

[SarahFan]

You, sir, are the master of understatement. If this is true, it is far fecking out, totally over the moon, fan-freakin'-tastic!!!!

If it happens I will have to dig out my original PT press kit. It is the one of the very first ones from when he first got started in racing. The photo in it is priceless. He was such a baby faced kid in it. I picked it up years ago at a flea market and had it all prepped to take it with me to PT's last race at Mid Ohio and forgot the damn thing. Indy is only 2.5 hours away, so I will now have to go there durring the week to get it signed. I can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees it.

Gary

i also will be freakin excited....

I have been struggeling with jumping on a plane this sunday moring and flying to LB...

but my pop and a buddy are going to Indy.... now I'm rethinking which to go too

of coarse the passionate choice is BOTH!

[SarahFan]

here you go Gary...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wtcnHaHBE8&feature=PlayList&p=BA3189423EE93350&index=4

[MDS]

It doesn't matter. DanicaFan has already announced that Danica Patrick will win the 2009 Indy 500. All others need not start. The race will be for second place (first loser). No need to set the DVR or even tune it - better off watching reruns of dancing the stars.

BZ

Seriously, let it go.

[SarahFan]

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20090413/IRL/904139987

[Mark in Oshawa]

Any Race with PT in it will almost guarntee my avid attention in front of the Tube. His best years are past him now but I think he has enough left to be interesting, and at a place like Indy, maybe run up front.

[MDS]

I admit that PT's best years might be behind him, but pre-split drivers routinely raced well into their 40s. If anything these cars are easier to drive then the ones Emo, Sullivan and Nigel had. Am I the only one that thinks PT could still win races and be a threat for the championship for the next three to five years?

[TURN3]

I admit that PT's best years might be behind him, but pre-split drivers routinely raced well into their 40s. If anything these cars are easier to drive then the ones Emo, Sullivan and Nigel had. Am I the only one that thinks PT could still win races and be a threat for the championship for the next three to five years?

For race wins yes, for championship no way, not with KVRT. They'll do well on road courses and Milwaukee but at Indy and those other aero tracks they're fighting for 6th (assuming 2 of AGR's cars are running in typical fashion these days). If Marco keeps doing his PT impression by crashing out while toward the front then maybe you're fighting for 5th. PT can drive these cars well into his 40's because they are in fact much easier to drive with the low hp and high downforce. Being used to a DP01 I think is why he did so well in a chop job of a car at Edmonton. More than those factors though, I don't think he is the typical 40 year old racer. Bottom line, PT is a bad ass and lets it all hang out.

[jimispeed]

For race wins yes, for championship no way, not with KVRT. They'll do well on road courses and Milwaukee but at Indy and those other aero tracks they're fighting for 6th (assuming 2 of AGR's cars are running in typical fashion these days). If Marco keeps doing his PT impression by crashing out while toward the front then maybe you're fighting for 5th. PT can drive these cars well into his 40's because they are in fact much easier to drive with the low hp and high downforce. Being used to a DP01 I think is why he did so well in a chop job of a car at Edmonton. More than those factors though, I don't think he is the typical 40 year old racer. Bottom line, PT is a bad ass and lets it all hang out.


Let us not forget that PT has always been good on ovals!!

[DanicaFan]

Im suprised HVM hasnt fielded a 2nd car yet, maybe for the 500. I know they were very close to signing Doornbos earlier.

[garyshell]

Let us not forget that PT has always been good on ovals!!


Yep, good enought to win the Indy 500 once! Go PT, go! Man, I hope these rumors are true. I can't wait. Ladies and gentlemen start your chrome horns.

Gary

[DanicaFan]

This is good news but he wont win the 500 or the other races. Its very hard to come in and race at 1 event or a couple and win.

[SarahFan]

This is good news but he wont win the 500 or the other races. Its very hard to come in and race at 1 event or a couple and win.

what about Al sr.

hadnt he been out of the car for over a year when he won Indy#4

[garyshell]

This is good news but he wont win the 500 or the other races. Its very hard to come in and race at 1 event or a couple and win.


I got a six pack of your favorite beer that says he beats the princess.

Gary

[jimispeed]

His name is Paul Tracy!! He won't back down!! He is a true racer!!

[electron]

strange...
by now this excites me like... Al Jr. announcing.
an oddity in my book.

I predict he will be nowhere. 3 - 5 years left? 2 -3 maybe at best but not at the front anymore. This man is way over his prime. There is a reason why nobody wanted him. He was a show sometimes (not so often anymore later on) but no contender anymore.
He will finish behind Danica or just crash, like it or not. This is Canadian PR if the CAN raceds deal comes through. Not that bad, but praising him like the Messias makes me smile...

[jimispeed]

strange...
by now this excites me like... Al Jr. announcing.
an oddity in my book.

I predict he will be nowhere. 3 - 5 years left? 2 -3 maybe at best but not at the front anymore. This man is way over his prime. There is a reason why nobody wanted him. He was a show sometimes (not so often anymore later on) but no contender anymore.
He will finish behind Danica or just crash, like it or not. This is Canadian PR if the CAN raceds deal comes through. Not that bad, but praising him like the Messias makes me smile...

I guess you weren't impressed with him last season on his one and only race?

He doesn't deserve be be obsessed with, but he is a true racer! True racers don't just all of the sudden suck!!

Plus, if you're gonna go there, this guy doesn't strike me as someone spending all of his time just drinking and living off of his celebrity!! I think you'll see a man prepared for the job!!

Give me a break!!

[TURN3]

This is good news but he wont win the 500 or the other races. Its very hard to come in and race at 1 event or a couple and win.

Dude, if he were taking 1 of the top 8 cars to the 500 (Penske, TCGR, or AGR), he'd have 1 in 5 chance of winning. Bottom line is KVRT isn't aero developed so no, he probably won't be winning unless Dixon, Franchitti, Kanaan, Briscoe all crash trying to lap Danica while she chop blocks them all. He's on a level playing field with the other 28 cars.

He showed your lil Princess the hinie in 1 race last year with a pieced together pit crew and car.. He has more podiums than Danica does freakin' starts. You predict she'll win every freakin' race without the slightest merit in her entire career and now you're qualified to say how hard it'll be for somebody to come in and win? C'mon man...you've clearly proven you don't know anything about what it takes to win. Do a past champion, 31 career win racer (6th ALL TIME), and past Indy 500 champ the justice of sticking to your Danica claims. And by the way, #7 isn't winning the 500 either unless somebody else is driving it.

Wow, just realized that when he won Indy, it was a 1 race deal that TKG did with him, Dario, and Mikey borrowing beat up cars from some other IRL team. All of them struggled to qualify and look who won the race. He had to race a car so glued together they didn't know if it was structurally safe to be on track. So maybe it isn't so impossible.

Hmmmmmm.

[electron]

I guess you weren't impressed with him last season on his one and only race?
He doesn't deserve be be obsessed with, but he is a true racer! True racers don't just all of the sudden suck!!
Plus, if you're gonna go there, this guy doesn't strike me as someone spending all of his time just drinking and living off of his celebrity!! I think you'll see a man prepared for the job!!
Give me a break!!

I don't mean he is not prepared. But just not good enough. Actually I watched him since his very first Indycar race (the "old" indycar) - so no short term verdict on this from me. Impressive at first, disapointing waste of talent in the end.
I am just not impressed by his performance and even saw a considerable drop in his later years. And I do fear a little the crash he is going to have in Indy considering his "open issue" and his somtimes weak judgment and temper.
Just IMO of course.

[DanicaFan]

Turn3, let me say this.... You have no idea of my racing knowledge. I would put my knowledge up to yours anyday. Im not the most knowledgeable, never claimed to be but I know it quite well. Indy Car and NASCAR that is. The other form of motorsports, not to well. I am partial to Danica because I like her, I know her, and she is a great person as well as a driver.

I also want you to know I co-host a racing radio show with a friend of mine at a local college radio station here, 89.7 WTUR FM. It's an hour long show. We give highlights of the weekend's races, give the latest information and updates on drivers, teams, and anything pertinent to racing. We also take phone calls from viewers. I have been told numerous times how impressed people were of my knowledge of the IRL and that makes me feel good. Because all the time I spend watching it, researching it, attending events, talking to teams & drivers, working for the IRL, makes it worthwhile.

Ok, I had to get that out there. Now back to Paul Tracy information. :)

[Gluaistean]

Yep, good enought to win the Indy 500 once! Go PT, go! Man, I hope these rumors are true. I can't wait. Ladies and gentlemen start your chrome horns.

Gary

Gary, I had that thought in my mind too. He already won the 500 and now has to go back and finish it.

Always wondered why Barry Green never went after that whole debacle in civil court. I wonder was someone given a few bucks and told to forget it?

Hmmmmmmmmmm.

Now we await the verdict on the guy that was second to see if he wins another seemingly winless case.

The mind boggles.

[downtowndeco]

Revisionist history. PT, while a fine racer & a great addition to the IRL, has never won the Indy 500. If we want to start incuding "woulda coulda shoulda if only winners" in the record book there would be a lot more names added to the trophy than just PT's.

No offence, but bringing it up, even in jest, seems to be a case of CC fans trying to keep the split alive, which is something I get accused of all the time. : )

Glad to hear Paul is coming.

[MDS]

Revisionist history. PT, while a fine racer & a great addition to the IRL, has never won the Indy 500. If we want to start incuding "woulda coulda shoulda if only winners" in the record book there would be a lot more names added to the trophy than just PT's.

No offence, but bringing it up, even in jest, seems to be a case of CC fans trying to keep the split alive, which is something I get accused of all the time. : )

Glad to hear Paul is coming.

The only reason PT didn't win was because of politics.

[SarahFan]

Turn3, let me say this.... You have no idea of my racing knowledge. I would put my knowledge up to yours anyday. Im not the most knowledgeable, never claimed to be but I know it quite well. Indy Car and NASCAR that is. The other form of motorsports, not to well. I am partial to Danica because I like her, I know her, and she is a great person as well as a driver.

I also want you to know I co-host a racing radio show with a friend of mine at a local college radio station here, 89.7 WTUR FM. It's an hour long show. We give highlights of the weekend's races, give the latest information and updates on drivers, teams, and anything pertinent to racing. We also take phone calls from viewers. I have been told numerous times how impressed people were of my knowledge of the IRL and that makes me feel good. Because all the time I spend watching it, researching it, attending events, talking to teams & drivers, working for the IRL, makes it worthwhile.

Ok, I had to get that out there. Now back to Paul Tracy information. :)

all that knowledge gets negated everytime you come and claim Danica is a shoein for the win.......

[maxmach]

Any race with PT in it is a better race, more entertaining, better racing. He is a racer. Period.
Could PT go against Briscoe, Power, Wilson, etc. Of course he could, with a full time ride anyway. Without a full time ride, it's still a better race with him in it. He goes balls out, takes no prisiners, speaks his mind, has something to say and then goes home and has a beer.
I just like the guy, and I like the way he races.

[maxmach]

p.s. And yes, PT won the indy 500 from spiderman.

[SarahFan]

who crossed the bricks first and took the checker?

my opening odds for tracy are 20-1

*I would have went 15-1 but i suspect the gannassi and penske cars to dominate so the 20-1 is less about tracy and more about them

[bblocker68]

PT could still bring it, please don't sell him short. He the master at restarts and has the ability to win on short ovals and the roadies. I don't think he has the team behind him to win on the bigger tracks if he signs with KVRT, but Oriol didn't do too bad on the bigger tracks.

I'll put my money on PT over Danica any day.

[chuck34]

It's good to see PT back. I hope he does well. He has a shot. He's one of those guys like Al Sr. that might be able to jump in a one off and do well. That is if he lays off the Monster so that he doesn't get too fired up and hit someone or do something else stupid.

And no PT never won the 500. I don't think he was ahead of Helio when the lights came on, but that is really neither here nor there at this point. If we went by who we "thought" won then the record books would be a lot different, and not just at the 500. For starters Mario would be a two time winner.

[jimispeed]

A little hyperbola? She's not bad at all, she's a very competent race car driver. Just not a great race car driver. There are many others who are slower and/or more dangerous than she is. Just as there are others who are faster.

I agree that she is a good race car driver, but she is one who makes you think that her head isn't always in the game, or she just needed alot more time before entering a series filled with the greatest drivers.


Now who has that PT Indy 500 video?? Cough it up!!!

[chuck34]

And now back to our regularly scheduled program. Some here chose to highjack this thread to re ignite old discussions. I've moved all of those posts to their own thread "Paul Tracy was robbed", please post there if that's what you want to discuss. This thread is for this year's discussion. Any further posts here on the other subject will be deleted.

Sorry about that. I'm probably just as guilty as anyone for the highjacking. Didn't mean to.

But it is good to see PT back. Hope they can pull something together for the whole year.

[Chamoo]

And now back to our regularly scheduled program. Some here chose to highjack this thread to re ignite old discussions. I've moved all of those posts to their own thread "Paul Tracy was robbed", please post there if that's what you want to discuss. This thread is for this year's discussion. Any further posts here on the other subject will be deleted.

Yea, my bad Starter. Sorry about that.

Go PT!

[garyshell]

Mea Culpa. Mea Maxima Culpa. I was the one who mentioned that PT might have his chance for revenge, not thinking it would derail the whole topic. "Not thinking" were certainly the operative words there.

Thanks for moving that portion of the discussion, Starter!

Gary

[SarahFan]

http://kvracingtechnology.homestead.com/

http://www.paultracy.com/

it will be interesting to see if either website has a change tomorrow morning... or maybe afternoon.... or Sat... or ?

[FIAT1]

Poul Tracy is a racer to the core. He is faster driving in reverse then 3/4 of the field if not all in todays Indycar driving forward. What irl did to him at 500 and Forsyathe did to him when sold out its unforgivable. This is not obout sides but the fans who who are deprived of the best that racing can give.

[MDS]

The announcement is suposed to be comming at noon California time, 3 p.m. East Coast time. Davy Hamilton and Kingdom/Vision will be announcing at 11:30 PST.

I just got a text message from someone at Long Beach "PT + Monster = 2 year deal." But it could just be a friend screwing with me.

[SarahFan]

The announcement is suposed to be comming at noon California time, 3 p.m. East Coast time. Davy Hamilton and Kingdom/Vision will be announcing at 11:30 PST.

I just got a text message from someone at Long Beach "PT + Monster = 2 year deal." But it could just be a friend screwing with me.


2 years=6 races

?

[Chamoo]

2 years=6 races

?

I wouldn't be surprised if it's for more then just the I500, Toronto and Edmonton Ken. Watkins Glen might be involved. If it is a 2-yr deal, it could mean Monster has an option for a second year being a full season depending on the results. I'd like to see PT do another oval during the season maybe somewhere like Texas or Homestead to see what he can do on a banked oval.

[SarahFan]

I wouldn't be surprised if it's for more then just the I500, Toronto and Edmonton Ken. Watkins Glen might be involved. If it is a 2-yr deal, it could mean Monster has an option for a second year being a full season depending on the results. I'd like to see PT do another oval during the season maybe somewhere like Texas or Homestead to see what he can do on a banked oval.

I agree...

[MDS]

There's two rumors floating around at the moment. One is KV is self funding (Perhaps with some help form TG) Paul in Indy and the two Canadian races.

There is another rumor out there, that the deal is more substancial and includes a new "exciting" sponsor, that includes a larger schedule.

There's also the possibility of a second driver announcement at the press confernce that would have PT and Oriol in cars at Indy.

[Chamoo]

There's two rumors floating around at the moment. One is KV is self funding (Perhaps with some help form TG) Paul in Indy and the two Canadian races.

There is another rumor out there, that the deal is more substancial and includes a new "exciting" sponsor, that includes a larger schedule.

This should get exciting. Can anyone find anything if it will be webcasted?

[Gluaistean]

I hope Paul is in a car for Indy. I hope Monster jumps on board and then Rockstar for Doornbos.

Paul brings excitement in racing unlike you know who with the big sponsor.

[SarahFan]

unlike you know who with the big sponsor.

Marco?

[Mad_Hatter]

Wrong thread

[MDS]

Apparently it's Geico, according Robin Miller. Announcement, and probably car unveiling has been pushed back to 12:30.

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/indycar-paul-tracy-joins-kv-racing-for-indy-500/