Rise of the Phoenix?

I don't think Surfers is nearly as important to a series as you think it is. It couldn't save CART or CCWS, nor could races in Mexico, Holland, Germany or Canada.

The IRL is a US based series and will best served to focus on races here.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pits4me

C'mon, Trans-AM was an entirely different situation. Like Roger Elliott's North American Super Touring Car Championship in 95-96, it eventually succommed to NASCAR'S wish to dominate stock car/saloon car racing in the US. Leveraging corporate sponsors and factory participation.

Atlantic's on the other hand has survived as the premier development racing series in North America. It now sits as the top rung of the Mazda ladder.

The Surfers TV coverage this weekend just demonstrates the lack of respect ICS gives it as an international motorsport event. These types of events are critical to the global branding of IndyCar and the sponsors it supposedly relies on for survival revenue. Even the current champion is from Australasia. Go figure.....

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pits4me

...Like Roger Elliott's North American Super Touring Car Championship in 95-96...

---

The best racing I ever saw anywhere. Period. :(

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Starter

You mean all 8 cars? Oops, forgot, I think they started 12 once.

---

Yes, and I used to rip on CCWS about 16 cars, but NATCC was flat-out racing all the way! Smoke coming off the tires in the braking zones. Even though they were FWD, they would move around in the turns because they were cornering at the limit, trying to maintain momentum.

Great stuff!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by indycool

At the attendance estimated, the Speedway was STILL among the top three in F1 attendance every year.

---

And yet you used it's attendence numbers as your example of how Americans don't except 'European style' racing.

American aren't what filled the grandstands. Much of the crowd were international visitors.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Rex Monaco

And yet you used it's attendence numbers as your example of how Americans don't except 'European style' racing.

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by anthonyvop

Nobody would be talking about starting another series if the IRL was putting out a quality product.

---

Damn right!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by downtowndeco

American aren't what filled the grandstands. Much of the crowd were international visitors.

---

Well since the Indianapolis tourism dollars were higher for F1 than either the Indy 500 or BY400, we know they weren't Hoosiers.

But I'm not certain they were all rich foriegners flocking to the midwest to partake of Americana.

But if large percentage of them were Canadian, then you got your justification for holding Indycar events in Canada.

I never said they were all from outside the U.S. But a lot of them were.

Whether they were Canadian or not I don't know.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Rex Monaco

Well since the Indianapolis tourism dollars were higher for F1 than either the Indy 500 or BY400, we know they weren't Hoosiers.

But I'm not certain they were all rich foriegners flocking to the midwest to partake of Americana.

But if large percentage of them were Canadian, then you got your justification for holding Indycar events in Canada.

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by downtowndeco

American aren't what filled the grandstands. Much of the crowd were international visitors.

---

Also, some American CART/CC fan did NOT attend because they chose not to give TG any money. I would have been to all the GP's but for that reason.

I attended all but the last Formula One races at Indy (and I live on the east coast). There were a lot of international visitors at those races. There were also a lot of US citizens like myself there. That is, I had no problem traveling all the way to IMS to see F1, but I wouldn't bother to cross 16th Street to see an Indy 500, and I'm not particularly interested in traveling all the way to Indy for the B/Y 400 when there are better NASCAR races much closer to home.

And I am totally ambivalent about Tony George. He's never done anything to me.