The Return of Kat Legge?

I saw a blurb in one of Robin Miller's Mailbag posts about Kat Legge attending the St. Pete race. I went to her new and improved website (that's now a blog) and she is openly talking about coming back to the US and wanting to race in Indycar. I remember seeing her at the Houston Grand Prix in person and watching her in the old CCWS starting with KV and then moving down to Coyne until it folded. She raced DTM in Germany for three seasons but was always a back marker and never did a lot.

My question: Is there a reason to think she will get a ride this year? She seems to think so. Does she come with sponsorship of any kind? I doubt she's associated with Audi anymore.

I always liked Kat. She had a good attitude and seemed to have good race instincts. I would be happy to see her in the field with Simona and you know who.

Anyone know anything else?

BZ

BTW, Kat's blog is here: http://katherinelegge.com/

BZ

In fairness in DTM she was in the worst team with a 2 year old car so was never going to be a front runner. She's got talent but I don't know if she has any money to bring.

Would be good to have her back in the field, as I think she's a better driver than results tend to suggest, for the reasons given above. I still like her for her most British of reactions to THAT crash :)

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Originally Posted by hornet

Would be good to have her back in the field, as I think she's a better driver than results tend to suggest, for the reasons given above. I still like her for her most British of reactions to THAT crash :)

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"I still have all my bits and pieces." Great quote from a cool customer. I hope she returns too.

BZ

When you've got Bourdais in the series, and the best he can get is part time with Coyne, you know there aren't many seats available. Speaking of Seabass, anyone know if he's got any opportunities for Indy?

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Originally Posted by NickFalzone

When you've got Bourdais in the series, and the best he can get is part time with Coyne, you know there aren't many seats available. Speaking of Seabass, anyone know if he's got any opportunities for Indy?

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I believe he'll be busy with Peugeot getting ready for Le Mans at that time.

I have been quite impressed with Kat in Atlantics and Champ Car, but have to say that she really didn't show anything at all in the DTM over the past three seasons with a best finish of 12th in a field not exceeding 20 drivers. Of course she didn't have the best car, but others in similar equipment did better than her.

She has a combined one oval race in her carrer. I don't think that would translate well to IndyCar.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

She has a combined one oval race in her carrer. I don't think that would translate well to IndyCar.

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If I remember, she did quite well in that race. So...unless someone has an extensive oval resume, they shouldn't even consider trying it?

In a recent poll, 100% of the respondents voted in favor of Kat coming back to the States to drive in IndyCars. As a gesture of full disclosure, the poll was conducted with a very small sample size (one), and that respondent was me.

She had a good attitude, and I think she'd hold her own against the field.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

She has a combined one oval race in her carrer. I don't think that would translate well to IndyCar.

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Dario seems to have coped...

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

She has a combined one oval race in her carrer. I don't think that would translate well to IndyCar.

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This is one of the most off the wall statements made. For that one oval race Katherine Legge started 8th finished 6th at Milwaukee 2006 and she led 12 laps. Prior to 2008 Graham Rahal had zero starts on ovals. Prior to Kansas 2010 Simona De Silvestro, Takuma Sato, had O starts on ovals. James Hinchcliffe, Charlie Kimball, J. R. Hildebrand, James Jakes, have 0 starts on ovals. Rookies always have zero starts on ovals and some non-rookies have zero starts on ovals and do good on them even become masters of them like oval master and four time Indy winner Rick Mears had zero starts on ovals until Ontario 1976 he DNQ prior to that event.

If one oval start does not translate well in Indycar what would? 50? 100? how many?

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Originally Posted by hornet

Dario seems to have coped...

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You should check your facts on Dario before posting. Dario's first Indycar race was at Homestead in 1997 started 13th and finished 25th.

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Originally Posted by Phoenixent

This is one of the most off the wall statements made. For that one oval race Katherine Legge started 8th finished 6th at Milwaukee 2006 and she led 12 laps. Prior to 2008 Graham Rahal had zero starts on ovals. Prior to Kansas 2010 Simona De Silvestro, Takuma Sato, had O starts on ovals. James Hinchcliffe, Charlie Kimball, J. R. Hildebrand, James Jakes, have 0 starts on ovals. Rookies always have zero starts on ovals and some non-rookies have zero starts on ovals and do good on them even become masters of them like oval master and four time Indy winner Rick Mears had zero starts on ovals until Ontario 1976 he DNQ prior to that event.

If one oval start does not translate well in Indycar what would? 50? 100? how many?

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I would say 30-100 starts would be ideal. She may have finished 6th, but that was Champ Car in 2006. All the real oval drivers had left by then.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

I would say 30-100 starts would be ideal. She may have finished 6th, but that was Champ Car in 2006. All the real oval drivers had left by then.

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What a load of BS, this and your previous post. A lot drivers have come to Indy with little or no oval experience and managed to figure it out. This is the series that let Milka Duno get on ovals as a (barely) moving speedbump for a few years. Kat is light years ahead of Duno it terms of talent. To say she can't have a chance and her career doesn't "translate to IndyCar" (whatever that means), is ridiculous.

Nigel Mansell has never raced on oval or Indycar before 93 and took everyone back to scool of oval racing in much more difficult car to drive. Most of road racers don't have a problem race oval after some laps. I don't know how Katherine would compare to likes of Marco Andretti , Tacuma Sato ,Kimball etc.but she did race Power , Servia, Bourdais ,Tracy and some of the other guys therefore I don't see big challenge. Nice to see all this talented racers looking for a seat , good for the series.

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Originally Posted by Phoenixent

This is one of the most off the wall statements made. For that one oval race Katherine Legge started 8th finished 6th at Milwaukee 2006 and she led 12 laps. Prior to 2008 Graham Rahal had zero starts on ovals. Prior to Kansas 2010 Simona De Silvestro, Takuma Sato, had O starts on ovals. James Hinchcliffe, Charlie Kimball, J. R. Hildebrand, James Jakes, have 0 starts on ovals.

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Hinchcliffe, Kimball and Hildebrand have each run numerous ovals in FIL. So they do have some experience racing on ovals.

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Originally Posted by DBell

What a load of BS, this and your previous post. A lot drivers have come to Indy with little or no oval experience and managed to figure it out. This is the series that let Milka Duno get on ovals as a (barely) moving speedbump for a few years. Kat is light years ahead of Duno it terms of talent. To say she can't have a chance and her career doesn't "translate to IndyCar" (whatever that means), is ridiculous.

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If I recall correctly, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm not, Danica Patrick came to Indycar with no oval exerience. So by some posters on this thread, she should have never had a chance as her roadracing career (and that's all she had) would not have "translated" to Indycar. No reason at all why Katherine or anyone else with a roadracing background can't do well at ovals.

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Originally Posted by vintage

Hinchcliffe, Kimball and Hildebrand have each run numerous ovals in FIL. So they do have some experience racing on ovals.

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Thanks Vintage. I forgot about them running in the Indy Lights series.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

I would say 30-100 starts would be ideal. She may have finished 6th, but that was Champ Car in 2006. All the real oval drivers had left by then.

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Really!!!! 30-100 starts that means that a driver would have to be in Indy Lights between 2 and 10 years before starting in Indycar.

2006 all the real oval drivers had left? You ask the real oval drivers as you call them about driving The Mile at Milwaukee. There have not been real oval drivers in Indycar for about 30 years. To be a real oval driver you needed to come up through Sprint Cars into Indycars not gokarts to Indycars.

The fact that the driver does not have any significant oval experience does not preclude them from doing well.... She may struggle on ovals she may not - racing history is littered with examples of both..... I suspect she would do just fine - but I also suspect this is more fan conjecture than a real chance for her to come to Indycar with a "real" team that could actually allow her to be in the realm of competitive..... Personally, I think it is only news if she lands a decent ride - otherwise she is a field filler that happens to be a woman and it is hard to get excited about any field fillers.....

Field fillers are what makes the grid 33 positions. Nothing wrong with "field fillers". If you take them away, you're back to 10-12 starters. Anybody want that? Didn't think so.

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Originally Posted by beachgirl

Field fillers are what makes the grid 33 positions. Nothing wrong with "field fillers". If you take them away, you're back to 10-12 starters. Anybody want that? Didn't think so.

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true, didn't mean that field fillers are bad - just that it is hard to get excited about them individually unless you have a strong affinity for someone.....

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Originally Posted by Phoenixent

You should check your facts on Dario before posting. Dario's first Indycar race was at Homestead in 1997 started 13th and finished 25th.

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Where did I say anything about his first race? I said he's coped on ovals, which is demonstrably true. He came from a non-oval background, he has wins on ovals, therefore coming from a non-oval background isn't necessarily a hindrance to a driver looking to enter the series, which is what the post I quoted seemed to be suggesting.

I think the 2008 season says everything that needs to be said about road-racers coming into IndyCar with little-to-no oval experience. They did just fine on them. I don't have specific numbers in front of me, but I remember quite a few ex-CC drivers getting top 10 and maybe even top-5 finishes. And since then, they have been highly competitive on the roads/streets, resulting in good Championship finishes. With even less ovals on the schedule now than 2008, I really think the "road racer" stigma is pretty much meaningless. The real question is whether Kat is still good on the roads/streets and can adapt to the IndyCar. And actually, the only real question is whether she can bring money. Does anyone think she will do worse than some of the KV guys? Apparently you can crash every week for a good team, as long as you bring a paycheck. Or you can be a 4-time championship winner, and get a part-time ride with a bottom tier team. Not a whole lot of middle ground.

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Originally Posted by Chris R

The fact that the driver does not have any significant oval experience does not preclude them from doing well.... She may struggle on ovals she may not - racing history is littered with examples of both.....

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The thing about ovals is that a struggling driver is a danger to everyone else on the track.

I'm not saying she needs to go to Indy Lights for 10 years. She can get seat time in NASCAR modifieds or USAC.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

The thing about ovals is that a struggling driver is a danger to everyone else on the track.

I'm not saying she needs to go to Indy Lights for 10 years. She can get seat time in NASCAR modifieds or USAC.

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Oh please. This is a ridiculous comment, and "argument".

I'm not sure that I understand the basis for suggesting that Katherine Legge would need to "prove herself" before racing in the IRL on ovals. She's already raced on an oval, a rather challenging one, I might add. And as was said here, she did rather well. And to say that the CCWS field at that time wasn't all that strong... well, without putting too sharp a point on it, but the field now isn't exactly comprised of Rick Mears, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti and the Unser brothers.

I'm not comparing Katherine to anyone, but neither Zanardi nor Montoya had any oval experience before strapping into MUCH higher horsepower equipment than what Katherine would be getting into. And as best I recall, they did better than average on ovals. So if she can secure a decent ride, with a decent team and engineer, my guess is she'll do just fine.

True, this series needs more good racers, but it also needs more "personalities" like a drowning man needs air (yeah, I've read about the recent Versus ratings... even though I've seen no reason to comment on them). Here's the likely reality: Jimmie Johnson ain't coming. Dale, Jr. ain't coming. Jeff Gordon ain't coming. Juan Montoya ain't coming. Hell, even Kimi Raikkonen and Nelson Piquet, Jr. ain't coming. So if you want to see a person who would at least bring a bit of positive press and attention to this series, wouldn't it be better to welcome Katherine Legge with open arms, rather than nitpick why she shouldn't be allowed to take part?

jm2c

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Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior

I'm not sure that I understand the basis for suggesting that Katherine Legge would need to "prove herself" before racing in the IRL on ovals.

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That's an easy one. Racing forums (and internet forums in general it seems) are populated with many posters who seem to have simple goals - complain about everything, cause controversy, and try to make themselves look knowledgeable. The topic doesn't matter. Borderline trolls, but since they stay "on topic" they usually just come across as "Debbie Downers". Most don't have a clue about the subject.

I think Kat would do just fine on ovals. She has proven herself to be adaptable and capable in a number of series, often on second and third tier teams. I hope she at least gets an opportunity in Indy car

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

The thing about ovals is that a struggling driver is a danger to everyone else on the track.

I'm not saying she needs to go to Indy Lights for 10 years. She can get seat time in NASCAR modifieds or USAC.

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Surely by your own logic they'd just be a danger in those series instead? To take things to the extreme, what about oval-centric drivers and road courses? Would you suggest that nobody can enter Indycar from an oval only background without first doing 100 starts in GP2? That would seem to be the conclusion to your argument, such as it is.

Regarding mastering ovals coming from a road racing background, there are certainly enough success and failure stories. Some of the extreme success has already been mentioned here with Nigel. He comes in "cold" in 1993 and wins the championship. That included four wins on ovals. (Milwaukee, Michigan, New Hampshire and Nazareth) Emmo, on the other hand, was just slightly better in average finishes on road courses - but did win the 500 a few times. He also picked up four wins at Nazareth - a short and fairly flat track. Great race drivers will adapt.

A couple of weeks ago Katherine wrote on facebook that she was close to securing a ride for Indy. It'll probably just be a one-off deal if it comes to fruition.

She seems to be putting a lot of effort into getting back into AOWR. I wish her all the best.

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Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior

I'm not comparing Katherine to anyone, but neither Zanardi nor Montoya had any oval experience before strapping into MUCH higher horsepower equipment than what Katherine would be getting into. And as best I recall, they did better than average on ovals. So if she can secure a decent ride, with a decent team and engineer, my guess is she'll do just fine.
jm2c

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And let's not forget the oval rookie Mansell who schooled a few. And the bottom line is the TEAM. Schumacher and Bourdais look like pretty ordinary citizens this year. I like Legge (she has won races on the way up) and I don't think she'll be a rolling chicane if she has the equipment and I'll root for her for sure but there are so many other drivers I wish were in this series -- full time -- and worthy of a two page thread...

The bottom line is that Legge has as much credibility as half the field in Indycar now.

Haarrummpphhh...

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Originally Posted by hornet

Surely by your own logic they'd just be a danger in those series instead?

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Right, but since those cars have lower top speeds, people are less likely to get hurt.

And it wouldn't take 100 GP2 starts to master road racing. Maybe a year divided between Indy Lights, Grand Am, and Star Mazda (if that's still around) would get a driver up to speed.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

Right, but since those cars have lower top speeds, people are less likely to get hurt.

And it wouldn't take 100 GP2 starts to master road racing. Maybe a year divided between Indy Lights, Grand Am, and Star Mazda (if that's still around) would get a driver up to speed.

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No guarantee a lower speed series means less injury, look at Shame Hmiel then look at Mike Conway. Speed differential between cars could be an issue, but an orientation test would see to that. Your argument would've seen Mansell barred from the series despite being F1 World champion, yet some average mid-pack USAC or FIL guy given a free pass, which is plainly ludicrous. Would you ask Raikkonen to have a season in ARCA before he gets in the truck series? We're not talking about plucking someone off the street in an "America's next racing driver" TV scenario. Beyond Milka, who was just a liability, I can't recall anyone else being dangerously slow in recent memory. Baguette had some good runs on ovals in far from the best machinery, yet he came out of FR3.5, so are we suggesting he should've gone through a few seasons in FIL?

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

Right, but since those cars have lower top speeds, people are less likely to get hurt.

And it wouldn't take 100 GP2 starts to master road racing. Maybe a year divided between Indy Lights, Grand Am, and Star Mazda (if that's still around) would get a driver up to speed.

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Jason Priestly might dispute that about lights.

Kat handled herself in Champcar, far better than half of the current field fillers in Indycar, and I'd venture to say she'd do better than the princess by the end of the year. The way she handled herself after the RA crash, I'd take her anyday.

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Originally Posted by nigelred5

Jason Priestly might dispute that about lights.

Kat handled herself in Champcar, far better than half of the current field fillers in Indycar, and I'd venture to say she'd do better than the princess by the end of the year. The way she handled herself after the RA crash, I'd take her anyday.

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Saying she was "far better" is a stretch. She didn't accomplish much of anything in Champcar other than getting in a big crash.

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Originally Posted by vintage

Saying she was "far better" is a stretch. She didn't accomplish much of anything in Champcar other than getting in a big crash.

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Which, to be fair, was not of her making.

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Originally Posted by hornet

Would you ask Raikkonen to have a season in ARCA before he gets in the truck series?

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That depends on where the truck series is racing. I recall a lot of people did not want NASCAR to let Jacques Villeneuve start his first stock car race in a Sprint Cup car at Talladega.