Robin Miller's Mailbag for August 20

IndyCar

Robin Miller’s Mailbag for August 20

Still more on IndyCar's new TV deal; Ganassi's second seat coming out of the market; the financials of racing and much more...

Robin Miller | Posted August 20, 2008 Indianapolis, Ind.

It's looking like no changes on the TCGR front for 2009. (LAT Photo)

Hello open wheel types and thanks for all your questions. I intend to answer your questions every week during the season, so just e-mail them to openwheelmailbag@gmail.com. Don’t feel left out if I didn’t directly respond. I appreciate your interest and passion.

~Robin Miller

Q: If Kim Green is bought out of Andretti-Green Racing, would Barry & Kim Green consider returning to the IRL? Also, what's the connection with the name "Forsythe" appearing on the AGR cars? It's been there since Bryan Herta drove for the team, but I've never known why.

New York Joe

RM: Since Barry has been sniffing around NASCAR trying to help Jacques Villenueve get a ride, it's certainly a possibility the Green brothers might try to do something together. That Forsythe is no relation to Gerald Forsythe.

Q: Tony George and The Chipster need to make sure that A.J. Allmendinger gets Dan Wheldon's IndyCar seat due to A.J.'s shaky future at Red Bull and not bring in another arrogant European driver that has the money. Hell, maybe KK also needs to make sure that it happens because I remembered that there was a lot enthusiasm back in the summer of '06 when AJ was battling at front against Bourdais. I can't imagine that A.J. would refuse a Ganassi IndyCar seat.

Wa Vang, Visalia, Calif.

RM: I proposed that idea to Chip a few weeks ago and he seemed kinda indifferent to it but I'm not sure he ever saw Allmendinger race a Champ Car, especially with Forsythe. The kid is talented, great with the media and the fans. But now it looks like Wheldon may stay with Ganassi so I don't know if there's anything for A.J., unless Rahal Letterman would run a second car.

Q: We've all seen the effects of unbridled spending in racing. It makes the soap opera a bit more interesting at times, but then you end up with the situation where only one or two teams can truly go for a championship which in turn makes the racing predictable and in the end, boring. So the sanctions now are getting caught up in the spec boom because they think that'll keep the costs down and hopefully promote competition. But we see in the IRL and NASCAR that the big teams that can throw good money after bad (four in NASCAR, three in the IRL) are still able to obliterate the smaller, less-funded competition. So what's the answer? It seemed like Champ Car had a good solution with the DP01 and a restricted rule book, but that takes away from the technical appeal... Especially in open wheel. Is there a way to make the technology interesting while limiting the rule book so that a team with a small budget can still be competitive with a team with a large budget? Is the answer to less technical appeal instituting "tricks" like standing starts, push-to-pass, option tires, etc.? If that's true, then is it realistic anymore to think that Indy could once again become a race where you brought 10 feet of chicken wire and you came up with something to race?

Clint Costa, Chicago

RM: You hit the nail on the head. Not only was the DP01 new to everyone, the rules were very stringent about running the same shocks, suspension, wings, dampners, ect. That's what made for such balanced competition. Yes, Newman/Haas/Lanigan and Bourdais still won the most but Walker and HVM (Keith Wiggins) each won twice and Dale Coyne should have won at least one race. The IRL needs to tighten its rules and help shrink those budgets because adding standing starts, push-to-pass and optional tires is simply window dressing for the real issues.

Q: If you ask me CitiFinancial would be a great candidate to be IRL title sponsor. They are a worldwide company, almost everyone in the world has a credit card, so people will likely identify with them, and who has deeper pockets than a financial company? Subway should consider hanging their sponsorship dollars on a team. The partnership with Walker/Tracy worked out well in Edmonton. Why not continue? Not to mention the great commercial spots they could come up with, having Jerrod put PT on a rigorous program. Subway should also look into sponsoring events. The Subway Grand Prix of Cleveland, for example. Now that TK is locked up at AGR and Wheldon seems to be still in at TCG, what expected (suspected) moves can we look forward to this silly season? It doesn’t look like there will be any top line seats available for ’09. Will any of the NASCAR defectors come back? Will Tags and some of the up and coming kids get a sniff? Will PT and Derrick Walker put something together for the ’09 season.

Ivan Beckles, London Ontario

RM: First of all, it was Subway of Canada that sponsored Tracy at Edmonton and I think the IRL is courting Subway of North America for its title sponsorship. Heck, CitiFinancial or Subway either one would be a welcome addition and hopefully a lot more solvent than Northern Light or Pep Boys. Not much shaking in Silly Season if Wheldon stays with Ganassi. Maybe a second car at Rahal Letterman, maybe a second for Keith Wiggins. Tags is likely done in open wheel and P.T. still needs a sponsor, it appears, to get a full-time deal for '09.

Q: Is it too late to save this thing? To describe Indy cars as a shadow of their former selves is an understatement. I can't help but feel that those of us left who are still fans are similar to the people on the Titanic after all the life boats were gone. Or am I being too dark and pessimistic?

Matt, Dallas

RM: It may be five or six years too late to ever see open wheel have a chance to recapture its '90s glory but at least it's got somewhat of a chance (and it had no prayer as two seperate series). Sponsorship is still lacking in a major way, so until that rebounds, it's going to be a struggle. But maybe a title sponsor and a couple new engine manufacturers kickstart IndyCar.

Q: What's your opinion of Rich Vogler? I always thought he was an incredible driver, but I wondered what his personality and temperament were like. How would Rich have done at Indy if he drove for a top team?

Steve from Trenton, N.J.

RM: Rapid Rich was fearless and a helluva competitor who could literally make a difference in a so-so race car. The day he drove Ray & Cissy Smith's sprinter at Winchester or Salem (I can't recall) and chased Steve Chassey's roadster for 40 laps is ingrained in my memory as a typical Vogler performance. He also jumped into a car at the last minute at Indy, took a couple practice laps and stuck it in the show. He was a RACER. I liked Richie – he wasn't the most popular guy with his competition and he was crazy at times behind the wheel, but I always admired his spirit. And his bravado.

Q: I would like to dissent from all the dissent that writers have made regarding IndyCar’s move to Versus. Although there is a worry that the result could be as bad as Champ Car on Spike or WoO on Outdoor Network, I’m cautiously optimistic and think the positives may outweigh the negatives. When Versus signed the NHL, they went out and signed just about the all the available best announcers and analysts. The result, I thought, was good coverage. My hope is that they will make racing one of their cornerstones. Maybe bring back something similar to the old Thunder series ESPN had with USAC midget and sprints. If their coverage is a good as what they do for the NHL, it would be a definite improvement from the status quo. An added plus is that it gets them further away from Rusty Wallace’s crack analysis.

Barry B, Folsom, Calif.

RM: I'm for anything that gets us further away from Rusty Wallace and I've heard a lot of positive things about Versus' production and professionalism. A friend of mine said IndyCar racing only has about 300,000 diehard fans and they'll all not only find Versus, they'll love it. Hope he's right.

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Robin Miller

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