That was the prevailing sentiment earlier this week when Mi-Jack Promotions, in conjunction with officials from Harris County, Shell and INDYCAR, announced that the series would race on a concrete circuit at Reliant Park on Oct. 4-6, 2013.
INDYCAR CEO Randy Bernard said there is “so much energy” in the city that played host to Indy car racing in two iterations beginning in 1998.
“Everyone from the press to the Shell and Pennzoil officials to Roger Penske to A.J. Foyt Racing’s Larry Foyt, everyone is really engaged and excited about this event coming to Houston,” said Bernard, who attended the announcement in Houston. “This is the fourth-largest market in the United States and I think our sponsors are excited and it fits so well with what we’re trying to do — to take INDYCAR to the biggest cities in the United States and reach not only our purists but also that new demographic.
“Reliant Park has done an amazing job of making it such a destination space in Houston. That’s what makes it very appealing to me. We feel like we can really capitalize and make this one of the premier events on the circuit. We’re an American-based racing body, and I think we have a lot of momentum building. Our job is to create big events, and we feel like this can be one of our big events. I expect big things in Houston.”
Roger Penske also noted that Houston is ideal for INDYCAR’s schedule expansion. “We need to have date equity, we need to be in places in cities that will support it,” the Team Penske owner said. “Racers give a lot back, and the opportunity to support many of the venues within the city will also be important.”
CART, the predecessor of Champ Car, hosted a race on a street course in downtown Houston in 1998-2001. Construction forced the cancellation of the race, but Champ Car announced it would return in 2006 at Reliant Park just south of downtown. A local organizing committee was created in 2010 to seek a title sponsor for an Indy car race, and its efforts – along with Mi-Jack Promotions principal Mike Lanigan – were rewarded at the news conference.
Bobby Rahal, co-owner of the IZOD IndyCar Series team with Lanigan and David Letterman, said the addition of the Houston race is exciting news for the series and Southeast Texas. “I joined Mike several years ago to speak with the business community about the potential of having a Grand Prix,” Rahal said, “and it was clear that there is a tremendous amount of local support for the event, which is critical for long-term success. It will be a marquee event for the series.”
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Alley Talk:
Never go faster than your Guardian Angel can fly.
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Would you rather see speeds at 220mph …. or half that and racing side-by-side?
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Why has USAC begun calling their 1/4 midgets by the name of .25 midgets?
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Is Stephanie Mockler doing much this year? She is always the racer. I enjoyed following her progress.
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Memorable Quote: “…I knew that if I could ever run with him, I could win races. …And if I could ever run in front of him, I could win championships.” former USAC midget competitor Kenny Schrader on Mel Kenyon.
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Michael Knight of the “Arizona Republic” writes on PIR’s chances of hosting an IndyCar Series race again:
It wasn’t exactly Nixon going to China, but when IndyCar series CEO Randy Bernard came to the Valley Feb. 23 to apologize to Phoenix International Raceway President Bryan Sperber for publicly criticizing him as “not worth a damn,” it started a process that might bring open-wheel racing back to PIR for the first time since 2005.
Ongoing talks, including a conference call last week, will determine whether there’s a viable business plan for a possible 2013 race — perhaps Saturday night, April 13. Among the issues: money, competitiveness of the Izod series’ new cars on PIR’s revamped layout, and IndyCar’s long-term commitment to a market where most of its drivers are not well known.
“I would characterize the conversations as cordial, positive, but also preliminary,” Sperber said. “We’re in a fact-finding, exploratory mode.” Their breakfast meeting was Bernard’s first with Sperber, who he said last year should be fired. Bernard brought a peace offering — a pair of Indianapolis 500 cuff links. Circumstances dictated that Bernard backtrack.
The former Professional Bull Riders CEO, hired in 2010, needs ovals that are the sport’s heritage. There are just five ovals to 11 road courses this season. Ovals in New Hampshire and Kentucky were dropped because of disappointing crowds and Las Vegas after Indy 500 winner Dan Wheldon’s fatal crash.
Three days before last May’s Indy 500, Bernard admitted to The Republic that he was talking up a 2012 season opener at PIR, yet hadn’t tried to contact Sperber. A month later, on an Indianapolis radio station, Bernard said: “The one (track) that I want, that president won’t give us the time of day, that’s Phoenix. If I was a public held company (International Speedway Corp. is PIR’s parent), and I had a president that wouldn’t call one of the top forms of motorsports, I’d fire him. I think that guy, he’s not worth a damn in my opinion.”
IndyCar business development director Sarah Davis outreached to Sperber last October, two days before Wheldon’s death. Sperber and Bernard swapped voice mails during the holidays.
“It was probably my fault,” Bernard admitted during a telephone interview. “I didn’t give Bryan a fair chance. I should have talked to him and made my own evaluation. I apologized to him.” Bernard said he was “flexible” on some issues.
PIR, which lost several hundred thousand dollars on the poorly attended 2005 race, would need a substantial discount from IndyCar’s usual $1.5 million fee. Since PIR likely will continue to host Nascar’s second 2013 race, March 3, and doesn’t want an event in February, the most attractive IndyCar date probably would be April 13.
That’s the weekend before the Long Beach Grand Prix in California. Bernard said that was “very doable” even though his April schedule this season is demanding: Birmingham, Ala.; Long Beach; and Sao Paulo, Brazil. Cargo planes transport the cars there the weekend after Long Beach. “If we can find the right date, I think we can work all the financials out,” Bernard said.
Sperber wants a test involving several top drivers to assess the potential for good racing after last year’s $10 million repaving and reconfiguration (JR Hildebrand and Marco Andretti tested recently but not in tandem). IndyCar has new chassis and engines from Honda, Chevrolet and Lotus. Bernard said, “We can pull (the test) off.”
Indy racing at PIR dates to 1964. The best-attended event is believed to have been 1993, about 35,000 paying fans. Announced attendance at the recent Nascar Subway Fresh Fit 500 was 76,000.
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According to track sources, Winchester [IN] Speedway is set to test the Xtreme Supermodifieds on Saturday, April 7th.
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Russ Goodall of the TexasChron.com writes:
Two open-wheel races are definitely better than one. The announcement that the Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston will be on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule in 2013 gives the premier racing series in North America a pair of race dates in Texas.
“I’ve always loved to race in my home state, so I’m glad to see this happening,” A.J. Foyt said.
The Houston race will join a yet-to-be agreed-upon IndyCar race at Texas Motor Speedway, and that is exactly what IZOD IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard wants – even if others believe it won’t work because of the proximity. “The demographic and the crowd we are going to draw here is not the same as what we draw in Fort Worth,” Bernard said. “I think there is room for both.”
That is where TMS president Eddie Gossage differs with Bernard. “We have worked hard for 15 years trying to build support for the (race) here in DFW,” Gossage said. “Any time you split something, whether it is 50-50, 60-40 or even 99-1, it is less than the whole. The question is does it split it, or does a rising tide float all boats? I know what IndyCar says, I know what our research says, and we are not on the same page in that regard.”
But Bernard would definitely like to have both, and he still might not be finished in Texas. Now into his third year on the job with IndyCar, Bernard could eventually find his series racing at the currently-under-construction Circuit of the Americas in Austin – site of Formula 1′s 2012 United States Grand Prix.
“Austin is interested in us,” Bernard said. “I want to make sure we give everybody an opportunity. I am a big believer that you create more buzz by having more IndyCar presence in Texas. We believe in our product. What we have to do is showcase and let people see that we are back to one series with the best drivers in the world.”
Bernard expects the Houston race to showcase his drivers’ abilities and attract a young audience. “I feel like we have to do what is in the best interest of the IndyCar Series,” Bernard said. “Long Beach didn’t have a problem with Fontana, and I think this is the same thing. When you come to street races in downtown cities or out by Reliant, I think you will see a much more urban, a much more younger demo.”