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Saturday, May 5
This year's Indy 500 a big reunion party
ESPN.com news services
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis 500 is back, ready to
reaffirm its status as the most famous race in the world.
Just five years after the first shots were fired in the war
between CART and the Indy Racing League, the Indianapolis 500
has endured. And this year's race may have all the glamour,
luster, intrigue, intensity and interest as any race since the
1996 split.
|  | | Roger Penske, left, is back at Indianapolis for the first time since 1995. Al Unser Jr., right, won the Brickyard in 1994 for Penske's 10th victory at Indy. |
"There is no race bigger than Indy, don't let anybody kid
themselves," said Roger Penske, the winningest team owner in
Indy 500 history with 10. "The benefits that accrue out of
winning Indy for our company and our people over the years, you
can't add it up. The Daytona 500 is a great race, but there is
only one Indianapolis.
"In NASCAR and in Formula One, there is nothing that has the
crowd, that has the two weeks ahead of it with the qualifying
drama. To me, it's the biggest race. That is why we decided as
a group that we want to go back there and compete again."
Practice for the 85th Indianapolis 500 begins Sunday at the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Penske is back for the first time since his drivers at the time
-- Al Unser Jr. and Emerson Fittipaldi -- failed to make the
field in 1995. Defending CART champion Gil de Ferran and Helio
Castroneves will race for Marlboro Team Penske this year.
When Indianapolis Motor Speedway president Tony George created
the Indy Racing League in 1996, critics vowed it would mark the
end of the Indianapolis 500 as the world's premier race.
But in the five years since Buddy Lazier won the 80th
Indianapolis 500 in the IRL's first season, the race is back to
being the most anticipated motorsports event in the world. It
has all the ingredients that made the Indy 500 so grand before
CART teams decided to stay away.
Consider that three of CART's best teams -- Marlboro Team
Penske, Target/Chip Ganassi Racing and Team Green -- are
competing this month. Chip Ganassi returns as the winning team
owner, although 2000 victor Juan Montoya has moved on to Formula
One. And for team owner Barry Green, the last time he competed
here in 1995, he finished in victory lane with driver Jacques
Villeneuve.
When CART team owners voted in December 1995 to stay away from
the Indianapolis 500 and stage a rival event -- the U.S. 500 --
they were convinced the Indy 500 would be tarnished and viewed
as a "second-rate" event.
For sure, the Indianapolis 500 suffered through difficult times
in 1996 with a field of teams and drivers that was short of
money, talent and experience. In 1997, the race was the first
with a new chassis and engine formula, which included 4.0-liter
normally aspirated engines -- some that blew up on the parade
and pace laps. But Arie Luyendyk was able to win a highly
competitive race as the top five finishes were all on the
frontstretch when the checkered flag waved.
When Eddie Cheever won in 1998 and Kenny Brack won in 1999, it
continued to solidify the IRL and help reaffirm the status of
the Indianapolis 500.
Last year, Ganassi decided to break ranks and run Montoya and
Jimmy Vasser in last year's race and team owner Derrick Walker
opted to run full-time teams in CART and the IRL.
It proved the only way to compete at Indy was Tony George's way.
So, five years after CART split, teams have realized the
importance of competing at the Indianapolis 500.
During that time, the IRL has grown. And after some rocky times
and embarrassing moments, it finally is showing signs of growth,
boasting its biggest schedule with 13 races in 2001.
"This year's 500 is going to be extremely exciting and what is
making it that is all the tough competitors in the IRL," said
Unser, a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner. "We have Arie
Luyendyk coming out of retirement, the Penske team bringing his
drivers here and, of course, Michael Andretti returning. I've
heard rumors that Jimmy Vasser might be back, also.
"What can I say? These guys are finally seeing the light at the
end of the tunnel. It took me a little bit to realize that, but
it didn't take me very long. Indy is where it's at and it's
what auto racing is all about. We want to take on all comers,
so bring them on and let's go racing."
Over a matter of time, it was obvious that some of the great
names in racing had to come back to Indianapolis.
This year, many of them are back. When the IRL began operation,
there were far too many people in both CART and the IRL who
thought the tide would turn immediately. In all respects,
however, it was going to be a matter of time before the IRL
could have a significant impact.
"I'm sure everybody has a different timeframe in which they
thought things would happen," George said. "I guess I'm not
surprised it is taken this long to see some start filtering
back. I certainly didn't expect there to be one big wave of
participation since the decision in 1996 not to come. They had
pretty much decided that they did not want to be a part of the
(IRL) from the outset and they certainly had their own business
and their own series to run.
"Over time, I think we've had to earn the respect of not only
the CART owners but also the drivers to get to a point where
they felt comfortable coming back. More and more, they are
becoming comfortable."
It was only two years ago that members of CART offered George a
chance at unifying the two series. Many believed it was an
offer too good for George to refuse and it was one in which he
would have a significant amount of impact and influence over one
unified circuit.
In the end, however, George decided to stick it out with the IRL
rather than abandon his philosophy.
Since then, the IRL has stabilized while CART has endured a
series of setbacks that threatens to erode the base of the
organization.
"We thought we were on the right track and if we stuck to what
we were doing, all things would improve -- manufacturer support,
sponsor support and the support of owners and drivers," George
said. "We have a pretty healthy situation right now. We have
pretty good car counts, week in and week out. There are some
that are in and out, but for the most part we have been able to
sustain some very solid fields.
"It was always more complicated than taking what CART had to
offer at that time, so, no, that was not a temptation."
There remain plenty of shortcomings in the IRL, but many are
being addressed.
"We haven't built and sustained the number of races I would like
or we need in order to be considered an established series,"
George said. "I think we are on our way there, especially this
year with 13 races and the prospects of growing it more next
year. We are really at a good number, that teams and sponsors
and the public are starting to recognize it is a major
franchise. Once we have a good schedule established, we will
see more sponsor support. It all builds from having a good,
solid schedule."
The month of May at Indianapolis has forever changed. Practice
and qualifying crowds are down, but George said the trend
actually had begun well before CART teams left after the 1995
race.
"There are so many things that have affected that, it's hard to
put your finger on any one and say that is the major cause,"
George said. "Even the changes we have made from an
infrastructure standpoint, with all the construction we've had
going on, the limited parking inside the track, the access that
people were accustomed to having, I think all of that has
changed. It's taken a little bit more effort to come out and
sit in the infield or hang out in the Tower Terrace for the
afternoon.
"A lot of that has changed and it's going to require us to
settle in and start rebuilding all of that. As far as the
enthusiasm and the level of interest, that has continued to
build over the last two or three years. This year, there seems
to be as much interest around town as there has been since 1996,
but whether that will translate into larger practice day crowds,
I don't know."
When George created the IRL, he wanted to return Indy car racing
to its heritage as an all-oval racing series that would promote
grass-roots American drivers. Although many IRL drivers have
American roots, the sport continues to have a strong Brazilian
influence.
But George believes that if he never created the IRL, causing
CART to leave the Indianapolis 500 en masse, many of the same
problems would still exist.
"I don't think anything we have done has really damaged it," he
said. "I don't think there would be any more driver recognition
than there is today. I think NASCAR would still be as strong as
it is today. I don't think the split in any way helped NASCAR
to the extent that some people would like to believe. NASCAR's
momentum really started building prior to 1996 and it goes back
to 1994, when it was really starting to build.
"Having just maintained status quo, I don't think we would have
found ourselves in any different position. The trend in decline
in attendance had begun at many race venues and with television
ratings before the split."
This year's Indianapolis 500 also can benefit from the Indiana
Pacers being eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Indy now rules May in Indianapolis.
The Indy 500 now can dominate the sports section of The
Indianapolis Star and on local television.
"It potentially eliminates one of the things that divides
people's interests in Indianapolis," George said. "We still
have to continue to do things to promote the 500. Some of the
things we are doing are retro in some respects to the way they
promoted the race in the 1950s. We are trying to get more of
the promotion going on and the energy building in the outlying
communities. We'll have to just see what kind of general
interest there is from the public with Penske and his drivers
coming back, with Ganassi and his drivers coming back and with
Michael Andretti's return.
"Around Indianapolis, there seems to be more excitement. People
are saying, 'You stuck to your guns and they are all back now.'
What's all? It seems that Penske and Andretti are all that they
focused on. The whole month of May should be very exciting,
very competitive, interesting seeing what the competition of the
field is."
There are many IRL drivers who have been loyal to George's cause
since the first race at Walt Disney World in January 1996. One
of those was Lazier, who won the pole for that event and
captured the Indianapolis 500 just two months after suffering a
broken back in a crash at Phoenix International Raceway.
The IRL has helped Lazier show his ability as a racer, having
won four IRL events and arriving as the series' defending
champion. Lazier also was inished second in last year's
Indianapolis 500 when Montoya gave CART bragging rights by
winning.
|
“ |
These guys are finally seeing the light at the
end of the tunnel. It took me a little bit to realize that, but
it didn't take me very long. Indy is where it's at and it's
what auto racing is all about. We want to take on all comers,
so bring them on and let's go racing.” |
|
|
—Al Unser Jr. |
Those who say this year's Indy 500 is back to the way it used to
be only because of the presence of CART teams does not give
credit to some of the IRL's top drivers and teams.
"Put it this way, some of the guys who haven't been there, they
have a lot of respect," Lazier said. "But I think we deserve
some respect, too. We are all very accomplished and very
capable. We have some very capable racing teams here.
Certainly, they have some capable teams that are coming to the
Speedway.
"It's going to be a very competitive race. We are all excited
about the way the series is growing and we all have pride in
what we do. When you are a race driver, you want your guys up
front. We were proud of the way we performed last year because
we could have won, but ultimately, we didn't achieve the goal
that we wanted. Hopefully, this year, we can take it the next
step and win it. You're going to see all kinds of IRL guys who
can win this race this year."
During the split, drivers like Andretti made some disparaging
remarks about the Indy 500 and the IRL. Now that he is back at
Indy, Andretti has apologized and acknowledged the IRL is "here
to stay."
Some of those remarks have not been forgotten, however.
Unser admitted that in 1996, he was under pressure from his team
and sponsor to stand up for CART and criticize the Indy 500 and
the IRL. He admitted that was among the most difficult things
he had to do in his career.
"From an IRL competitor's point of view, all you do is keep your
head down, ignore what people say and keep doing what you are
doing because you believe in it," Lazier said. "This is an
awesome race series. It's the future.
"It's disappointing that more people haven't realized that
sooner, but they are starting to catch on now."
Two years ago, George said he was disappointed that some media
members spent so much time talking about the drivers who weren't
in the Indy 500. The names most often mentioned were Unser and
Andretti.
Unser returned to Indy last year and Andretti followed him this
year.
Now the talk in racing is about the drivers who are in the
Indianapolis 500, giving it a positive spin for the first time
in years.
"The trend has turned, at least it has for this year," George
said. "There is a general feeling of excitement for the way the
month of May is shaping up. We are also off to a great start of
the season for the league and that has helped add to the
excitement and participation."
It also has proven that those teams and drivers who want to run
the Indianapolis 500 must do it under the rules and regulations
established by the IRL, not CART.
"Penske having won 10 Indy 500s will validate even more the
tradition," said Eliseo Salazar, who drives for IRL team owner
A.J. Foyt. "We will have the last five winners of the CART
championship -- four times for Ganassi and Penske this last
year. We always thought the Indy 500 should be the Super Bowl,
where you get the best of both series. It won't be more evident
than this year."  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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