Formula One U.S Grand Prix not returning to Indianapolis
13/07/2007 |
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Formula One's U.S. Grand Prix won't return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway next year, ending an eight-year run at the track.
The decision comes after recent meetings between Speedway chief executive Tony George and Formula One Management Ltd. boss Bernie Ecclestone. The two had set a mid-July deadline for a decision on the race's future at Indianapolis.
``After several discussions, Bernie Ecclestone and I were unable to agree how to keep Formula One in Indianapolis for the near term,'' George said in a statement. ``However, we have agreed to leave the door open for a potential future date.''
U.S. interest in open-wheel racing, where single-seat cars with high-powered engines use wings and other aerodynamic aids to improve handling, has lagged Nascar stock-car events. Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indianapolis 500, has held a Nascar event since 1994. Indianapolis is the only U.S. date on the Formula One calendar.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway ``has not been doing that well with it,'' said Marc Ganis, president of SportsCorp Ltd., a Chicago-based sports marketing company. ``It's been pretty disappointing. Formula One is really expensive to do and they didn't have the fans or the corporate base to make it work.''
The race promoter ``has to provide leadership and a working relationship that includes a national broadcast partner, a title sponsor that will actively embrace and support the event, along with a number of other things,'' George said at a press conference in Indianapolis. The speedway provided a transcript of the conference. ``Those are important things that really have been lacking.''
Controversy in 2005
In 2005, the U.S. Grand Prix was mired in controversy after 14 of 20 drivers refused to start the race because of concern about tire safety. As a result, George refused to join race winner Michael Schumacher in the winner's circle.
Formula One returned to the U.S. in 2000 after an eight- year gap. The Indianapolis track added an infield road course to its 2.5 mile (4.02-kilometer) four-cornered oval to accommodate the cars. The European circuit has held races in the U.S. since 1959 in locations that include Watkins Glen, New York; Long Beach, California; Sebring, Florida, and Dallas.
The Formula One series, controlled by London-based Formula One Management, stages a June race in Montreal, its only other stop in North America. A call to Ecclestone's London office wasn't immediately returned.
Briton Lewis Hamilton won this year's U.S. Grand Prix on June 17. Schumacher has the most wins by a driver at the U.S. event with five, and Ferrari has won nine times, more than any other manufacturer.
(Source: Bloomberg.com)
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