http://sports.myway.com/news/08172006/v4796.html

Aug 17, 9:19 PM (ET)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -Formula One racing will return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for at least one more year.

Speedway CEO Tony George signed a one-year deal Wednesday to continue the U.S. Grand Prix, track spokesman Ron Green said Thursday. Details of the agreement were not released.

"It's very important for us to be able to continue to bring Formula One racing to the fans in the United States and specifically to the fans at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway," Green said.

Speedway officials said they hope the U.S. Grand Prix continues in Indianapolis beyond the one-year deal.

"Tony George and the Speedway are committed to keeping the U.S. Grand Prix in Indianapolis for a long, long time," Green said. "This shouldn't be a message of any type that this event doesn't have a long-term future."

The U.S. Grand Prix, the only F1 race in the United States, first came to Indianapolis in 2000. Next year's race is tentatively scheduled for June 17, 2007.

Uncertainty about the race's future at Indianapolis has swirled for more than a year after concerns about tire safety prompted 14 of 20 drivers to boycott in 2005.

The most recent contract for the Grand Prix expired following this year's race, which was held July 2.

 

Thats cool I hope they make a come back. The Mayor of my town Las Vegas NV is talking about bringin them to our town. That would be cool.

 

One more year at Indy, then the circus is on to one of the following:
LV street race - apparently Bernie's #1 choice
Laguna Seca - #1 choice of 99% of race fans
Indy (again) - no one's fav besides T.G.

Let's just hope that F1 still exists and that it's worth watching in 2008.

 

Watkins Glen would be nice Indy is definitely boring for F1.

 

F1 has said that the U.S. could support a second Grand Prix. I would like to see that at Laguna Seca. Making the track facilities appropriate for a race would be another matter.

 

Laguna Seca is a great track but too narrow for modern F1. Road America is more well suited to F1 cars but is in the middle of BFE. Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland would be best for fans.

 

i like laguna seca, i wonder how F1 cars would handle the corkscrew thing , i always go in the corkscrew way too fast in granturismo :p

 

I think RA is too narrow also. And RA & Burke are too close to Indy. The second race would have to be much further west. I would like to see it on an existing road course.

 

Vegas....street circuits are ace.

 

I'd opt for Vegas too.

After all there was an US F1 street circuit (Detroit) already.

 

Yes, along with Long Beach and Phoenix. There dosn't seem to be any long term commitment for street races in the US.

 

Speedway Continues Working Toward Longer Deal to Keep F1

Aug 22, 11:45 AM (ET)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -Next year's U.S. Grand Prix could be just the start for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

After announcing a one-year deal last week to keep the race in Indianapolis, speedway president Joie Chitwood said Monday night the two sides are still negotiating a deal that would keep the only American race on the Formula One circuit in Indianapolis beyond 2007.

The original seven-year contract expired after July's race.

"Our hope is we get a long-term deal," Chitwood said. "But we wanted to do something done quickly first so we could communicate that to our customers."

Chitwood was participating in the annual Peyback Bowl, a fundraiser for Peyton Manning's charitable foundation which benefits children.

Among other race celebrities at the fundraiser were Indy 500 champion Sam Hornish Jr., defending NASCAR champion Tony Stewart, and IRL drivers Tony Kanaan, and Sarah Fisher.

Uncertainty about the race's future at Indianapolis swirled for more than a year after concerns about tire safety prompted 14 of 20 drivers to pull off the track just as the 2005 race was about to start.

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said this summer that the series did not necessarily need an American event to be successful, but the Indianapolis race traditionally draws more than 100,000 fans and some sponsors have argued they want more exposure to the American marketplace.

Despite Ecclestone's original comments, he agreed to bring the race back one more time. Next year's event is scheduled for June 17.

Speedway officials, who invested millions in renovations to add a road course across the infield of the track and a new four-story media center, want the race to remain a regular part of the series' schedule and are now working on a subsequent deal that would keep the USGP in Indianapolis even longer.

"The landscape with F1 continues to be interesting, and we're trying to make sure this is something we can get done," Chitwood said. "But we wanted to get the first part done quickly so that people could start buying tickets for next year."

Indianapolis is the only venue to host an event on each of the three major race circuits - NASCAR, F1 and the Indy Racing League.

Chitwood also has expressed interest in adding a motorcycle race to the schedule but not before 2008.

 

Laguna Seca lap record for Toyota and Zonta

21 August 2006

Ricardo Zonta (BRA), Toyota Third Driver, broke the Laguna Seca track record driving the Toyota TF106. Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races Presented by Toyota, Laguna Seca, Monterey, USA. 20 August 2006. Copyright Free/Steve SwopeToyota test driver Ricard Zonta broke the lap record at California’s famous Laguna Seca circuit three times over the weekend as he demonstrated his TF106 as part of the annual Monterey Historic Automobile races.

Zonta’s Friday best of 1m 07.587s bettered the previous record of 1m 07.722s, set by fellow Brazilian Helio Castroneves in a CART single-seater back in 2000. He then beat his own mark on Saturday with a 1m 06.596s, before shaving off another three tenths on Sunday to finish on 1m 06.309s.

"This has been a very satisfying weekend," said Zonta after the session. "This experience has brought up a lot of good memories from when I was here in '98 and won the FIA GT Championships. And, of course it's always a good feeling to come to a circuit and leave knowing you've set a new record."

Zonta had to pilot the Toyota through the circuit’s famous and gut-wrenching ‘corkscrew’ at Turns 8 and 8A (pictured) - considered one of the motorsport world's most challenging turns, due to the drop in elevation as well as its blind apex. Sunday also brought slightly windy and cooler weather conditions, as well as oil laid down on the track by the historic cars after a day and a half of racing.

"The older cars dropped oil in places on the track and I didn't want to challenge the car because I couldn't be certain where the oil was,” remarked Zonta. “I needed to assume there was a high possibility that oil was in many places. It was also more windy today than before and the blowing dust made the track slippery in places."

After one installation run, Zonta brought the car into the pits for new tyres. "We put slicks on after the installation lap, but the sun came out later today and the track didn't heat like it did the last several days," he added. "Unfortunately, the tyres couldn't work as well as possible."

Nevertheless, Zonta’s new record gave him an average speed around the 11-turn, 3.6 kilometre (2.238 mile) track of 195.5 km/h (121.504 mph).

http://www.formula1.com/news/4819.html

 

How is Road America too narrow? Have you seen any of the current F1 tracks? It's hard for them to pass at all on many of them. Road America is an 8 lane highway compared to some of the tracks they already race on.

 

like monaco

 

Yes, monaco is very narrow. I believe Spa, which until recently was a GP track, is narrow also. Having raced on Road America, I just looked narrower than many of the current GP facilities.
But, I still is too close to Indianapolis. To gain a greater following in the US, a race would be needed west of the rockies.

 

Indy is my #1 only because I can drive there in 3 hrs. I would not be able to see the race in any other city. Although it would be great to see those cars racing at LS or Watkins glen.

Also dont forget that the speedway would have to cater to all of the crazy requests which F1 makes. Other tracks would need to spend several million to get there garages and pit areas up to F1 "code". T.G. spent 30 million to get Indy to Bernies liking.