Champ cars and F1

GlasgowTitan · 8 Dec 2008 at 16:26

With all the talk of teams in F1 possibly going bust/ getting sold etc etc would it be better to have it a bit more like champ cars? Much smaller budgets - the teams seem to have little tents at the pits, not 500 computers and a nuclear power station. Seems the Champ series is going fine with some great competition and little of the "issues" that are affecting F1 at present...

JohnnyG · 8 Dec 2008 at 16:55

Isn't that pretty much what that A1GP thing is?

Mad_Jay · 8 Dec 2008 at 18:47

nvm.

daz · 8 Dec 2008 at 19:55

In some ways i'd like to see the opposite - F-zero if you will... where teams can basically build any kind of car they want with no rules apart from getting around a track as fast as possible.

Zip · 9 Dec 2008 at 06:58

daz said:
In some ways i'd like to see the opposite - F-zero if you will... where teams can basically build any kind of car they want with no rules apart from getting around a track as fast as possible.

Me too

dannyjo22 · 9 Dec 2008 at 08:24

GlasgowTitan said:
Seems the Champ series is going fine with some great competition and little of the "issues" that are affecting F1 at present...

Er champ car folded, so I say no

In the IRL Honda are the exclusive engine supplier, so I doubt that is looking great either.

FrankJH · 9 Dec 2008 at 09:38

Going round ovals all day long - no thanks!!!

Contracted to 20/30 teams to supply engines - thats gaurenteed income surely, its probably just as cheap as doing it on a production line, they certainly wont be losing money hand over fist like they were in F1

Zip · 10 Dec 2008 at 06:24

dannyjo22 said:
Er champ car folded, so I say no

In the IRL Honda are the exclusive engine supplier, so I doubt that is looking great either.

They merged not folded IIRC?

JRS · 10 Dec 2008 at 08:33

FrankJH said:
Going round ovals all day long - no thanks!!!

Um, small point....8 of the circuits that the IndyCar boys go to are road/street circuits....

FrankJH · 10 Dec 2008 at 14:27

JRS said:
Um, small point....8 of the circuits that the IndyCar boys go to are road/street circuits....

Like Valencia is a street circuit - or real street circuits, and out of how many venues

Isnt it Champ Cars that did predominantly ovals (which is what was being discussed - not Indy)

JRS · 10 Dec 2008 at 15:27

FrankJH said:
Like Valencia is a street circuit - or real street circuits, and out of how many venues

These are the 8 road courses and street circuits that they go to at the moment.

Streets of St Petersburg, Florida - uses some roads and one of the landing strips of Albert Whitted Airport.
Long Beach - the old GP course, also a temporary course built on the streets.
Watkins Glen - permanent circuit in New York State.
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course - permanent circuit near Lexington.
Edmonton Street Circuit - temporary street circuit held at Edmonton Airport in Edmonton, Canada.
Sears Point Raceway - permanent circuit in California. It's now supposed to be called Infineon but I refuse to call it that.
Belle Isle, Detroit - temporary street circuit built on Belle Isle in the Detroit river.

So, 3 permanent road courses and 5 temporary street circuits.

FrankJH said:
Isnt it Champ Cars that did predominantly ovals (which is what was being discussed - not Indy)

Before the merger, it was the Indy Racing League that ran most of the ovals and the Champ Car World Series that ran mostly street circuits and road courses IIRC. Now that they're merged back together again, they run a 19 race series comprised of speedways and the above tracks where they have to - gasp! - turn right as well.