In the aftermath of the Indianapolis 500 and U.S. 500,
ESPN's "Outside the Lines" examined the ongoing "feud" between
the IRL and CART from the perspective of fans, corporate
sponsors, circuit executives, team owners and the drivers
themselves. An attempt was also made to predict the future of
each race and to determine whether the two organizations can co-
exist. ESPN's Bob Ley said, at a minimum, there is hope the
dispute can be partially reconciled so at least a unified Indy
500 can be run. But neither Indianapolis Motor Speedway/IRL
President Tony George nor CART CEO Andrew Craig were as
optimistic. George: "I don't think there will ever be an accord
whereby CART as a unit comes to compete at the Indianapolis 500.
But, they as individuals are going to continue to be welcome
here." Craig: "Now, of course, time has gone by. They've
developed their own rules to their series. They've got a few
races going now. So, I think it really will be very, very
difficult to bring the two sides back together."
CORPORATE ANGLE: Long-time racing sponsors were forced to
make "uncomfortable" decisions on where to place their dollars,
and face similar decisions in the future. ESPN's Mary Ann
Grabavoy focused on Valvoline (which after 29 years pulled out as
the fuel and oil sponsor of the Indy 500), Pennzoil (which took
Valvoline's place at Indy), and Mercedes-Benz and Philip Morris
(both of whom left Indy for the U.S. 500). Valvoline Sports
Marketing Dir Mark Coughlin: "We're definitely going to continue
with the CART series. The question is, are we going to have an
IRL program?" Pennzoil Products Chief Marketing Officer Tom
Floyd: "It puts us in a real quandary in the future if they stay
apart and we have to decide how much money we can put in a
certain place." Mercedes-Benz Marketing Manager Steve Potter:
"Tradition is important and it's worth something, but they have
to be valid traditions, traditions that have continuity. ...
[Indy's] tradition no longer has a business value and that's why
we're here [in MI]" (ESPN, 5/29).
GRIDLOCK BUSTERS? Prior to the running of the Indy and U.S.
500's, 20 U.S. Senators and Representatives formed the
"Congressional Automotive and Motorsports Caucus." The caucus is
a "recognition that issues that concern motorsports manufacturers
... may be headed for Congress' radar screen" (Richard Welling,
DETROIT NEWS, 5/26).
