The CART FedEx Championship series held its season
opener in Miami on Sunday, and the MIAMI HERALD's Gary Long
estimates the attendance at the Miami-Dade Homestead
Motorsports Complex at 45,000 (MIAMI HERALD, 3/22). USA
TODAY's Skip Wood puts the attendance at 40,000, "visibly
smaller than the previous day's NASCAR truck series crowd"
(USA TODAY, 3/22). Miami-Dade Homestead Motorsports Complex
GM John Story, on Sunday's attendance: "Not as good as I
first thought." In Indianapolis, Robin Miller writes CART
may have made a mistake in teaming with a NASCAR Craftsman
Truck series race on Saturday, as the way the weekend was
structured, "CART was almost guaranteed to play second
fiddle" to NASCAR. Miller said CART showed "very little
intelligence" by teaming with NASCAR President Bill France,
Jr. for its opening weekend: "If CART truly thinks it's got
a partner in France, then it's more naive than I ever
imagined. And dumber. Much dumber" (STAR-NEWS, 3/21).
CART VS. NASCAR: CART driver Greg Moore said that
NASCAR has made its drivers "superstars, which is something
that in the American eye a lot of other series haven't been
able to do yet." Moore: "CART is trying to get that way,
but they just haven't been as successful" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE,
3/21). However, Mario Andretti said that in comparing the
two series "in the world picture," CART is "so much bigger
because of the TV exposure and the appreciation for this
type of racing." Andretti added that while the popularity
of stock cars is "phenomenal" in the U.S., outside of the
U.S. "there isn't much interest" (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL,
3/20). The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Mel Poole writes that
CART's success in building its "domestic fan base and
viewership" depends on whether it can "snare and segment a
loyal, upscale global group of 18-54s who can be leveraged
by series sponsors" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 3/22 issue).
THE MAN BEHIND CART: In Indianapolis, Bill Koenig
profiled CART CEO Andrew Craig, who said that he "didn't
understand fully the depth of the split with the
(Indianapolis) Speedway" upon taking the position in '94.
But team owner Derrick Walker said of Craig, "He knows who
the powerhouses are of the sport. He knows when to consult
with them" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR-NEWS, 3/21).
