FORMULA FOR SUCCESS? GEORGE SAYS F-1 RACE TO BE PROFITABLE

          IMS President Tony George said yesterday that the
     track's Formula One race scheduled for September 24 will be
     "profitable in Year One," according to Bill Koenig of the
     INDIANAPOLIS STAR.  George said that the race will generate
     a "positive cash flow" that will help IMS pay off its
     "massive investment" in configuring and upgrading the track,
     an amount estimated "as high as" $40M.  IMS is putting
     200,000 reserved seats on sale for the race, "almost double
     the highest attendance" F1 has ever had in the U.S., and
     plan to sell an "undetermined" number of general admission
     tickets.  Since F1 keeps all the money from TV and corporate
     hospitality as well as most revenues from billboards, race
     promoters "rely primarily on ticket sales for revenue," and
     George said that so far, "ticket demand has been stronger
     than most [IMS] officials expected" (INDY STAR, 4/26).