IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard on Saturday said that there has been “no talk of a driver boycott at Texas Motor Speedway, and the series will race there as planned this season,” according to Jenna Fryer of the AP. Bernard in a statement said, "Never has there been any discussion by IndyCar's drivers about boycotting Texas Motor Speedway. We have so many good things happening in the series, we are not going to let rumors tear down all the positives we have as we continue to move forward." A report two weeks ago indicated that the drivers “were discussing boycotting the race over concerns about the fencing at Texas.” Driver Dan Wheldon was killed in an October crash when his head hit a post in the fence at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The fence at TMS is “constructed the same way as the fence at Las Vegas, with the posts inside the mesh wiring” (AP, 3/3). RACIN TODAY’s John Sturbin noted drivers still “remain skittish in the aftermath” of Wheldon’s fatal crash at LVMS. But TMS President Eddie Gossage said, “I’m really disappointed and don’t know why IndyCar drivers feel the need to constantly damage the sport. You know, engineers have told us over and over that the current fence design is the best that technology provides us today. But if you were a sponsor, if you were a fan, if you were a TV network -- why would you get involved with IndyCar racing if they can’t tell you today where they’re going to race tomorrow? And the drivers -- the spokespersons for the sport -- are tearing it down?” He added, “So, it’s absolutely irresponsible of those drivers, and they deserve -- because of the way they conduct themselves sometimes -- they deserve where they stand now in the food chain of motorsports.” Gossage said that he will “continue to deal” with IndyCar on “a year-by-year basis” (RACINTODAY.com, 3/2).
