Former F1 driver Rubens Barrichello has joined KV Racing for the entire '12 Izod IndyCar Series, and he will be sponsored by construction equipment company Brasil Maquinas. Barrichello holds the record for career F1 starts with 325, though he was released from the Williams team at the end of the '11 season (KV Racing). The AP’s Tales Azzoni noted the arrival of a “well-recognized name in racing is welcomed by IndyCar, which is trying to revamp its image after ending last season on a low following the death of Dan Wheldon in Las Vegas.” IndyCar driver Helio Castroneves said, "The entire series will get a boost with Rubinho's presence, it's another great name added to our grid." Azzoni noted Barrichello brings with him “an ardent fan base -- his 1.47 million followers on Twitter is one million more" than Tony Kanaan, who "leads all IndyCar drivers with 448,000 followers” (AP, 3/1). ESPN.com’s John Oreovicz wrote perhaps the “happiest person about Barrichello's announcement” was IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard, who “unexpectedly has an additional worldwide star on board.” Bernard has compared Barrichello's arrival in Indy cars to those of former F1 world champions Emerson Fittipaldi and Nigel Mansell (ESPN.com, 3/1). In Indianapolis, Curt Cavin notes Barrichello “never has raced on an oval track, and the lure of doing so is part of the attraction.” Barrichello: "Whenever we were talking about Indy, in the back of my mind, I always wanted to know what was the experience" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 3/2). YAHOO SPORTS’ Nick Bromberg writes while Barrichello's signing “is a positive and helps add a known name in the motorsports world to the IndyCar Series, it remains to be seen how much impact his presence will have” on the series. Barrichello is now one of “three Brazilians in the IndyCar Series" along with Kanaan and Castroneves, though Bromberg asks how many Brazilian fans “are now going to pay attention to the IndyCar Series because of his presence?” (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 3/2).
BETTER OFF WITHOUT DANICA? Andretti Autosport Owner Michael Andretti said that the IndyCar Series is “better off in some respects" without Danica Patrick, who left following the '11 season for NASCAR. Andretti said, "Yeah, we lost Danica, but I'm not sure that's going to be negative. I think she brought a lot of good stuff, but she brought a lot of other things that really took away from the rest of our series. And I don't think that's healthy. And I think NASCAR's going to find that." The AP’s Chris Jenkins noted Andretti “went out of his way to make it clear that his comments weren't meant as a criticism of Patrick, but rather a criticism of the amount of media attention she receives as the expense of other drivers.” Andretti: "It became all about her. Even our racing was secondary. I mean, to talk about her finishing 12th in the field, it was taking away from our real stars that we have that really were not getting the billing they should get" (AP, 3/1).
