In Minneapolis, Jim Souhan noted the WNBA is "enjoying its first winter of true, mind-bending, roster-altering free agency, creating a handful of seeming superteams" in its "new promising-yet-perilous landscape." This is what a "more popular and fluid WNBA looks like -- like other major sports, where fan loyalty is constantly tested by heartache, and popularity is driven by player movement and the rampant speculation surrounding every possibility" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 2/24).
DRIVING DIVERSITY: FORBES' Dave Caldwell writes NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace has "added variety to a sport that could use some." There are "no other African-Americans, or any women, in the Cup Series this season, and the Mexican driver Daniel Suarez had to take a job with a lower-profile team just before" the Daytona 500 earlier this month. It would be "great if Wallace got more attention than he does, but this is a bottom-line business for every participant, and he has not done well enough in Cup so far to merit a longer look." However, finishing sixth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this past race "might help him get some more glory" (FORBES, 2/25).
BACK ON TRACK: In Indianapolis, Nathan Brown notes former IndyCar driver Robbie Buhl; his brother, Tom; Discovery Capital Management co-Founder Robert Citrone; and his son, Nick, last weekend announced the group's plans to "roll out an IndyCar team that will make its debut at the GMR Grand Prix on May 9, followed by a pursuit of a spot in the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500." Robert Citrone also is the largest minority investor in the Steelers, and Nick Citrone is Data Analytics Coordinator for the Penguins. Buhl was "last part of the IndyCar world" in '13 when he was Dreyer & Reinbold Racing co-Owner with Dennis Reinbold (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 2/25).
