No, really. AutoWeek is reporting that the
two series’ principals, Kevin Kalkhoven and Tony George, have held a number of meetings on the subject this year, and a
letter of intent to merge the competing open-wheel racing series could be imminent.
The rumor includes an
encouraging level of detail, including:
- 50/50 ownership of the resulting series
- George
and Kalkhoven would be co-chairmen - Honda and Cosworth would both be involved
- Bridgestone will
be the tire supplier (could be either of the Bridgestone or Firestone brands)
In the realm of (even
wilder) speculation, it’s likely that Champ Car technical specs would dominate a merged series. The 2.65-liter turbo V8
Champ Car engine specification is basically unchanged from the days when Honda competed in the same engine formula with
Ford (now Cosworth), so a level playing field would be easy to attain. Champ Car is well along in the design of a brand
new chassis for the 2007 season, better suited to street and road courses and emphasizing cost-containment for race
teams. Similarly, Champ Car’s Formula Atlantic series has a new car from Swift, a new engine agreement with Mazda, and
lots of teams, while the IRL’s Pro Series is virtually dead.
A merged series would include the Indy 500, of
course, and the most successful races from each series (most of which would be Champ Car’s).
As AutoWeek
points out, the real question is whether race fans will even care. It could well be too late to stop the decline of
Indy-style racing.