Paul Tracy will finally get his chance to race in the IndyCar Series — for at least one race. The former CART champion will drive in the July 26 Rexall Edmonton Indy in a car fielded by Walker Racing, supported by Vision Racing and sponsored by Subway.
“It’s going to be good to be back in a race car and see how we can do,” Tracy said Tuesday. “A lot of these (IndyCar) teams are pretty tired right now. They’ve had a bunch of races in a short time and there have been a lot of crashes, so people are kind of run into the ground.
“We’re coming in fresh, with a fresh outlook and a lot of motivation.”
Tracy, winner of 31 races in CART and its later iteration as Champ Car, found himself out of a ride when Champ Car was absorbed into the IRL’s IndyCar Series in February. Forsythe Championship Racing, for whom the Canadian raced in recent years, closed down rather than joining teams moving to the IRL for the 2008 season.
Tracy then found himself in a dispute with team owner Gerald Forsythe over the settlement of his contract and was unable to sign with another team before the start of the season. His only race this year came in April, driving for Forsythe at Long Beach (Calif.), where the final Champ Car race was run on the same weekend that the IndyCar series was obligated to a race in Japan. Tracy finished 11th.
Meanwhile, longtime open-wheel team owner Derrick Walker did not have the money to make the move to the IndyCar Series and was concentrating on running cars in the developmental Atlantic Series.
Tony George, founder of the IRL and owner of Vision Racing, wanted to sign Tracy to a run a third car for his team, but couldn’t find the additional sponsorship dollars. But he was able to eventually broker the deal with Tracy, Walker, Subway and associated sponsor Rexall.
“Derrick and I have been talking all along, trying to work something out,” Tracy said. “Sure, I would like to be on Penske or Ganassi, but those options aren’t on the table. And Derrick has shown he can do the job if he gets the right tools. With Tony’s equipment and Derrick’s preparation, I think we can be competitive.
“The important thing is we’re going to get a chance to get in an IndyCar and see what we can do. Derrick’s team is pretty confident they have a good setup for Edmonton. They put Will (Power) on the pole there last year.”
NASCAR official dies. Steve Peterson, NASCAR’s technical director who spent 13 years helping make the circuit safer for drivers, was found dead in his home in Concord, N.C. He was 58.
The cause of death was not disclosed, but NASCAR said in a statement it appeared to be of natural causes.
Peterson joined NASCAR in 1995 and spearheaded several safety initiatives, including installation of the SAFER Barriers and the implementation of safety features in the Car of Tomorrow. He also helped the circuit get approval for head and neck restraints and improved seat belts. He won the 2006 Society of Automotive Engineers Motorsports Achievement Award.
