Toronto Paper Says Haas To Make A USGP Announcement

[Mariofan]

[URL=http://www.canoe.ca/Slam020919/col_mcnulty-sun.html]

Hate to bring a D&G link to such a new place, but it does concern me. The players deal also does not sound good for the long term. Wish we had a race to talk about.

[Jay]

Firstly, that's all based off of articles in the
Gazzetta dello Sport, which has been anything but correct in its predictions of F1 moves.

I think Forsythe has another a new sponsor(s) lined up... He stated a while ago that he is in deep negotiations with one or more replacements for Player's as his main sponsor.

As for Newman-Haas, here's what Carl Haas said in Denver:

As you all probably know, I've been racing in CART for a long time alongside my partner, Paul Newman. We expect--we are certainly committed to continue racing in CART. I can't tell you my whole program right now, but we are going to be there and we are certainly going to continue to be there with a first-class program. But getting back to--besides what we are going to do, what Chris earlier said about having at least an 18-car field, I absolutely believe, and some of the things I've looked at that I don't particularly want to go into, I'm convinced that will happen. If that happens, CART certainly will have a transitional year in 2003. But I think as it goes forward, it's going to get straightened out again. It's a difficult time right now in all forms of racing. I'm involved in other forms of racing, and the economy is as bad as I've seen it, and the first thing that gets cut is sponsorship and advertising. But we are going to have 18 cars, and I'm going to be there with you again, and I hope for a long time. Thank you.

[Jay]

Actually, that might make some sense. The IRL engines might be to field cars in the 500 or even in the IRL, in addition to 2 or 3 cars in Cart. The Cart entries are pretty much guaranteed though.

[macdaddy]

I'm glad you feel so certain, Jay. I wish I could take solace in that, but I've got some misgivings. Maybe the possibility of losing N/Haas is why we haven't heard anything more from Mario. Suffice it to say that Mario wants nothing to do with the IRL.

[gaines]

You mean Mario didn't want anything to do with the IRL. Now that baby boy is sporting his own IRL team, Mario will be thinking impure thoughts about joining his son. Even if Mario only goes to a race to support Michael, which any good father would do, you know that the IRL cameras will zoom in on Mario every five seconds. Hopefully all the remaining Players(pardon the pun, Forsythe) stay in CART because we can make it, we just need to hang on.

[macdaddy]

Mario has CART in his blood. Michael must be more like his mother.

[Liz]

You better believe that Mario knows he'd be held up as a "Poster Boy" for the Invisibles if he ever showed up at one of their races, and I doubt very much that he's interested in pimping for people he loathes as much as he says he loathes them.

I think that now a few crybabies have defected, we are all so paranoid that we think everyone is going to leave. Let's not turn this into a panic attack but wait for official word and then panic if necessary.

[Jay]

I think the reason we haven't heard anything more from Mario is... The announcement of his son bolting puts him in a very precarious position between his own aspirations (and his business) and that of his son's. Also, unless someone has grabbed him by the arm to question him, there has been no opportunity for the media to question him since the announcement was made. I'm pretty sure he knew this was coming, even before he took his position on the Cart board.

Also, as much as I don't like Baby Mickey, I believe he personally would have rather stayed in Cart. And I know the same was true for Dario and probably Tony... probably true for a lot of the team's employees as well. This move was mostly Honda...maybe Kool.

[Liz]

Well, that is easy to say, I guess, and it's comforting to believe it. But if they "would rather have stayed" they would have, especially since Kool is NOT sponsoring Mikey next year from what I understand.

To me that kind of talk smacks of the guy you just broke up with telling you that "it's not your fault, it's my fault, I really wish it could have worked out ... " while your replacement is waiting in the car.

Insincere is the word I'm looking for.

[Jay]

I think Michael pretty much stated it when he said: "My heart is in CART, but I can't run a team with my heart."

That's not to say that if he didn't poke around for different sponsors that would support Cart he could have continued. But, Honda came along and offered him a season (s) in IRL that are pretty much payed for, and probably some extra buckets of cash to sweeten the deal. Michael took the money.

[macdaddy]

I think Michael pretty much stated it when he said: "We're switching."

[Jay]

well...they're gone anyway.

Does anyone have any other information about the above article? Such as the article from Gazzetta dello Sport... I searched around their site, and couldn't find anything related to that, but it might only be in their print edition. Still, the aboce article by McNulty seems to be his case that 'Cart is dieing' and highlights negative rumours, while ignoring anything positive.

The article did not say Carl Haas was not going to run Cart next year, and I have yet to see one article that said he was not committed to Cart for next year and years to come. If you have an article suggesting that he is going to pull out of Cart, let me see it.

As for Forsythe, a few weeks ago he said: "``We're in serious discussions with a European company that could replace Player's in 2004 as the team's principal sponsor.'' (Le Journal de Montreal) And I don't think you'd see multi-year contracts if he didn' have a Player's replacement lined up.

[macdaddy]

Not bad for an idiot.

Sorry. I'm still chuckling over old jokes.

[Liz]

McNulty is a NASCAR man and he knows diddly squat about any other kind of racing. I have spoken to him on the phone and he makes Brock Yates look like a Rhodes Scholar.

I put him down as the type who prints whatever people tell him.

[MaxSport]

So how much will you bet me that Haas will be in the IRL,Liz?

Given that you are an expert concerning CART, unlike McNulty,why not show your support and make a few American dollars in the process?

[f1manoz]

Haas may run a car in the IRL next year, but he's absolutely committed to CART. The only reason Haas would even consider doing it is:

a) Toyota will offer him free engines to do it
b) the lure of the Indianapolis 500

[Tiresmoke]

Originally posted by f1manoz
Haas may run a car in the IRL next year, but he's absolutely committed to CART. The only reason Haas would even consider doing it is:

a) Toyota will offer him free engines to do it
b) the lure of the Indianapolis 500

Haas got a sweet deal from Toyota, anyone that believes da Matta was worth only a pile of 3.5L boat anchors isn't playing with a full deck. Haas got himself some serious cash and enough Indy 500 engines for his 3 car onslaught in 03 where he'll have the CART team that wins Indy.

[TedN]

Originally posted by Liz
McNulty is a NASCAR man and he knows diddly squat about any other kind of racing. I have spoken to him on the phone and he makes Brock Yates look like a Rhodes Scholar.

I put him down as the type who prints whatever people tell him.

I really miss Dan Proudfoot.

Ted

[f1manoz]

I reckon the Haas USGP announcement is to tell the world that da Matta has signed for ToyotaF1, and so he's going to get a lot of money for it.

[mac]

I can just see it now:

Haas: "Ladies and gentleman, I am here today to announce that I am going to get a lot of money."