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Distant Thunder
F-1 began it's season the same way it ended -- with Michael Schumacher in the driver's seat -- and yesterday had a rookie dethrone the master for the first time in six races. But CART has languished. Taking criticism for starting the season outside the USA, suffering because political shennanigans cost the series a race in Brazil, the guys who like to call themselves The Premier Open Wheel racing series finds itself bringing up the rear in the public relations parade. That'll change this week, of course, when the second race of the season -- No, that's not a misprint, it is only the 2nd race! -- plays out on the streets of Long Beach not far from Tinseltown and all its celebrities. What's interesting, nevertheless, is the merger talk. Like when you hear distant rumbles of thunder on a sunny day, you know something's coming. Maybe it all started last year when Chip Ganassi took a team back to Indy. That the one defector from the CART ranks was the owner of four of the most recent championships ... that the one defector then cleaned up at Indy with Juan Montoya taking the Borg-Warner Trophy ... maybe that was the beginning of the end. Little Al had already jumped ship. Or, was pushed. This year Michael Andretti has coerced Barry Green into going "back home again to Indiana." But the real sign -- the thing that makes a fan believe the split is coming to an end -- is the Penske operation. Penske field two cars for the IRL race at Phoenix, and he'll have Gil de Ferran and Helio Castroneves saddled up for the run at the Brickyard. The Engine That CouldWhat's holding up a true merger, other than Tony George's ego and intramural disagreements among the CART owners? Tech specs, mainly in the form of different engine formulae. Both series run V-8s, but they're dissimilar. CART Engines
IRL Engines
The copyright of the article Two Series, One Engine? in CART Auto Racing is owned by Gary Presley. Permission to republish Two Series, One Engine? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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