FUMES

July 25, 2012

Why not?

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

(Posted 7/24, 4:00 p.m.) Detroit. I was never a fan of the old International Race of Champions series, except for the first year when Mark Donohue orchestrated Porsche's involvement and everyone drove 911 Carrera RSRs. Seeing the stock car and Indy boys - Richard Petty, David Pearson, Bobby Allison, A.J. Foyt, Bobby Unser, Gordon Johncock, Roger McCluskey - go up against Donohue, George Follmer, Peter Revson, Denny Hulme, Emerson Fittipaldi (watch the video intro to the ABC broadcast here) was pretty great. After that the IROC slowly dissolved into being a NASCAR sideshow eventually, which effectively killed it for good.

But could that fundamental IROC premise be resurrected in the specialized racing world we live in today? Where never the twain shall meet when it comes to drivers trying out other cars and series? Think about it, Kimi Raikkonen was the highest profile driver of note to actually walk away and try something else recently when he went rallying, and now he's back in F1 and doing quite well, thank you very much. (I'm discounting Dario's foray into NASCAR and the jury is still out on Danica's NASCAR adventure for now.) And there are others, but you get the point.

Back in the day, drivers regularly drove all kinds of different race cars, but today's contractual agreements make it damn near impossible for that to happen. And it's really too bad. If I were Global Racing Czar I would mandate every major racing series provide front-line cars for guest drivers at selected events.

The lineup?

Formula 1 in Austin and New Jersey: I'd give the F1 boys a break so that they'd only have to field two cars in Austin and two cars in New Jersey to American and other American racing series "guest" drivers. Take your pick, Tony Stewart in a McLaren, Kyle Busch in a Red Bull, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves, Will Power, Scott Dixon, Dario Franchitti, etc., etc., etc. You get the idea. Two top F1 teams would field a third car at each U.S. Grand Prix stop. That's what Colin Chapman did for Mario way back in the 1968 U.S. Grand Prix at Watkins Glen (he sat on the pole) and there's no reason why it couldn't happen again.

Eldora Speedway: Tony Stewart already has this partially figured out with his "Prelude to a Dream" but I would have four front-line cars provided for four top drivers from different disciplines at the time of the race. Wouldn't it be great to see Kimi at Eldora? Strap 'em in, shut 'em up and see what happens.

The Indianapolis 500: Back in the day drivers from F1 and NASCAR would routinely show up to compete in the Indianapolis 500. I would ask the top four IndyCar Teams in points from the previous season to field one extra car for a current F1 or NASCAR star (or any other racing discipline of their choice) in the "500." So Monaco might have to move their weekend, with enough warning what's the big deal?

The Daytona 500: The same routine here with the top four teams in points from the previous season asked to provide a front-line car for a guest driver of their choice (as long as it's not from a NASCAR support series). I could see Will Power in a Penske stocker, Lewis Hamilton in a car from Hendrick... the list could go on and on.

The Bristol night race: Same idea, four front-line teams provide an "extra" car for a driver of their choice.

The 12 Hours of Sebring: The ALMS should have a shot and this race already attracts myriad drivers from other disciplines, but there could always be more.

Is there any chance of any of this happening? Oh hell, no. Racing organizations and sponsors already have such protective measures in place to keep their charges from straying on off-weekends and iron-clad contracts for anything else that may fall through the cracks that it just isn't even remotely possible.

But racing needs to think about it because it might just garner some desperately needed attention from the traditional stick-and-ball media to move the needle a bit.

As Dr. Bud says, "you just never know now, do ya?"

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

(Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives)
July 19, 1969. The start of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the sixth round of that year's F1 season with Jackie Stewart (No. 3 Team Tyrrell Matra-Ford) and Jacky Ickx (No. 7 Brabham-Ford) moving ahead of Denny Hulme (No. 5 Team McLaren-Ford) and Chris Amon (No. 11 Ferrari). Pole-sitter Jochen Rindt (No. 2 Lotus-Ford) is already away. After a furiously magnificent battle with Rindt (who encountered car trouble) Stewart would lap the field on his way to his fifth victory in six races with Ickx and Bruce McLaren (No. 6 Team McLaren-Ford) completing the podium. Stewart would go on to win the first of his three F1 World Championships (he also won in 1971 and 1973) and he won 27 times in 99 Grand Prix starts. Watch a lengthy video of that race here.

Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" with hosts John McElroy, from Autoline Detroit, and Peter De Lorenzo, The Autoextremist, and guests this Thursday evening, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.

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