Grand Prix to Return to Indy
By Sean Toth
WagerWeb
Contributing Writer
Indianapolis Motor Speedway recently announced that it signed a one-year contract extension with Formula One to again host the U.S. Grand Prix in 2007.
Tony George, IMS CEO, signed the contract with top Grand Prix officials on Aug. 15.
A one-year deal was signed because the sport’s organizational structure, known as the Concorde Agreement, is good only through next year. No definitive date for the 2007 U.S. Grand Prix has been announced, but IMS officials said they are shooting for early-to-mid June. The date will be decided upon when the F1 sanctioning body approves next year’s schedule.
Although the contract was for only one year, George said that he hopes to have a long-term commitment to F1 racing.
This year’s Grand Prix was very controversial when 14 of the 20 drivers pulled their cars off the track before the start because of concerns over Michelin’s tires. Only six cars, all with Bridgestone tires, completed the race. The incident made the relationship between the IMS and USGP uncertain, and that is said to be another factor in the short-term contract. Michelin helped the situation by purchasing 20,000 tickets to fans that renewed their orders. But Michelin will not be participating in next year’s F1 events.
A plan for purchasing tickets will be announced to the public next week.
“It seemed appropriate to see how things shake out and see what the lay of the land is,” George said of F1’s instability. “There are too many unanswered questions to commit any longer than that.”
Of the three major events at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (The Indy 500, Grand Prix and the Brickyard 400) the F1 race is thought to be the most financially beneficial for the area because a higher percentage of the race attendees are from out of town, giving more of a demand for businesses such as hotels and restaurants. And the teams and sponsors have larger financial backing than the other two races. This year’s race had an approximate attendance of 100,000 people.
No other details, including how much the Speedway will pay F1, were revealed.
I’ll keep you up to date on any more relevant information concerning this event and situation when it’s released!