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CHAMP CAR'S NEW RIDE; Will the Panoz chassis help or hurt a unification with the IRL?(Motorsports)
Byline: STEVEN COLE SMITH
Mark it down: Depending on your perspective on open-wheel racing in the United States, July 28 was potentially a superb or tragic day. Regardless of that perspective, it was important. The Champ Car World Series unveiled its new 2007 Panoz DP01 at the San Jose City Hall, in conjunction with the San Jose Grand Prix. The car will replace the Lola chassis that has been in use since 2000.
If you are counting on a quick reunion of the Champ Car and Indy Racing League series, this could be a problem. Champ Car team owners are being asked to spend $295,000 per chassis if they want to race in the Champ Car series in 2007. And by all accounts, the nine existing two-car teams do; the series even picked up a 10th team for 2007, Gelles Racing, which announced it will field two cars in 2007 for drivers yet to be named. Gelles races in several series, including Atlantic and Formula BMW.
Making an investment like that, it is unlikely Champ Car team owners would be interested in abandoning the new car anytime soon, so it would seem one aspect of any pending reunion between Champ Car and IRL is in place: The reunited series would probably use the Panoz DP01 in some form. Will the normally aspirated Honda IRL engine bolt in where the turbocharged Ford-Cosworth does in the new car? No one seems to know. And with no oval tracks on the 2007 Champ Car schedule and plenty on the IRL schedule, how well this new Panoz would work on a superspeedway is anyone's guess.
To those whose priority is the continuation of the Champ Car series, the new car is welcome news. Teams have been patching together the old Lolas, and the parts bin is getting bare. With five Champ Car races remaining for 2006, there is expected to be enough parts left for full fields, but just barely.
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Source: HighBeam Research, CHAMP CAR'S NEW RIDE; Will the Panoz chassis help or hurt a...