Jaundiced Eye.(Brief Article)

When Rommel retreated from North Africa, World War II in Europe was, to all intents and purposes, lost to the Germans though they didn't know it at the time.

You have to be able to read the signs and be able to take a lesson from history. The moment Toyota declared it was entering the IRL, the War was over between the two sanctioning bodies although the diehards in CART will never admit it.

First Toyota, then Ford. Count on it.

So the Indy Racing League will have two big Japanese makers, Ford and whichever GM marque the manufacturer decides to label its current Aurora. While the original purpose of the IRL was to create an affordable series, its new 2003 rules also mandate an engine supplier make its product available to 50 percent of the field. Do you suppose that Toyota and Ford, already committed to subsidy in CART won't do likewise in the IRL? It may require all kinds of negotiation but it's as close to a certainty as you can get that these two giants are not going to get in the ring with Infiniti and GM without the same kind of edge they've always had.

With the engine makers go the teams; they already have. NASCAR's legends may be its drivers but CART's biggest names are its car owners. Roger Penske and Chip Ganassi will run at the Speedway this year and Penske has entered ...