From Goat to Gladiator

Ryan Briscoe can breathe easy. For at least one week.

The first-year Penske Racing driver fell under heavy scrutiny after eliminating the IRL’s media darling Danica Patrick from this year’s Indianapolis 500. If that was not bad enough, rumors started swirling that Briscoe would not return to Penske in 2009. Of course, that is assuming that he even survives the remainder of the season.

Briscoe, a journeyman at best, was off to a rocky start with Penske. Leading up to the Indy 500, he posted a top finish of seventh at Kansas, but he also sent a pair of cars to the scrap yard after accidents in the first two races.

Despite driving for Roger Penske, who possesses an unbelievable 14 Indy wins, Briscoe was anything but a favorite to bring home a 15th win. But, Briscoe shocked the world when he qualified his No. 6 Penske machine on the outside of the front row.

Briscoe’s immaculate run restored composure and confidence in the 26-year-old Aussie as he became a perennial threat to capture his first IndyCar win. The weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders as he prepared for his perfect opportunity…

…An opportunity that lasted a handful of laps after a botched pit stop sent Briscoe to the back of the pack. Then, with 29 laps left and Briscoe challenging for a top-5 finish, he tangled with Patrick while leaving the pits and his race was over.

And the controversy began.

The rumors of Briscoe’s firing, which started as a small twister, escalated into a category 5 hurricane. Potential replacement drivers were being suggested the media.

Tony Kanaan. Vitor Meira. Ryan Hunter-Reay. Sam Hornish, Jr.

People should feel sorry for Briscoe. He has become a victim of Penske’s legacy and success. There was one simple solution to prevent this minuscule snowball from growing into a massive avalanche.

Win. Win now. Win fast.

And win he did.

Briscoe won his first IRL event at the Milwaukee Mile last Sunday and in doing so silenced his critics (temporarily) and as owner Penske said, “Got the monkey off his back.”

After the Indy debacle, the monkey had grown into a 500-pound gorilla.

Briscoe earned his first victory, but he now has a more challenging task ahead of him – prove to everybody his win was not a fluke and that he deserves to be in the orange and white No. 6 Penske machine next season.

Was his win a fluke? Negative, Ghost Rider.

Briscoe ran with the front-runners throughout the afternoon and when he had his chance, he passed arguably the best driver on the planet in Scott Dixon. He made mature decisions and he held off Dixon for the final quarter of the race.

His win is legitimate, but Briscoe’s reputation and legacy is still in question.

Those questions should be answered this weekend when the IRL races under the lights in Texas.

Can Briscoe continue to redeem his reputation with another solid performance or will he return to his more familiar roots of failed results and crumbled machines?

I have been openly critical of Briscoe due to his lack of accomplishments prior to signing with Penske as I feel there were a handful of drivers more deserving of one of the premier jobs in all of auto racing.

But, it is what it is. Briscoe is Penske’s man, but his days are numbered. Remember, this is the same Roger Penske who fired 2-time Indy 500 champ Al Unser, Jr. There are plenty of suitable drivers ready to take over the reigns of the No. 6 machine, such as Graham Rahal and Kanaan. And who knows, if their lackluster results continue, Hornish, Jr. and Dario Franchitti could be viable options for 2009.

Until he gets his official pink slip, let’s just sit back and enjoy the Briscoe roller coaster. He was a goat after Indy. He was hailed as a gladiator after Milwaukee.

What will Briscoe be after Saturday’s race?

Goat or gladiator?

The Rivalry Has Begun; Will it Stick?

The future of IndyCar will start on the front row today in Milwaukee in the A.J. Foyt Indy 250.

19-year-old second generation star Graham Rahal will start alongside 21-year-old third generation pole sitter Marco Andretti as the famous sons prepare for what hopefully will a career-long rivalry filled with wins and championships.

Andretti became the youngest winner of an IRL event – 19 years, 5 months, 14 days – when he won at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA in 2006. Rahal trumped Andretti’s record by 74 days in April when he won the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

Thus, the rivalry has begun.

The thought of Marco and Graham battling it out for the next 20 years tickles my spine, but there is also a constant nagging fear that this rivalry will not last through the decade; at least, not in IndyCars.

Both drivers have expressed aspirations of competing in Formula-1 at some point in their career. Rahal has backed off his initial statements and said his future is in the IRL, but Andretti has already tested for Honda Racing’s F1 team. If Andretti can rack up some more wins, such as the Indy 500, he would be the hottest commodity west of the Atlantic Ocean.

IRL owner Tony George needs to take a good, hard look in the mirror and face the fact that his racing league is simply the college basketball of auto racing. Young drivers are using the IRL as a spring board to the more lucrative world that is NASCAR and F1, just like teenagers are using college basketball as a one-way ticket to the NBA.

In the past 15 years, the list of drivers who have bolted for the big bucks is mind-boggling:

Michael Andretti left CART to drive for McLaren in F1 in 1993. He finished six of 13 races with a third place at Monza, Italy his best finish, but was released from his contract three races early and returned to CART in 1994.

Jacques Villeneuve opted not to defend his 1995 Indy 500 title because money lured him to F1’s Williams team, for whom he won the 1997 championship. His racing career dwindled after his title as he bounced around amongst four teams in eight years. Villeneuve dabbed in NASCAR with zero success, and currently competes in the Speedcar Series.

Juan Pablo Montoya’s 1999 CART title and 2000 Indy 500 victory were enough credentials to get him a ride with F1’s Williams-BMW team. In 5 ½ years in F1, Montoya racked up 13 poles and seven wins before leaving to drive for Chip Ganassi’s NASCAR team, where he is currently 17th in points.

Alex Zanardi left Ganassi Racing after capturing the 1997 and 1998 CART titles and returned to F1’s Williams team in 1999, which was an utter disaster. He finished just six of 16 races and was not retained for the remainder of his contract. He returned to CART in 2001, where his career came to an abrupt conclusion after a catastrophic crash in Germany, where he lost both of his legs.

Cristiano da Matta won the 2002 CART championship and then moved to F1’s Toyota Racing. da Matta completed less than two full seasons before F1 chewed him up and spit him out. He resurfaced in CART in 2005, driving two seasons, but his comeback ended in 2006 by a freak practice accident with a deer at Road America in Wisconsin, thus ending his driving career.

Sam Hornish, Jr. was the poster child for the IRL, but he finally gave in to temptation and took his talents to NASCAR for the 2008 season. The 3-time IRL series champ and 2006 Indy 500 winner is a rookie with Penske Racing.

Dario Franchitti followed Villeneuve’s footsteps by winning the Indy 500 and series title in the same year before departing for Chip Ganassi’s NASCAR program. Franchitti, just like fellow Indy champ Hornish, Jr., has struggled severely in his rookie campaign.

Sebastien Bourdais is the reigning 4-time Champ Car series champion, but left American open-wheel racing to test his talents in F1 for Toro Rosso. So far, his talents have gone by the wayside as he has finished just two of six races.

The aforementioned drivers have combined for over 140 race wins, 14 series championships, and four Indy 500 titles. But for whatever reason success in CART and the IRL was not enough to satisfy them. The thought of Dixon battling with Montoya, Villeneuve, Hornish, Jr. and Franchitti ought to make every race fan giddy.

But, that is just a pipedream.

Sadly, until the IRL steps it up with more lucrative sponsors and television packages, more and more open-wheel young guns will head south or overseas for bigger paychecks.

Both NASCAR and F1 televise live practice session and qualifying rounds. Plus, NASCAR treats every race like a Super Bowl with an extravagant pre-race show. That is a lot of air time for drivers and sponsors, and the IRL needs to take notes on how to offer similar packages. IndyCar offers practice and qualifying web casts, but no money is being exchanged.

The open-wheel unification, after 12 horrid years, has finally arrived. Now, it is up to George and his IRL cohorts to explore marketing opportunities to restore tradition, fans, and excitement.

It is no secret that George is power-driven, which caused the CART-IRL split in the first place. If his stubbornness gets the best of him yet again, he will be bidding farewell to Marco and Graham, as well as the bread-and-butter of the IRL.