Feud May Hurt Sport Even After It's Settled

By SHAV GLICK

Feb. 29, 1996 12 AM PT

The widening rift in Indy car philosophy between the established Championship Auto Racing Teams and the new Indy Racing League may prove detrimental to all American motor racing, not only the Indy car program.

That is the belief of Leo Mehl, one of the most respected men in motorsports who will retire Friday after 30 years as director of the Goodyear Tire Co.’s worldwide racing program.

“For everyone not closely associated with racing, Indianapolis is motor racing,” Mehl said after announcing his decision to retire last week at the Daytona 500. “When something is wrong with Indy, and something’s terribly wrong right now, people not close to racing have the conception that something is wrong with all racing. That even includes NASCAR.”

Despite the warning signs, Mehl does not think there will be a compromise before the two groups clash head-on on May 26.

That is the day CART is planning to run its U.S. 500 at Michigan International Speedway in opposition to the Indy 500, which is under IRL jurisdiction. Prominent drivers, such as Al Unser Jr. and Michael Andretti, will be at Michigan, but the crowd, upward of 300,000, will be at Indianapolis.

The CART drivers are boycotting Indy because IRL founder Tony George is reserving 25 of 33 spots in the starting field for drivers in his series.

“Somebody’s gotta move, but I don’t think it will happen until May’s over,” Mehl said. “Things have gone too far for them to move before May, but if they keep fighting, neither side is going to win. What will happen is they’ll scare all the sponsors away, and racing can’t exist these days without sponsors.

“I’ve got friends on both sides, so it’s hard to take sides. This sort of thing has been happening since I’ve been involved in this business. They were fighting in the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s and now the ‘90s, so it’s not a new deal.”

Mehl has been mentioned as a possible mediator, or even a commissioner of Indy car racing.

“Everybody asks me where I’ll be [in May] and I’ve been telling them I’m going to be on a boat somewhere,” he said.

So why is he retiring?

“I just ran out of gas,” he said. “Going to races 35 weekends a year for 30 years is enough.”

Stu Grant, who was instrumental in development of the “slick” tire for stock car racing in 1973 and more recently was director of racing tire sales, will succeed Mehl.

How can a racing series be called the International Race of Champions when all 12 drivers are American-born and race in U.S.-based events?

How can a series call itself IndyCar when none of its cars run at Indianapolis?

Maybe the IROC and the IndyCar series, as CART calls its races, ought to change names.

CART’s opening-race lineup for the new Homestead track south of Miami on Sunday lists 18 foreign drivers on an entry list of 28. It is more an International Race of Champions than IROC.

Or maybe CART should change its series name to BrooklynCars because the organization’s premier race is being run at Brooklyn, Mich.

For the first time in 20 years, not a single foreign-born driver was in the International Race of Champions when this year’s series opened recently at Daytona Beach.

When the unique series, bringing together 12 drivers from difference forms of racing, was founded in 1973 at Riverside International Raceway, Formula One was represented by world champions Emerson Fittipaldi of Brazil--11 years before he tried Indy cars--and Denis Hulme of New Zealand.

In 1976 there were four foreigners--Fittipaldi, James Hunt of England, Jody Scheckter of South Africa from Formula One, and long-distance veteran Brian Redman of England.

During the 20 years, only three foreign drivers ever won an IROC event, Fittipaldi at Riverside in 1974, Martin Brundle of England in 1990 at Cleveland and Geoff Brabham of Australia in 1992 at Michigan.

Despite their lack of experience on oval tracks more familiar to NASCAR and Indy car drivers, the presence of Formula One and other world sports car champions kept the name of the event viable.

Feb. 16 at Daytona International Raceway, the field was all American.

There were seven from NASCAR (Dale Earnhardt, Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, Rusty Wallace, Sterling Marlin and Johnny Benson); three from Indy cars (Al Unser Jr., Robby Gordon and Scott Pruett); one from road racing (Tom Kendall), and one from sprint cars (Steve Kinser).

Nissan has announced plans to become an engine supplier for the Indy Racing League in 1997.

The Japanese manufacturer will use the Infiniti nameplate on the engines, which will be used at the Indianapolis 500 for the first time.

Nissan joins Oldsmobile, which features its Aurora power plant, as engine suppliers for the IRL series.