Looking ahead to May.....

[Hot Rod Otis]

......and wondering where the remaining 12 cars will come from to fill the grid? I know its only March, but only 21 cars take the green @ Homestead. PDM & Fisher's ride had a put together at the last minute smell about them. Foyt & Menard & Cheever are having trouble putting one competitive car on the track, let alone 2 or more. Hemelgarn, Schmitt, Treadway among others, are gone or almost gone. Don't know how many CART teams or NASCAR double-dippers are gonna show up this year and save Tony's bacon. Where will they get 33 cars from? Most of the old-line IRL teams are stretched to the limit running what they have. Will the new ex-CART teams bail him out? Will they dilute their effort and shot to win by running extra cars just to fill the grid? Should be interesting.

[JLMannin]

Think of what the post-indy car counts will be. In the past seven IRL seasons, there has always been a significant drop in the post indt car counts - something like 3 to 4 cars. Someone put all the data together a couple of years ago either on spudnut or 7G, I can't remember who.

[mnkywrch]

The inability to field a competitive car has never stopped Cheever, Foyt, or Menard from throwing another one out there.

I'd expect to see all three have another car - Cheever for himself, Foyt for John Andretti, and Menard for Robby Gordon.

Kelley will field another car for Tony Renna, I think - that way, after the first lap, they'll still have two in the field.

It's Indy. People just throw cars out there for no good reason. Drivers pool all their money for a shot in a car that may or may not be put together right. It never makes SENSE.

But I only expect 36 cars to qualify - three bumps total.

[Napoleon]

3 bumps total? Has any year since the split seen 3 or more bumps?

[RTKar]

You can bet your pit pass that if it looks like there won't be enough "legitimate" entries TG will open the check book and under the table sponsor a few Clabber Girl cars for some deserving "up and coming hot new star" as well as a few has beens.

[Wheel-Nut]

Don't forget about Greg "tiger woods" Ray and Buddy Lazier. They should be ready to go by Phoenix.

[DaveL]

Notice how the issue of where 33 cars would come from was never an issue during the CART era?

44 drivers sat in cars in '95. 45 took to the track in '94.

Good thing Tony saved Indy.

[RacinM3]

TG will finance the balance to ensure 33 cars in the I500. That's a sure bet.

He paid God knows how many dollars to keep this "league" going. A few more to make sure people like us can't rag on the I500 will be but a drop in the bucket.

[JT265]

Any truth to the rumor that Lynn St. James is coming outta retirement to try and put the "Clabber Girl Spl." on pole for the greatest spectacle in sports entertainment?

I for one will tune in to see if her and Fisher can get through T1 "four breasts" ;)

[pchall]

Originally posted by DaveL
Notice how the issue of where 33 cars would come from was never an issue during the CART era?

44 drivers sat in cars in '95. 45 took to the track in '94.

Good thing Tony saved Indy.

Yet the lemmings have yapped for years about how CART's inability to supply a "full field" for Indy with only cars from it's own series was part of the problem from which Tony George was saving the 500.

I'd enjoy the irony of Tony having to pay for half-a-dozen cars out of pocket to get the precious "full field."

[mnkywrch]

Originally posted by JT265
Any truth to the rumor that Lynn St. James is coming outta retirement to try and put the "Clabber Girl Spl." on pole for the greatest spectacle in sports entertainment?

I for one will tune in to see if her and Fisher can get through T1 "four breasts" ;)

You know, you really need a rinshot similie...

[pchall]

Originally posted by JT265

I for one will tune in to see if her and Fisher can get through T1 "four breasts" ;)

They've already tried that trick at Indy, but there was a fifth boob involved in the whole deal.