Willy T. Going Racing Again

[Bardahl77]

Willy T. Ribbs has signed to run Tony Stewart's SRX series next year. Other veteran drivers scheduled so far are Stewart, Bobby Labonte, Paul Tracy, Helio, and Tony Kanaan.

Anyone remember the "Fast Masters" race back in '93 where veteran race drivers proceeded to knock the crap out of exotic Jag XJ220s? And more recently the Grand Prix Masters lasted 3 races. Less carnage, but we had sights like Alan Jones trying to shoehorn himself into a formula car.

Maybe it'll be interesting, for a certain demographic. Maybe add Jeff Gordon and Junior in there with guys like Ron Fellows and Boris Said and it'll be more interesting. Hell, Scott Pruett could show them all the "fade," maybe right into Tracy...

[t walgamuth]

Sounds good!

[E1pix]

Long overdue concept after IROC.

To those like I in never hearing of the series, here:
https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/...odies/SRX.aspx

[Daryl DeArman]

I'll be pulling for anybody but Willy T. I was a fan until I knew better.

[tige00]

We have enough crappy oval racing. Not to mention short track, that's horrible

[Daryl DeArman]

Short track racing can be a better show than a Super Speedway.

Do you realize that 99%+ of road races have fewer passes for the lead and larger gaps between 1st and 2nd at finish than short track racing?

Fans can also see the entire track from most any seat in the stands. Also easier to cover television wise.

I've done both short track and road racing. Road racing was more fun, but because of the variety and challenges it provides as a driver. Short track racing was way more intense in the aspect that you have very little time to make things happen, you can't miss the set up by much and still be on pace, so more challenging in those aspects. As for viewing, I'll take a close race over a parade any day---even if they're marbles on a gravity track.

[E1pix]

Though I sometimes jokingly sign posts as “Rhode Ray Snobb” regarding my racing preference, there are reasons the bullrings might see a million collective fans on a Summer night. The atmosphere is all about a welcome feel for the fans.

My seeing the famous, upside-down Sprint car photo of Johnny Rutherford around 1969 was my first knowledge of Eldora. I was 9 and already hated crashes — (a Midget driver named Dave Whitehorse died atop a Milwaukee wall right in front of us in 1966) — but images like that cemented what and who these guys were.

48 years later, a few days prior to the weekend before the Indy Runoffs, I just happened to see a Sprint car schedule while on the road in Nebraska. Eldora was to hold their famed Four Crown Nationals (World of Outlaws, USAC Sprint cars, Silver Crown, and Midgets) through the Saturday night before Runoffs week. No plan, total surprise, got there Wednesday before — with camping technically still closed — and were met with open arms. I told the host of my limited track knowledge history, and he had us jump in his golf cart to get us a great campsite. We got the only site that’s technically “on the water” on a little lake. $10 per night. All the fans were great, track hospitality like the old days in road racing. We’ll be back.

The racing itself made road racing look absolutely boring — though I still like that best. Sorry to say, but the better racing today is in circles — and on two wheels. I for one desperately hope road racing can get it right asap.

[S Lathrop]

I grew up around oval tracks, dirt and paved. I remember going to Trenton, New Jersey when it was dirt. I races there when it was a paved oval and I had a great wheel to wheel battle with Gary Benthousen. This was in the USAC Minny Indy Series. Gary actually drove one of my cars at Mosport, Canada.

Until the USAC Minny Indy series, I had only raced road courses. I ran FF at several short oval tracks, including IRP Night Before Indy. I also engineered Indy Lights at Milwaukee, the old Phoenix layout and Nazareth among other tracks. It never gets tougher as a driver or an engineer than a short oval. The Minny Indy series ran both FF and then FSV. I had cars in all three versions.

I will say that until you have races on a short oval, don't think you know that much about racing. A short oval is as tough as racing ever gets.