Heading to Long Beach for the final goodbye

Well, here it is. The final trip to Long Beach for ChampCar.

Saw many a great race at the 'Beach, hopefully this one will be just as good. Field looks like it will have 20 cars Tracy and Vasser and even Moreno will be racing.

Sad day, but with any luck Indycar will be able to keep the tradition going.

I look forward to being there.

Tracy? Obviously, I've missed something. Who is Tracy driving for?

driving for Forsythe again I think.

Wow. That is a surprise. Has there been a press release or is it just rumour?

Oh, is it this week?

LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 9, 2008) -- Three more drivers have been added to the starting field – at 20 cars and drivers, the biggest starting grid since 2002 – ready to battle in the Champ Car finale at the 34th Annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 18-20.
Veteran Canadian driver Alex Tagliani will pilot the #15 Walker Racing entry, while Mexico’s Mario Dominguez will drive a second car for Pacific Coast Motorsports (PCM). Another veteran, Robert Moreno, will drive the #14 Minardi/HVM Racing car.
Tagliani finished 5th here last year and recorded his best Long Beach finish in 2003, standing 3rd on the podium. The April 20 race will be his ninth start at Long Beach. Tagliani has one career Champ Car victory, at Road America in 2004.
Dominguez, wheeling the #96 PCM entry and teaming with Alex Figge, will be making his 7th appearance on the starting grid here. Dominguez notched a best-finish 4th here in 2006 and has two career Champ Car wins, at Australia in 2002 and Miami the following year.
Moreno, like Dominguez, will be making his 7th career start at Long Beach, where he scored a best-finish 6th in 1986. He finished third in the championship chase in 2000 and has two career Champ Car wins, at Cleveland (2000) and Vancouver (2001). Moreno’s teammates at Long Beach will be Nelson Phillippe and E. J. Viso.
They’ll join a starting field that is scheduled to include:
· Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal, winner of the IndyCar Series race April 6 at St. Petersburg, Fla., and Justin Wilson,
· Four-time Long Beach victor Paul Tracy, David Martinez and Franck Montagny (Forsythe/Pettit Racing),
· KV Racing Technology’s Oriol Servia, Will Power and Jimmy Vasser, the 1996 Long Beach winner coming out of retirement for the Champ Car finale,
· Bruno Junqueira and Mario Moraes (Dale Coyne Racing),
· Franck Perera and Enrique Bernoldi (Conquest Racing) and
· Antonio Pizzonia and Juho Annala (Rocketsports Racing).

The final race in the Champ Car series is scheduled to get underway at 1 p.m. Sunday, April 20.

http://www.gplb.com/

What's with the lack of coverage from IndyCar.com? It's aaallllll Motegi...

Chris

What's with the lack of coverage from IndyCar.com? It's aaallllll Motegi...

Chris

Legal stuff while the bankruptcy is being finalised? It does now say you'll be able to watch live online, and there's a video story about LB too.

Tracy confirmed and all is well, at least for this weekend:woot:
http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/tracy-confirmed-for-long-beach/

It's going to be an emotional event for Champ Car fans the world over. Let's hope that ESPN does the coverage well and gives Champ Car one heck of a sendoff.

I wish that I was going to the race, but I just can't afford it this year.

It's too bad I couldn't go as things are uncertain with what I am up to. I'll try to watch on TV. For me I've already moved on anyways. I have my own career and in terms of being a spectator there are other motorsports to keep me occupied. I'm sure I'll be aware of what is going on with indycar and will comment on it from time to time, but otherwise I'm pretty much done.

I hope all that go really enjoy it and have a good time.

TSN-A are showing it here at 6:30 pm Atlantic time after the Nascar Mexico road race

What's with the lack of coverage from IndyCar.com? It's aaallllll Motegi...

Chris
The old Champcar website is still active

And our very own James Hinchcliffe will be driving the pace car - well done James
http://racing.auto123.com/en/racing/news/index,view.spy?artid=96668

Who has the race coverage? Live? When?

My number one Champ Car/ CART memory from Long Beach is Zanardi's amazing drive from last to first in 1998, passing Herta on the second last lap for the win.

I've got a 20x30 pic on my wall of Zanardi just after he crossed the finishing line with his shoulder out of his belt and his fist in the air.

Unbelievable drive.

Who has the race coverage? Live? When?

indycar.com will be streaming the race.

Kinda sucks having to stream it on the web for what will be the last Champ Car race(doubt my line could cope as the videos on their site takes ages to stream). I still hope that Eurosport will show it one day seeing as though they still had the right to show Champ Cars on the Champ Car's website.

Starting Grid...

1 J. Wilson 2 Newman/ Haas/ Lanigan Racing 1:06.902
2 A. Tagliani 15 Walker Racing 1:07.084
3 F. Perera 34 Conquest Racing 1:07.180
4 W. Power 8 KV Racing Technology 1:07.205
5 P. Tracy 3 Forsythe Pettit Racing 1:07.352
6 F. Montagny 7 Forsythe Pettit Racing 1:07.360
7 N. Philippe 4 Minardi / HVM 1:07.415
8 E. Bernoldi 36 Conquest Racing 1:07.682
9 G. Rahal 6 Newman/ Haas/ Lanigan Racing 1:07.703
10 M. Dominguez 96 Pacific Coast Motorsports 1:07.745
11 B. Junqueira 18 Dale Coyne Racing 1:07.786
12 O. Servia 5 KV Racing Technology 1:07.858
13 J. Vasser 12 KV Racing Technology 1:07.859
14 E. Viso 33 PDVSA HVM Racing 1:07.927
15 A. Pizzonia 9 Rocketsports Racing 1:08.463
16 A. Figge 29 Pacific Coast Motorsports 1:08.489
17 R. Moreno 14 Minardi / HVM 1:08.549
18 D. Martinez 37 Forsythe Pettit Racing 1:08.645
19 M. Moraes 19 Dale Coyne Racing 1:09.279
20 J. Annala 10 Rocketsports Racing 1:09.555

My number one Champ Car/ CART memory from Long Beach is Zanardi's amazing drive from last to first in 1998, passing Herta on the second last lap for the win.

I've got a 20x30 pic on my wall of Zanardi just after he crossed the finishing line with his shoulder out of his belt and his fist in the air.

Unbelievable drive.

I was there...What a wonderful drive by a fantastic human being...I love Alex Zanardi...:)

Very sad day for motorsport indeed. ChampCar was a great series and it's a shame that it will be no more after today...

It is a great day in that the Series can end with an exclamation point and we can move on with One Series that combines some really stout drivers and teams. It has folks who got their first race wins and talented former winners that is building a lot of positive momentum.

Heck, I miss the old Can-Am, the IMSA Radial GT Challenge, the Camel GT, F5000 and Formula Super Vee. That doesn't mean I don't like the various series' that have replaced them (or have come and gone as well in the meantime).

Racing, much more than other sports, is all about the evolution of the concept. Unless we want to go back to "the good old days" and having a mechanic ride along, why not enjoy the positive memories from series that have not made it and look forward to the good stuff that seems to be coming from the new?

Come on Franck, lets make it count mate, a podium would be superb. :)

Very exciting day and really looking forward to the race.

Will marka HUGE moment on AOW history. It seems Nelson Phillipe is very aware of the situation having seen his race suit.

Wilson has been dominant over the weekend, but i doubt this race with all the history attached is going to straight forward.

Tags winning for Walker or maybe even Vasser for the W ?

Its been a pleasure following this championship over the years. I have loved every minute.

It's not really sad, more a day to mark the point from which the whole deal can move forward now. Clean slate.

Champcar has been gone for years now, not just since the loosely termed 'merger'. The cars were at the tracks every few weeks, but the soul had long since departed. The sadness has long been done and dusted.

Let's get today over with and concentrate on a, hopefully, far better future.

its not sad at all
i know tonys not sad
im not sad
saturday was great
attendence was way over the top.
and next year danica.
the beach rocks. always has. always will.

Oh joy!! mediazone seems to be having technical difficulties beyond their control so even those desperate enough to try and stream this historic event are left in the dark. Must be nice for Justin Wilson to know that no one from England will be watching him.

Must be nice for Justin Wilson to know that no one from England will be watching him.

I'm listening: http://playlist.yahoo.com/makeplaylist.dll?id=1603475&segment=211353 it's like 1942 here and I'm huddled around the radio hoping our boy does good overseas...

No video feed around then I take it..

Thanks for that, the radio coverage is suprisingly good(considering this is the first race I've ever listened on radio). Will Power is sitting pretty at the moment.

Thanks for that, the radio coverage is suprisingly good

It is isn't it.. I didn't find the feed until what ever happened to Justin had already happened so I have no idea where he is.. Go Montagne!

Tracy clipped the wall and had to pit for a new right rear.

Moraes takes out the tires and Tracy gets a break as they go full course yellow.
Anyone care about this?

Excellent, not official yet but Franck finishes second, superb job. :)

I hate tape delay!

Congratulations to Will Power and KV Racing for being the final Champ Car victors ever!

:winner: :chflag:

Takes the first and the last victory for the DP01 - well done Will.

And now bring on the unified series! :)

Im sad its over as I do prefer this series but I realise it had to happen.
What happens to all the cars now?

<insert region here>BOSS or museum pieces I believe.

Mick