Full Throttle

And it isn’t the “contractions” an expectant father times as he races through rush hour traffic.

Buried in a press release by Michigan International Speedway announcing it’s 2008 NASCAR schedule is a notation the IRL, IndyCar if you prefer, won’t be making an appearance at MIS next year.

The reasoning is puzzling, at best: “The inability of the series to secure a viable date next year forced the Michigan race to be removed from the circuit.”

How can you not find a date with only 17 events on the current schedule? How do you ditch 40 years of open wheel history at MIS?

“Since its inaugural running in 2002, Michigan International Speedway, the state of Michigan, city of Jackson and other local communities made a major commitment to growing the IndyCar Series event,” Curtis said. “I had hoped that we’d be able to reach an agreement with the IRL for 2008 given our historical investment in open-wheel racing that dates back four decades. We will focus all of our efforts on elevating our remaining marquee events, including providing our fans with a first-class and memorable race day experience.

That sure doesn’t sound like it was the MIS power brokers that tossed the IRL on the scrap heap.

To be fair Michigan is holding two IRL events this year, the MIS date is in August and Belle Isle, an island located in the Detroit River and adjacent to downtown, is on September 2.

Maybe TG thinks two events is too much for one state, or maybe he’s a lunatic. That remains to be seen. But it’s a shame to be putting the axe to a venue that has more open wheel historical value than any other on the circuit with the exception of Watkins Glen.