Silly Season update, Sept. 8

Lots of new stuff, so I'm posting it today

2007 lineup (and possible 2008 lineup)
Andretti Green Racing (4)
7-Danica Patrick (Motorola, 3rd-year FT driver, 1st year with AGR). Confirmed for 2008.
11-Tony Kanaan (7-11, 5th year FT driver, all with AGR, 2004 champ). Under contract through 2008.
26-Marco Andretti (NYSE Group, 2nd year FT driver, all with AGR). According to published reports, Marco is happy with AGR and is staying.
27-Dario Franchitti (Canadian Club, 5th year FT driver, all with AGR). Free Agent at the end of the year.
MAY BE HEADED TO NASCAR. Possible replacements: Jaime Camara (AGR ALMS driver), Tomas Scheckter (free agent).
**Update, Sept. 8: Reports are that Dario is headed to Chip Ganassi's NASCAR team. If that happens, Tomas Scheckter or Jaime Camara would likely be the top two choices for the 27 car.**
**Update, Aug. 28: Dario's options seem open, whether they be the IRL team or the ALMS car with AGR.**
**Update, Aug. 20: Jaime Camara's name is getting mention a lot in connection with AGR, but nothing concrete is being mentioned beyond that.**

Team Penske (2)
3-Helio Castroneves (Team Penske, 6th-year FT driver, all with Penske, 2-time I500 champ). Under contract to Penske through 2008.
6-Sam Hornish Jr. (Team Penske, 8th-year FT driver, 4th with Penske, 3x ICS champ). May be headed to NASCAR. Probable 2008 replacement: Ryan Briscoe.
**Has been heavily rumored to be pondering NASCAR, and is running ARCA/Busch/Cup races this year**
**Sept. 7 update: Sam is planning to drive 7 NASCAR races this year and will make a decision later, because "it's a big decision." Curt Cavin expects Sam to return for the Indy 500 if he does go to NASCAR. Mike King thinks Penske may yet elevate Briscoe and run 3 cars if Sam stays.
**Sept. 3 update: Hornish has tested a Car of Tomorrow twice and is planning to run several Cup races at the end of the season, provided he can qualify. Tim Cindric said Ryan Briscoe is a likely replacement if Sam leaves (and, if you read between the lines, you can probably pencil Briscoe into the 6 car).

Target Chip Ganassi Racing (2)
9-Scott Dixon (Target, 5th-year FT driver, all with TCGR, 2003 champ). Likely for 2008.
10-Dan Wheldon (Target, 5th-year FT driver, 2nd with TCGR, 2005 champ). Confirmed for 2008.
**Sept. 7 update: Alex Lloyd said he's going to drive for a frontrunner team in 2008, and he's spent a lot of time with TCGR. Possible 3rd car?**
**Alex Lloyd a possibility for 2008. If so, it will likely be as a third car. He drove CGR's Grand Am car during Sonoma weekend and tested one of Ganassi's IndyCars at Sebring a couple of weeks back.**
**Aug. 27: Chip Ganassi has said Wheldon will remain with TCGR's IndyCar team for 2008.**

Rahal Letterman Racing (2)
8-Scott Sharp (Patron, 12th-year FT driver, 1st with RLR, 1996 champ). Will be at RLR as long as Patron has the $
17-Ryan Hunter-Reay (Ethanol, rookie, former CC driver). Replaced Jeff Simmons at RLR before Mid-Ohio race. Will likely be the ICS Rookie of the Year.
**Sept. 8 update: RHR would like to be back in the IRL next year. Would like to be back in the IRL.**

Panther Racing (2)
4-Vitor Meira (Delphi, 6th-year FT driver, 2nd with Panther). Confirmed for 2008.
55-Kosuke Matsuura (Panasonic, 4th-year FT driver, 1st with Panther). May be on his way out, with Hideki Mutoh waiting in the wings.
**Update, Sept. 8: Not sure what he's doing next year.**
60-Hideki Mutoh is entered for Chicagoland. Said he will be running in the IndyCar Series in 2008. Possible replacement for Matsuura or a possible 3rd car.

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing (2)
5-Sarah Fisher (AAMCO, 6th FT season, 2nd with D&R). Has sponsorships from AAMCO and AAA.
**Sept. 8: Fisher says she has a lot of options for 2008. Didn't elaborate.**
**Aug. 11: Fisher says in AP article that D&R is going down to one car next year, and it would be difficult for her to sell herself given her performances this year. But with her gaining sponsorship from AAMCO and AAA, I would anticipate she wouldn't have much difficulty finding a ride. Later in the weekend, she said she was misquoted, but it was also stated that D&R *is* considering dropping one of its two entries for 2008.**
15-Buddy Rice (RollCoater, 6th-year FT driver, 1st with D&R). Has had a lot of success this season, given the fact that D&R generally has struggled.

Vision Racing (3)
2-Tomas Scheckter (Joost, 6th-year FT driver, 2nd with Vision). Has been increasingly stronger. If someone is going to bring Vision its first win, this guy will likely be it. However, he might be snooping around, or possibly be the odd man out of Vision goes to two or one cars, according to some observers.
20-Ed Carpenter (Hitachi Power Tools, 4th-year FT driver, 3rd with Vision). Confirmed for 2008.
22-A.J. Foyt IV (Indy Vision, 4th-year FT driver, 1st with Vision). Free agent until funding can be found.
**Sept. 8 update: Scheckter rumored to be talking with AGR, which might be more likely given the possible exit of Dario Franchitti from the 27 car. Both Scheckter and Foyt said they don't know what their plans are for 2008.**
**Aug. 27 update: Only one car is a definite for Vision next year (Carpenter's). The other two drivers have been told they can look for other opportunities, according to the Indy Star. TG would like to field three cars, but it'll depend on funding.**
**Aug. 20 update: A couple of published stories quoted TG as considering going to a two-car team next year if sponsorship can't be found for the third car. Scheckter & Carpenter currently have sponsored rides, but speculation has centered on Scheckter leaving if there is contraction. In his Aug. 20 blog, Curt Cavin said he's not ready to say Scheckter is out, but there could be some shuffling in the works.**

A.J. Foyt Racing (1)
14-Darren Manning (ABC Supply, 3rd-year FT driver). Contract extended through 2008.
**Update Aug. 27: Foyt is exploring the option of adding a second car, pending funding.**

**Part-Time Entries**
SAMAX Racing (1)
23-Milka Duno (Citgo - rookie). Duno is on probation. She has run six races of an initially-planned 10-race part-time schedule. She skipped Kentucky to film Speed Racer. Who knows what SAMAX's plans are for next year.

Roth Racing (2)
25-Marty Roth: Has landed sponsorship from Dussault Apparel for the season finale at Chicagoland. Also slated to run Belle Isle, according to the Aug. 1 Detroit Free Press.
76-P.J. Chesson: Will run Chicagoland with Dussault Apparel sponsorship.
**Aug. 22: P.J. Chesson joins the team for Chicago, has said he'd like to run 2008 with Roth Racing, if the opportunity is there.**
**Roth Racing is planning to run the full 2008 schedule as a two-car team, according to a team press release.**

Racing Professionals (1)
Jon Herb: Has stated he's trying to squirrel together a sponsorship package for Chicagoland, but did not enter the race. As for the future, it's probably part-time at best.

Beck Racing (1)
Alex Barron: Although Beck ran some early-season events, the Beck machine hasn't been seen since Indy.

With Mutoh, Roth's two cars, Herb's one car and the Duno car, the car count could hit 23 for the Chicagoland race. Curt Cavin, in his Aug. 8 Indy Star blog, said he expects 22 cars for Chicagoland, but it appears 23 might be entered.

FUTURE ENTRIES?? (2008+)
Fernandez Racing: From Curt Cavin's blog (8/8/2007), Adrian Fernandez's team still has its IndyCar equipment and Tom Anderson is apparently interested in a return to the IRL, but things "haven't been worked out." Sept. 8: Cavin said funding isn't there yet for this team, but it would like to get back in. Cavin says on Aug. 13 that he knows of two individuals to keep an eye on for new 2008 teams, but hasn't seen any sign of $$ backing them.

Steve Horne: Curt Cavin said on 9/8/2007 in his blog that Horne has been considering starting a team for 2008, but funding isn't there. Horne was involved with the Tasman team in the past.

Kingdom Racing announced its plans to field a team for 2008 on Aug. 16. Led by Houston businessman George Del Canto, the team plans to be based on a Christian philosophy, with several pastors and Christian leaders on the board of directors.

PDM Racing would like to run a partial season of ovals in 2008 and become full-time in 2009. It would be more than good to see this longtime program back in the ICS full-time.

Cheever Racing ... the Aug. 28 IRL press release quotes Eddie's nephew Richard Antinucci as looking to get into the ICS (and get the team back into the ICS) long-term, if, of course, the $$ comes together.

Possible 2008 driver lineup
AGR: 7-Danica Patrick; 11-Tony Kanaan; 26-Marco Andretti; 27-Dario Franchitti OR Jaime Camara OR Tomas Scheckter. (Dario = free agent, rumored to NASCAR).
Penske: 3-Helio Castroneves; 6-Ryan Briscoe OR Sam Hornish Jr. (likely Briscoe)
Ganassi: 9-Scott Dixon; 10-Dan Wheldon; 33?-Alex Lloyd (a possibility)
RLR: 8-Scott Sharp; 17-RHR (likely)
Panther: 4-Vitor Meira; 55-Hideki Mutoh (likely replacement for Matsuura)
Vision: 20-Ed Carpenter. (2-Tomas Scheckter & 22-A.J. Foyt IV may or may not be around in Vision rides next year).
D&R: 15-Buddy Rice. The 5 car (Fisher) may or may not be around next year.
Foyt: 14-Darren Manning. 41?-A second car is being explored.
Roth: 25-Marty Roth; 76-P.J. Chesson OR another driver (planned)
SAMAX: 23-Milka Duno (could put Tomas Enge in the car, but methinks SAMAX won't have Hugo Chavez's funding if it isn't running Milka or another Venezuelan driver).
Fernandez: No more than 2 cars. Drivers TBA. (Scheckter or Foyt or Barron might be a good option here)
Kingdom: Likely 1 car. Drivers TBA. May or may not happen.
Horne: Funding not there yet.
Racing Professionals: Likely 1 car for Herb. Will likely continue to run a limited schedule -- Indy, Chicago, maybe 1 or 2 other races.
PDM/Beck: Likely 1 car. Driver TBA. Won't happen beyond Indy without funding.

2008 schedule
Sept. 3 update: IRL brass say to expect the schedule to remain the same -- same races, same weekends -- as this year, with the exception of the Michigan race the first weekend of August (gone from the schedule).

Curt Cavin has mentioned possible replacements as being in California, and in the same blog, mentioned Long Beach and Los Angeles (it was quickly edited to say LA after it initially said LB). Given the IRL brass has said it's a market the IRL has never raced in before, that would rule out Fontana. Dodger Stadium, Palm Springs or Long Beach would likely be the three alternatives. Fontana would be the best alternative, but apparently, that isn't happening right now (editorial comment: it should, but it isn't).

The 2009 schedule may expand to 20 races, according to IRL brass. Michigan has already been mentioned as a possible re-addition to the schedule, in a Detroit News story. The upcoming Rusty Wallace track in Sacramento is also an option for the more distant future.