D&R Exploring Move to CCWS

MoneyCJ at So Damn Indy has discovered a nugget of info today in Curt Cavin’s most recent Pit Pass section in the Indy Star (did I get everyone credited properly?)

Robbie Buhl has explored moving the Indy-car team he co-owns with Dennis Reinbold to Champ Car, but the fact they own four IRL cars and love the Indy 500 might keep them put, he said. They visited Champ Car officials last month at Elkhart Lake.

An SDI follow up with D&R spokesperson Klint Briney yielded a big fat “no comment”.

This can’t be considered a surprise given the struggles the D&R team had recently with both succeeding at the track and with locating regular sponsorship. Recent reports indicate that it would be cheaper to field a Champ Car team than an IndyCar team in 2007, but costs are relational to sponsorship dollars.

So D&R is no doubt shopping it’s options to potential team sponsors, as well as sponsors of potential drivers. Given their history in the IndyCar series it would seem that would be their first choice, but if a fit can’t be worked out then it’s off to Plan B.

Here’s a thought: Sarah Fisher has driven for D&R and was recently paired with Katherine Legge in a karting endurance race. Given that Legge’s best finish in the CCWS this year was at the lone oval in the series (6th in Milwaukee), would it be possible to pair the two together as the first all-woman IndyCar team? D&R was a single-car operation in 2006, but surely there is no shortage of sponsors who would help to pair these two together.

I know: it would be nice to see, but easier said than done.