"Fenders" en français

Posted by Iannucci | 10/04/2007 | 7 comments »
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It's not that so many open-wheel drivers are making the jump to tin tops that's alarming as much as how suddenly it's just so fashionable (well, unless you're Scott Speed).

Case in point: former IndyCar regular Patrick Carpentier, who after putting the wraps on his IndyCar career in 2005 decided to go back home to Canada and try fendered racing. Carpentier will soon be testing with Gillett Evernham Motorsports, which AutoWeek informs us:

With his organization's sponsorship prospects an issue, NASCAR team owner Ray Evernham freed driver Scott Riggs to find another ride for next year. Gillett Evernham Motorsports (with three teams) and Petty Enterprises (with two) are talking about merging, meaning GEM would have to drop a team to reach NASCAR's upcoming cap of four teams under the same ownership umbrella.

Even so, GEM seems intent on signing Canadian driver Patrick Carpentier to join Kasey Kahne and Elliott Sadler in Dodges. Riggs is the leading candidate to replace Jeff Green at Haas/CNC Racing.
So not only is yet another furriner heading to NAPCAR, but one of French-Canadien upbringing. Which means Patrick and "Jack" Villeneuve can now battle over who gets the Perrier sponsorship.

7 comments

  1. Anonymous // October 04, 2007 7:51 AM  

    Jeff,

    FINALLY chance to turn a taunt thrown at us open wheel fans right back at the NASCAR crowd:

    "NA$CAR SUCKS! It's just a bunch of them damn furriners runnin' around in furrin cars! Can't even unnerstand what half of 'em are sayin'."

    Will wine and brie replace pork chop "sanwiches" and beer at Chicagoland?

  2. Iannucci // October 04, 2007 7:56 AM  

    Will wine and brie replace pork chop "sanwiches" and beer at Chicagoland?

    Only if the furriners start winning on ovals.

    BTW - does Scott Speed also count as a foreginer? He probably should.

  3. Anonymous // October 04, 2007 8:24 AM  

    Jeff,

    BTW - does Scott Speed also count as a foreginer? He probably should.


    OH NO! He's an American. In fact, the proper way to say his name is "American Scott Speed". (I learned that from watching SpeedTV)

    I like Johnny's alternate name for him, though.

  4. Johnny // October 04, 2007 8:33 AM  

    Honestly, and this is really getting subjective and abstract here, but Carpentier to me is like the "ultimate" for the Canadian NASCAR market. He's got the Quebecois (and no accident there that the "Gillette" part of GEM owns the Canadians) thing going but isn't near as much of an outrageous dandy as Villenuve and just seems to have a certain blue collar Canadian "look" and attitude about him. NASCAR is popular up there and there are usually huge contingents of Canadian fans in Michigan, Chicago and even Pocono. Also Patrick is a good driver and good with the fans/sponsor droids, so again, I tend to like this one.

    As for High Fashion Scotty™ (anybody's free to use that), I wouldn't cite him as an American. Honestly if you look at him he seems to have fallen from space, perhaps from the planet "Entitlementune."

  5. Iannucci // October 04, 2007 8:38 AM  

    Carpentier...just seems to have a certain blue collar Canadian "look" and attitude about him.

    You are no doubt referring to his unshaven face and bad teeth. In other words, he looks more like a hockey player.

  6. Johnny // October 04, 2007 8:50 AM  

    Jeff:

    That's part of it, sure.

  7. Jennifer Coomer // October 04, 2007 9:00 AM  

    SACRE BLU!