Indecision '07: Atlanta

Posted by Iannucci | 10/26/2007 | 4 comments »
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Yesterday Sam sounded confident.

"I feel good about going to Atlanta," said Hornish. "It's the first track that I've actually been to before. So, hopefully, that'll work out for us.

Crew chief Ryan McCauley will be once again leading Hornish's effort. Knowing that his driver qualified fifth for the Busch Series race, and remembering his performance in the event, he feels confident enough to back up Hornish's optimism.

"I think Sam's got a good shot to do well this weekend," McCauley said "In the spring Busch race, he was two laps down and got it back to finish 15th, the highest non-Cup driver to finish on the lead lap. His experience on the track will definitely help." (MORE from AutoSport)
So of course Sam went out today and failed to qualify for the sixth time in as many attempts. That would mean Hornish still has as many Cup points as me. Or you. Or your dog. Oh, the humanity.

4 comments

  1. Johnny // October 26, 2007 7:07 PM  

    Damn, I'm 0/2 for getting to see him race this year.

  2. Puretone Audio // October 27, 2007 9:40 AM  

    How bout DARE-EEE-OOOOOH (as Paul Page used to call him) with a third place Q at Memphis???

    Short track it SAMMY!

    (also why have they not put him in a truck at the dual races for track time)

  3. Anonymous // October 27, 2007 11:44 PM  

    How's Jack Villeneuve doing so far? I'd love to see him come back for an Indy 500, but it's hard to be competitive if you're one-offing, and that might be what's keeping him from doing it. It's hard for me to fathom him not wanting to race there again (but I'm a tad biased).

  4. Anonymous // October 29, 2007 7:00 AM  

    John Clerk,

    I can't see JV coming back to the IRL nor the Indy 500 any time soon. The top teams most likely to deliver an Indy 500 win (Penske, Ganassi, AGR) have drivers pretty well sown up for '08. In the past it appears that those teams haven't rolled a car out for a one off at Indy unless the driver was associated with the team in some way (Michael as the owner at AGR and Ryan Briscoe being Penske's ALMS Porsche driver as examples).

    True, there is a seat open at AGR, but put yourself in Michael's shoes. Would I rather go with a driver who's been up through the ranks in the IPS and has recent IRL experience (Mutoh), a current driver who can win in the IRL when he's properly reigned in (Scheckter), or a driver who hasn't run in Indy Cars or at Indianapolis in the 500 in twelve years (JV)? Second or third tier teams in the IRL might take a look at him (especially if he brought $$$$$$$$$$ with him), but would JV's ego take the hit of "lowering" himself to run for D&R, R\L, or Vision?

    The latest rumor has JV buying a NA$CAR team with some investors he knows. Now, that's a rumor, but if it is true, I don't see JV coming to Indianapolis for anything other than the Brickyard 400 for many years to come.

    Just my $.02