As a team owner would you hire...

[slicktoast]

PT if you had a TWO car team?

[Down F0rce]

probs not...races cant be won at the first corner, but they can be lost...

[JohnSSC]

PT is in the running for the "Max Papis Memorial Trophy" in memory of Max's year with Rahal where he knocked Brack (who was leading the championship most of the year) out of what, 3 races?

They don't call him "Captain Crunch" for nothing. If I were Franchitti I would be really annoyed - second in the points and PT pulls a bonehead move like that on LAP1!! Dario summed it up nicely when he said there goes the championship (I am paraphrasing). PT is everyhting you want a driver to be: fast, daring, not a pushover. But, like the Tin Man his theme song should be "if I only had a brain."

Maybe they should call him the Raging Bull. When T. Bell or Mr Scheckter did this stuff you could at least say: "Rookie mistake." PT has been in CART 10 years and should know better than to punt off a team mate.

[Lee Janotta]

C'mon, that penalty was bull. It was a totally justified risk... Tracy would have made the corner had he not locked the left front. The incident was equally due to Servia pinching down on Franchitti. It was a racing accident.

Overtaking's hard enough without having to worry about these BS penalties. Chris Kneiffel's just a total wuss when he's behind the wheel, and expects everyone else to conform the same (low) standard of judgement. Plus he's had it in for Kenny at least since Laguna Seca last year.

As far as the actual question here? I'd have to make sure I had the budget to pay for the cars he'd inevitibly wreck... But he'd sure get my sponsors a good deal of exposure, so I'd consider him along with the other drivers out there.

I'd probably still go for some young domestic hotshoes like Paul Edwards and Pat Long, though.

[JohnSSC]

Chris Kniefel was replaced after last season, was he not?

There are racing incidents and racing incidents but while Servia is not blameless, to shove your team mate right into him while pulling a move like that on the first lap is inexcusable. If I were B. Green I would have pulled him in myself for a chat. All the drivers talked about the importance of getting through that first lap - including PT.

[Lee Janotta]

Kniefel's back now, and Tracy gets a penalty... Coincidence?

We would be better off with a circus clown...

[Liz]

Agree with Lee. If it were anyone else who had been involved in that incident, there would not have been a penalty. I thought Tracy learned his lesson well and practiced the Zanardi style of public remorse, although a bit OTT (Zanardi could say "I drove the race with a broken heart" and convince you he meant it. I kind of felt Paul was reading that off a card.)

And absolutely I'd hire him for any team I was going to run. He's the one North Ameican out there with a personality! And the moves he makes, if TGF made them, would be worshipped and glorified -- still occasionally stupid and unjustified in hindsight, but it's the guy that gets the spotlight, not the move. People who don't like Tracy are the ones who criticize his style the most.

[JohnSSC]

Hmmm, I could have sworn we were in a CART forum, yet there are those mysterious initials!

PT has a lot of talent and unquestionably has been blessed with an actual personality - a good thing. However, that had to be one of the goofiest moves I have seen pulled by any vet, and that includes the Vasser/Brack contact game they seemed to play early in the year - it was like they had a magnet for each other. PT has the speed to be Champ, but has not developed the racecraft to be one. I really hope he does someday.

The point here is not how we react to someone else IF they made the same move but what we think of the move PT actually made. I do not think a penalty was necessary here. The embarassment of making such a move followed by a verbal boxing of the ears from the team owner should be enough punishment. Justifiably we were/are critical of Bell's antics for example and PT's antics should not escape examination. He is no longer able to hide behind the "young lion" thing.

[Liz]

I am critical of this particular move, although if it had come off it would have been brilliant. However, I think that Kneifel would have taken no notice of it if Vasser had taken out Jourdain or Brack had taken out Dixon.

Mr. Bell is an inexperienced driver who made constant mistakes of this type. PT is an experienced driver who makes one stupid move a year, and he's not the only one either, as John points out above with the illustration of Vasser/Brack and one might add Papis/Brack (maybe BRACK is the problem!)

The difference between Mr. Bell and PT is that PT knows a stupid move when he has made one and he admits it and doesn't repeat it in the next race. Mr. Bell says it was not his fault, and he does repeat it in the next race. Or anyway that's what I think.

[Crash Test]

Paul will never be champion, it's simple- he crashes too much. I've got the stats at home comparing the number of DNF's caused by contact each year for PT compared to the series champion. The only time the two have come close was when Montoya won in his Rookie season.

The bloke should have won the championship at his first full tilt back in 1993, but he snotted everything in his path.. and not much has changed since then. I thought he was reformed this season... but he simply hasn't had the speed to be up the front...

[Crash Test]

1993 Champion -Nigel Mansell
DNS-1
Contact-1
Total DNF- 3
Wins- 5
Points- 190

Paul Tracy
Contact- 4
Total DNF- 5
Wins- 5
Points- 157
Position- 3rd

1994 Champion -Al Unser Jr
Contact- 0
Total DNF- 3
Wins- 8
Points- 225

Paul Tracy
Contact- 3
Total DNF- 7
Wins- 3
Points- 153
Position- 3rd

1995 Champion -Jacques Villeneuve
Contact- 0
Total DNF-3
Wins- 4
Points- 154

Paul Tracy
Contact- 3
Total DNF- 8
Wins- 2
Points- 115
Position- 6th

1996 Champion -Jimmy Vasser
Contact- 0
Total DNF- 0
Wins- 4
Points- 154

Paul Tracy
DNS- 2
Contact- 5
Total DNF- 7
Wins- 0
Points- 60
Position- 13th

1997 Champion -Alex Zanardi
DNS- 1
Contact- 1
Total DNF- 1
Wins- 5
Points- 195

Paul Tracy
DNS- 1
Contact- 5
Total DNF- 6
Wins- 3
Points- 121
Position- 5th

1998 Champion -Alex Zanardi
Contact- 1
Total DNF- 1
Wins- 7
Points- 285

Paul Tracy
Contact- 8
Total DNF- 9
Wins- 0
Points- 61
Position- 13th

1999 Champion -Juan Montoya
Contatct- 4
Total DNF- 5
Wins- 7
Points 212

Paul Tracy
DNS- 1
Contact- 4
Total DNF- 6
Wins- 1
Poinsts- 161
Position- 3rd

And thats where it got up to... not good stuff- if only he could manage to stay on the track without hitting anyone, he would be a champion, without a doubt...

[tanalised]

they're some telling stats

[JohnSSC]

Reminds me of Robby Gordon: Loads of talent, never met a wall/car he didn't want to hit! Remember him hitting Mikey on the cool down lap at Cleveland a few years ago? Same disease as PT. When in doubt, punt - literally!

[Arneal]

But, like the Tin Man his theme song should be "if I only had a brain."

The Scarecrow was the one missing a brain. The Tinman was short a heart.

I know it is a stupid little detail, but if you are ever arguing with some moron you really don't want to give them this kind of opening.

[Liz]

He needs Tony Cicale back again.

[Crash Test]

Tony Cicale never stopped Paul from crashing into anyone... gave him a faster car though

[StuiE]

I would hire him, because everyone loves him! he makes racing good to to watch and what he's said about EARL...well, you can't beat that!

[macdaddy]

He's been outspoken.
He's been controversial.
He's been punished.
He's been robbed.
He's been exciting.
He's been loyal.
And he's won 19 times.

Oh yeah, he's also got the best-looking girl imaginable hanging around the paddock. I'd hire him for that alone.