MVN - Most Valuable Network

IRL Notes: Raphael Matos, Luczo Dragon are stepping up

Firestone Indy Lights champ signs multi-year deal

Luczo Dragon Racing has finally made it official.

After two years of part-time operation, the squad will go to full-time duty for the 2009 IndyCar Series campaign. Behind the wheel of their No. 12 machine will be Raphael Matos, who has certainly earned this opportunity after winning the Atlantics championship in 2007 and this year’s Firestone Indy Lights title for AFS/Andretti Green Racing.

Matos will replace Tomas Scheckter, who drove competitively in the LDR car’s six events, but kept finding trouble to ruin his outings (his best finish was 21st at Detroit). He sounds pretty enthused about joining a team that has been considered to be a major dark horse despite its former part-time stature:

“I couldn’t be more excited about everything, it’s an unbelievable opportunity. We have a very good team. All the pieces are in place. We just need to build a solid base through preseason testing, put everything together, and go for it. I can’t wait to get started.”

While this turn of events once again puts one of the league’s more interesting personalities out on the unemployment line, Matos has definitely been messing around in the minor leagues for too long.

He has shown to be a great driver in his Atlantics and Indy Lights campaigns and if LDR can get in a good offseason’s work of testing, he can easily be a contender in a good chunk of the ‘09 events — and not just on road and street courses either. At any rate, he’s at least getting a better shake than ‘07 Indy Lights king Alex Lloyd did when he attempted to move up (one lone start in 2008 at the Indy 500).

In my opinion, LDR has the potential to become a legitimate interloper in the affairs of the Big Three. Anytime you have the potential for something like that, that’s always good for the competition and for the fans as well.

Just don’t expect him to fill the role of “happy-go-lucky Brazilian” if necessary. He seems more Vitor Meira-like in personality, really.

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The ratings are in…

…And the IndyCar Series can feel pretty decent about their performance on television this year. The 2008 campaign bagged a 21.4 percent increase in audience over last season on the Mouse networks (ABC, ESPN, ESPN2) with an average rating of 1.7 over the 17 events.

It’ll be very interesting to see if Versus can help keep the trend going up next year with a reach that falls quite short of ESPN and ESPN2’s. As I mentioned on my latest piece for FoxSports.com, better coverage is fine and dandy but that gap of 23 million homes between the Comcast-owned channel and the Worldwide Leader is going to be a pain in the butt to deal with.

Of course, the peanut gallery is already out in force bandying the slogan of “ReVersus” in predictions for a major ratings drop. I’ll give ‘em this, they’re persistent little buggers…

More details on Paul Tracy’s suit against Gerry Forsythe…

For those that didn’t see the link in my previous post on this subject, Paul Tracy is suing his former Champ Car boss Gerry Forsythe for at least $2.3 million on breach-of-contract charges.

Per TSN.ca:

“In the complaint, Tracy’s attorney claims the racer’s contract called for a $1-million buyout to be paid in the event the team ceased operation in Champ Car. Terms of Tracy’s contract also show that he was to have been paid $2.25-million for the 2008 Champ Car season, plus any bonuses.

“However, Tracy says he’s been paid for February, March and April and nothing since.”

I’m expecting this case to be a rather drawn-out affair. With Forsythe involved, I’d be shocked if it were nothing less than that.

Castroneves tax evasion saga may creep into NASCAR

Indy champ’s attorney also represents multiple Sprint Cup drivers

The Indy Racing League may not be the only racing series affected by the fallout of Helio Castroneves’ indictment on tax evasion charges.

In addition to the two-time Indy 500 champion, those charges were also filed against his sister Kati and his attorney, Alan Miller.  In addition to Helio, Miller also represents drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series — including two-time series champion Jimmie Johnson and his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Casey Mears.

While Helio was pleading not guilty to the seven counts against him (and getting released on $10 million bail), Johnson was expressing his shock at the accusations leveled against his lawyer and friend. He certainly sounds impassioned judging from his comments today to NASCAR news site SceneDaily.com about the matter:

“Everything I’ve done with Alan, he has respected my thoughts and me as a driver as if he was a parent of some sort. He’s really done a phenomenal job for me…I’ve never seen anything out of character from him.

“I’m shocked. I know he’s shocked, and as time goes on, we’ll all learn and understand more.”

Back in a Miami federal courtroom, Castroneves was reported to have appeared at his hearing in handcuffs and leg chains.

After his release, he proclaimed his innocence by telling reporters:

“I am not guilty. I know right from wrong and I did nothing wrong.”

But something tells me this whole thing is going to get a lot worse in short order.

Paul Tracy, Gerry Forsythe set for day in court

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-ilndce/case_no-1:2008cv05517/case_id-224163/

Unfortunately, you’ll need a subscription to go on any further. But it looks like the Canadian driver (under the PTR banner) and his former Champ Car boss are finally ready to have it out.

Things just got interesting over the last few days, haven’t they?

UPDATE (12:40 p.m. ET) — A file of the court document is available here, but I ask that you go along with the original poster’s requests and simply look at it for private use. In other words, do not redistribute.

Helio Castroneves: From champion to criminal?

Will tax evasion charges finish his racing career for good?

Some race fans have daydreams about living the life of their favorite driver.

A life of having the thrill of going 200+ miles an hour, being the object of adoration for millions of fans, and winning the Indianapolis 500 — to these devotees, having all of these honors and privileges would be, in their minds, priceless.

Shoot, even just suiting up to drive an IndyCar that may have no chance in Hell of winning would be priceless.

Helio Castroneves has had that life for many years now. He has the ability to make hearts beat faster, either with his stellar driving and wheel-to-wheel antics in the No. 3 Team Penske Dallara or his handsome looks that have been seen in every form of magazine since his victory one year ago in TV’s “Dancing With The Stars.”

Even bigger than all of that, he’s won the Indianapolis 500. Twice. Back-to-back.

Priceless, huh? Well, maybe not. After the IndyCar Series superstar’s indictment for tax evasion yesterday, the value of his career may have a price after all.

Zero.

According to this document (Warning: PDF file), Castroneves, his sister Kati, and his attorney Alan Miller, created a plot involving a shell company, false testimony, and a Swiss bank account to help the Brazilian driver get out of reporting $5.5 million worth of income he received from Coimex, a Brazilian trading company, and Penske Racing, to the IRS.

The indictment also alleges a kick-back scheme between Castroneves and Coimex, who struck three one-year deals from 1999-2001 to gain the driver’s services in promoting the company.

Each of those deals were set to pay Castroneves $2 million, but through Seven Promotions (the shell company controlled by him, his sister and another member of the family), he gave back $1.8 million to Coimex on every deal in order to have a visible yearly salary of $200,000.

As some of Coimex’s money went into the family’s Swiss bank account, a decision was allegedly made along the way to divert the $5.5 million from Seven Promotions (the shell company) to Fintage Licensing, B.V., under a “deferred royalty plan” — which, according to the AP, can delay U.S. tax payments legally but only if Castroneves had no control over Seven.

Paragraph 13 of the indictment (under the “Manner and Means of the Conspiracy” section) says that Castroneves and Miller falsely testified that neither the former or anyone in his family had any control over Seven.

If you’ve made it through that array of numbers and jargon, good. If you didn’t and skipped those paragraphs, I’ll sum it up for you in one sentence.

Helio Castroneves is in deep trouble.

With one count of fraud and six counts of tax evasion against him, he’s looking at a maximum sentence of 35 years for the combined offenses. The Castroneves siblings and Miller are expected to appear Friday afternoon in a Miami federal district court, according to the Indianapolis Star.

This setback may very well destroy his career and it’s also probably going to deliver a major blow to the IndyCar Series as well.

After several years of being known as a league with one singular star in Danica Patrick, the circuit saw Castroneves become its second mainstream star thanks to his ‘Dancing’ victory and in part to the increased profile that came with the unification of open-wheel racing.

Die-hards had long known Castroneves as an affable and fun-loving character, but finally, the American public at large knew it when they saw the Indy champion cut a rug with Julianne Hough last year.

He also seemed to figure into the league’s long-term marketing plans, going alongside Patrick and a solid nucleus of young and talented American drivers that featured the names of legends such as Foyt, Andretti, and Rahal.

A big question now emerges for the IRL in the wake of Castroneves’ indictment. Should ‘Spider-Man’ go to prison, who can step in as the face of the series AND do it as a regular winner?

But perhaps the most important question is about the well-being of Castroneves’ fans, who are now dealing with the possibility that their hero may become a convicted criminal over what allegedly is, simply, a very stupid decision on his part.

I will withhold my judgement of him. After all, he is innocent until proven guilty.

But should these charges be true, then the fact that Helio Castroneves actually figured he could get away with something like this…well, that would be — you guessed it — priceless.

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The indictment document is courtesy of WTHR-TV in Indianapolis, Ind.

Helio Castroneves indicted for tax evasion!

Driver’s sister, attorney allegedly involved in scheme

Losing a major open-wheel championship again is now the least of Helio Castroneves’ worries.

The two-time Indianapolis 500 champion has been indicted for tax evasion and authorities believe that his sister and his attorney are also in on the plot. All three are expected to turn themselves in tomorrow.

MyNameIsIRL has garnered a solid list of updates and all of them just keep getting uglier and uglier for the Brazilian star. This may very well be the end of his career. If I’m Roger Penske, I’m getting some free agents on the phone. Now.

Unfortunately, earlier obligations will have to keep me away from the blog for now. I’ll have more later on tonight when I’m free.

Man, I wish this wasn’t a joke.

IRL Notes: IndyCar offseason testing revs up

Richmond, Kentucky and Indy play host to early sessions

Off-season action has begun to pick up in the IndyCar Series, as multiple teams and drivers have fanned out recently to various tracks for Firestone tire testing.

After a season that featured both triumphs and tragedies, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing appears set to take on a heavy load of testing in order to close the oval gap between them and the IndyCar regulars.

Their man Graham Rahal was part of testing last week at Richmond International Raceway, along with KV Racing Technology’s Oriol Servia and Andretti Green Racing’s Tony Kanaan. You can read N/H/L’s press release on the test here.

Last week also saw Franck Montagny test for Andretti Green Racing at Kentucky Speedway. This was not for Firestone, however; it may have been an audition for the Frenchman over a possible fifth car for AGR in 2009. Judging from his top speeds, he seemed to be a quick study on the 1.5-mile oval.

Fast-forwarding to earlier this week, Dan Wheldon took the first laps of his second stint with Panther Racing during a two-day Firestone test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The 2005 IndyCar champion — and soon-to-be first-time father — was joined by Kanaan, reigning Indy 500 king Scott Dixon, Ryan Briscoe, Buddy Rice and Ryan Hunter-Reay for the test, which apparently was meant to go toward the creation of a brand-new tire for next year’s “500.” Briscoe told IndianapolisMotorSpeedway.com:

“The priority is for Firestone and trying to find a new tire for the Indy 500 in 2009. We’re looking for consistency from the tire and for performance. Also, it’s a great chance for us to be running here and just getting a few miles. You can never run too much around this place.”

More testing is on the way with N/H/L heading to Texas Motor Speedway for a test session next week that will feature Rahal and teammate Justin Wilson.

So far, I’m seeing good initiative out of N/H/L. In my opinion, a steady dose of oval work is necessary for them this off-season. The same goes for KVRT and the rest of the former Champ Car squads, although all of these teams certainly improved as the season wore on.

In Memoriam: Paul Newman

After giving us so many performances for the ages on the silver screen and on the racetrack, Paul Newman himself now belongs to the ages.

The Oscar-winning actor and co-owner of the IndyCar Series’ Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing team died on Friday amongst family and friends at his home in Westport, Connecticut according to the Associated Press. After a long, well-documented fight with cancer, Newman passed at the age of 83.

Condolences have quickly poured out from across the American racing landscape, including those from Rahal Letterman Racing owner Bobby Rahal — who called him “a man of great courage, determination, and integrity” — and Indianapolis Motor Speedway CEO Tony George, who said the following:

“On behalf of my mother Mari Hulman George and the entire Hulman-George family at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar Series, our thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends and loved ones of Paul Newman.

“To all his fans world-wide and those close to him in our racing community, we share a deep sense of loss, but cherish the many fond memories we will forever carry with us.”

We’ve lost a special person today. He’s going to be remembered for so many things and not just from his movies and his racing.

Can you put a number on how many lives he has touched through his charitable operations — from his Newman’s Own line of food products to his Hole in the Wall Gang camps for seriously ill children?

That puts things in perspective. While his acting career and his racing career will be celebrated, I believe that his philanthropy will serve as his legacy.

My condolences to his family and his friends. God bless him.