The 2004 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford season will feature another year of providing one of the most challenging tests in all of motorsports, as its drivers will continue the tradition of having to master every discipline of racing. Challenging street courses, fabled road venues, short ovals and superspeedway slugfests await the drivers of the Champ Car World Series in 2004 as the series today released a list of confirmed venues for the upcoming season.
The 15 confirmed dates include 14 traditional Champ Car venues as the series continues to build on the support that has seen the CART Champ Car World Series draw over 2.3 million fans for each of the last 11 seasons. The traditional list will be augmented by an exciting new addition in 2004 as the 750hp Champ Cars will take to the 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway oval for the first time next season. In addition, there are six other venues that are also under consideration for spots on next year's schedule.
"The addition of such a strong market such as Las Vegas, where our television numbers have always been well above average, gives us even more reason to be excited about the upcoming campaign," said CART President and CEO Christopher R. Pook. "We are confident that 2004 will provide our fans, sponsors, teams and drivers with a series that they can be proud of and that delivers maximum value across the board."
The confirmed dates will see the series race in four different countries, including three stops in Canada, two in Mexico along with the annual sojourn to Surfers Paradise in Australia. Oval races will take place at California Speedway and the Milwaukee Mile along with Las Vegas, while road and street circuits in Cleveland, Denver, Long Beach, Miami, St. Petersburg and Elkhart Lake will test the drivers.
Recent Champ Car venues such as Brands Hatch, EuroSpeedway Lausitz, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Portland International Raceway are under consideration to join the 2004 schedule, as is a new track in East Asia. The complete event and television schedule will be announced in the very near future. The list of 15 confirmed venues signifies races that will be run in 2004, although specific dates continue to be coordinated with Champ Car television partners.
Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. (NYSE: MPH) owns, operates and markets the 2003 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford. Veteran racing teams such as Newman/Haas Racing, Player's/Forsythe Racing, Team Rahal, Patrick Racing and Walker Racing will compete with many new teams this year in pursuit of the Vanderbilt Cup. CART Champ Cars are thoroughbred racing machines that reach speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour, showcasing the technical expertise of manufacturers such as Ford Motor Company, Lola Cars, Reynard Motorsport and Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire, LLC. The 19-race 2003 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford will be broadcast by television partners CBS and SPEED Channel. CART also owns and operates its top development series, the Toyota Atlantic Championship. Learn more about CART'S open-wheel racing series at www.champcarworldseries.com.
Confirmed Venues For 2004
California Speedway - Fontana, California - Superspeedway
Burke Lakefront Airport - Cleveland, Ohio - Temporary road course
Denver, Colorado - Street course
Las Vegas Motor Speedway - Las Vegas, Nevada - Oval
Long Beach, California - Street course
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez - Mexico City, Mexico - Permanent road course
Miami, Florida - Street course
The Milwaukee Mile - Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Short oval
Fundidora Park - Monterrey, Mexico - Temporary road course
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve - Montreal, Canada - Permanent road course
Road America - Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin - Permanent road course
St. Petersburg, Florida - Street course
Surfers Paradise, Australia - Street course
Toronto, Canada - Street course
Vancouver, Canada - Street course
Dates To Be Confirmed
Brands Hatch, England
East Asia
EuroSpeedway Lausitz
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Portland International Raceway
