France Made Nascar At IMS A Reality

The Godfather of Nascar passed away today and while most think of what he has done for the sport of stock car racing, I look at what he has done for IMS and the IRL. At a time when purists were screaming , enter big Bill France Jr. to provide the direction and leadership it would take to bring a Nascar event to the storied oval in Indianapolis. Along with Tony George, France was firmly in control of the transition and made what some people said would never happen into a grand slam for both of the famous racing families. France in my opinion saved the the IRL by partnering with the IMS Corporation to hold IRL events on tracks owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation, which has had explosive growth and profitability since France became CEO in 1981. In addition to securing a 2.4 billion dollar television contract for Nascar, he convinced all involved to run the Daytona July event under the lights in 1998, and completed a successful merger with Penske Motorsports Inc in 1999 to double the number of tracks that ISC owns and operates. Clearly IMS was ready for Nascar but without the vision and guidance of France there is little doubt that it might never have happened. You can probably say the same for his efforts to stabilize and support the IRL as well, yet few people connected with open wheel give this giant of a man his due. One thing is for certain and that is alot of people at 16th and Georgetown owe Bill France Jr. quite alot. A fitting Brickyard tribute would be to scrap the naming rights and dedicate the Nascar event at Indy to the man who really helped make it happen. Wishful thinking perhaps, but it's truly something to consider. Danny Bridges