With the economy's adverse impact on racing, IndyCar Series drivers
Darren Manning, Buddy Rice and Bruno Junqueira have gravitated to the
Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series, at least for a while.
"We have to make a living," Manning said at Watkins Glen where he
co-drove the Orbit Racing BMW with Bill Lester. "We are not playing at
this; racing is our livelihood," he said. Leading up to the Indianapolis
500, Manning and others made it known they were available to car owners
but without sponsorship, they didn't land a ride.
Junqueira was fortunate for a short while when he qualified the Conquest
entry, only to be replaced by Alex Tagliani prior to the race. "I
wasn't shocked, as Alex (Tagliani) had the sponsorship," he said while
preparing for his career-first Daytona Prototype race. "It only took me
two laps to get up to speed at Indianapolis while it took me at least
nine laps to get comfortable with the prototype," the Brazilian said.
"Racing a DP represents a huge learning curve." He teamed with Mark
Wilkins and Burt Frisselle in the AIM Autosport Ford at Watkins Glen.
While Manning and Junqueira walked Gasoline Alley in Indianapolis
looking for rides, Rice stayed home fielding occasional call, none of
which led to a ride. "It is always frustrating for a race driver not to
be in a big race, particularly one I had won in the past," Rice said.
At the Glen, he co-drove a Brumos Porsche with Rolex24 winners David
Donohue and Darren Law.
Rice, who was also on the winning team in the Rolex24, hasn't driven
competitively since the January endurance race at Daytona, but talking
about that victory brings a smile to his face. "Our goal was to win
the Rolex24, but the only disappointment was that Bob Snodgrass wasn't
there to enjoy it with us," he said. "Bob the one that brought our team
together and made it happen. We had shots at winning two years ago,
but minor mistakes cost us. All in all, it was a flawless weekend and
everything turned out well."
The three accomplished drivers are hoping to return to the IndyCar
Series and Rice tipped that he may be closing in on a deal. Manning is
also hopeful that he can do a couple of road races, but his emphasis is
on the 2010 season. For Junqueira, he will gladly return to Conquest
Racing if sponsorship for a second car can be acquired.
Manning and Junqueira were on hand for the Indianapolis 500 but Rice
didn't come to Indianapolis, although he saw a small portion of it on
television.
While the three drivers are frustrated with their situation, they know
the economy is having a significant impact on the budgets of race teams
and they are willing to ride out the storm racing sports cars and doing
whatever it takes to keep their names in front of owners and sponsorship
groups.
