Panther Pack - Team Q&A
Have a question about the difference between the IndyCar and the Pro Series ride? Curious about what the Panther drivers do away from the track? We select some of the questions that have been submitted and share the answers to those questions on the site. If you have a question of your own, you can
submit your QUESTIONS here.
submit your QUESTIONS here.
Displaying questions 1-10 (of 565 total):
- The longer he’s a free agent, the more and more I think Graham Rahal would be a perfect fit in a Panther car. He reminds me a lot of Hornish, when you guys signed him when he was unknown back in 2001. Am I crazy? (Brian, Dublin, Ohio)
- If Panther runs a second entry full-time, is that driver going to be Giorgio Pantano? (Quincy, West Allis, Wis.)
- I took notice of a recent tweet from Panther Racing last week during the IndyCar annual meeting. It said something about open-wheel fans should be very excited about IZOD. Could you elaborate about that a little? I saw Sarah Fisher posted something on her Twitter as well at roughly the same time. (Ryan, New Castle, Ind.)
- Will you guys be racing CAMO again in the Indy 500? (Kevin, Birmingham, AL)
- I know you won’t answer this on the site, but I’m asking anyway. What is the IndyCar insiders opinion about this whole Danica in NASCAR thing? Is everybody rolling their eyes? (Rick, Charlotte, NC)
- So now Tony George leaves the IMS board completely?!? Tell me honestly, is it time to panic? (Justin, Speedway, Ind.)
- I was laughing out loud last week when Wheldon was on the Trackside radio show on ESPN. That bobsled crash sounded scary. My question is, you always hear about drivers getting injured racing other vehicles, sometimes motorcycles or off-road stuff, but never at a sponsor event! Did the National Guard have to ask the team’s permission to have Wheldon do something so dangerous? (Oliver, Eaton, OH)
- So, let’s say I show up at Panther Racing offices tomorrow with a big $5 million dollar check and I told John Barnes I wanted to sponsor a second IndyCar team with Panther for this year. And, for the fun of it, I’m allowing him to sign any driver that he wants among the current IndyCar free agents. Who does he hire and why? (Greg, Mooresville, Ind.)
- I must admit I’m surprised you guys closed your Indy Lights program. Obviously, aside from last season, Panther has done nothing but win races in Lights. From a fan perspective it seemed the issue was drivers in 2009, but surely it wouldn’t have been hard to kick-start the program in 2010? (Louis, Nashville, TN)
- Obviously Jim Harbaugh, the former Indianapolis Colt quarterback, is a team owner of yours, but do you guys have a relationship with Peyton Manning? My wife didn’t know Harbaugh was associated with your team until I told her during the game yesterday and she thought it would help Panther if Peyton played a role in the team since Harbaugh is in California and doesn’t play anymore. Has this been discussed? (Louis, Greenfield, IND)
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Q. The longer he’s a free agent, the more and more I think Graham Rahal would be a perfect fit in a Panther car. He reminds me a lot of Hornish, when you guys signed him when he was unknown back in 2001. Am I crazy?
A. (1-21-10) You’re not crazy and there have been some talks with Graham and his management, who ironically are the same folks that represent Hornish. There is nothing promising on that front, mainly because we don’t have the proper funding to ensure a competitive ride. If you find us a sponsorship program, we’ll sign him tomorrow.
Q. If Panther runs a second entry full-time, is that driver going to be Giorgio Pantano?
A. (1-21-10) It’s very unclear at this point if we’ll run a second entry, and I would say with every passing day that possibility looks more and more unlikely. John Barnes and (chief engineer) David Cripps like Pantano and feel like he could bring something to our team, but there are additional opportunities being explored as well. I can say with confidence that we’ll run two cars in the Indianapolis 500, but a second full-time entry is still very much up in the air.
Q. I took notice of a recent tweet from Panther Racing last week during the IndyCar annual meeting. It said something about open-wheel fans should be very excited about IZOD. Could you elaborate about that a little? I saw Sarah Fisher posted something on her Twitter as well at roughly the same time.
A. (1-21-10) Yes, Mike Kelly with IZOD spoke during the meeting and very much blew away the entire crowd. Now, traditionally I wouldn’t be that excited about a presentation in January, but when you combine that with what IZOD has already done; last year with the New York City media day, and events at Macys and other stores throughout the season, major billboards in Times Square and new commercials they just recently shot in Panama with Wheldon and several other drivers – you need to be excited. From a performance standpoint, we know that the IndyCar Series is going to produce thrilling events, but to have the marketing, promotional and PR efforts of a company like IZOD – in addition to the confidence they’ve shown our sport – is a real, legit reason for fans of the IndyCar Series to be very excited. I can say proudly that this is precisely what our league needs.
Q. Will you guys be racing CAMO again in the Indy 500?
A. (1-21-10) That remains undecided at this point. It seems clear we will go with an alternate color scheme for Indianapolis, but the final decision has not been made as to what that car will look like.
Q. I know you won’t answer this on the site, but I’m asking anyway. What is the IndyCar insiders opinion about this whole Danica in NASCAR thing? Is everybody rolling their eyes?
A. (1-21-10) If I’m honest, I’d answer that this way: IndyCar insiders believe Danica is a damn good IndyCar driver who continues to get better. She’s earned a ton of respect amongst folks in our series, and while she’s not one of the Top Five best drivers in the league, she’s easily in the top one-third. As far as the NASCAR adventure, I would say the prevailing opinion is that if Hornish and Franchitti struggled, she will not be very successful.
Q. So now Tony George leaves the IMS board completely?!? Tell me honestly, is it time to panic?
A. (1-21-10) No.
Q. I was laughing out loud last week when Wheldon was on the Trackside radio show on ESPN. That bobsled crash sounded scary. My question is, you always hear about drivers getting injured racing other vehicles, sometimes motorcycles or off-road stuff, but never at a sponsor event! Did the National Guard have to ask the team’s permission to have Wheldon do something so dangerous?
A. (1-21-10) Yes, they asked permission and the team is always happy to comply with their requests. And I suppose when you race IndyCars at 220 mph every weekend a lot of other race events don’t seem as dangerous. But, at the end of the day, Wheldon was OK and it was a fun event for all involved. But I’m guessing if Dan goes to Lake Placid next year, he’ll be driving the sled.
Q. So, let’s say I show up at Panther Racing offices tomorrow with a big $5 million dollar check and I told John Barnes I wanted to sponsor a second IndyCar team with Panther for this year. And, for the fun of it, I’m allowing him to sign any driver that he wants among the current IndyCar free agents. Who does he hire and why?
A. (1-21-10) FYI, our address is 5101 Decatur Blvd., Suite P in Indianapolis when you’re ready to drop the check off. To answer your question – Graham Rahal.
Q. I must admit I’m surprised you guys closed your Indy Lights program. Obviously, aside from last season, Panther has done nothing but win races in Lights. From a fan perspective it seemed the issue was drivers in 2009, but surely it wouldn’t have been hard to kick-start the program in 2010?
A. (1-21-10) We wanted to focus completely on our IZOD IndyCar Series effort this season, and currently we don’t have any drivers on our radar screen that we want to have in our development program. But, having said that, we still have our Indy Lights equipment and our philosophy could change quickly if the right opportunity arises.
Q. Obviously Jim Harbaugh, the former Indianapolis Colt quarterback, is a team owner of yours, but do you guys have a relationship with Peyton Manning? My wife didn’t know Harbaugh was associated with your team until I told her during the game yesterday and she thought it would help Panther if Peyton played a role in the team since Harbaugh is in California and doesn’t play anymore. Has this been discussed?
A. (12-7-09) A few of us have met Peyton, but any official relationship with the team has not been discussed. If you remember, before Harbaugh started coaching, he played a significant role in our team – and that’s not something just any NFL player would take on without a real passion for the sport. The biggest thing Manning can do right now to help Panther is win another Super Bowl for the Colts. At least that would put a lot of smiles on the faces of folks around here.
