Rockingham date confirmed for 2001.

Leading motorsport weekly Motoring News this week confirmed that the still under construction Rockingham oval will be a part of the expanded 2001 CART schedule.

According to the report, Rockingham will form part of a two week European tour for the Champ Car teams undertaking races at the 1.5 oval in Corby and at the Lausitzring in Germany.

Acting Chief Operating Officer of the CART series Bobby Rahal was in London earlier this week as part of his tireless schedule. Indy racing legend Rahal confirmed that the British race would be held in the autumn although it is unclear whether Rockingham would form the first or second part of the European Tour. A provisional 2001 calendar unveiled at Portland last month gave the event a September 23rd date, a week prior to the German race.

To be the first European race on the Champ Car calendar would be a tremendous honour for all those involved with the Rockingham project. It had been thought that the nearly completed Lausitzring would be given the first date as the track has been under construction for a longer period of time. Rockingham only came into the race for a place on the 2001 calendar earlier this year, the German track has been vying for a place for several seasons.

The news was greeted with a favourable response by the two British drivers currently racing in the Champ Car series Mark Blundell and Dario Franchitti. Franchitti told MN "I'm glad to see it's going to happen. I'm glad there's going to be a serious oval track in the UK and we can get Champ Cars over there."

Mark Blundell was also enthusiastic about the opportunity to race infront of his home fans for the first time in five years. "It's fantastic. I don't believe that fans will ever have had this level of access to big name drivers."

Blundell and Franchitti may not be the only British drivers who could compete in the race next season. Current Jaguar F1 pilot Johnny Herbert looks set to leave Formula One at the end of the season and has professed a desire to continue his career in the Fed-Ex Series when he does decide to retire from F1. A possible swap with Franchitti, who has recently been linked with a Jaguar drive, cannot be ruled out just yet.

The official 2001 Champ Car calendar is expected to be announced in the very near future after Rahal spent much of last week in discussion with circuit owners and promoters, finalising dates for next year. In addition to visiting London, Rahal was in Texas to confirm the inaugural race at the 1.5 mile oval at Fort Worth and he may travel to Germany to confirm their event for 2001.