Salazar stays, Ward out in Foyt reshuffle.

It seems as though the extra financial strains put on by running 13 races instead of nine as was the case in 2000 have already taken their toll as front running Indy Racing Northern Light Series team AJ Foyt Enterprises announced that they would be scaling down their 2001 challenge to a singleton entry for veteran Eliseo Salazar.

The team parted company with experienced IRNLS campaigner Jeff Ward this week after just one season together in which Ward scored top ten finishes at Walt Disney World, Indianapolis, Kentucky and Texas with his fourth place at the blue riband Indy 500 being the highlight.

Ward finished the year in eleventh place overall after holding a top ten points position for the entire season before being bumped out by Billy Boat. With just 20 points separating him from seventh placed Scott Sharp the decision not to retain Ward's services next year has more to do with finance than performance as the 2001 IRNLS takes in four extra rounds in what is its' biggest year to date.

It appears as though Foyt would prefer to concentrate his efforts on Salazar, who finished the season fourth in points and was a challenger for honours at almost every race although the Chilean driver has yet to officially confirm his plans for next year. The ex-ATS Formula One man outperformed Ward for most of the year and registered six top ten finishes in nine races including third at the Indy 500 and fourth at Phoenix and is expected to stay on for a third season with the team.

Foyt also wants to work on turning his fledgling NASCAR operation into a success after a lacklustre first year in the Winston Cup in which driver Rick Mast finished only 33rd in the WC points standings after the team's intended driver Mike Bliss failed to impress. With budgets in the IRNLS set to rise next year teams have been hunting for sponsorship to ensure that the current trend toward stability within the series remains.

If Foyt wishes to retain his current status as a front running operation in the IRNLS and continue to develop his Winston Cup outfit, moves to channel resources such as this may become a feature for many IRNLS outfits this winter as purse strings invariably tighten.