Hemelgarn to race on, but with what?
After confirming that Buddy Lazier and Ron Hemelgarn will continue their partnership into the 2003 Indy Racing League season despite the loss of major sponsor Coors, the veteran team boss has yet to decide on what chassis Lazier will use in 2003 and feels that he is spoilt for choice.
Ron Hemelgarn, owner of Hemelgarn Racing, has not decided which chassis the team, which won the 1996 Indianapolis 500 and 2000 Indy Racing League championship with Buddy Lazier, will use in 2003.
After confirming that Buddy Lazier and Ron Hemelgarn will continue their partnership into the 2003 Indy Racing League season despite the loss of major sponsor Coors, the veteran team boss has yet to decide on what chassis Lazier will use in 2003 and feels that he is spoilt for choice.
Ron Hemelgarn, owner of Hemelgarn Racing, has not decided which chassis the team, which won the 1996 Indianapolis 500 and 2000 Indy Racing League championship with Buddy Lazier, will use in 2003.
"This is the most crucial year that we've had in a long time, as far as picking that right chassis," Hemelgarn said. "I'm looking at all of our options."
The 2003 season, the eighth season of IRL competition, is the first year that new chassis and engine rules for 2003-2005 will take effect. Hemelgarn is already signed as a development team for Chevrolet engines and will use Firestone tires, the exclusive tire of the Indy Racing League.
Chassis selection is not new for Hemelgarn, who fielded a Riley and Scott chassis in the early part of 2000. Lazier won at Phoenix in the chassis before the team switched to a Dallara prior to that year's Indianapolis 500. The team has used a Dallara ever since.
Hemelgarn has three chassis to select from: Dallara, Panoz G Force and the newest chassis, Falcon, produced by MK Racing.
"I haven't jumped in real fast," Hemelgarn said. "I want to see all of the cars and what they are doing before I actually make that decision. Dallara has been a very dominating car. I have seen their (2003) car. I was over in Italy a few weeks ago, and it's a very, very nice car. I want to go and see G Force cars, and I'm planning a trip there within the next couple of weeks to see their car and so on.
"I think they're all going to be phenomenal, so to make a decision today would not be right until we have all the information from everybody, and that's what we're doing. We're going to do it as a team, collectively, and we'll make that decision here probably within the next few weeks of what we're going to go with."
