MysticArt Pictures, which is handling casting for the show,  is looking for aspiring IndyCar and NASCAR Drivers who wish to pursue their dream.

For more information, click here. To apply, click here.

According to the report, Senna has ruled out IndyCar because his family would not let him race in that series.

At a test session at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson said:

I wouldn’t run [IndyCar] on ovals. There’s just no need to. Those cars are fantastic for street circuits, for road courses. I hate, hate, hate that this tragedy took place. But hopefully they can learn from it and make those cars safer on ovals somehow. I don’t know how they can really do it. Myself, I have a lot of friends that race in that series, and I’d just rather see them on street circuits and road courses. No more ovals. … Their average was 225? I’ve never been 225 mph in my life – and that’s their average around an oval. They are brave men and women that drive those things. There’s very little crumple zone around the driver, it’s an open cockpit and then you add open wheels – it’s just creating situations to get the car off the ground at a high rate of speed. And you can’t control the car when it’s off the ground.

Johnson makes very valid points. To put things in perspective, this graphic shows the difference between an Indy car and a stock car. The most noticeable difference is the weight. A stock car weighs 3,400 – 3,450 lbs, compared to 1,525 – 1,600 lbs for an Indy car. Yet, a stock only produces 100 more HP than an Indy car. An Indy car’s light weight and aerodynamic shape in combination with long straightaways and banked corners makes them capable of achieving speeds in excess of 220 MPH on ovals.

At speeds that high, drivers have thousandths of a second to react, which leaves no margin for error.

In 2004, Rusty Wallace tested a stock car without a restrictor plate at Talladega Superspeedway. He reached a top speed of 228 MPH. He said afterwards:

There’s no way we could be out there racing at those speeds… it would be insane to think we could have a pack of cars out there doing that.

But, that’s what happens at every Indy oval. That’s what happened at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

It’s not realistic to expect IndyCar to stop racing at ovals. I don’t think Johnson expects it either. He was reacting based on his emotion and the loss of a fellow racer. As the emotions subside as time passes, Johnson will surely see why that is highly unlikely. Instead, Indy should focus on making the cars safer and tracks safer; much like NASCAR did after the tragic death of Dale Earnhardt.

The car will be a joint venture between Andretti Autosport and Richard Petty Motorsports. Window World will be featured as primary sponsor for the third straight year.

John Andretti said:

It would be difficult to script a scenario any better than the one we have here. The relationship I have with Richard, the respect I have for Michael [Andretti] and his team, the partnership I enjoy with Window World and all of it focused on the Indianapolis 500 – it’s really a perfect situation. I can’t wait to get in the car and get to work. May can’t get here soon enough.

The car will feature Petty’s tradition Petty Blue and Day-Glo Red color scheme that The King made famous during his career. The car will have decals for Window World Cares, the charitable foundation of Window World Inc.

Petty said:

I’m excited to be a part of this venture with John, Andretti Autosport, and Window World for the Indy 500. There is so much history around this event and the Andretti’s have such a rich tradition in racing. I’m looking forward to watching John hit the track in May.

Andretti will join teammates Marco Andretti, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Tony Kanaan, and Danica Patrick as a part of Andretti Autosport. If he qualifies, it will be his 11th Indy 500.

Last year, Andretti, Petty, and Window World teamed up with Dreyer & Reibold Racing to field a car in the Indy 500. He finished 19th. The team hopse to improve upon that finish by teaming with Andretti Autosport, which won the Indy 500 in 2005 and 2007.

Team owner, and John Andretti’s cousin, Michael Andretti said:

I’m really excited to be able to be a part of this. Richard Petty is one of the true legends in our sport and someone I have always admired. Window World deserves a lot of credit for bringing all of this together. … I have a lot of respect for John’s talent – I always have. I really think he will fit in very well at Andretti Autosport and can be a factor during the month of May.

Patrick unveiled her GoDaddy.com car for Andretti Autosport, with whom she signed a three-year contract extension earlier this season. The appearance served as her official announcement that she would drive for Andretti Autosport next season.

The deal was held up by Patrick’s current sponsorship deal with Motorola, and the restructuring of Andretti Green Racing, which recently changed its name from Andretti Green Racing to Andretti Autosport.

Patrick said in a news release:

My life long goal is to win the Indy 500, and I’d love to do that in the GoDaddy.com car.

She added:

Michael Andretti has helped me become a better driver and we hope to accomplish a great deal during the next few years together.

Team owner Michael Andretti said:

All of us at Andretti Autosport are looking forward to having Danica back with the team and are excited about working with (CEO) Bob Parsons and everyone at Go Daddy as the primary sponsor on Danica’s car.

The news was a disappointment for some Patrick fans who are waiting to hear confirmation or denial of the loads of rumors circulating about her potential move to NASCAR.

Update: It is being reported that Patrick’s website contained a photo of the driver in a GoDaddy.com uniform with a Chevy emblem and what appeared to be the JR Motorsports and Nationwide Series logos. The picture was later changed to her Indy uniform.

Officials that represent Patrick and JRM declined to comment.

He was aquitted of six counts of tax evasion, but the jury hung on one count of conspiracy. Similarly, the jury aquitted Castroneves’ sister of the counts of evasion and hung on one count of conspriacy.

Alan Miller, an attorney for Castroneves, was aquitted of tax evasion and conspiracy. Jimmie Johnson testified on his behalf during the trial. Johnson has received financial guidance from Miller.

Prosecutors will now decide the best way to proceed with the conspiracy charge.

Now, Castroneves will return to Team Penske, and Indy Racing League. The team replaced Castroneves with Will Power, pending the outcome of the race.

Castroneves plans to drive in this weekend’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Andretti has driven in nine Indy 500s, including the last two years. He finished fifth in the race in 1991. Last year he finished 16th. He also has 10 NASCAR starts at the track. His best finish in a stock car at the track is seventh. 

A news conference is scheduled for Monday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Peter Windsor

Former Formula One team manager Peter Windsor and Ken Anderson, a former F1 team engineer, announced that they would start their own team, USF1, based in Charlotte, NC.

While no official announcements were made of drivers, and the team did not mention any drivers they approached, Windsor threw out a few names during the press conference.

He said:

We haven’t made any decision on drivers yet. … All the drivers out there, if one had to take names now … the next generation looks really good. You’ve got Alex Rossi, who obviously won a lot of races in Formula BMW. You’ve got Conor Daly and Josef Newgarden … really three talented young guys. Gabby Chavez is also very good. And if you take a level slightly higher than that, you have Jonathan Summerton, who has won at the international level already in A1GP driving for Team USA .

While those names mean little to NASCAR fans, the next group of names were quite interesting.

Windsor continued:

Scott Speed has Formula One experience. We know Scott. He’s a very talented guy. He’s doing very well in NASCAR right now. It would be interesting to know if he is totally comfortable where he is right now. There are NASCAR drivers out there right now who I really think if they wanted to switch to Formula One, we could groom them and help them make that change. We were chatting with Dave Despain the other night about Kyle Busch for example. What a great star he would be. Formula One would welcome anything like that.

Windsor also added Danica Patrick’s name to the mix.

A report in India says that Anderson would like to offer Patrick the chance to drive. But, no where in the story is Anderson quoted as saying he would like her to.

The news of USF1′s interest in Patrick came as news to her. In an AP report, she said:

You know, it starts with a phone call, and I haven’t heard anything. It’s funny how these things get going. But I’m happy driving in the IndyCar Series, I’m happy in North America.

And, someone has gone so far as to petition fans to get Busch out of NASCAR and into F1.