Grapevine: CART Agrees to Buyout Offer

The embattled U.S.-based CART series said on Wednesday it had agreed to a buyout offer from a group of investors that include several team bosses.

In a joint statement, Championship Auto Racing Inc, which sanctions the CART series, said that they had accepted a 56 cents a share offer from Open Wheel Racing Series.

Those involved in Open Wheel Racing include existing CART team owners Jerry Forsythe (Players Forsythe Racing), Kevin Kalkhoven - Craig Pollock's partner in PK Racing - and Paul Gentilozzi (Rocketsports).

The agreement is subject to the approval of shareholders. CART's president and chief executive officer Christopher Pook said the deal should secure the future of the once-thriving series.

"As we have previously disclosed, this past year has been incredibly difficult for Championship," he said. "We believe this transaction provides the best value available to stockholders while at the same time making it possible for our series to continue in the future."

The CART series was founded in 1979 by a number of owners of Indy Car teams and went public as Championship Auto Racing Inc in 1998. But recent developments in motor racing in the United States have adversely affected the profitability of the single seater racing series.

Famous CART teams like Penske Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing defected to the rival Indy Racing League, followed by former CART stalwart manufacturers Honda and Toyota. At the same time the Winston Cup NASCAR series has surged in popularity with booming attendances and television ratings.