CART adds Denver to its 2002 calendar

Ten years after the city last held a street race, CART has finalised a deal with Dover Downs Entertainment Group, which organises the highly-successful Long Beach Grand Prix CART race, George Gillett - who recently paid £183 million for the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey team - and Kronke Sports, which owns the Pepsi Centre around which the 1.68-mile course will be laid out. No public funding will be used to cover costs, and the venue will be situated on the western edge of downtown Denver.

Gillett was persuaded to get involved in the race's resurrection while on a skiing holiday with former CART president Bobby Rahal.

"We started talking about CART and the success that we had all those years ago," said Gillett. "I was at those early races in Denver, and it was very frustrating to us both that they didn't continue."

Denver's mayor, Wellington Webb, said: "I have my concerns about the city's last experience with the last Grand Prix to be held here, but moving the race out of the heart of downtown's business district alleviates many of the problems the city experienced in the past."

Chris Pook, the man behind the Long Beach race that is regarded as the jewel in CART's crown, has been involved with the design of the circuit and the logistics of the event, which is planned to take place on September 3, 2002.

"We can deliver the panoramic icons that make Denver," he said. "We can show the mountains, we can show the skyline, we can show the Mile High Stadium."