Ford renegotiating Champ Car engine deal
Ford Racing Technology has notified series promoter Open Wheel Racing Series that it will not exercise its option to extend its Champ Car World Series engine supply contract beyond 2004, without renegotiating the terms
"April 1 was the contracted date for either party to notify the other that it wanted to extend that identical agreement," said Dan Davis, the director of FRT. "We had to inform them that we were not exercising our option. How could we? As of April 1, not even one race had been run this year. We were not real sure about the future [of the series]. I'm a multi-year guy. I like to pick a dance partner and keep it, not change dance partners every year. At that point [April 1] we were not even sure what the dance would be."
OWRS co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven commented: "They [Ford] don't want to renew the contract exactly as it is, nor do we. So, we're renegotiating. It's not a big deal, although some may try to make it a big deal. There will be a new agreement."
Speaking about the likelihood of a renegotiated deal going through, Davis added: "I don't see any gnarling, snarling things in the way."
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