OWRS withdraws Portland bid
Paul Gentilozzi, co-owner of OWRS that sanctions the Champ Car World Series, has accused authorities at Portland International Raceway of "turning their backs" on its longstanding date at the Pacific Northwest road circuit. Gentilozzi said he would not be dragged into a bidding war with the IRL and has withdrawn a three-year proposal, which will end a 21-year relationship between them. "You can't play with sanctioning bodies," he said. "And that's what I felt like they were doing."
Gentilozzi said: "We busted our tails to have a race there [this year], promoted it ourselves to show good faith and in essence they've just turned their backs on us. You can't play with sanctioning bodies. And that's what I felt like they were doing. Perhaps they were being played, too, because in my sincere opinion the IRL has no intention of really going there."
Portland City commissioner Jim Francesconi, who oversees the city-owned raceway as parks commissioner, said: "This is a business. Racing is a business. Champ Car has chosen to proceed in a way that I don't quite understand and we're going to move forward in a way that produces the best race for our citizens."
The IRL's VP of business affairs Ken Ungar said that Gentilozzi's suggestion that the IRL was interfering in its deal with Portland was "absolutely ridiculous".
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