Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven recently visited Korea, China and Japan
and left the Far East convinced his series could be racing in all three
countries by 2006
source:
speedtv.com
"We had solid expectations going over there and they were more than fulfilled,"
said Kalkhoven. "All three countries were very enthusiastic and we're putting an
office in the Far East shortly."
The 2005 schedule calls for Champ Car to run in Seoul, Korea this October and
Kalkhoven was present for the groundbreaking ceremony at the new road course.
"It was unbelievable," he stated. "There were 1,000 officials at that ceremony
and we've got the full support of the city and national government. It's my hope
we can get a couple of Korean drivers into our Formula Atlantic series and get
them to Champ Car with Korean sponsors."
Kalkhoven's next stop was Beijing, where he met with the Beijing State Asset
Management Company to discuss the possibility of a race.
"It's a fantastic city and I will remain confident we'll have a race there in
2006," said the man who along with Gerald Forsythe rescued the bankrupt CART
circuit in 2004.
From China, the 60-year-old Aussie jetted to Japan in the northern island of
Hokkaido to discuss the possibility of a future Champ Car show.
"We were very professional in our approach and we gave our presentations on DVDs
narrated by Paul Newman in Korean, Chinese and Japanese," said Kalkhoven.
"We are bringing 60 government officials from Korea, China and Japan to Long
Beach to see what we're all about."