Now the real work begins for Tony George and IRL

Tony George and Kevin Kalkhoven were all smiles at Wednesday's news conference about the merger of America's two open-wheel series. Robert Laberge/Getty Images

HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- It didn't have the metaphorical perfection of the driving of the golden spike to link the transcontinental railroad or the significance of a treaty ending some long gone war.

But there Tony George and Kevin Kalkhoven stood before a collection of 22 open-wheel drivers, grinning and grinning some more as shutters clicked, gripping hands for the photo-op on Wednesday that officially ended the Great Open-Wheel War.

George and Kalkhoven, the Champ Car co-owner whose series agreed to have its teams and most valued assets melded into the once-rival circuit, knew much ground had been lost in 30 years of squabbling within the sport and 12 years of outward venom since George founded the IRL and broke away from what was then known as CART.

NASCAR drove through the wreckage and was an easy lap ahead now. So everyone spoke of small gains.

"It's going to take some time,'' George said. "But it all starts here today.''

Everyone spoke of determination.

"This is not some magic bullet,'' Kalkhoven said. "It's going to take an awful lot of hard work.''

And everyone spoke of modest expectations.

"This is the time we've been waiting for, for open-wheel racing to come back,'' said driver Helio Castroneves. "We are not competing against NASCAR. We're just a different type of racing. Now we just have good things to show to everyone.''

But regaining that lost status was clearly an objective for a sport that collectively weak and divided could only ponder holding onto memories. But is it up to the job of reclaiming its legacy?

"I do think so. At least I hope so,'' said former Champ Car driver Graham Rahal, who at 19 will soon be a new young marketing tool for the IRL. "I think that the way we look at it now is we're not going to be a challenger to NASCAR right away, but certainly I think over time we can get back to that position."

Peter DeLorenzo, an auto industry analyst and editor of autoextremist.com, said the IRL can establish a new beachhead with fans and ever-important sponsors, especially as NASCAR has "started to spiral downward a little bit." But he noted the IRL should temper expectations.

"I think (the IRL) definitely can get a toehold,'' he said. "Will they ever recover from the 12 years of rancor and discord that basically handed the platform of American racing and the mainstream media to NASCAR? No. There's no chance. I think basically all they can hope for is a focused presentation of their type of racing and a gradual return from a lot of their fans that drifted away during the twelve years.''

DeLorenzo said NASCAR's ebb after 20 seasons of explosive growth may allow the new IRL a chance to succeed, if not with fans, in corporate board rooms. That will be just as important for a series that has struggled to find sponsorship in competition with the higher-profile NASCAR series. The cost of sponsoring a high-level Sprint Cup team is over $20-million, with perhaps twice that required to properly "activate'' or promote a brand. NASCAR has recently lost high-profile sponsors such as Tide, with other stalwarts such as Interstate Batteries routinely selling their races to recoup their investment.

"Part of the reason for that is a lot of corporate America is getting tired of the money involved to get involved with a top NASCAR team,'' DeLorenzo said. "You have lowering TV numbers, empty seats and I think corporate America is starting to drift away from NASCAR. So yes, I would think the IRL will get a closer look now.''

Zak Brown, CEO of Just Marketing International, which the IRL retained as a consultant six months ago, said several companies have expressed an interest in the unified series and he anticipates announcing a crucial title sponsorship this season. Brown said he is targeting financial institutions and electronics companies in the Fortune 1000 -- mentioning Bank of America, Panasonic and Sony -- for what he expects would be a $10 million deal. IRL commercial division president Terry Angstadt said the series is "on the 10-yard line,'' in attaining a presenting sponsor.

"It's very important because the title sponsor helps build the racing series and its profile (much like Winston did for NASCAR),'' Brown said. "It's a must we get one.''

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