Another Brit in the Indy 500

Another Brit in the Indy 500

Author
Discussion

Squawk1066

Original Poster:

2,939 posts

170 months

Tuesday 4th November 2014
quotequote all
Jay Howard has signed for the 2015 Indy 500 with BHA and primary sponsor Green 1.

Matt Harper

6,613 posts

200 months

Tuesday 18th November 2014
quotequote all
Not sure what the point of this is. Another kid with a rich dad has bought a drive at the 500? Is that the main story here? I ask because it is a pretty normal (annual) occurrence. Is this person more noteworthy than the multitude of limeys that have gone before him - one or two doing rather well, the majority being singularly forgettable?

coppice

8,562 posts

143 months

Tuesday 18th November 2014
quotequote all
Well it wouldn't be somebody with an impoverished dad would it ? Mike Hailwood, John Surtees, Jenson Button, Kevin Magnussen and Max Verstappen all benefitted from parental help of one sort or another and are no worse for that . Plenty of people who paid for no hoper kids too- in any sport . But let's judge the lad on what he does at Indy shall we , not on who signs the cheque ?

hornet

6,333 posts

249 months

Tuesday 18th November 2014
quotequote all
Matt Harper said:
Not sure what the point of this is. Another kid with a rich dad has bought a drive at the 500? Is that the main story here? I ask because it is a pretty normal (annual) occurrence. Is this person more noteworthy than the multitude of limeys that have gone before him - one or two doing rather well, the majority being singularly forgettable?
He's won the feeder series in the past, so he's not a complete idiot. From reading Wikipedia, he also seems to have lost out to pay drivers in the past, so I don't think it's entirely fair to paint him as just another ride buyer.

Wikipedia said:
Roth Racing announced on November 26, 2007 that they had signed Jay Howard to drive their second car for the 2008 IndyCar Series season.[1]

Howard was hired on merit/talent and did not bring sponsorship to the team. The team was presented with a sponsorship opportunity with another driver and Howard was replaced in the #24 Roth Racing entry by John Andretti for the 2008 Indianapolis 500

Matt Harper

6,613 posts

200 months

Tuesday 18th November 2014
quotequote all
coppice said:
But let's judge the lad on what he does at Indy shall we , not on who signs the cheque ?
But let's judge the lad on what he did in his previous Indy 500's shall we?

2 x DNQ and a 30th place in a 33 car grid. Impressive.

coppice

8,562 posts

143 months

Tuesday 18th November 2014
quotequote all
Sounds like you'd be disappointed if he did better next time? Seriously - would you rather he wasn't there at all? Would his absence make somebody of whom you approve do better? If his Dad were not paying and he'd scrimped and saved himself with the same results would that be better? Or is it just the fact that some people have rich parents and you don't perhaps ? (I don't by the way which is one of many reasons I have yet to make my debut at the Brickyard)

Matt Harper

6,613 posts

200 months

Tuesday 18th November 2014
quotequote all
coppice said:
Sounds like you'd be disappointed if he did better next time? Seriously - would you rather he wasn't there at all? Would his absence make somebody of whom you approve do better? If his Dad were not paying and he'd scrimped and saved himself with the same results would that be better? Or is it just the fact that some people have rich parents and you don't perhaps ? (I don't by the way which is one of many reasons I have yet to make my debut at the Brickyard)
No - none of the above. I wish him well in his endeavors - I just feel that the announcement of yet another spikey-haired no-hoper on the provisional entry list isn't at all unusual or remarkable. But thanks for the psycho-analysis, all the same.

SpeedMattersNot

4,506 posts

195 months

Wednesday 19th November 2014
quotequote all
Well, I'd like to thank the OP, actually. I remember watching Jay in national karting when I was a small kid and it's good to hear what the old British karting lot are up to!

Best of luck to him!

Squawk1066

Original Poster:

2,939 posts

170 months

Wednesday 19th November 2014
quotequote all
Jay is far from being the kid of a rich family and a spikey haired no hoper as the kind chap above put him.

If you look at his career he won in most single seaters he sat in, with titles in each series in that year Jay has NEVER paid for a drive.

Oh, lets highlight him winning in his debut, at Donington in the wet in Formula Renault against some of the top drivers in Europe at the time, and his 9 wins in USF2000 destroying highly praised rival Joey Foster in the process.

cwin

953 posts

218 months

Wednesday 19th November 2014
quotequote all
Unfortunately this seems the attitude by British about other British sportsmen, they don't seem to get behind them and wish them well like other nationalities do for some reason ?

Is it jealousy ?

Squawk1066

Original Poster:

2,939 posts

170 months

Wednesday 19th November 2014
quotequote all
Matt Harper said:
Not sure what the point of this is. Another kid with a rich dad has bought a drive at the 500? Is that the main story here? I ask because it is a pretty normal (annual) occurrence. Is this person more noteworthy than the multitude of limeys that have gone before him - one or two doing rather well, the majority being singularly forgettable?
SPONSOR NOT PARENT.

Matt Harper

6,613 posts

200 months

Wednesday 19th November 2014
quotequote all
The reality is that I'm asking a question - not making a statement. Hence the question marks.
Another reality is that pretty much each and every year there is another brood of British racers (the vast majority of whom are journeymen mid-gridders, pay-to-drive "instructors"). Fantastic exceptions notwithstanding (Franchitti, Wheldon etc), most just make up the numbers and as often as not fail to even qualify.
My question remains - is this guy any different?