IndyCar driver Tony Kanaan collected a check for $2,353,355 at the IMS' annual Victory Awards Celebration. The overall purse for the 97th running of the Indianapolis 500 topped $12 million. Second-place finisher Carlos Munoz, a rookie, collected $964,205 for his first appearance in the race. Ryan Hunter-Reay earned $583,005 for finishing third. Marco Andretti collected $469,755 for fourth place, while Justin Wilson earned $337,805 for his fifth place finish. The lowest amount paid to any driver who participated in the race exceeded $200,000.
Observant viewers couldn't help but notice who was spotted sitting behind Kanaan's table at last night's awards celebration during its live airing on WTHR-TV hosted by Dave Calabro. Yes, that was State Rep. Eric Turner, who sponsored the legislation that provided a $100 million taxpayer bailout for the IMS. One observer noted that the IMS ended the practice of inviting the teams' crew members to the annual awards celebration a few years back unless they worked for the winning team. Yet they invite this guy to attend? Hey, they were passing out checks. What do you expect? The Indianapolis Star previously reported how generous the IMS became in making campaign contributions to lawmakers prior to the start of this year's legislative session.
2 comments:
Random connected thoughts:
A typical PGA golf open has a purse half that of the Indy 500, the winner getting about half of what Kanaan received. Tiger Woods best years each exceeded Arnold Palmer's lifetime winnings.
Yet the golf course earns revenue year-round, while IMS makes money a few days a year.
The contestants' equipment for golf is about one percent that of racing.
Golfers are unlikely to die from head/body trauma.
Nothing makes any sense.
I would have been concerned if the size of the purse increased significantly this year. It might lead one to conclude some of that taxpayer money was being used to pay higher purses. I'm surprised they didn't include some wagering component to the bailout bill to allow the track to earn more money from gambling. I wonder how long it will be until that occurs?
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