TM Master Cup Series Confirms MCMA-backed New York Race

In a bizarre set of circumstances, the TM Master Cup Series sanctioning body has agreed to race in the streets of New York City after the North American GT Series and the Le Mans series pulled out of their agreements to race in support of the penultimate Champ Car race.

The kingpins for the upcoming Round of New York, Thomas Mitchell, owner of Mitchell & Sons Racing, and Mike Rossiter, owner of BlackDiamond Racing, were able to present Terry Schoffner with a multi-year deal to race on the streets of New York. However, for the first running of the Round of New York, only teams that boycotted the 2012 Round of Michigan will be invited to compete.

"The sponsors of the MCMA teams were paramount with the negotiations for this race. Without pressure from them to run our cars in 20 races, we would not have been able to put this deal together." Mitchell said in the press release.
"I understand many of the grievances that my fellow competitors will have, and I understand many of them, but I think today the MCMA has demonstrated here that we can give the TM Master Cup series an event in one of the grandest locations ever."

However, the deal Mitchell and Rossiter were able to organize with the TM Master Cup series has drawn considerable ire from other teams in the paddock.

"It's not the way I would get us into New York." Cyril Volpi, head of the Volpi Racing Team said during practice for the Round of Wisconsin. "I understand why Tom Mitchell and Mike Rossiter did it, though. After what the MCMA pulled at Michigan I don't think Terry Schoffner would have taken anyone but them seriously. I know Mitchell and BlackDiamond were the two teams that really suffered from the whole MCMA deal.

Volpi expressed his opinions on why the Round of New York will actually take place;

"Saar and Inglesby wanted this race pretty badly. Saar I think wants to go out on a high note while Inglesby I think wants to restore its image to the fans. I can't speak for the rest of the manufacturers, but 14 cars is kind of a sorry sight, isn't it?"

Carl Richter, co-owner of Gessler Richter MC Team, was quoted as saying that the Round of New York was; "better put off for next season".

Team Saar USA boss Peter Keyes, no stranger to controversy, was quick to defend the New York race; "The New York fans are robbed of two potentially great races with the GT and sports car categories pulling out. I personally thank Thomas Mitchell and Mike Rossiter, as well as the DuClare family for thinking of the New York fans while also taking into consideration the participants and their sponsors."

The NAGT race was supposed to air on Channel 44 on October 27th. The Round of New York will fill that timeslot. The TM Master Cup Series organizers indicated that they wanted at least 18 cars to run the Round of New York. Where the additional entries would come from is still up for discussion between the MCMA teams and series organizers.

Caldwell: We'll gladly take part in New York race

Now that he has secured Kraig Mummert for a one-off shot at the Round of Indianapolis, and entered Brian Morris, too, MT Motorsports owner Fred Caldwell wants to get more races for his newly-formed TM Master Cup Series effort.

With the announcement that TM officials and the MCMA have helped secure a non-championship race in New York City, the series is now looking for at least 18 cars to stage the event.

Caldwell is volunteering MT Motorsports.

"It's New York. The greatest city in the world, the biggest media market in North America," Caldwell said. "It would be huge for this fledging team to run that race and have a strong showing."

The Round of New York will be run on October 27.

Terra International Motorsports interested in participating in Round of New York.

Gerald Lamb told reporters that his team was highly interested in running in the Round of New York coming up on October 27th. He stated that his team really needs the experience if they intend to do better in 2013. Of course they would apply their primary driver with a fan based scheme for the race. Pending permission from officials.

"People believe Lycoia to be underrated at anything but short tracks. Our superspeedway stats in other series and our victory at the Spa GT will prove we don't only have strong cars, but fast ones too. It's all dependent on who has the capability to drive the car on specific courses." Lamb would then head into the team's section of the garage to do a final check and meet with the pit crew about making sure the car was adjusted correctly.

Team CTR Interested in New York Race

Team CTR officials told reporters that they are interested in fielding entries for the Round of New York. Race officials are looking for at least 18 cars to enter, and Team CTR officials are insisting they can fulfill that role.

"We have ties to the area, and we can do it," Team President Tom Bennett stated in a radio interview. "We want the New York race to be successful, and it would be a great showing if Master Cup officials want us there."

No word on who would drive for the team, although the smart money is on their lead driver Joe Olenick.

Cynon wrote:Where the additional entries would come from is still up for discussion between the MCMA teams and series organizers.

Top 4 finishing one-off/independents at Indy, perhaps?

Wernström interested in New York race

When asked yesterday about the upcoming TMMC race in New York, Wernström Motorsport boss Gerhard Pietsch expressed that he would be interested in taking part in the race.

"I'd be very excited to have Wernström participate in this race. Obviously, every manufacturer in the world wants to race in New York, so to have the opportunity to showcase our new 256 there would be excellent for us. We also need more experience of our car in race conditions - going out very early at Karjala really hurt us in that regard. Obviously, nothing is confirmed yet, but I'm hopeful that we will be one of the lucky few to get into the race."

The upcoming race in New York does clash with a round of the German Supercars, however, where Friedrich Jaeger, Wernström's sole Master Cup driver, is in the midst of a heated title battle. When asked if this would have any bearing on Wernström's ability to participate in New York, Pietsch declined to comment.

Abbey Engineering interested in New York race

When asked about the New York race that has recently been announced, Abbey Engineering boss Phil Lee told reporters that he would love to field his driver's in the race if the opportunity arises."We have a recently opened garage of ours a few blocks away and coincidentally, our Indy TMMC cars have just been painted there, we have also had sponsors ringing up constantly asking if we could try and get into this race, I imagine a lot of other teams have had this to."

One of Phil Lee's driver's, Juho Rantannen was asked his opinion on the event, he stated. "Why wouldn't we do it? I've got a perfectly usable TMMC car siiting around until Decatur in the team's garage and it would give us a chance to sample both an oval and a road course, I do agree with Cyril Volpi, 14 cars is a bit disappointing."

No announcement's yet on whether the MCMA plans to accept any other entries.

Davison interested in New York Race

After hearing the news that New York will host a TMMC race later in the season, TM Lights driver James Davison took an immediate interest in taking part in it.

"I'd be very happy to take part in the New York race, it's always a grand venue to come to in America every year and for it to be hosting a race for a very popular Racing League around the world. This may also be the step up to my talent I'm showing this year which hopefully may land me in a Independents Trophy ride or a full-time ride next year."

Rossini Sport wants to showcase Rossini 312S at New York

Italian Formula Overdrive team, Rossini Sport, have confirmed they are interested in running an entry in the Round of New York, later this month. Romano Rossini announced that 'the intention is to test the Rossini 312S, should we have an entry confirmed'.

Rossini Sport's first self manufactured vehicle, the Rossini 312S, is set to debut at the Round of Indianapolis as a prototype before a public release is made of the road legal vehicle in November. The car will be available from $120,000.

I assume it will be a street course race? I picture it being somewhere near the Rockefeller Center or maybe going past it.

Lester interested in driving at TMMC Round of New York

After last attempting a TM Master Cup Series race at the 2011 Round of Decatur as well as attempting to field his team for Pat Demps at Indianapolis, Casey Lester has expressed a major interest in running the newly-annouced Round of New York. One reason is to race in front of his home crowd and perhaps impress some people there, but he also wishes to reconstruct his career, which has been through many ups and downs over the past years, including "having conflicts" that kept him out of the 2010 Texas 500 (I know the reson why. That was for storyline purposes), crashing out of his only ARLA start at Mosport and failing to qualify for the aforementioned 2011 Round of Decatur.

"This would be a huge boost for me to race in front of fellow New Yorkers. It would be a good way for me to rebound from a bit of a shaky start to my career also. I know that my ASCC commitments might get in the way, but if I'm not in championship contention by October or when the race is run and I actually do get a ride from a team, I'll have someone to take my place or the team could hire someone, providing that it's OK to run this race with Bill Chapman, of course."

Lester is open for anybody to hire if anybody actually bothers a consideration of him to drive. He had his eye mainly on the new Corsa team that will enter the race.

Sandy comments about street track in New York

"I've wanted to see a street track in NYC for a while, it would be a great atmosphere and I want BKR to field me a car."

Power Blasts MCMA, TMMC

When he heard that only teams that boycotted the 2012 Round of Michigan will be invited to compete at the New York City street race, PSI owner William Power blasted both parties.
"Is this the TMMC series or the MCMA series?! I'd really like to know, because the line is so blurred now that I can't tell the difference. The tail is wagging the dog here now. Well, I see that the TMMC has sold the rest of us down the river on this little deal, that's for sure. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the MCMA teams boycott Michigan of their own volition? I mean, they were invited and would've been allowed to compete, they just chose not too. Now the TMMC comes out with a new event just for them?! We can't enter because we raced at Michigan like we were supposed to?! That's discrimination, plain and simple. What gives?! A few years back at Texas, we joined others in boycotting because of the tire wear issue. Where was the special made up event just for us? We didn't get one. We just had to lump it. The TMMC is trying to pacify this group and I think it's a bad precedent to set. When you make these kinds of concessions in order to appease them, where will it end? They will always want more because they feel entitled to it-- or they'll just take it. Appeasing groups like this just to keep the peace has never lead to anything good in the past and it doesn't bode well for the future of the series."

Casey Lester wrote:I assume it will be a street course race? I picture it being somewhere near the Rockefeller Center or maybe going past it.

Lester interested in driving at TMMC Round of New York

After last attempting a TM Master Cup Series race at the 2011 Round of Decatur as well as attempting to field his team for Pat Demps at Indianapolis, Casey Lester has expressed a major interest in running the newly-annouced Round of New York. One reason is to race in front of his home crowd and perhaps impress some people there, but he also wishes to reconstruct his career, which has been through many ups and downs over the past years, including "having conflicts" that kept him out of the 2010 Texas 500 (I know the reson why. That was for storyline purposes), crashing out of his only ARLA start at Mosport and failing to qualify for the aforementioned 2011 Round of Decatur.

"This would be a huge boost for me to race in front of fellow New Yorkers. It would be a good way for me to rebound from a bit of a shaky start to my career also. I know that my ASCC commitments might get in the way, but if I'm not in championship contention by October or when the race is run and I actually do get a ride from a team, I'll have someone to take my place or the team could hire someone, providing that it's OK to run this race with Bill Chapman, of course."

Lester is open for anybody to hire if anybody actually bothers a consideration of him to drive. He had his eye mainly on the new Corsa team that will enter the race.

(OOC: This is the track)

Casey Lester wrote:I assume it will be a street course race? I picture it being somewhere near the Rockefeller Center or maybe going past it.

Lester interested in driving at TMMC Round of New York

After last attempting a TM Master Cup Series race at the 2011 Round of Decatur as well as attempting to field his team for Pat Demps at Indianapolis, Casey Lester has expressed a major interest in running the newly-annouced Round of New York. One reason is to race in front of his home crowd and perhaps impress some people there, but he also wishes to reconstruct his career, which has been through many ups and downs over the past years, including "having conflicts" that kept him out of the 2010 Texas 500 (I know the reson why. That was for storyline purposes), crashing out of his only ARLA start at Mosport and failing to qualify for the aforementioned 2011 Round of Decatur.

"This would be a huge boost for me to race in front of fellow New Yorkers. It would be a good way for me to rebound from a bit of a shaky start to my career also. I know that my ASCC commitments might get in the way, but if I'm not in championship contention by October or when the race is run and I actually do get a ride from a team, I'll have someone to take my place or the team could hire someone, providing that it's OK to run this race with Bill Chapman, of course."

Lester is open for anybody to hire if anybody actually bothers a consideration of him to drive. He had his eye mainly on the new Corsa team that will enter the race.

OOC: I don't see anything about Corsa entering the race in the OP, I may have missed that :/

gwoodard41 wrote:

Casey Lester wrote:I assume it will be a street course race? I picture it being somewhere near the Rockefeller Center or maybe going past it.

Lester interested in driving at TMMC Round of New York

After last attempting a TM Master Cup Series race at the 2011 Round of Decatur as well as attempting to field his team for Pat Demps at Indianapolis, Casey Lester has expressed a major interest in running the newly-annouced Round of New York. One reason is to race in front of his home crowd and perhaps impress some people there, but he also wishes to reconstruct his career, which has been through many ups and downs over the past years, including "having conflicts" that kept him out of the 2010 Texas 500 (I know the reson why. That was for storyline purposes), crashing out of his only ARLA start at Mosport and failing to qualify for the aforementioned 2011 Round of Decatur.

"This would be a huge boost for me to race in front of fellow New Yorkers. It would be a good way for me to rebound from a bit of a shaky start to my career also. I know that my ASCC commitments might get in the way, but if I'm not in championship contention by October or when the race is run and I actually do get a ride from a team, I'll have someone to take my place or the team could hire someone, providing that it's OK to run this race with Bill Chapman, of course."

Lester is open for anybody to hire if anybody actually bothers a consideration of him to drive. He had his eye mainly on the new Corsa team that will enter the race.

OOC: I don't see anything about Corsa entering the race in the OP, I may have missed that :/

Whoops. When I said Corsa, Imeant Milano's team, but I said that knowing Milano had a ride with Corsa two years ago.

gwoodard41 wrote:Terra International Motorsports interested in participating in Round of New York.

Gerald Lamb told reporters that his team was highly interested in running in the Round of New York coming up on October 27th. He stated that his team really needs the experience if they intend to do better in 2013. Of course they would apply their primary driver with a fan based scheme for the race. Pending permission from officials.

"People believe Lycoia to be underrated at anything but short tracks. Our superspeedway stats in other series and our victory at the Spa GT will prove we don't only have strong cars, but fast ones too. It's all dependent on who has the capability to drive the car on specific courses." Lamb would then head into the team's section of the garage to do a final check and meet with the pit crew about making sure the car was adjusted correctly.

Terra International Motorsports pulls application for NY Exhibition race, citing ARLA obligations

"Well, seems that the head of ARLA decided to pull Talladega up from the grave and plant it on the same day as the TMMC Round of New York." Gerald Lamb wrote on the team's facebook page. "Looks like we'll have to miss out on all the fun."

Gerald Lamb and the primary driver, Greg Woodard, aren't big fans of the Big Apple. Lamb, who's a registered Republican, can't stand Bloomberg's constant nanny-state version of the city. He regularly complains that he liked it when Giuliani was in office. Woodard on the other hand had an experience there he would like to forget. Both expressed sarcastic disappointment via twitter over the recent schedule conflicts. "I would rather deal with Dudding than go back to NYC," Woodard sarcastically told reporters.

Andrews Blasts Terra International Motorsports

After Terra International Motorsports announced it would not commit to the Round of New York, the team cited both ARLA and New York City politics as its reasons for not participating. Driver Greg Woodard was quoted as saying; "I would rather deal with [Derek] Dudding than go back to [New York City]".

Woodard and Terra International Motorsports are both expected to be fined, since Terra International Motorsports was the only one-off team scheduled to appear.

TM Master Cup Series pundit Lance Andrews, however, found Woodard's comments insulting and voiced his anger on the Dan Mullen Radio Hour as well as on Twitter.

"Terra International Motorsports is a bunch of cowards, they've got a big enough team to go run in New York, but they found one reason not to go run it with Greg [Woodard] and opted to pull out. It's a slap in the face to the people trying to do some good for the sport." Andrews said.
"All they're doing is complaining about politics and not being racers. Those aren't the kind of people we need in the sport. They're not being Dale Roswell, who's spending his own money to promote worthy causes that everyone but America is aware of, TIM is just being a bunch of children. The ARLA race on the same day is the weakest excuse I've ever heard from a team that can run a car in Japan with Dempsey and a car in western Illinois with a totally different driver and crew."

Andrews ended his statement with a note about Roswell.

"Roswell goes cycling almost 30 miles a day, doesn't wear a helmet while he's doing it, told me he never would no matter what the penalty was, and he's still going racing... because he's a racer's racer."

Leckliter to go in Terra International Motorsports place if possible
After Terra International Motorsports pulled out of the New York Exhibition because of politics and ARLA Commitments, Daniel Leckliter is looking to take their place on the grid.

"I know I may of raced Michigan, but with TIM getting blasted for their reason why they pulled out, I'll go in their place, with my team, and the same manufacturer they would of raced there."

Cynon wrote:Andrews Blasts Terra International Motorsports

After Terra International Motorsports announced it would not commit to the Round of New York, the team cited both ARLA and New York City politics as its reasons for not participating. Driver Greg Woodard was quoted as saying; "I would rather deal with [Derek] Dudding than go back to [New York City]".

Woodard and Terra International Motorsports are both expected to be fined, since Terra International Motorsports was the only one-off team scheduled to appear.

TM Master Cup Series pundit Lance Andrews, however, found Woodard's comments insulting and voiced his anger on the Dan Mullen Radio Hour as well as on Twitter.

"Terra International Motorsports is a bunch of cowards, they've got a big enough team to go run in New York, but they found one reason not to go run it with Greg [Woodard] and opted to pull out. It's a slap in the face to the people trying to do some good for the sport." Andrews said.
"All they're doing is complaining about politics and not being racers. Those aren't the kind of people we need in the sport. They're not being Dale Roswell, who's spending his own money to promote worthy causes that everyone but America is aware of, TIM is just being a bunch of children. The ARLA race on the same day is the weakest excuse I've ever heard from a team that can run a car in Japan with Dempsey and a car in western Illinois with a totally different driver and crew."

Andrews ended his statement with a note about Roswell.

"Roswell goes cycling almost 30 miles a day, doesn't wear a helmet while he's doing it, told me he never would no matter what the penalty was, and he's still going racing... because he's a racer's racer."

Terra International states it went out of line, will appeal fine.

"We state reasons of politics and ARLA obligations to pull our application, and we get fined?" Gerald Lamb was rather perturbed about the TMMC official's response, "Woodard made a joke about it. Sure, it was borderline, but this is ridiculous."

Woodard on the other hand, as usual, was apologetic. "Look, I didn't expect the joke to be taken out of context like that. The people of New York City are good people, it was just I've had trouble dealing with traffic." Woodard responded to people's enraged posts on the team's facebook page. "The team's looking to appeal the fine. If we had known we were confirmed for the race, we wouldn't have done this. I can't blame my boss's politics for the team pulling out. But we did give a pretty horrible response to the pull out." Woodard continued, "The team is also willing to donate any proceeds to charity of the TMMC official's choice."

"We can't blame anyone but ourselves for the controversy." Gerald Lamb posted, "It's mainly my fault for pulling the team out. Greg didn't have any real say in the matter and I was looking for an excuse to get out of it anyway. So lay off of him for it."

The team apologized for what it did. It would appeal the fine if it could. As would Woodard.

Quoted Material:

Fireworks fly at TIM, fractures among personnel lead Woodard, his crew, spotter and Lycoia Motors to re-apply for the Exhibition race without the team owner.

A firestorm of angry tweets flew among members of Terra International Motorsports, the owner, and Lycoia Motors. The primary driver, Greg Woodard finally told the twitter community how he felt about the decision, his support crew (pitcrew/mechanics/others) and his spotter concurred with his feelings of being jipped of a perfectly good opportunity. Lycoia Motors, which supplies the chassis to TIM and other teams, proposed that it would sign the team if the officials allowed them back in.

Reporters questioned the decision of the near break-up by the various groups as either weakening or outright stress between a failing ARLA campaign and a possible dissolution of the team itself. While many in the TIM camp assured the media and others that the team wasn't breaking up. It was questionable of the stability of the team. After a firestorm of criticism for the 'team's' decision and Woodard's comments, (which were created by the team owner as a way to ease the tension... which backfired and damaged Woodard's reputation). The team finally let out their feelings to their boss, who in retaliation threatened to fire them. Lycoia Motors and the team agreed that they would be willing to merge for the remainder of the season if that came to pass. However, Lamb conceded to the team's demands to go to NYC, but he told them to not expect any favors in the future. Jack Dempsey, who is known as WildChildRacer on twitter went so far as calling the owner Lambchop over his ignorance of the fact that he [Dempsey] was available the whole time and would have gladly raced in Talladega.

If the officials allowed the team to run again, they would submit to a list of concessions of the officials choosing. Woodard was extremely regretful of even going along with the comments he made earlier. He told reporters he seeks to fix what was messed up.

"We are not Fortner, we will never be like that organization." Lycoia Motors PR Representative Sally Roderick, who is of no relation to Leonid Roderick, told reporters shortly after the tweets were made public. "The comparison to Fortner is really getting old. We don't quit races. We actually didn't 'request' that Mr. Lamb have Woodard race in New York, we actually told him to make sure Woodard made it. I guess he isn't the man we knew back in the 90's..."

Woodard called in personally to Dan Mullen's Radio Hour and went in full detail about the team owner pulling the plug without notifying anyone of the decision after the Talladega race had been rescheduled for the same day. He described that he and the rest of the team were shocked about hearing the news of the pull out and Woodard was told that commenting about it would help ease the tension. As described above, it didn't work out. He described this as a reverse scenario of what happened at PSI, with the driver or crew members not attempting to establish communication... this time it was the owner. Woodard stated while he respected the team owner, this put a dent in his trust. "We do as he asks most of the time. We work together to do well and what do we get? The guy who owns the team decides to forgo asking our opinion on the matter and pulls the plug on the race. I went along because the owner just said that he would have my back and then after all the criticism, we as a team learn that he pulled it without our knowledge and that we as a team would be fined! This is NOT the man I signed that contract with. Lycoia Motors has sided with us during this ordeal and those who treat us right will receive the same treatment. He jipped us and expects us to play along until our dying breath? I don't think so." Woodard continued, "Sarah [Xavier] was excited to go to New York City. Guess what now? She's giving me the freaking cold shoulder... Why do things have to fall to shambles now? My ARLA career is on a downturn and I crashed out last time I was at Talladega. So why would he think things would be different this time around?" he ended it with this. "His behavior has gotten erratic lately and I think he needs to cool it and take a break for a while. It seems that James Lanson, the grandson of the guy who formed the team in the first place in the 50's is willing to take over operations if the boss decides to retire. All I know is that we as a team don't wish anyone ill, not even those we disagree with. I know we most likely won't get our spot back and we're dealing with some issues that any other team could or has gone through." He sighed, "Look, I want you and Lance to know that there was nothing political on my end or on the team's end except for the boss. We were excited to go, even with specific issues... such as traffic, safety, and the like. The whole thing with ARLA rescheduling things confused the hell out of us and I think that made the boss go a little crazy. He's pissed off but he's not yelling at us right now. Things will eventually return to normal and we as a team and Lycoia hope that this is a learning experience that we as a young team in the series can learn and use in the future."

"I'm sure that there are hardcore fans out there who believe that I was demonized right out of the blue, however, to those who are thinking that way. I messed up and I will take the flak for what I've said. Lance is right, I'm better than what I protrayed myself to be and I never meant to offend anyone on purpose. I would just like to ask that this be put behind us and we can all look towards the future."

Woodard would thank Dan for his time and head off to do some prep work for an upcoming event.

Woodard and TIM have repealed their appeal and went ahead and paid the fines ordered by TMMC officials. They hope that this can start the healing process. Gerald Lamb was unavailable for comment.

OOC: The team's breakup isn't going to happen, I plan for a management change in the near future. Lycoia Motors is unaffected by this for the most part and won't be put to the level of instability that Fortner went through. Why? Because even if my entry isn't accepted, I'll accept it and move on to what's really important. I won't ragequit like you know who and make myself an immature you know what.

Personally, I'm finding this storyline very interesting.

PackerMan71 wrote:Personally, I'm finding this storyline very interesting.

Hey, I try . Got to do something that makes my team look like it's actually like a real life team. Most of the time, I RP things of mine without flaws or weaknesses. But I'm just going for something for entertainment value at the most. As I stated in the OOC I'm not breaking them up entirely. I'm preparing to have Terra International Motorsports switch team owners but retain most personnel. With Woodard most likely leaving at the end of 2012, I've hopefully got Mr. Mech to use Nick Dawson to fill that role, if not, I'll use another of my drivers. Gerald Lamb, will most likely will stay on the team but step down to a more backseat role. He may become a reserve driver or just flat out not do anything. James Lanson, the grandson of the original team owner is due to make his appearance closer to the end of the year. This event just set things in motion. Unlike Fortner, it's a team based issue and not a manufacturer based issue. Plus, I'm not prone to rage quitting.

I'm also trying to get back into the race if it isn't obvious, I feel stupid for pulling out like that. But for all it's worth, it's fun doing this because it gets me thinking. Sure, it's barely coherent but it's still a good thing to do... My team was in desperate need for character development. This just shows that even the most close-knit teams can have their struggles.

PackerMan71 wrote:Personally, I'm finding this storyline very interesting.

This.

Power Denounces TMMC's "Strong-arm Tactics"

Power Steering Incorporated owner William Power today stated that he was bitterly opposed to what he called the "strong-arm tactics" being used against Greg Woodard. "Whether he was initially joking or not, this is still America and Woodard has the right to express his opinion. To not allow him to do so is a violation of his rights. This is blatant coercion through and through. As Voltaire once said, 'I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it.' He also said, 'Anyone who has the power to make you believe absurdities has the power to make you commit injustices" and right now there's a lot of injustice being doled out in this situation."

Terra International Motorsports and Greg Woodard grateful for William Power's defense.

Greg Woodard's comments, lambasted by the community at large had some defenders. One of those defenders was outspoken PSI team owner William Power. While Woodard wouldn't comment directly about it, the team's PR representative stated that they were grateful about the defense of Woodard and the team. The team sent packages to PSI as a measure of good will. James Lanson, the interim team owner, had this to say: "As with any controversy, we, like many other sensible people, would like to put this behind us and look towards the future. Mr. Power is a decent man in his own right and is correct that we as Americans are entitled to our opinions. However, while we as individuals are entitled to our opinions, that goes both ways. Tolerance is not that I will have my say and hate you for your say, but dealing with both sides accordingly and like adults."

If anything is learned, think before you commit to an action or speak your mind.

PSI, like TIM, has not gone without controversy. PSI earlier in the season faced both drivers being suspended after incidents plagued them in the European Tour. It seems that several major teams have faced some sort of issue or controversy in 2012. After all, with conspiracy theorists believing the end of the world may come this year, maybe the firestorms in the TMMC could be a sign of things to come.

Terra International Motorsports and Lycoia Motors to attempt charity raffle before the race.

It seems as a token of good will, TIM and Lycoia have both thought of a plan to help heal the damage caused by pullout and subsequent comments made against the NYC race. Woodard would be the one making the announcement.

"We believe this is an opportunity that we here can show appreciation for the people of New York City for allowing the TM Master Cup to race there. While we were not as gracious as we should have been, this is an extension of our apology to the city and to the TM Master Cup fanbase."

"The team, Lycoia, and I have come to a consensus that a charity raffle to the charity of the fans' choice is the best option." Woodard told reporters, "We agreed that the winner of the raffle will be able to attempt 3 laps around the New York street course in an Interceptor... that's if the officials even allow that. If we can't get permission from the officials to do this, we will go to another location of the winner's choice, with a few exceptions."

A reporter asked a question about who would be allowed to enter. "Drivers and non-drivers alike can enter. If there is any problem due to handicaps, we will make accommodations to ensure the winner has a the experience they applied for."

"The tickets can be purchased up to 3 days before the race at the Lycoia Motors booth. It is 2.50 a ticket and 5 for 10 dollars... we all wish the best of luck to everyone."