Chismillionaire Ecstatic- Open Wheel racing about to be reunited

Conflicting race dates are the final snag in an effort to unite America's two open-wheel racing organizations, the Indy Racing League and Champ Car World Series.

The deal is all but done according to reports that have been swirling this weekend, but IRL President Tony George and CCWS Co-Owner Kevin Kalkhoven stopped short of calling it final.

If conflicts can be resolved, Champ Car races at Long Beach, California; Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; and Surfer's Paradise, Australia, would be added to the IRL schedule, which is headlined by the Indianapolis 500.

George formed the IRL in 1995 and launched it in 1996 because of disagreements with the management of Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), which was formed in 1978 and had been the sanctioning body for major-league open-wheel racing in the U.S. since 1979.

CART teams at first boycotted the historic Indy 500, but gradually trickled back to Indy and, with only a few exceptions, to the IRL. CART went bankrupt in 2003, and Champ Car was formed by Kalkhoven and former CART team owners Gerald Forsythe and Paul Gentilozzi.

After a few years of acrimony, efforts began to bring about reconciliation, but the two series remained stubbornly committed to their disparate goals. At the end of last season, both series suffered losses of premier drivers. Four-time reigning champion Sebastien Bourdais left for Formula One and the drivers who won the last two Indy 500s and IRL championships, Sam Hornish Jr. and Dario Franchitti, moved to NASCAR.

What it means to you: Except for die-hards loyal to one side or the other, open-wheel race fans have dreamed about an end to this self-destructive rivalry ever since it began. Here's hoping this will truly bring an end to the split. — David Green, Correspondent