There have recently been some rumors circulating about the 1997 Rio 400 and the possibility that the race could be moved to another yet-to-be-built track in Brazil. This news comes to SpeedCenter via the Brazilian news agency, Agencia Estado, and was loosely translated by SpeedCenter's Brazilian connection. [Ed.]

RIO DE JANEIRO - (October 26, 1996) The city has agreed to negotiate the debt and the timetable for the repairs/improvements demanded by the promoter of the Brazilian IndyCar GP, Jorge Cintra, so as to keep the race in Rio. After two months without an answer, Cintra, owner of Intag, restarted his negotiations with the president of Riotur, Marcelo Siqueira, but as of the end of Friday there had been no agreement for the race, scheduled for May 11th.

Cintra will travel on Sunday (10/27) to Detroit and on Tuesday will meet with CART vice-president Kirk Russell. Unless he has a written commitment from Rio Mayor Cesar Maia that guarantees the repairs/improvements, he will tell Russell he intends to transfer the Brazilian GP to a new oval to be built in Itupeva, 70 km outside Sao Paulo.

CART is against the switch, as it would represent additional promotional expenses in the United States, as well as the risk of construction falling behind schedule. Russell and Craig want a guarantee that the construction in Itupeva would begin on November 1st and be completed by March 30. The president of Riotur, Marcelo Siqueira says he is optimistic about an agreement, "We are studying the demands of CART and Intag: some are fair and some we wish to discuss further."

Among the changes Riotur agrees to complete are the construction of the electronic scorecard tower and the repaving of some stretches of track. But, the construction of metal bleachers and offices for the teams is being contested, as well as the $4.8 million debt that Intag is trying to collect for improvements already made this year.

"The talks are not confrontational, there is an atmosphere of understanding", said Siqueira. Jorge Cintra, however, does not show the same calm: "The mayor has not treated me with the respect deserved by a business partner."