Sport, irrespective of the discipline is no different, there are standard performances and performers that all others must measure up to. Michael Phelps, with his exploits in Beijing, has set his own literal 'gold standard' that will arguably never be surpassed. To break his record of eight golds, I would suggest that new pool based events would have to be created. Maybe this is a good time to revisit Jerry Seinfeld's idea of adapting the Biathlon concept (skiing and shooting) to create a '50 metre swim & strangling a guy' event?
Marshall Pruett of www.SpeedTV.com appeared on 'Midweek Motorsport' this week to deliver his usual calm and controlled perspective, that of an experienced competitor, engineer and journalist. When Marshall speaks we usually listen, except when we are shouting over one another or trying to be the first to say 'hello' to Allan McNish. When we started to talk about our standout performers from the opening weekend of qualifying, two Brazilian names kept popping up. Well in fact, three Brazilian names did but more of that in a moment.
Mario Moraes (left) taking some well deserved time off to shoot peasants, yesterday [pic: www.daylife.com]Mario Moraes & Rafael Matos have little in common other than their country of birth. Moraes, a Sao Paulo native, is a member of the de Moraes family whose Votorantim Group is a global multi-billion dollar industrial concern active in steel, pulp and paper, chemicals and orange juice (I wouldn't recommend drinking that all in one glass). Matos, on the other hand, arrived in the USA from Belo Horizonte with $400 in his pocket and no contacts family or otherwise. Or as Pruett put it, 'Rafa is trying to put food on the table while Mario is driving to buy a bigger table'.
'The kid is amazing! When I look at him, of all the young Brazilians, he is the only one with that 'Sennaesque' intensity. If you look at the crash he had at St. Petersburg with Danica, that was Senna to a tee, his fault 100% but he got out of the car with daggers in his eyes and would not hear that it was his fault.'As effusive as I was in my praise of Matos and the Luczo Dragon team, I had no intention of using the IPS (International Prototype Senna) standard. By the way, similar to the way that the metric system replaced Imperial measures, the IPS replaced the Clark System of the previous generation. I was initially shocked that Pruett would use such terminology but as he explained his reasoning, it made perfect sense. While he is not comparing the 27 year old to the great F1 Champion in terms of ability at this point, he is suggesting that he has the potential to be 'the next great Brazilian we are going to see manifest stateside.'
- Marshall Pruett, www.speedtv.com
Seven years the junior of Matos, Moraes has a potentially long and successful career in front of him, safe in the knowledge that he has enough backing to allow him to focus entirely on improving. That process is eased considerably once the ongoing search for backers does not have to be factored into the daily routine of the driver, one only has to look Stanton Barrett's recent tweets to perfectly demonstrate the opposite end of the spectrum. While 'ride buyer' is a phrase that is most often used in a derisory fashion, it should not be exclusively coined in the negative. Moraes has the opportunity to prove in the next ten days or so that the combination of burgeoning talent and pots of money can be an irresistible one.
While everyone hopes that the IndyCar Series can grow again with solid roots being provided by the young emerging American talent, it is important to remember that the credibility of the Championship can only be enhanced by the retention of all of its bona fide stars. These two young Brazilians have the potential to become part of the US open wheel firmament for many years to come.
Marshall Pruett & I will be blogging live today during Friday practice at Indianapolis on www.speedtv.com
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