KV Racing Technology driver Paul Tracy gets ready to drive his car during the first day of the Indy Car Series practice at the Edmonton Indy in Edmonton, Alberta July 23, 2010.TODD KOROL
After 20 years of IndyCar racing, Paul Tracy still can't walk away from the track.
When he's home, nothing excites him. When he watches races on television, it gnaws at him. Despite a long and successful career, Tracy isn't ready to live a life within the speed limit.
"I'm not happy being at home and relaxing, that's the problem," Tracy said on a conference call Wednesday. "I haven't been able to find anything in my life that gives me the satisfaction and fills my needs of what it is that is my being.
"Trust me, I've got plenty of toys. I've got motorcycles and boats and sand rails. You name any go-fast thing, I've got it and nothing fills my needs like driving a race car."
The 42-year-old Toronto native will once again get behind the wheel this weekend at the IZOD IndyCar series' stop in Long Beach, Calif., where he has previously won four times, including the first of his pro career. It's the perfect place for Tracy to make his return after signing a five-race deal with the restructured Dragon Racing.
Tracy had been racing without a full-time ride for the past two seasons. He made five starts last year and is scheduled for six this season, including stops in Toronto and Edmonton. The former Champ Car champion already had a deal signed with Dreyer & Reinbold for the Indianapolis 500 in May.
Tracy's availability was a blessing for the Jay Penske-owned team after off-season efforts to land a sponsorship deal for Tony Kanaan failed. Kanaan eventually signed a full-season deal with KV Racing Technology, leaving Penske to seek out Tracy.
"(Tracy) is one of the most tenacious guys who can get the most out of every car he drives," said Penske. "We have reasonable expectations (in Long Beach). This is a place we want to build from."
Despite a quick turnaround from contract to race track, Dragon Racing offers Tracy the novelty of having an experienced team he is already familiar with. Tracy said he's worked with everyone at one point or another in the past, and has even known some members of the team for 20 years.
And then there's the car, which Tracy calls the best he's had in the last three years.
"This is a great opportunity," he said. "Of the last three years, to be with Dragon, it's the best team and the best level of equipment I've had to date. So I'm real fired up."
He'll also have some Canadian company on the track. For several years Tracy and Alex Tagliani of Lachenaie, Que., have been Canada's lone IndyCar representatives, but they'll be joined by Toronto rookie James Hinchcliffe.
Hinchcliffe, who signed a 17-race deal with Newman/Haas Racing, made his debut last weekend in Alabama where he was knocked out in a collision with E.J. Viso and finished 24th.
Tracy said he's known Hinchcliffe and his family for a long time, and that he had provided the young driver advice in the past.
"Now you're competing against guys that aren't going to give you an inch," Tracy said of Hinchcliffe, who graduated from the IndyLights developmental series. "He's definitely got a learning curve but I think he's a great young driver. ...
"It's great to see another Canadian driver make it in, but I'm not ready (to step aside.) It's a competition as well. I'm out there to beat him as much as the next guy. I'm not ready to hand over the reigns yet."
If Tracy gets his way, and a good performance through five races could do it, he won't be retiring to the couch any time soon.
"It's always great when I come back to these races and run, whether it's in Toronto or Edmonton, to get out there and compete with the top guys," he said. "I've had some dices in the last couple years with the top dogs in Toronto, with Dario (Franchitti) and Helio (Castroneves) and (Ryan) Briscoe.
"You know, I'm anticipating having a lot of fun when I get in the car. I still love driving the car as much as I did the first day I ever got into a car."