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Tuesday, December 9
Updated: December 16, 2:04 PM ET

Comments on CART drivers
ESPN.com

We spotlighted CART drivers A.J. Allmendinger and Sebastien Bourdais. Here are your thoughts on their '03 campaigns and prospects for next season:


	Bourdais

I have been a CART fan for several years. After seeing Bourdais' performance in 2003, I see similarities to Jacques Villenueve's and Juan Pablo Montoya's rookie years. All three guys made an immediate impact in the CART series, Montoya winning the crown in his rookie year and Villeneuve capturing it as a sophomore. Like the other two, Bourdais is gifted with speed, winning three races and capturing five poles. After getting accustomed to the tracks and his team this year, Bourdais has to be considered as a favorite for the '04 season. I see him dominating in 2004 and eventually moving to Formula One. He can be the next biggest racing star in the world.

David Lee
Houston

I think Bourdais will be the contender to beat for the CART championship next year. That is, if there is a CART championship to actually be won. If not, maybe the kid could get a test for Formula One. Hate to see the guy have to putz around in the IRL -- although he did look pretty awesome in the oval race in Germany this year.

Chris Daniels
Chicago

I met Seb at the the Palm Springs airport right after the banquet. Just a delightful young man. If PT does not repeat I hope Seb prevails. He could be a great international champion for CART.

Gary Worobec
Anza, Calif.

Sebastien will be quite the competitor next year in the OWRS. It is great to see this top level talent from Europe competing in our top level open wheeled racing series. Hopefully we will see him in F1 soon.

Nate Decker
Fort Wayne, Ind.

Sebastien Bourdais is by far the most talented driver in CART. This time he is going to give PT a run for his money and his loud mouth.

Ndifor Ndumu
Bowie, Md.


	Allmendinger

A.J. is one of the rare overly talented drivers similar to Senna and Prost. I am lucky to have seen these two drivers when they were in lower class formula cars and having spent time to coach this year in Formula Atlantic, I can assure anyone that A.J is as good as these two world champions. A.J. is capable of adapting his driving for an off-handling car and can go very fast with handicaps. He is also able to put the pressure on himself with no visible effort.

He will win races and championships at the top level of motorsport but he cannot do it alone. His team will have to become as competitive as he is, which will be tough to achieve. Senna won a race for Lotus in Formula 1 when Lotus was not in a position to hope for such a result. I'll give one win to A.J. in 2004 to keep the comparison with Ayrton.

Alain Clarinval
Indianapolis

Watch out for this guy! A.J. has shown he is a special talent in the feeder systems and if he gets the right equipment I can't see him not fighting for a podium position.

Eric
Janesville, Wisc.

As much as I have loved CART through the years, Allmendinger should be pulling out every stop in the book to get an F1 test ASAP. This kid is super special. I think he could easily be the equal of Kimi Raikonnen. Both Kimi and now Christian Klien moved directly from F3 to F1 which is about the same as Atlantics to F1. A smart corporate sponsor should pay to bring Allmendinger in to F1. The U.S. needs a World Champion and Allmendinger is the best hope!

Paul Sparta
McLean, Va.

Give him the right car, and I think he will open a lot of eyes in open wheel racing.

Lino Iannacchino
Maple, Ontario

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