AUGUST 18, 2005

Champ Car names new president

Steve Johnson has been named the new president of Champ Car while former president Dick Eldswick will remain with the company as chief executive officer and chairman.

Johnson will officially take over on September 19 after stepping down from his current position as president and CEO of the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA).

He has over 15 years of valuable experience in sales management, marketing and cross-functional officer duties with several Fortune 500 companies as well as a major professional sports organization.

Dick Eldswick has overseen the revival of Champ Car after Kevin Kalkhoven, Gerry Forsythe and Paul Gentilozzi acquired the company in the bankruptcy court in January of 2003. Since then, race attendance have grown significantly and the series has returned to network television in the United States. Nearly 1.2 million fans attended the first nine events in the 2005 season.