INDIANAPOLIS -- Indy Racing League founder Tony George will head to Japan on Saturday to address a kink in a proposed merger between the IRL and the Champ Car series, 6Sports Director Dave Furst reported.

George hopes to persuade officials at the Honda-owned Motegi track in Japan to move the date of the IRL's event there so the IRL can absorb a Champ Car race in Long Beach, Calif., which is scheduled on the same weekend.

So far, Motegi officials have refused to move their April 19 date. And Long Beach officials say they cannot change their April 20 date because of contracts with the Long Beach Convention Center, around which the street circuit is set up.

Speedtv.com reported Thursday that the rival open-wheel series were close to unification, with the Motegi/Long Beach snag being the biggest hurdle.

On Friday, Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven indicated that the merger talks were off because the plans had been reported in the media and that the leaks had "significantly hampered discussions."

However, IRL spokesman John Griffin was more optimistic about the negotiations with Kalkhoven and Champ Car co-owner Gerald Forsythe.

"This thing is moving forward, but there's still some work to be done. I don't know how long it's going to take," he told The Associated Press. "We are looking to add some teams and some races. (Retired Honda racing boss) Robert Clarke and Tony are going to head to Japan to talk to the Japanese about coming off their date."

Under the unification deal, the IRL would absorb at least three Champ Car races: Long Beach, Calif.; Edmonton, Alberta; and Surfers Paradise, Australia.

Also, the IRL would give Champ Car teams free Dallara chassis and Honda engines, along with the $1.2 million in incentives it is paying each of its own teams to race in the IndyCar Series in 2008, Griffin said.

All of the IRL entries race Dallaras with normally aspirated Honda engines, while Champ Car teams race Panoz DP-01 chassis with turbocharged Cosworth engines.