If IndyCar and The Thermal Club choose to hold another $1 Million Challenge non-points all-star race, what kind of changes might the series consider to make the format more entertaining from start to finish? Andretti Global’s Colton Herta, Arrow …
If IndyCar and The Thermal Club choose to hold another $1 Million Challenge non-points all-star race, what kind of changes might the series consider to make the format more entertaining from start to finish? Andretti Global’s Colton Herta, Arrow McLaren team principal Gavin Ward and Meyer Shank Racing podium finisher Felix Rosenqvist shared the following with RACER after the inaugural event’s conclusion.
“Qualifying,” Herta said. “Standing start from pit out, single-car qualifying. Just see who can get around to the start/finish line the fastest. This is not my idea. [Team Penske president] Tim Cindric said this. And I agree; that sounds awesome. That’s fun.”
Herta has an idea which has roots in rallycross.
“Turn 1 to Turn 6, there’s a road that connects it. Joker lap,” he said with a big smile. “If we’re gonna do gimmicks, you might as well go all the way through the whole thing. So if you add more of these things, it might make the racing a lot better. Add more gimmicks and make it an awesome all-star attack race. The last thing would be push-to-pass with no response [from the following driver].”
Like Herta, Ward started with qualifying where IndyCar made a limited duration of push-to-pass available for the first time.
“I think for starters, with the qualifying format, if you’re gonna allow overtake to be used, having more than enough overtake so you can do more than one lap with overtake would have been nice,” he said.
Ward’s next topic was the race itself and the split 10-lap segments where drivers were limited to using the same set of tires — on a track where they dealt with extremely high tire degradation — that inspired the bottom half of the 12-car field to cruise at the back and save their tires during the opening stanza.
“I was definitely pretty happy with the performance of our cars, but it’s still pretty hard to make much progress in the race format,” he said. “Not being able to change to new tires at halftime really lent itself to a lot of people trying to save tires because you effectively knew you were gonna get paid back a bunch in the last 10 laps. We need to put some thought into how we can avoid that, because for the 10 laps to start the race, it was not terribly exciting.”
Only race winner Alex Palou was able to maintain a quick pace and prevent his tires from being rooted before the 20 laps were complete. Ward knows why.
“The track layout, to be honest, makes it so you’re going to destroy your tires by following people through high-speed corners due to the understeer it creates, so leading is probably the best tire-saving strategy,” he explained. “But if you’re at the back, there’s almost no penalty to driving slowly in the corners to save the tires for the last stint.”
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1408]
With the steep drop off in prize money after the $50,000 for fifth place, where sixth place through last earn the same $23,000 apiece, Ward provided the answer on why his lead driver on the day — Alexander Rossi, who placed seventh — didn’t go wild trying to improve one or two positions before the checkered flag.
“The thing is, you only incentivize racing in the top six because everyone else gets the same prize,” he said. “So down in seventh, poor Rossi was like, ‘Oh, we could be under pressure here from Newgarden (who ended up eighth),’ but we’re like, ‘Well, doesn’t matter.’”
Rosenqvist likes the idea of making the bisected 20-lap finale an all-skate.
“We all had an open mind going into it, but I thought, overall, it was successful,” he said after bringing $250,000 to MSR. “The biggest thing for me is all cars should race in the main race, There’s no real reason why we wouldn’t have all the cars out there. Maybe the heat race guys who transfer are the only ones who can go for the money, but I think it sucks for the guys who don’t make it (into the final 12). I think part of IndyCar is that you can go from the back to the front.
“Maybe everyone should be out there racing — I think maybe part of why people thought it was a bit stale. If you have more cars it’s more excitement, more variables and strategy. The push-to-pass stuff was pretty interesting — something to learn from for our real events as well. Maybe the Fast Six should have push-to-pass. I thought it was fun trying that kind of stuff; it was a fresh experience.”
One question raised by quite a few folks was why a live pit stop for refueling wasn’t used instead of the 10-minute halftime where they were topped up to be able to complete the last 10 laps. Asked if a pit stop and a new set of tires is something he’d be in favor of, Rosenqvist likes half of the concept.
“Even if the first part of the race was a bit boring,” he said. “I actually like that Colton, for example, had a massive charge in the second part of the race because he was like, ‘I’m just gonna scrap my first part of race and save tires.’ It’s easy to be ‘Captain Hindsight’ but I think actually it was pretty interesting that way with only the one set of tires. I do think pit stops are always a huge contributor to excitement.”
The Swede hopes to share his thoughts with the series on how a future all-star race, if it were held, might be improved.
“We’ll talk to IndyCar about it,” he said. “I think it’s really cool that they had the balls to do something like this.”
To properly grasp what’s in store for Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden as he explores free agency, we need to understand the seismic shift that’s recently occurred in the IndyCar driver marketplace, how it will influence Newgarden’s value, and whether …
To properly grasp what’s in store for Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden as he explores free agency, we need to understand the seismic shift that’s recently occurred in the IndyCar driver marketplace, how it will influence Newgarden’s value, and whether he will be on the move to a new team in 2025.
The story starts with Colton Herta, who’s said to have signed a five-year deal with Andretti Global that pays a market-leading $7 million per season.
Other than to tell RACER, “That sounds like a great number,” Herta hasn’t been interested in discussing his personal finances since that sum started making the rounds last year in the IndyCar paddock, nor has his team owner felt compelled to reveal the amount he pays his drivers. But it’s a vitally important number to know.
It’s changed the financial dynamic in the IndyCar paddock in ways that we haven’t seen since the 1990s, and with a few more high-profile drivers like Newgarden up for bid entering 2025, Andretti’s big spending has radically altered the way elite IndyCar drivers are approaching the negotiating table.
And to be honest, it doesn’t really matter if that starry number of $7 million is real. What is important to know is that Herta’s alleged annual income has become accepted as fact by many of his rivals, and that $7 million revelation has weaponized all significant contract discussions since that number came to light.
Regardless of what Colton Herta is actually making at Andretti Global, the perception of his current deal is already driving the conversation. Josh Tons/Lumen
His teammate Kyle Kirkwood received an extension last year that’s rumored to be worth $3.5 million and hew hire Marcus Ericsson is said to have negotiated something similar — in the $3 million range — to make Andretti Global the team with the highest average annual salaries in the series.
Herta’s huge-for-IndyCar deal is the new and leading dollar amount to seek, and that’s been a positive development for drivers. As recently as 2022, one IndyCar champion was being paid just $850,000, and for many of the best in the top half of the field, anywhere from $1.25-2.5 million was the well-established framework most teams were willing to work within for salaries.
In speaking with a few driver managers who look after some of IndyCar’s biggest earners, the massive infusion of money received by Andretti — an estimated quarter-billion dollars from his business partner Dan Towriss and the companies he leads — is what has allowed the team to double or triple what a Herta, Kirkwood, or Ericsson would have been paid prior to the nine-figure investment.
The knock-on effect has seen a single team move the driver salary bar to new heights and caused most of the drivers who aren’t in the upper tier of remuneration to use Andretti’s numbers as a bargaining tool.
“There’s definitely been an uptick triggered by the Andretti salary levels,” one veteran manager, who asked to not be named, told RACER. “They seem to be the ones who moved the goalposts. But it’s been atrocious with how poorly IndyCar drivers have been paid. In general, we haven’t seen salaries like this since the mid-to-late ’90s when Michael and those top guys were on close to $10 million. And those numbers have not been anywhere near that for a long time.
“Still, there’s maybe three or four guys on the big numbers and the rest aren’t, but they’re now trying to get there after seeing what Michael and Dan are paying people.”
Of all the key things to know about the $7 million rate for Herta, it’s how the sum has always been spoken of as an elevated retainer Andretti and Towriss paid for him to be the future leader of their Formula 1 team.
With the door to F1 currently welded shut for Andretti, Herta’s grand salary has become an outlier — a fantastical expenditure — in a series where the majority of teams aren’t ready to elevate the accepted $1.25-2.5 million to $3 million or more across the board.
“It’s not always that driver salaries match where the sport’s at,” said Pieter Rossi, who manages his son Alexander and others in the series. “I have to be really sensitive in my position because team owners need to be able to operate a team at a high level and the cost of doing business in motorsports has gone up in the last four years. Inflation has hit everywhere, teams have budgets, and it’s costing more to operate the cars to be at the same level to win races. And it doesn’t always necessarily match being able to pay a driver what they’re worth at that time. You hope it does.”
Between three-time Indy 500 winner and four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti and his teammate, six-time IndyCar champion and 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon, the Chip Ganassi Racing drivers were regarded in the late 2000s, through their final on-track season together in 2013, as the two highest-paid drivers in IndyCar with rumored salaries in the $3 million range.
Dixon maintained that top-salary distinction afterwards, with something in the vicinity of $3.5 million spoken of as the best of his generation’s base annual retainer that’s carried into the 2020s.
The question facing drivers and teams today is whether the market can bear a widespread spike in retainers — one that would take the previous income peak paid only to the best few drivers and normalize it as the new standard sought by half the field.
“What I’m seeing in IndyCar at the moment is that salaries are definitely increasing,” Rossi added. “At the same time, it’s got to match with what the teams are able to pay at that given time because each owner has a different playbook. If you look at the top four teams in McLaren, Andretti, Ganassi and Penske, they all are able to succeed at a very high level, but they have a different playbook on how they approach things. Some teams don’t have enough to pay the top-line drivers. And then you have other teams that have the resources to that and are able to contract the drivers at a high level.”
It’s here where Herta’s recent F1-inspired income has been a blessing for some of his fellow IndyCar drivers who, with that giant rate to cite, have broken through the Dixon barrier and started to command salaries that match or exceed the six-timer’s income. All despite having achieved next to nothing when compared to Dixon.
And that’s where Newgarden’s situation is so thoroughly interesting.
Anecdotally, Penske has never been accused of paying his modern-day drivers more than the Dixons and Franchittis. Being in one of the best teams, with the ability to win multiple races every season, has often been mentioned as the tradeoff that comes with the below-market-rate salaries.
No one would dispute that Josef Newgarden continues to deliver at the highest level, but there is more to it to making the numbers add up for him, either with his current team or elsewhere. Jake Galstad/Lumen
The first grumblings of Newgarden wanting to be paid like Herta surfaced last summer, and unlike some of those who are currently earning more than Newgarden, his pair of IndyCar championships and Indy 500 win would easily qualify him to receive a new deal that reflects his accomplishments and value.
Of Newgarden’s realistic options, he has four teams to speak with that could pay a healthy salary and offer a chance to win multiple races, starting with Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren, Ganassi and Penske. Among the three that aren’t Penske, only one team — which spoke under the condition of anonymity — confirmed to RACER that contacted has taken place with Newgarden regarding a drive in 2025.
Never say never, but as the owner said of any desire Newgarden might harbor of receiving a financial windfall at Andretti, “I think he missed his window.”
With the downsizing from four cars to three and, critically, its multi-year deals with Herta, Kirkwood and Ericsson, the timing is off for a union of Andretti and Newgarden. With all three drivers locked into contracts through at least 2025, there’s no obvious path to join IndyCar’s richest team.
Not only does Andretti have no plans to go back to four cars next year, but it’s also highly unlikely it would pay Newgarden a huge Herta-size wage and commit another $8-10 million to field a car on his behalf. Is Newgarden among the best we’ve seen in the 2000s? Without a doubt. Would Andretti spend $15-17 million across a salary and car budget per year to have him? It’s not impossible, but it’s at the far end of being feasible.
Arrow McLaren has been mentioned aplenty as the most likely destination for Newgarden, but like Andretti, any hopes of tapping into McLaren’s deep bank account to receive a life-changing contract isn’t on the cards.
The team recently placed its big driver salary spend behind Pato O’Ward, whose new contract can pay up to $4.2 million per year if all the incentives are achieved. Although Newgarden would be worthy of a bigger contract, O’Ward is McLaren’s franchise IndyCar driver and it looks like it’s another case of missing the grand payout window.
While the team has as many as two seats it could need to fill if it doesn’t extend Alexander Rossi and David Malukas, Newgarden would need to come in around O’Ward’s level, which might not be that big of a bump to what he’s earning at Penske. In plain and simple terms, nothing close to that magical $7 million figure is waiting to be taken at Arrow McLaren.
And then there’s Ganassi, which has two of the three or four best drivers in IndyCar. Reigning champion Alex Palou is signed to a multi-year deal (we’ll go ahead and assume he’ll honor it) and Dixon is said to be on the books for another year or two which, like Andretti, means there’s no obvious car for Newgarden to drive next year and no $8-10 million car budget to go with whatever salary he’d want to command.
In time, Newgarden would be a perfect fit to take the baton from Dixon whenever Dixon decides to retire, but that time isn’t now, which would seemingly take Ganassi off the board. If he wants to consider a switch in a year or two, plenty of interest will be there.
There are two other factors are said to be associated with Newgarden, starting with his affinity for signing short-term deals, which could be something he uses to his advantage if he elects to stay with Penske and resume testing the market a year from now. As well, Penske is also understood to be fond of driver contracts that run through April or May, which could lead to some swift decision making on Newgarden’s behalf.
Penske would have no problem attracting drivers to step into Newgarden’s seat, with the likes of Christian Lundgaard being available after 2024, and Rinus VeeKay is also shopping for a front-running opportunity once he completes his contract in September. Callum Ilott is untethered for 2025, and if Penske wanted to promote from within, he has ex-Formula 1 driver and IMSA champion Felipe Nasr on the Porsche Penske Motorsport IMSA GTP payroll and IMSA champion Dane Cameron to draw from.
And there are other great teams for Newgarden to consider, but after the top four, the available dollars and likelihood of being a title contender fall off rather quickly, which simplifies his realistic options.
So, with Andretti, McLaren, and Ganassi looking like longshots to deliver the salary hike Newgarden is hoping for, most of the team owners and drivers I’ve spoken to think he’ll push for more money and end up staying with Penske.
Leaving is indeed a possibility, but most of the likely destinations say the departure would have to be for reasons other than great financial enrichment. The silly season, which never seems to end, is going to be interesting to follow in the months ahead.
With a series of late yellows negating any strategy, victory in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac came down to pace in the final hour, which Louis Deletraz and the No. 40 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura ARX-06 had enough. In the …
With a series of late yellows negating any strategy, victory in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac came down to pace in the final hour, which Louis Deletraz and the No. 40 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura ARX-06 had enough. In the final hour, he passed Felipe Nasr in the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsports 963 and, in a battle royale, Sebastien Bourdais in the No. 01 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R to claim victory for himself, Jordan Taylor and Colton Herta.
The No. 1 Cadillac of Bourdais, Renger van der Zande and Scott Dixon was second, with Nasr, Dane Cameron and Matt Campbell third.
Era Racing, after a winless season in 2023, opened 2024 with victory in the 36 Hours of Florida, claiming wins at both the Rolex 24 at Daytona and now Sebring. Strategy after an early puncture and great pace got them to the front as Connor Zilisch closed out a victory for himself, Dwight Merriman and Ryan Dalziel.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1406]
In less than a lap, Jack Hawksworth battled from third to the lead in the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 he shared with Ben Barnicoat and Kyle Kirkwood to claim a GTD PRO victory for the Vasser Sullivan Racing squad — a nice recovery from a disastrous Rolex 24 that saw them out of the race early. The defending champion had to get by Daniel Juncadella in the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Z06 GT3.R and then Daniel Serra in the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3 within several corners. Serra, Davide Rigon and James Calado were second. A late-race battle between Juncadella and Laurin Heinrich in the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R sent Juncadella off track and out of the race, while Heinrich would receive a drive-through penalty, handing third to the Iron Lynx Lamborghini squad of Mirko Bortolotti, Jordan Pepper and Frank Perera.
There were two 36 Hours of Florida winners this year, as Winward Racing controlled GTD for most of the race. The No. 57 Mercedes AMG and drivers Russell Ward, Philip Ellis and Indy Dontje were near flawless all race to claim their second victory of the season. The No. 47 Cetilar Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 of Roberto Lacorte, Antonio Fuoco and Giorgio Sernagiotto were second, coming oh-so-close to following up Cetilar’s 2022 victory in the race. Elliot Skeer, Adam Adelson and Jan Heylen brought the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche home third.
Andretti Global’s Colton Herta led Saturday morning’s IndyCar practice session with the No. 26 Honda. Herta’s 1m.00.1331s lap was well clear of Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden in the No. 2 Chevy (+0.2541s) and Penske’s Will Power in third with the No. …
Andretti Global’s Colton Herta led Saturday morning’s IndyCar practice session with the No. 26 Honda. Herta’s 1m.00.1331s lap was well clear of Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden in the No. 2 Chevy (+0.2541s) and Penske’s Will Power in third with the No. 12 Chevy (+0.2770s).
“The car’s been good so far,” Herta said. “I felt good that session and we got two really decent runs. Good to feel the car in that environment before qualifying.”
The Chevy brigade continued with Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward in fourth, Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Romain Grosjean in fifth, and Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rinus VeeKay in sixth.
Andretti’s Kyle Kirkwood set the fourth-fastest lap about halfway through the session, but clouted the wall with the right-side suspension and headed to pit lane to have bend components changed. His quick lap would get knocked down to seventh by the end of the hour-long window.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1408]
Friday’s fastest driver, Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist, was 11th, while reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou was a surprise 20th for Chip Ganassi Racing.
Of the 27 drivers, only one failed to participate in the session after Santino Ferrucci’s No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing Chevy encountered a problem on pit lane and was taken back to the garage.
Up next is qualifying, which starts at 2pm ET and is televised on Peacock’s streaming platform.
Andretti Global No. 26 Honda: Colton Herta (10th in 2023 championship) No. 27 Honda: Kyle Kirkwood (11th in 2023 championship) No. 28 Honda: Marcus Ericsson (6th in 2023 championship with Chip Ganassi Racing) THINGS TO KNOW Escaping mediocrity …
Andretti Global
No. 26 Honda: Colton Herta (10th in 2023 championship)
No. 27 Honda: Kyle Kirkwood (11th in 2023 championship)
No. 28 Honda: Marcus Ericsson (6th in 2023 championship with Chip Ganassi Racing)
THINGS TO KNOW
Escaping mediocrity
Andretti Global has a single mission for the upcoming season: Break free from a two-year visit to mediocrity.
Competing for the first time under its new IndyCar moniker, the team formerly known as Andretti Autosport was a title contender from 2018 with Alexander Rossi through 2021 with Colton Herta, as its lead drivers placed between second and fifth in the championship.
But the team’s competitiveness went backwards in 2022 as its top performer– Rossi — fell to ninth in the standings and the situation worsened slightly in 2023 as Herta was Andretti’s best in 10th. Once a part of IndyCar’s “Big 3” teams along with Ganassi and Penske, Andretti’s seen Arrow McLaren move ahead to take that position and last year, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing also motored in front of its team with Christian Lundgaard who placed eighth in the standings.
Andretti Autosport’s last championship was earned back in 2012 and its last Indy 500 win was secured in 2017 which, in racing, is a lifetime ago.
For all of the money being spent on the program, more was expected, and Michael Andretti wasn’t prepared to sit and hope for the situation to improve, so fundamental changes have been made to the team’s driver roster and overall composition in an effort to reclaim its former place in the field.
When it comes to authoring a turnaround, no team has been more aggressive than Andretti, and based on its speed in pre-season testing, the effort and expenditure has not been wasted.
[lawrence-related id=348666]
Smaller equals stronger
Dropping down to three cars with well-paid professionals across the board is just what Andretti needs to rediscover its title-contending abilities. Team Penske was the blueprint for this move after the 2021 season where it downsized from four to three and promptly won the championship, and as Penske’s leaders told it, the slightly smaller squad made everything a little bit easier and more focused in all the competition areas that matter.
That’s everything Andretti and newish team investor and partner Dan Towriss hope to find in the trio of Colton Herta, Kyle Kirkwood, and newcomer Marcus Ericsson. With fewer drivers to work through in engineering debriefs, fewer cars to maintain, fewer spares to prepare and hopefully less crash damage to recover from, the tightened operation is poised to improve its fortunes.
Sound strategy
A lot was made of the race strategy struggles that were experienced with all of its drivers at different points of the previous season. That aspect of Andretti’s game was largely resolved towards the end of the year as the shifting of COO Rob Edwards to Colton Herta’s car calmed the waters.
Edwards will stay with Herta, which is a positive, as will Bryan Herta with Kyle Kirkwood. The only strategy change is with Ericsson, who will have Andretti technical director Eric Bretzman on his timing stand on race day to handle that responsibility.
No Streinbrenners
The seven-year partnership between Steinbrenner Racing and Andretti, which started with Colton Herta in Indy NXT, came to an end at the conclusion of the 2023 season when Devlin DeFrancesco’s tenure with the team and the Steinbrenner co-entry met its end.
Although there’s no team affiliation for the Steinbrenner family, they will be present at IndyCar races through the marketing and promotions agency work they provide for a number of clients.
Toxic dump
We can’t overlook how toxic and tumultuous the two-year relationship with Romain Grosjean was for both the driver and his team owner. And, critically, for the team surrounding the No. 28 program. Leaving for Juncos Hollinger Racing was the best for all involved, and for Grosjean, the change of scenery should be a good thing. For Andretti, which has dealt with too much toxicity in his world with the struggles to launch a Formula 1 team, a less combative environment with Ericsson inserted into the No. 28 should make for lighter times.
Marcus Ericsson’s move to Andretti offers potential key steps forward for both driver and team. Joe Skibinski/Penske Entertainment
Self worth
A fascinating character study could be on display this year with Ericsson.
Throughout most of his four seasons with Chip Ganassi Racing, the Swede drove angry, fueled in part by the disrespect he felt from his team owner who refused to pay him a salary. As part of the Huski Chocolate deal Ericsson’s longtime backer brought to the team, he was treated — as one might expect — as a paying driver. But with his wins in 2021, wins including the Indy 500 in 2022, and another win in 2023, the 33-year-old’s pleas to be re-imagined as a paid driver like Scott Dixon or Alex Palou were ignored until late in the game.
By the time an offer to be paid was made, Ericsson was out the door — mentally, at least — and on his way to a team that would treat him as a top talent to hire. At Ganassi, Ericsson had extra motivation to prove his worth to his team owner and to future suitors, and now that he has what he’s been dreaming of at Andretti, what version of Ericsson will be on display? He’s known to be a great teammate, a great “glue guy” within a program, and he’s the new veteran in terms of age and accomplishments among Andretti’s trio. Andretti’s ship was often unsteady last year, and that’s another area where Ericsson will make an impact. But how will he fare against younger animals like Herta and Kirkwood?
Will the fire to prove his worth that burned inside him at Ganassi remain? How might a satisfied and well-paid Ericsson perform? Will new levels of inner peace unlock more speed? This is a different Marcus Ericsson than the one we saw in that red and white Huski car.
Pivotal year for Herta
Colton Herta and his phenomenal race engineer Nathan O’Rourke torched the IndyCar scene in their first years together, but as we know, the team — and its established No. 1 driver — haven’t been a factor over the last two seasons.
It’s overstating the obvious, but Herta can’t be faster than his car, and as a whole, the team hasn’t produced cars that are capable of vying for titles while racing at the various types of tracks on the calendar. Nonetheless, the 23-year-old from California finds himself in a weird stage of his career where the fearsome performances from 2019-21 haven’t been entirely forgotten, but enough time has passed to where the recent down years are becoming what’s remembered.
Those six wins from 2019-21, followed by one win in 2022 and a winless 2023 frame Herta’s need. Teammate Kirkwood delivered two wins for Andretti last year and is challenging for that No. 1 status within the team. When he arrived at Andretti, Rossi was its leader and that didn’t last very long once Herta established himself. When Kirkwood arrived, Herta was its leader and he has the talent and intent to move himself into P1 by the end of the year.
There’s no lack of interesting stories to follow this season, and the internecine battle between Herta and the 25-year-old from Florida is one I’ll be tracking across every round. Will the old Herta reemerge, keep Kirkwood and Ericsson at bay, and also get that breakthrough win on an oval in Year 6?
A lot is riding on the answer, and that answer will affect how he’s perceived afterwards. For his sake and ours, let’s hope the terrorizing version of Herta is on display in 2024.
Oval improvement
Andretti’s best results for a while now have largely been found on road and street courses, and with the exception of Ganassi’s Alex Palou, we know the easiest path to winning a championship comes with earning some big results on ovals. Especially this year with seven points-paying rounds — 41 percent of the calendar — being on ovals after the Nashville change.
Within Andretti’s trio, only Ericsson has triumphed on an oval, and while it was at the big one — the Indy 500 — it’s his only oval win so far. Getting to victory lane on one or more ovals would not just be great for the team’s chances of winning a championship, but it would also signal Andretti Global is truly back in the game. Its last oval win came at Pocono in 2018 with Rossi and the team is long overdue for another.
We can expect Ericsson to help Andretti to make gains in this regard since he was often a factor on ovals for Ganassi. Wins among these three at a St. Pete or Mid-Ohio wouldn’t tell us much, but barging into the conversation for oval podiums would. This is another metric of interest to follow.
Where’s Kirk at the end of 2024?
On a similar note to the pivotal year ahead for Herta’s intrasquad standing and how he’s viewed by the paddock, Kirkwood is in an identical situation.
For Herta, it’s a case of someone who was the clear No. 1 who has been challenged and needs to re-assert his authority. For Kirkwood, who looked like a match for Herta at a lot of races during their first year together, it’s a case of whether he can continue that impressive rise that brought two wins in 2023 and become Andretti’s top dog.
Herta knocked Rossi off his perch; that’s what Kirkwood wants to do to Herta, and it’s everything Herta wants to prevent. Add this to the popcorn viewing opportunities with Andretti Global from now through Nashville.
For Kirkwood, he’s done two IndyCar seasons and the first was an uncompetitive one with Foyt, so based on all he produced in just his first go-round with Andretti (and with superb race engineer Jeremy Milless), there’s plenty of room for growth and improvement in 2024. That’s scary.
Where are we a year from now? Both young drivers are signed for years to come, so this duel could become an annual tradition. It could also, if Andretti’s lucky, end up with something they’ve rarely had, and that’s two No. 1s.
Andretti Global has made use of a quiet Saturday to unveil the liveries for its three NTT IndyCar Series entries. The cars for Colton Herta, Kyle Kirkwood, and Marcus Ericsson feature a change in presentation where the uniform color across the top …
Andretti Global has made use of a quiet Saturday to unveil the liveries for its three NTT IndyCar Series entries.
The cars for Colton Herta, Kyle Kirkwood, and Marcus Ericsson feature a change in presentation where the uniform color across the top of the cars has been interrupted with an angled break on the engine covers which transitions into black on Herta’s yellow No. 26 Honda and Kirkwood’s pink No. 27 Honda, and dark blue on Ericsson’s mint No. 28 Honda.
Primary sponsors are as expected with Gainbridge for Herta and AutoNation for Kirkwood; Ericsson’s car is supported by Delaware Life, which is under the same Group 1001 umbrella as Gainbridge, which is led by team investor/partner Daniel Towriss.
This NTT IndyCar Series star says he unsuccessfully pursued a ride for the 2024 Daytona 500. Which shocking IndyCar driver wanted a ride?
The Daytona 500 is one of the biggest racing events in the world, lining up next to the Indianapolis 500 and the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA. On Thursday morning, the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA had its media day, where several drivers talked about the last few months. Specifically, a group of NTT IndyCar Series drivers talked about the offseason, with one revealing an interesting pursuit.
According to The Associated Press’ Jenna Fryer, IndyCar Series driver [autotag]Colton Herta[/autotag] revealed that he tried to land a ride in the 2024 Daytona 500 but was unsuccessful. This is a major development as Herta is one of America’s top stars in open-wheel racing. In fact, the 23-year-old driver tried to join Formula 1, but that was also unsuccessful.
Checking in from #Rolex24 media day, where an #IndyCar reunion is happening. Updates: Herta tried but couldn’t land a Daytona 500 ride The offseason struggle was real for Pato FRO in a really good mental space Ericsson looking forward to helping Andretti improve pic.twitter.com/5IBdmQN02C
Herta likely would have needed to pursue an open entry for the 2024 Daytona 500, but it didn’t come to fruition. It is disappointing that he is now the second IndyCar driver to fail at this pursuit. Last year, Helio Castroneves did the same without any luck. Hopefully, Herta can try again in 2025 and get a decent ride in NASCAR’s biggest race.
Andretti Global will move forward with three full-time NTT IndyCar Series entries. “There will be just the three,” Andretti COO Rob Edwards told RACER. The decision signals an end to its recent practice of fielding a fourth car for hire by a driver …
Andretti Global will move forward with three full-time NTT IndyCar Series entries.
“There will be just the three,” Andretti COO Rob Edwards told RACER.
The decision signals an end to its recent practice of fielding a fourth car for hire by a driver bringing funding to race alongside the team’s paid professionals; prior to accepting paying drivers, Andretti used all four of its cars to compete for wins and podiums.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1408]
The expansion to four cars delivered immediate success with championships for Tony Kanaan in 2004, Dan Wheldon in 2005, and Dario Franchitti in 2007, and the change to running three comes after entering four full-time cars in 16 of the last 18 seasons.
In recent years, the Andretti team’s sustained competitiveness with four has wavered; it’s more than a decade removed from its last championship victory, earned by Ryan Hunter-Reay in the first year of IndyCar’s new chassis and engine formula in 2012.
Andretti had run four full-time entries for much of the last two decades – Dan Wheldon, Tony Kanaan, Bryan Herta and Dario Franchitti pictured at Michigan in 2004. Phillip Abbott/Motorsport Images
Since the debut of the Dallara DW12 and the 2.2-liter turbocharged V6 motors, Andretti has come close to adding another title on numerous occasions, with former driver Alexander Rossi taking second in 2018 and third in 2019, and from its current roster, Colton Herta reached third in the Drivers’ standings in 2020. But since then, the organization has taken a large step backwards with its top performers finishing ninth in 2022 and 10th in 2023.
Heading into 2024, Andretti veterans Herta and Kyle Kirkwood will be joined by former Chip Ganassi Racing driver Marcus Ericsson as its core trio, and Edwards says the Honda-powered team is seeking the same reward experienced by Team Penske which cut its fourth car after the 2021 season and reaped the benefits of being smaller and more efficient by capturing the 2022 IndyCar title with Will Power.
“We’re definitely trying to focus our efforts and with a view to more race wins and championships and Indy 500s,” he said. “We look at what Penske did when they went from four to three, and in their case, they had four strong drivers, not ride buyers, but they still felt operationally that it was an advantage for them to do three and we see some similar advantages. And so we’re going to tread down that path and focus on Colton, Kyle, and Marcus.”
Amid the changes, Andretti will maintain continuity with the engineers attached to its three cars.
“Nathan O’Rourke will continue to work with Colton and Jeremy Milless will continue to work with Kyle, which obviously was successful last year,” Edwards said of the two wins Kirkwood delivered. “And then Olivier Boisson is going to be with Marcus and they’ve already had two or three days working together it’s working very well.”
Andretti will also enter the Indy 500 with a smaller effort of four cars in place of its familiar five.
“The plan is certainly to be four at the 500,” Edwards added. “There’s no anticipated plan to run more than that. Obviously, the 500 is super important and so that same drive to focus on the three cars for season would lead us to only add the one car for the 500.”
Since retiring from IndyCar at the end of 2020, Marco Andretti has returned to pilot an extra entry at the last three Indy 500s with a best performance of 17th in May.
Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) has chosen Brendon Hartley and Colton Herta as the endurance co-drivers for the full IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup (IMEC) during the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season. Hartley will join …
Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) has chosen Brendon Hartley and Colton Herta as the endurance co-drivers for the full IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup (IMEC) during the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.
Hartley will join Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque in the No. 10 WTRAndretti Acura ARX-06 while Herta will co-pilot the No. 40 sister car with Jordan Taylor and Louis Deletraz. WTRAndretti plans to announce additional drivers for the Rolex 24 At Daytona in the coming weeks.
[lawrence-related id=341109]
“It’s exciting that we’ve managed to get the services of Brendon Hartley again and Colton Herta as our third drivers who will be doing the IMEC,” said Wayne Taylor, team principal at WTRAndretti. “Brendon has driven for us before, and we’ve got to know him really well. Obviously, Colton is a part of the Andretti Global group which opened the door for us with him. He’s won Daytona in a GT car and drove a LMDh car last year and did a really good job. I’m really excited about having both Brendon and Colton on board.”
First joining the WTRAndretti family for the 2022 Motul Petit Le Mans, Hartley continued his tenure with the team as the Rolex 24 At Daytona co-driver in the No. 10 WTRAndretti Acura ARX-06 earlier this year (pictured). Aside from his time with the WTRAndretti team, Hartley is a four-time FIA World Endurance Championship Drivers ’Champion winner (2023, 2022, 2017, 2015), three-time overall winner at Le Mans and former Formula 1 driver.
“I really enjoyed my time with WTRAndretti at Petit last year and Daytona this year, so I jumped at the opportunity to compete in the endurance races in 2024 when Wayne called me. WTRAndretti knows how to win and going to a two-car team will strengthen the whole operation even further,” declared Hartley.
Although a driver in the NTT IndyCar Series with Andretti Global, Herta is no stranger to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The California native has two class victories at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, most recently with an LMP2 overall win in 2022 and a GTLM win in 2019. Complementing his accolades in sports car racing, Herta is a seven- time IndyCar race winner – including his first victory in 2019 at The Circuit of the Americas which earned him the title of the youngest winner in IndyCar history.
“It’s super exciting to join such a prestigious team like WTRAndretti for the endurance events. They’ve shown how successful they can be in the past and I’m looking forward to hopefully adding to that!” said Herta.
While Acura split its two-car ARX-06 effort between two teams for the inaugural season of GTP, both cars will run under the WTRAndretti banner for 2024. It’s a big expansion for the team after Wayne Taylor Racing joined with Andretti a year ago.
The 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season kicks off with the annual three days of Roar Before the 24 testing, Jan. 19 – 21, 2024, followed by the endurance classic, the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Jan. 25-28, 2024. NBC and Peacock, along with IMSA.TV, will provide flag-to-flag coverage of the race on its family of networks.
Bryan and Colton Herta reflect on their runs this week in Monterey in the 1998 Reynard 98i-Ford/Cosworth Bryan drove to victory 25 years ago at Laguna Seca. Or CLICK HERE to watch on YouTube. Presented by: RACER’s IndyCar Trackside Report at the …
Bryan and Colton Herta reflect on their runs this week in Monterey in the 1998 Reynard 98i-Ford/Cosworth Bryan drove to victory 25 years ago at Laguna Seca.
RACER’s IndyCar Trackside Report at the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey is presented by Radical Motorsport. As one of the world’s most prolific sports car manufacturers, Radical Motorsport sets out to create a race-bred thrill-a-minute driving experience on the racetrack. The Blue Marble Radical Cup North America is the continent’s premier Radical championship offering exhilarating multi-class Le Mans style racing for a fraction of the price. Click to learn more.
