Q: The race at Texas was fun to watch and Josef Newgarden found a way to out-duel Pato O’Ward, who really should had won the race. Anyway I hope we see more races on ovals next year, although at times I do feel for those drivers who races on one-and-a-half mile tracks like Texas. I would like for the series to return to Milwaukee, New Hampshire, Michigan and Nashville Speedway. But most importantly, add several races in the northeastern part of the United States, especially now that Atlantic City is building an F1-style track and Pittsburgh has a new road course track near the airport.
Alistair, Springfield, MO
MP: We wrote a few months ago that IndyCar is looking at making a return to Milwaukee, and The Mile continues to rank as the best chance for a new (old) venue to return to the calendar. I’d love to see a few more ovals on the schedule as long as the tracks have strong odds of being half full.
Q: Does TMS have a Roval configuration that Indy NXT could use? Trucks/NXT/IndyCar…that would be a value!
Gordon
MP: Not that I recall seeing, but I’m sure they could cobble one together.
Q: The Texas race was awesome and the new aero options for the cars seem to have been well-received by the drivers. Just as it seems the sweet spot has been hit aerodynamically, will the upcoming hybrid formula make everyone start back at zero?
Rob, Rochester, NY
MP: Great question. There will be a ton to process as the handling with change with the added weight in the back of the cars with the ERS units. We’ll have that extra weight for the tires to handle, plus the deployment of 100-ish extra horsepower, which will tax the tires in new ways. We’ll have a new superspeedway front wing that should make more downforce and help to balance the cars. But as you note, there will be a lot to learn; there’s changes coming to the bodywork internals to cool the ERS units as well, so teams will have performance and care and feeding lessons to undergo.
Q: Recently I watched the original IROC series on YouTube. For those that don’t remember, it was a series designed to feature 12 of the best drivers in the world from sports cars, IndyCar/USAC, F1 and stock cars. Names such as Unser, Foyt, Follmer, and Donahue drove equally prepared Porsche Carreras in four races that were all shown on ABC’s “Wild World of Sports.”
After watching the amazing race from Texas, I think IndyCar has a newer version of IROC — the International Race of Countries. Looking at the top 12 finishers, we had three Americans, two from New Zealand, and one each from Mexico, Sweden, Argentina, Brazil, England, The Netherlands and Spain.
If I were IndyCar I wouldn’t worry too much right now about trying to race in another country. Instead, I would promote the heck out of the foreign drivers we already have in the series. I would work overtime with NBC and the various racetracks to promote these drivers so we can learn about their background, how they came to IndyCar, and the unique history and culture of their home countries. It is said diversity is a strength, and for IndyCar it truly is.
Rick Schneider, Charlotte, NC
MP: It wasn’t so long ago — well, maybe it was — where the CART IndyCar Series had a Nations Cup to honor the cool array of domestic and international talents on the grid and based on finishing results, there were winners and losers each year. Not sure if a Nations Cup fits today’s sensibilities — I’m sure some jackasses will claim IndyCar is being “woke” (whatever that means) by trying to be inclusive — but if there’s value to be found in it, there’s a simple formula that can be adopted from the CART days to bring it back to life.
Q: I’d like to understand why my Texas paddock pass this year was only usable for Sunday morning, (8:30-10:30). Not only was the value of this $75 ticket greatly diminished by not allowing me access on Saturday, it (more importantly) diminished the value of my entire weekend and was very disappointing.
I consider myself a zealous motorsports fan who goes to four or five events per year. IndyCar is my true love. However, TMS needs to keep in mind the competitive impact COTA puts on them for my time and money. I am blowing off MotoGP (which is visually an amazing experience) because I’ve attended NASCAR’s COTA weekend and now went to Fort Worth the following weekend for IndyCar. A primary reason I go to Fort Worth is to leisurely mull around the garage, be within arm’s length of the mechanics and drivers, and just to soak in the experience. I preach this unparalleled access as the most important thing to anyone I’m trying to convert into a fan. I’m sure they tire of hearing it.
My first take was that it was a cost-saving measure by TMS, but I don’t know. Why would you not allow us paying fans that access Saturday? Was it a request from the teams because they’re tired of us being underfoot while they work? Was it to make the VIP experience of sponsor guests more exclusive and valuable? I am genuinely curious. This very close proximity to the inner workings and employees of my favorite sport is what separates it from F1, MotoGP, NASCAR, and all the stick & ball sports. By taking away Saturday and compressing everyone into the paddock before race starts on Sunday, it changes my value proposition of my weekend significantly, and I’m not sure I’d take the time to go up there and see it if that’s the same next year.
Jim, Austin, TX
MP: I hear you, but the structure IndyCar came up with for Saturday was indeed different than anything we’ve had in a while. The cars left the garage between 7:30-7:45am for pit lane, returned from 9:00-10:30 or so, then went through pre-qualifying tech and returned to pit lane where they stayed for most of the afternoon. By the time they got back to the garages, teams were angling to get their work done and leave as the NASCAR Trucks took over the rest of the day with their race.
If I paid for a Saturday garage pass I’d have been pissed, because unless I was there before the sun came up and watched a little bit of action before 7:30, and came back for that 90 minutes from 9:00-10:30, there wasn’t much to see with that cars out on pit lane. I guess there would have been more time in the late afternoon, but I’d assume most folks would rather watch a race.