Q: Thanks to Jasmin for the response to my question last week. I was aware that IndyCar has a spotter’s guide for the NXT Series. My gripe is that IndyCar doesn’t put the radio frequency information on it like they do for the main series. That does not seem like a difficult thing to add.
David, Waxhaw, NC
MP: It does not.
Q: My question/concern is regarding the charter system. I am hearing that the charter system will cap off teams at three cars. What does this mean for Chip Ganassi Racing with five cars? Rumors are spreading that CGR and Meyer Shank Racing will have a technically alliance for 2025 and that an additional CGR entry would go to MSR.
My concern is, who gets the cut at CGR if the charter system is approved? Assuming Dixon doesn’t pull a Rosberg in the offseason, CGR would have Dixon, Palou and Armstrong (based off Armstrong’s good form this season). MSR would have Felix for sure, and Malukas has been incredible so I would expect MSR to keep him. It would come down to Simpson and Linus in the third MSR car. Unfortunately, I would expect that money would be the determining factor and Simpson would be in the third MSR car and Linus is once again without a ride. I know he had signed a multi-year contract but they way contracts have been dealt with… you know what I mean.
Do you have any thoughts on this potential situation that could occur? Would other two car teams step up and go with three cars full-time? (i.e. Foyt, ECR, DCR)
Stefan “Not that one” Johansson
MP: Yes, we’ve written about the cap being at three many times. Here’s an in-depth story from May. Here’s another one from May. Here’s a deep dive from April which includes a range of scenarios on how the charter could impact CGR.
The charters would be issued to the top 25 eligible entries from last season’s entrants’ championship results (that’s also included in one or more of the links), so while teams are welcome to add third cars, they wouldn’t get charters because they didn’t run in 2023 and place in the top 25.
Q: Can you provide some insight on the state of the IndyCar paddock’s finances? The last few years, the majority of teams at least appeared reasonably healthy judging by the number of sponsors on each car and stable car count. We’ve heard repeatedly that driver salaries are going up.
However, this season many cars are running almost blank, there has been public criticism of additional costs to go racing, and McLaren –which appeared to have more cash than it knew what to do with — took a pay driver.
Finally, do you know how PREMA is funding its U.S. expansion? It appears to be doing things in a very professional way; however, Carlin were for many years the dominant Euro feeder team and always appeared to be doing things on a shoestring — and ultimately failed.
John
MP: It’s been very rough for half of the field. Foyt needs more funding for its 14 car. McLaren’s No. 6 car has had its budget deficit addressed, as you noted. Both of Coyne’s cars have been run on shoestring budgets where every driver, except for Colin Braun, has paid to drive, and often below a break-even point. Juncos Hollinger Racing’s cars have been largely funded by Hollinger, who isn’t there to pay all the bills. Ed Carpenter Racing has been light on funding, as evidenced by VeeKay’s car being bare for most races. Meyer Shank Racing is working hard to complete its funding for its second car next season and could, if necessary, take a paying driver if that’s what’s needed to get the budget finalized. And RLL, which has many great sponsors, is in the same boat as MSR in needing to sign some important deals to get its dollars in order.
On PREMA, I think so, but I need to see if I can get more details.
Q: Given that the IndyCar season ends the previous week, is there any indication that any of the series regulars might participate at the six-hour IMSA race at the Brickyard in mid-September? Is there even a realistic opportunity for any of them to join, or are those driver lineups pretty much set as that championship nears its conclusion?
Mark Founds
MP: It’s not impossible, but as IMSA’s penultimate race of the season, I wouldn’t expect any of the championship contenders to welcome new/guest drivers into the mix. Also, at six hours, it’s not as grueling as a 12- or 24-hour event, so the full-time two-driver rotations will be used in most instances. The only caveat is the teams who have peerless endurance drivers (think WTRAndretti with Colton Herta, Cadillac with Scott Dixon/Alex Palou, or Penske with Josef Newgarden) and might want to ensure they have three rockets who are super fresh for each stint.
Q: It seems that the increased number of IndyCar entires is causing traffic problems for qualifying on road and street courses. I understand the need to reduce car count in the first session, but I hate the idea of going to three qualifying groups.
So how about this: Today, the last 20 minutes are divided up into two 10-minute groups. Let’s use those by giving the fastest two cars from each of those groups a free pass to the Fast 12.
The advantages would be:
• Friday practice would mean something (kind of like the old “provisional pole” from the CART days).
• Two fewer cars in each of the Round 1 qualifying groups Saturday.
• The Friday qualifiers would effectively also have an extra set of alternate tires (since they would skip Round 1).
Option: If we did not want the Friday qualifiers to earn and extra set of Alternate tires for Saturday, we could make Round 1 of Saturday qualifying primaries only, disallowing the use of alternates in that round.
I think this would address the traffic issue while adding some excitement to Fridays at road and street courses.
Ed Joras
MP: Let’s keep the ideas coming in!
Q: Now that we have hit a summer/Olympic break, I’m interested in everyone’s take on the other series they don’t regularly cover. The common refrain from fans seems to focus on why “my” series is better than the others. In my opinion each series has their own place, and we need to focus on how each brings something to the table and everyone can have their own personal preference instead of a constant battle about which is the best.
I tend to follow IndyCar most mostly because I grew up going to races and it is the most accessible to someone living in Ohio. But F1 and NASCAR both hold a special place in my heart. F1 is perfect coffee TV while I get ready for church on Sundays. Catch the start of the race, leave it on in the background while getting ready and then head out the door once it finishes. NASCAR is peak lazy Sunday afternoon! Throw on the race, maybe have a beer (or three), nap, complete a house project or two and watch the end of the first stages before tuning in for the end.
With that in mind I would love to get each panelist take on the series they don’t cover:
• Say something good about the other series and what draws you to watching it (or at least having it on in the background)?
• What from the other series do you wish your series had?
• Where does your series fall short?
Ben, Columbus, OH
MP: I hear you, but we also live in a world where lots of people are highly tribal, so “my (favorite political party/political candidate, form of music, type of car or fashion, racing series, or whatever) is better than yours” is still a pretty common thing, right?
I railed against the series I didn’t like for most of my life (and music, the rest), but with age, and giving fewer craps each year, I now fall into your line of thinking most of the time. Doesn’t mean I now love things I don’t care for, but I don’t feel the need to rail against them.
KELLY CRANDALL: I have a passing interest in a few other forms of motorsports like IndyCar and Formula 1, but the latter is mostly due to “Drive to Survive.” They accomplished their goal of drawing people in through the stories and the drivers under the helmets because people make the best stories and doing that series has been a hit. With the IndyCar Series, I’m always drawn to the Indianapolis 500 and find myself watching everything on track during the month of May. The series and the coverage does a great job making it known how special that race is and why it’s so meaningful to people.
The biggest draw for me outside of NASCAR is drag racing, though. It’s of course the speed and the sound but I have found there are also great stories and personalities over there that I really enjoy getting to interact with when able. One thing the NHRA has that I wish could come to NASCAR is the All-Star Call Out concept because it puts drivers in a unique position that leads to real rivalries and emotion. I’m not sure how it would translate to NASCAR but it would be awesome to see.
CHRIS MEDLAND: The first part is just not having to cover them, Ben! I love watching racing as a fan and not having to react to everything that’s happening from a work point of view, so I really enjoy that about IndyCar and NASCAR.
I love the tracks in IndyCar, and the way you’ve got drivers working so hard but on a relatable circuit that generally doesn’t have a perfectly smooth surface or massive tarmac run-offs (although F1 is improving on that front, too).
And I really like the dynamic of oval races because they’re so different to what we have in F1, and with both IndyCar and NASCAR on ovals it feels like you’re often building up to a close finish or late sprint.
I wish F1 had the openness that IndyCar and NASCAR has, in the sense of just being allowed to do cool stuff with teams or drivers to bring the sport closer to fans, rather than be quite so hamstrung by broadcast rights, etc. I’m always really jealous of the videos Marshall is allowed to do at tracks. I do actually wish we had fewer races too, although as exhausting as it has been this year so far, that’s less of a complaint when it’s this competitive each week.
F1 falls short in over-policing the racing. I like how often it’s down to the teams and drivers to sort out among themselves when things get aggressive on track, but I will admit I also understand why F1 does it given the huge amount of money involved, and need to set clear rules that everyone’s competing to. But I do feel it’s gone a little too far with rules of racing, and more should be let go where possible.