Q: Well, now we’ve seen an episode of “100 Days.” It wasn’t bad, but I can’t figure out their goal. If I had not followed the sport for 40+ years, and this was my first exposure to it, my takeaways would be:
1) Everyone wants to win the Indy 500 (whatever that is), and Josef hasn’t won it.
2) To win a race, you have to drive for a team called Penske or Ganassi. (Whatever that means, since those owners/teams weren’t really introduced)
3) Penske has two drivers: Newgarden and McLaughin. Ganassi has one driver: Ericsson.
It really should have started with a better background about Indy: What is has meant for 111 years, and the influence the race has had on society (movie/TV references, global drivers wanting to race there, automaker technology development). Cap the intro with a summary of names like Foyt, Mears and Unser being worldwide legends because of that race, and the dedication of today’s drivers to reach the same goal.
I really like Letterman, but he didn’t provide much context of what the 500 really is, and didn’t even make clear that he’s a team owner. A wasted opportunity and strange editing choices.
On the positive side, they showed the overall competitiveness of the sport, and had some good footage. And they delved a little into why the drivers are interesting personalities. We’ll see where they go, but I just didn’t see much of a cohesive theme or introduction to IndyCar.
Tom Pate
MP: I really do hope Ep. 2 of 100 Days is what was missing in Ep. 1. A friend in the video industry told me it was done in a “spray and pray” style, meaning that it lacked the cohesion you mentioned, and the shooters/producers didn’t know what they were looking at, so they filmed a bunch of stuff and hoped to find things of interest during the editing process.
I did get lost in Ep. 1 with 27 different themes, a half-dozen journalists/broadcasters serving up various things, and a very brief attempt to tie what we saw back to the Indy 500. Felt like the intent was to cram everything possible into the debut. Here’s to hoping Ep. 2 does more with fewer voices and themes.
How’s this: I know the series received a ton of frank feedback from teams, drivers, manufacturers, and sponsors. There should be no lack of input on what worked and what didn’t work which, if it was taken to heart, should have been passed on for improvement.
Q: I gotta say, the people at Barber Motorsports Park hit another home run. I’ve been coming to this track for years and it has never disappointed. This year, I brought about 10 friends who all had a good time seeing the on-track action and touring the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum. And to top it off, Zoom Motorsports announced that they’ve signed an extension with IndyCar through 2027! If it isn’t already, Barber needs to be considered one of the premier stops on the IndyCar schedule.
That aside, I’ve got to ask about the rumors concerning Liberty Media and IndyCar. While both have denied discussing a deal, I can’t help but wonder why Liberty Media would even be interested in purchasing IndyCar in the first place. It’s not like IndyCar is a legitimate competitor to F1, so it wouldn’t be a case of buying out the competition. Also, from what I understand, IndyCar isn’t very profitable, so it wouldn’t be a major source of income for Liberty.
The only explanation I’ve heard is that Liberty wants to turn IndyCar into a U.S.-based F1 feeder series, but even that seems a little far-fetched to me. In your opinion, is there a good reason why Liberty would want to buy IndyCar or is all this discussion just someone trying to stir the pot?
Garrick, Alabama
MP: Barber is indeed one of IndyCar crown jewels.
Only reason I’ve come up with is to buy, gut, and shut down its domestic rival. Liberty would have no reason to buy IndyCar and do all it can to make it a raging success in America where it’s currently trying to make F1 the most popular racing series in America.
Q: If a person watches on the CW app, it registers with Nielsen.
Vincent Martinez
MP: So all we need is to buy 5,000,000 phones and tablets, download the app, and set them all to play every episode… Boom, it’s a ratings sensation! (Kidding aside, thanks for the intel, Vincent.)
Q: How much did the aired version of 100 Days to Indy differ from the pre-screening version that was shown? All in all, I was impressed. Will it bring in new fans? Who knows? But it can’t hurt.
Greg Warren, Little Rock, AR
MP: Having seen Ep. 1 via a screener link I was sent, I didn’t watch the premiere so unfortunately, I can’t say.
Q: Quick question: Blomqvist and Braun in IndyCar next year? Helio and Simon in IMSA? This MSR switch makes sense. Your thoughts?
Daniel B. Martins, Brazil
MP: In your scenarios, I’d put money on Braun leading the GTP program with Pagenaud as his full-time teammate, unless, of course, he starts winning in IndyCar ASAP. With how things are going at the moment, I fear Simon will not be retained in IndyCar and would lack offers from an equal or better team. As for Helio, it’s been hard to watch this season. I’d guess MSR will keep an Indy 500 seat open for him, but I don’t know if a full-time GTP drive is on the horizon.