Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers can be sent to mailbag@racer.com. Due to the high volume of questions received, we can’t guarantee that every letter will be published, but we’ll answer as many as we can. Published questions may be edited for length and clarity. Questions received after 3pm ET each Monday will appear the following week.
Q: After reading about the $2,000 tickets for Thermal Club, what is the fee to host an IndyCar race? I’m just curious, because if the event at Thermal is a giant dumpster fire, maybe they could try racing around my neighborhood if I could scrounge up the money. Think of the track layout possibilities. They could run through the different streets. Maybe up and around the cul de sac. Yes, the manhole covers may be an issue, but if we played the cards right we may be able to find enough neighbors to empty their garages so each team could have its own personal garage. We can even throw in lunch as well. What says you? Are you in? Oh, and I won’t charge $2,000 for tickets.
Cory
MARSHALL PRUETT: All depends on the sanction fee, but if we start saving now, we can get a new race on the 2025 calendar. I’m all the way in. The I Left My Wallet at the Cul de Sac in El Segundo Grand Prix is officially a go.
Q: Is the McLaren relationship with Juncos going to come off? I would doubt Zak Brown has any interest in helping Canapino or Grosjean, if he gets the No. 77 seat.
Bruce
MP: It was weird to see the news of the Ilott split with no mention of McLaren, but at the same time, the mess there isn’t of McLaren’s making, so if I’m Zak, I wouldn’t want to be associated with that nonsense. At least for how I understand the situation, it’s starting off in 2024 with the Juncos Hollinger team being a one-year placeholder for Arrow McLaren’s extra sponsor inventory.
So, one car, carrying sponsorship McLaren can’t fit on its three entries, but not exactly a “McLaren” entry where it controls all aspects of its composition. Assuming that’s accurate, it would mean one of the world’s most popular race car drivers in Grosjean would seemingly give JHR and McLaren a lot of eyeballs on that entry. Since that’s what sponsors usually want, there’s a lot of potential upside to the arrangement. That is, of course, if we assume the toxic culture that unwound things for Ilott isn’t awaiting his replacement.
Q: I am wondering if IndyCar will extend its season into October in the future, along with Pocono back on the schedule? I am from the Pocono area and enjoyed IndyCar at the track.
David
MP: Only if the NFL pushes the start of its season back to October. I’ve heard nothing about Pocono returning to the calendar.
Q: Is Takuma Sato done? No more IndyCar races? No 500 entry? Maybe he is trying to secure a seat, thereby explaining the lack of career celebration for this two-time 500 champion and all-round good guy? His 2024 performance would indicate it is bye-bye, but I for one would like to see some appreciation of this great driver in some form.
Oliver Wells
MP: Last I heard was Honda engine supply, even for a favored son like Taku, could be an issue. At the moment, I’m not overly encouraged for the Indy 500 two-timer being in next year’s field, if we limit his options to Honda-powered entries. But what if he wasn’t limited to using a Honda…
Q: You mentioned after Carpenter’s hiring of Christian Rasmussen that Oliver Askew is still being considered for one other seat in IndyCar for 2024. Can you reveal that prospect?
Jim, Indy
MP: Not at the moment, Jim. I told Oliver to call the team owner, and he did, and responded by saying the owner didn’t respond. I haven’t followed up.
Q: Noticed that Firestone conducted a test at Milwaukee a couple weeks ago with Will Power (driving a hybrid) and Linus Lunqvist (driving a non-hybrid).
If IndyCar were going to be using hybrids in 2024, why would Firestone test a non-hybrid, which would weigh less and put different strains on the tires?
Does this indicate that Firestone is not 100% convinced that IndyCar will be running hybrids in 2024?
Ed
MP: No. Because hybrid cars aren’t readily available for running whenever it might be desired, and Firestone doesn’t own an IndyCar to use when it wants to test. Also, the weight of the 2024 car is approximately three percent higher than the 2023 car, so while that’s not an insignificant amount, it wouldn’t be a game-changer for Firestone in testing.
Q: I see Pietro Fittipaldi scored the third seat at RLL and Juri Vips is on retainer for maybe a fourth entry at some point at select races. Hmmm… let me crystal ball this. I see Graham Rahal, on his terms, climbing out of his race car for the last time at the end of next season, at which point Vips slides in and Graham does Indy only. Your take?
Jeff, Colorado
MP: That’s exactly what I expect to see happen — Vips becoming a full-time RLL driver in 2025 — but I wouldn’t limit his options to filling Graham’s seat. Unless Christian Lundgaard agrees to a contract extension, he’ll be a top free agent in 2024, and I’ve already had one long conversation with a team owner who, on their own, expressed serious interest in securing his services.
If Graham chooses to make 2024 a farewell tour, I’m not sure if he’ll look to make annual returns to Indy. I’d hope he would, but I could see his days becoming filled with business interests that would make training and ramping up for the month of May being more of a distraction than a welcome respite.