Q: I would enjoy hearing a reporter ask A.J. Foyt what he thinks about Max Verstappen getting fined for swearing. I’m guessing that his response would be epic! Uncle Bobby probably would have had some choice comments as well. Can you relate any past instances of colorful language being dropped live during a racing broadcast?
Donald, Estero, FL
MP: None that come to mind. We don’t get many F-bombs or similar on IndyCar or IMSA broadcasts.
Q: I’ve been attending IndyCar races at the Milwaukee Mile since the mid-1970s. One thing occurred to me during this year’s doubleheader. The race pace for a modern IndyCar was between 135-145mph for both races. This is the slowest race pace I can ever remember. Even the IRL machines slogged around at about 155-165mph. So what gives? Why such a tortoise-like pace?
Will, Hales Corners, WI
MP: The first race was indeed slow due to most teams going into fuel-saving mode right away. There were stretches where the lap speeds were at or below Indy NXT’s pace. Sunday was better — faster — and we had a bunch of cautions to kill the need for fuel saving.
Q: I don’t understand why there is the difference between the 22 Leaders Circle payments and the 25 charters in IndyCar. Between the top four teams plus the “technical alliance” teams there are (I think) 16 cars that are clearly going to be in the money. Isn’t this creating a situation where the slowest none non-PREMA cars are having a race for six spots?
This seems to be creating a situation where the three slowest cars that have charters but not Leaders Circle payments will be forced to perpetually be searching for pay drivers.
Will, Indy
MP: That’s one way of looking at it. The teams fighting for Leaders Circles each year are almost always the ones with paying drivers or who halfway suck, and as long as there are fewer LCs to go around than there are entries, the teams duking it out to get inside the top 22 will be back there because they either halfway suck or have to take paying drivers to stay in business, which is another way to suck in all but the rarest of occasions. I don’t see much of a difference to the LC fight with charters.
Q: It’s never been publicly stated, but I feel that Penske may be paying some of Malukas’s tuition at Foyt until he graduates to The Captain’s team. Could the same thing be happening with Armstrong and Ganassi at MSR?
John, Ohio
MP: Armstrong’s successful family auto dealership network has supported his career. He’s been rumored to bring between $3-4 million per season.
Q: It is known in all forms of racing that money equals speed. IndyCar just finished another great season, and I was wondering if they would consider a few changes for the interest of the fans watching the sport?
The big teams already have an advantage with people and testing because of their funding. Why don’t they go back to the random draws for qualifying order instead of points? It would give the smaller teams a chance — from time to time — to watch other teams qualify before they went out. I also think it would be interesting if they capped adjustments for cars in the qualifying line. Settings for a car should be set once you leave your garage area, not allowing for adjustments based on your teammates’ performance. Something has to help level the playing field for the smaller teams to compete.
Jerry, Topeka, KS
MP: Most of the races are on road and street courses where qualifying orders are set by splitting the results of the second practice session. Sure, we could jumble things up in oval qualifying, but how would that stop the haves from doing what they always do, which is go to the front?
Q: We ended the season with an IndyCar vs football match-up. So, what’s the verdict? Did IndyCar do well enough in the ratings that they might consider scheduling races during the football season? For the record, I watched more of the race than the football game that was on at the same time
Tim Davis, Detroit, MI
MP: According to SportsMediaWatch.com, the Nashville Speedway finale on NBC drew the smallest network audience of the year with 483,000 viewers, which is downright terrible.
The Boston Consulting Group was right a decade ago and continues to be right today: IndyCar is too small to go head-to-head with the NFL.
Q: Is there any timeframe or framework for increasing the output of the hybrid system? It made sense to start low, but it would be nice to get them to a point where they more clearly offer more in power than they give up in weight. Do we know if different levels will be experimented with at the open test next month?
Granted, I think the extra weight is worth it solely on the ability of the driver to restart the car. On that, it seems that it’s not a given that drivers are able to do this. Pit stops get practiced and it would be nice if teams had driver restart procedures down pat before St. Pete. I think it’s easy to look past this as a small thing, but prolonged cautions hurt the product. If fines or penalties were issued for not being able to restart an undamaged car (avoidable delay?) I’m sure teams would be on top of it.
Parting shot for the offseason: IndyCar — mandate that driver’s names are prominently displayed in a common spot on the car. Liveries change constantly and the cars themselves are spec, so this is often the only way for a more casual fan to know who they are looking at on screen. Think IROC.
George, Albuquerque, NM
MP: Still a TBD, George. With the anticipated drop in speeds, I would expect IndyCar to consider its options for upping the power at the 500. The addition of 100 pounds of weight is an issue, but the greatest problem is the mechanical drag the heavy drum inside the MGU places on the engines on the long straights. I’m not sure what the horsepower hike would need to be from the ERS to negate that effect.
Agreed on the names.