Monday, December 31, 2012

IndyCar Wishes For 2013

I made predictions the other day, now, on the final day of 2012, I have a wish list for 2013.

1. Nobody get hurt and we all get to see 2014.

2. No bickering from car owners.
I had enough in 2012.

3. IndyCar moving forward in 2013.
Let's keep the schedule together for 2014 and add more ovals and natural terrain road courses. I know I have said it a million times before but Phoenix, Michigan, Road America, Richmond, Watkins Glen, Austin, Kentucky and New Hampshire please.

4. A third Penske all season or a third Penske at Indianapolis that moves the needle.
Either hire Ryan Briscoe back or hire the likes of Townsend Bell. If that can't happen, go all out at Indianapolis. Tony Stewart said no, call Keselowski. Sébastien Loeb is running a limited World Rally schedule and some sport cars. Give him a call. I know it seems ridiculous but it's better than Penske not running a third car at all.

5. Chevrolet stepping up it's game.
And I mean on the promotional side. They won the manufacturer's and driver's championships. No ads featuring IndyCar, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Will Power, Marco Andretti, Roger Penske, etc. Hell, dream commercial, have four Chevrolet NASCAR drivers (Stewart, Johnson, Gordon, Earnhardt Jr.), four Chevrolet IndyCar drivers (Hunter-Reay, Power, Kanaan and Hinchcliffe) and four Corvette drivers (Milner, Taylor, Magnussen and Gavin) and have them each talk about why there form of racing is best with all saying in the end the best reason is that they drive a Chevrolet and have the final five seconds be two cars of each light up the tires and drive into the sunset. Even better, make that your Super Bowl commercial. Perfect.

6. Doubleheaders work out for everyone involved.
I want the promoters to make money, the format not being too demanding on the drivers, each race get good ratings and most importantly the fans getting more than what they paid to see.

7. No sunburn when I go to the Pocono race.
I usually do not get sunburn and it normally takes a lot of sun for me to get any type of color. With that said, I should be fine and should have sunscreen on the ready.

8. The 2014 Lights car being damn affordable and larger fields.
We cannot continue having 11 car fields with 7 ride buyers. We need more graduates from Star Mazda, more support from IndyCar teams and the ladder system producing young American talent.

9. The same close racing we had in 2012.
Whatever everybody did last year, do it again. I want the great races we saw at Indianapolis, Texas and Fontana again, surprises in races such as Barber, Long Beach and Baltimore, with improvements at Sonoma, Mid-Ohio and Belle Isle.

10. People who know nothing about racing stop telling me what "real racing" is.

11. People stop labeling all racing as NASCAR.
It's really ignorant.

12. Aero Kits.
It makes no sense why they weren't allow in the first place. The teams were not and are not going to be forced to buy them. If one team buys an aero kit and the rest do not, than so be it but at least give the teams the option instead of forcing everyone to run the Dallara aero kit.

13. This finally being IndyCar's year.
IndyCar survived the apocalypse. It is now time for the series to pick it self up and start living out it's potential. Car owners, drivers, officials united for the sport as a whole. Contracts with sponsor who want the series to succeed and be profitable. I want the TV broadcast to be the best damn broadcast possible, regardless of the ratings and if it's cable or network. Everyone one who has a reason to care about IndyCar should work together because divided the series is not going anywhere.

I would like to wish everybody a Happy New Year and I hope I get to see you at a race track.