Nearly two weeks after IndyCar announced its first revision of the schedule, the series has made another amendment that will see one round cancelled, two rounds expanded into doubleheaders and another a third race added at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
What Changed?
Belle Isle was cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the city of Detroit meaning the 2020 season opener will tentatively take place on Saturday, June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway.
The Belle Isle doubleheader round will not be rescheduled later in the year.
How is IndyCar Making Up For It?
This revision expands the schedule from a 14-race calendar to a 15-race calendar with Iowa and Laguna Seca each becoming a doubleheader.
Iowa's first race will take place on Friday, July 17 with its original scheduled race still taking place on Saturday, July 18. The first Laguna Seca race takes place Saturday, September 19 with the second race occurring the following day.
The New Event
Added to the schedule is the IndyCar Harvest Grand Prix on Saturday, October 3 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. IndyCar joins the Intercontinental GT Challenge's Indianapolis 8 Hours weekend with the endurance race taking place the following day.
Any News on St. Petersburg?
St. Petersburg has remained on the second revised schedule but still does not have an announced date. The street race remains as the likely home for the 2020 season finale.
Double-Doubles?
With the loss of Belle Isle, IndyCar's back was against the wall.
That is two races lost in one swift kick and the simplest way to get those races back is expanding what is already scheduled.
Expanding Iowa and Laguna Seca into doubleheaders shows IndyCar's resourcefulness and willingness to take every step necessary to make sure the schedule maintains a respectable length.
There are still unanswered questions. Iowa holds a 300-lap race. Would both races be 300 laps? Would both races be shorter than 300 laps? Will Saturday night remain 300 laps and Friday's event be shorter? The same applies to Laguna Seca, which hosts a 90-lap race. That can be sorted out down the road.
This condensed schedule means IndyCar might have to embrace these doubleheaders in different ways than it would if this was a normal year. The Iowa doubleheader is coming at the end of five consecutive weeks of racing. There will be a four-day turnaround between the Toronto street race and the Friday night Iowa race.
Just for the team's sanity and to relieve the workload it could be possible we see IndyCar try something similar to what NASCAR is doing for its Pocono doubleheader. Instead of having practice, qualifying and a race on both days, IndyCar could practice, qualify and race on Friday and use Friday's race results to set the Saturday grid.
For NASCAR's Pocono doubleheader the race one results determine the race two starting grid with the final lead lap finisher in race one assuming pole position for race two. The rest of the inverted lead lap finishers line up on the grid before the lapped finishers fill out the field starting race two where they finished in the first race.
Using last year's Iowa results as an example, Josef Newgarden won the race but if that was race one he would have started seventh with Zach Veach starting on pole position for race two. Eighth on back to 22nd would start where they finished. If you expand this to Laguna Seca, Colton Herta would start race two from 19th with Jack Harvey rocketing to pole position and Veach joining Harvey on row one.
Nothing points to IndyCar adopting that format and IndyCar has used separate qualifying sessions to set the starting order of each doubleheader race since the format returned to the schedule in 2013. However, if the series is open to adding races to existing race weekends I imagine the series will be open to trying different formats especially if it means putting less pressure on the crews.
Iowa is at a difficult point in the schedule and if the teams have to rebuild cars after a race on Friday night it would be beneficial having only to worry about a Saturday night race instead of preparing the cars for another practice and/or qualifying session on Saturday afternoon.
This format would likely work better at Iowa versus Laguna Seca and teams would resist having one race determine the other out of fear a bad first race could lead to an equally rotten second race but everything has to be on the table.
Indy's Third Weekend
The only new round is the third Indianapolis weekend, the Harvest Grand Prix.
This is a case of IndyCar making the most use of what is at its disposal. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is IndyCar's for the most part and the track was already scheduled to be used that weekend. As excited as I am for the Indianapolis 8 Hours, it is not going to draw a capacity turnout. Frankly, the Harvest Grand Prix will draw a significantly larger crowd than if the Indianapolis 8 Hours was to take place on its own.
Does this race cause saturation to the Indianapolis market? Possibly but we are not worried about saturation at this point.
IndyCar has a track and if it needs an additional race Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a low-cost option. Majority of the teams are in the area meaning less money will be spent on hotel rooms and flights. It will be a cooler time in the year and the race will play a significant role in the championship.
Though many would prefer a make-up race elsewhere this is not the year for 11th hour miracles. These are much different times than 2015 when Watkins Glen substituted for the stillbirth Boston street race. If tracks are not sure when or if its scheduled dates are going to take place what makes you think it would take on an unplanned IndyCar race? That's not going to happen this year. The best option for IndyCar in that case is Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is the one track IndyCar can be certain will be available and up to standard.
Would I like to see the Harvest Grand Prix be a little different then the Grand Prix of Indianapolis? Absolutely!
Indianapolis has the ability to run in either direction. The Harvest Grand Prix could be run counter-clockwise opposed to the clockwise Grand Prix of Indianapolis. The course could include oval turn one. The race length could be longer or shorter.
Whatever course IndyCar does run it will likely have to be what the Indianapolis 8 Hours will use. If IndyCar runs counter-clockwise the Indianapolis 8 Hours will have to go in the same direction just for sake of barrier layout and marshal positioning. I am sure IndyCar and Stéphane Ratel Organisation will come to a joint-decision for the best of both series.
Should We Expect a Third Revision?
Damn straight!
There are going to be more changes and if it was less than two weeks to get a second revision then a third will come soon rather than later.
What is in danger?
Texas was only a week after Belle Isle. It is in prime position to lose its scheduled date but I would pencil down Texas as a likely candidate to find a new date in the calendar. It found a new date in 2016 when rain washed the race from June to August and Texas has a NASCAR weekend. We are already seeing IndyCar join one NASCAR weekend this year. A second weekend would be nothing at this point.
The city of Toronto banned all large public gatherings through June 30. While the IndyCar race is scheduled for July 12 the city still needs to build the racetrack and such a mandate could prevent that from happening. We have lost every street course race this season and St. Petersburg is the only one hanging on for a new date. It is getting harder to see how IndyCar will go north of the border.
The second revision created wiggle room for a third revision. We went from 14 races to 15 races. If Toronto has to be dropped or if St. Petersburg does not happen then we will still get 14 races. If we lose both dates then IndyCar may be prompted to add one more doubleheader. It is too early to speculate what other round could become a doubleheader. On Sunday I wouldn't have put Iowa anywhere close to the top of the list and here we are on Tuesday with two nights races slated for the 7/8-mile oval.
Is it foolish to be excited about something as fragile as this 2020 season?
This indefinite holding pattern requires reflection and with each passing day the likelihood of no 2020 season grows. Despite this difficult fate this unusual year produced an unusual schedule, one we will never see again but one we may never see at all. Though we are guaranteed nothing I find myself gleeful over the slim possibility of something, something unreproducible.
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