It was a weekend of first-time winners. Chip Ganassi is ecstatic. Honda continues to have engine issues but keeps winning races. NASCAR had another Kentucky finish distract people from two hours and 58 minutes of milquetoast racing. The Cup series did miss the rain this weekend. Formula One had a calmer day in Austria than last week. Ferrari is finding new lows. The Road to Indy season finally began. There was some racing at Virginia International Raceway. Here is a rundown of what got me thinking.
Is This The Future?
We are a week removed from the IndyCar/NASCAR combination weekend from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Behind closed doors, IndyCar and NASCAR's second division, the Xfinity Series, shared a Saturday afternoon on the road course. IndyCar raced at high noon and the NASCAR race took place into the early evening. The next day, the 2.5-mile oval was ready to go for the Cup Series to hold the Brickyard 400.
The weekend was a success. IndyCar held it race with no issues. NASCAR held its races with no issues. There weren't any problems with the racetrack and different tire manufactures competing (though we haven't seen any issues when IndyCar's Firestone rubber has run with IMSA's Continental or Michelin tires, Pirelli World Challenge's Pirelli tires and so on). NASCAR was able to install the necessary curbing after the IndyCar race. There were no issues in terms of garage space. It worked out.
It did not take long to flip the pit lane from the IndyCar setup to NASCAR's setup and I think IndyCar and the Cup series could host races on the same day. Saturday at Indianapolis was a full-day event. IndyCar held a full race at noon and the Grand National Series race took you into dinner. The same could be done with IndyCar and the Cup Series. This would allow both series to run on Sunday. One would not have to feel like a support event and be the day before. A fan would get great ticket value getting to see IndyCar's best drivers and NASCAR's best drivers race on the same day.
The Indianapolis weekend was a dress rehearsal for more to come.
Heading into the weekend, this IndyCar/NASCAR combination was already celebrated as a long-term change and NBC Sports executive producer even called the combination of the two series "the future."
This immediately spooked some IndyCar fans, thinking the series would lose its identity and become another support series to NASCAR, filling Saturday afternoons and never getting to be the Sunday showcase outside the Indianapolis 500.
It is important to remain calm and keep in mind what is realistic.
Television drove this combination weekend, and with good reason. NBC Sports broadcasts both IndyCar and NASCAR. Instead of sending production tracks to two different racetracks on the same weekend, especially if it is a course both series visit, why not combine the weekend and save cost? Same goes for IMSA and these two series.
Television also limits what can be a combination weekend. With IndyCar being entirely on NBC and NASCAR splitting its schedule with the first half on Fox and the second half on NBC, any races from February to the middle of June are off the table for combination weekends. These weekends are going to happen when NBC has both IndyCar and NASCAR on its airwaves.
There is also the limitation of racetracks. The original 2020 IndyCar schedule shared
seven tracks with the three NASCAR national touring series, two of the tracks already hosted combination weekends with IndyCar and the Truck series, two series that have frequently run together over the last 25 years, running at Texas and Gateway.
The other shared tracks were Indianapolis, Road America, Mid-Ohio, Iowa and Richmond. Only two of these tracks do IndyCar and the NASCAR Cup share, Indianapolis and Richmond. The others are shared with the Grand National Series but run on different weekends.
The future might not be IndyCar running on Saturday before Cup races a dozen times but NASCAR's second division running with IndyCar. Does it make any sense for IndyCar to head to Iowa two weeks before the NASCAR Grand National Series? No, and IndyCar could run Saturday night with the NASCAR race leading in earlier that evening. Why are IndyCar and the Grand National Series running two months apart at Road America? Let's just have them run together.
Tracks will get a say into whether or not it hosts combination weekends and for some it might benefit more from having the series apart. Road America's IndyCar weekend is already packed with Road to Indy action. The NASCAR weekend at the track allows Trans-Am and Stadium Super Trucks to participate in the weekend. Combining IndyCar and NASCAR will mean someone loses out between the Road to Indy and Trans-Am. It probably makes more business sense for Road America to have IndyCar, IMSA and NASCAR each have its own weekend even if it means it costs a little more for television.
Compatibility is another hurdle for these combination weekends. We saw IndyCar struggle at Texas with the residual effects from the traction compound put in the corners for the NASCAR race. Richmond also uses said compound. Ovals were always going to be tricky because of the different tire manufactures, but the use of traction compound for the benefit of one series while hindering another will prevent combination weekends at certain ovals from occurring.
In the wake of Indianapolis, many have penciled this combination to continue into 2021 at 16th and Georgetown but does it have to be an Indianapolis event?
Indianapolis is already the top of the motorsports pile in the United States. It has the Indianapolis 500 and is a great racetrack without the combination weekend. My fear was the combination weekend would quickly be seen as an Indianapolis thing and sure enough that has been the case. While Indianapolis is a cathedral for American motorsports, I don't think it is the best place for this combination weekend.
For starters, what does IndyCar get out of it? The talk is either the Grand Prix of Indianapolis moves to the NASCAR weekend or the Grand Prix stays at the start of May and an additional race is added with the NASCAR weekend. Does IndyCar need another race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway? Does it need another race on the IMS road course? It doesn't. An additional race runs the risk of actually watering down what we see at the famed track. It might make sense on paper, but if you went to see an IndyCar race on the IMS road course in May, what is bringing you back in July when it races with NASCAR? It might be a combination weekend but if you have already seen it, why go back and see it again, especially if it is pushing triple digits on the thermometer?
IndyCar can use the combination weekend to get something for itself. Instead of doing more of the same, this could be IndyCar's chance to return to Watkins Glen, a track it struggled to establish its own weekend. It could be a chance for IndyCar to return to Michigan after over a decade away. Michigan would probably have to lose the traction compound, but the thoughts of seeing IndyCar's fly around the two-mile oval at 230 MPH with a Cup session afterward is a trade worth making. It could be a chance for IndyCar to return to Kentucky, Loudon or Pocono. It could be IndyCar's chance to go somewhere new. After all we have seen in 2020, why couldn't IndyCar run at Bristol?
Indianapolis is the selling point. It is an easy sell. Everyone knows Indianapolis Motor Speedway is hallowed grounds, but this combination weekend's highest potential is outside the Hoosier State.
We will see IndyCar and NASCAR intermingled more down the road. It might not be IndyCar and the Cup series on the same bill eight times a year, but it could happen two or three times with another two or three weekends with IndyCar and NASCAR's second series together.
Combination weekends have a future, but its future is dependent on television. With everyone under the Peacock's roof, it will happen. If one or both series decide to move to another television partner, the combination weekends will go the way of the dodo.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Scott Dixon and Felix Rosenqvist but did you know...
Lewis Hamilton won the Styrian Grand Prix.
Robert Shwartzman and Christian Lundgaard split the Formula Two races from Austria. Frederik Vesti and Théo Pourchaire split the Formula Three races.
Danial Frost and Artem Petrov split the Indy Pro 2000 races from Road America. Christian Rasmussen swept the U.S. F2000 races.
Cole Custer won the NASCAR Cup race from Kentucky, his first career victory. Austin Cindric swept the Grand National Series races. Sheldon Creed won the Truck race, his first career victory.
The #80 Acura of Martin Barkey and Kyle Marcelli and the #04 DXDT Racing Mercedes-AMG of Colin Braun and George Kurtz split the GT World Challenge America races from Virginia International Raceway.
The #82 BMW of Bill Auberlen and James Walker, Jr. swept the GT4 America SprintX races. Spencer Pumpelly won the first GT4 America sprint race with the Michael Cooper taking the next two races.
Coming Up This Weekend
IndyCar has a night doubleheader, Friday night and Saturday night at Iowa.
NASCAR has its All-Star Race midweek from Bristol and then it heads to Texas.
IMSA has a sprint round at Sebring.
Supercars has another round at Sydney Motorsports Park.
Formula One closes out a three-week stretch in Hungary.
MotoGP opens its season in Jerez.
Super GT opens its season with its first of four Fuji rounds.
European Le Mans Series opens its season at Circuit Paul Ricard.
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup opens its season at Imola.
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