Here is a rundown of what got me thinking...
Carlos Sainz, Jr.'s appendix kept him from racing, but it did allow Oliver Bearman to become the third youngest Formula One starter, and Bearman finished seventh. Haas used Kevin Magnussen's penalty to its advantage to earn a point. It rained for Supercross' first trip to Birmingham. The Daytona 200 was only 200 miles this year. Despite a wet start on Friday, MotoGP began its season without any other issues. Josef Newgarden won the St. Petersburg season opener for IndyCar, but that isn't what is on everyone's mind after this weekend.
Money, Money
It is going to be one of those years in IndyCar. It could be one of those years in motorsports in general.
No matter what happens on the track, the discussions off the track will seize control, putting in the backseat what is trying to be sold, but so goes it.
We couldn't get through the first race before Michael Andretti dropped a bombshell of a quote on the paddock. Speaking to Nathan Brown of the Indianapolis Star on Friday of the St. Petersburg weekend, Andretti said if series owner Roger Penske was not going to invest more that Penske should sell the series.
It has already been an acrimonious relationship between the team owners and IndyCar this offseason, as the team owners are looking for greater equity from the series to increase value in participating full-time. Discussions of an adaptation of the current Leader Circle program into something more in line with NASCAR's charter system have been ongoing with a pivotal hurdle being guaranteed participation in the Indianapolis 500.
That is currently at an impasse with the hope it will be settled before this year's Indianapolis 500. Also on the series' plate is a new television contract, which the series has said it would like settled before the Indianapolis 500, as the series also hopes to introduce the hybrid system sometime after the Indianapolis 500. Not is also not including work on new regulations with the hope of those being introduced come the 2027 season.
Let's just say, IndyCar has a lot on its plate over the next two and a half months.
But let's address the newest drama to the series. On the morning of Monday November 4, 2019, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced the Hulman-George family was selling the track after nearly 75 years of ownership, as well as the IndyCar Series, to Roger Penske. In less than five years, a team owner is calling for a change in leadership.
It is a gutsy call considering it was just under four years ago, in the midst of a global pandemic, everyone was saying there was no way an IndyCar Series season would have happened in 2020 without Roger Penske's ownership. Penske had spent millions on renovations to the 2.5-mile Speedway over the winter of 2019-20 only for his first year of track ownership to see its biggest events held behind closed doors with zero revenue coming in.
This is also coming at a time when the NTT IndyCar Series has 27 full-time entries when five years ago, the season prior to Penske's ownership, the average number of entries in non-Indianapolis 500 races was 22.875 cars. Not to forget mentioning, IndyCar directed $17 million more toward marketing last year.
Chip Ganassi mentioned Penske's guidance through 2020 in a rebuttal interview issuing more support for current series ownership with Brown after Andretti's quotes.
Things can be two things. IndyCar can be doing more and things can be better, and yet, more can still be done.
More can always be done. The problem is the money must come from somewhere.
That $17 million marketing increase came from the Leaders Circle program. Each entry received about $150,000 less money than it did in 2022. That money has returned to the teams for 2024. Where else could the series find money to give the teams?
Unless there is something we don't know about, IndyCar isn't known for its high-profile contracts. It isn't making billions from television and its title sponsor. Compared to NASCAR and Formula One, it is making a fraction to those behemoths. There surely is money in the bank, but emptying the vault for the sake of the teams isn't a viable long-term strategy.
Throwing money at a problem only solves so much. Would $100 million more toward marketing make a difference? Would it double the average viewership, drawing two million people to their televisions on race day instead of the customary one million? Would it increase the average attendance at every race to 100,000 spectators? Would it make Josef Newgarden, Patricio O'Ward, Scott Dixon and Álex Palou household names? But more importantly, would IndyCar be able to make its sizable invest back?
I doubt it.
That is the important thing. You can only burn so much money. Roger Penske is not a risk-taker. He also isn't a foolish man. He isn't going to throw caution to the wind on an investment. He isn't looking to make take a loss. Let's not forget Tony George lost an estimate $500 million over his time leading the series when he was removed from his role in 2009. This is new ownership, but IndyCar was losing money for a significant period of time and the series wasn't growing then. How would losing tens, if not hundreds of millions dollars, be for the best of the series? Whatever is chosen will be done after methodically weighing the risks and the rewards.
I get it. I have written about it multiple times over recent years. At a time when other series are doing new things, taking risks and being exciting, IndyCar is sticking to its playbook. It isn't being flashy. It isn't risking going over its skis. NASCAR and Formula One are seeing a boom of sorts. IndyCar is making baby steps with the status quo.
We want something exciting that stands out, something IndyCar hasn't done in a very long time.
Michael Andretti might be knee-jerk, but he is also right about a few things. He is right that IndyCar should look to expand its regulations to entice multiple new manufacturers instead of just focusing on adding a third. Adjusting the rules to potentially allow IMSA engines could be a great thing for the series. It isn't a guarantee to work, but the current plan isn't drawing a third manufacturer as it is.
Remember, we were supposed to have new 2.4-litre V6 engines introduced with the hybrid system until IndyCar decided with the manufacturers it would just bolt the hybrid to the existing 2.2-litre engine because why force Honda and Chevrolet to adopt a new engine structure when Honda and Chevrolet are still the only manufacturers' competing?
IndyCar is saying it will have new regulations in 2027. We were supposed to have a new chassis two years ago, along with hybrid engines. Developing a common chassis that can accommodate a range of engine structures seems to be an easy thing the series and teams can agree upon, and honestly, we could put it to bed this afternoon and commit to it, along with a loose formula that allows for a variety of engine sizes from displacement to cylinders, for in three years time. We can lock that down and not hem and haw leading to any further delays. Then attention can be turned elsewhere.
Would it likely require IndyCar to adopt Balance of Performance and new regulations for competitiveness? Yeah, probably, but it is the unnecessary evil in modern motorsports. Without Balance of Performance, sports car racing likely doesn't have the number of manufacturers and entries we are seeing in IMSA and the FIA World Endurance Championship at this moment. The question is, how bad do you want it for IndyCar? Because you are likely not going to get increased manufacturer participation in the way you want it.
Andretti wants what is best for IndyCar. He wants IndyCar to grow and garner more attention and present itself in the best possible way. It wants the series to take itself seriously. It sounds like every other team owner in the series agrees. The issue is this is a series that has been successfully operating under the slow and steady philosophy for 15 years at this point, well prior to Penske's ownership.
The series doesn't make many big gambles. It will take a moment to persuade it to do so. Throwing more money is doing something, but it must yield some kind of produce to make it worth it. If IndyCar is the same size with no discernible change in average viewership and general awareness five to ten years after such a staggering investment, you cannot blame series ownership for being upset and then pulling in the reigns.
Penske might have been the guy that could lead IndyCar through this rough patch, through a global pandemic. The series might have grown in size with more cars taking part full-time, and there could have been modest increases in viewership and race attendance. However, Penske might not be the guy willing to pull the trigger on a nine-figure investment that has a low-chance of breaking even. Whether such a fervor from those within the paddock is enough to twist his arm and de-vest from the series he purchased less than five years ago is a game of political chess that likely will not have a clear and satisfying winner.
It is also important to remember be careful of what you wish for. Just over four years ago, everyone was applauding Roger Penske taking over the series. Now, here we are.
Winner From the Weekend
You know about Josef Newgarden, but did you know...
Max Verstappen won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, his ninth consecutive victory dating back to last season.
Francesco Bagnaia won MotoGP's Qatar Grand Prix. Jorge Martín won the sprint race. Alonso López won the Moto2 race. David Alonso won the Moto3 race.
Christopher Bell won the NASCAR Cup race from Phoenix. Chandler Smith won the Grand National Series race.
Josh Herrin won the 82nd Daytona 200, his second consecutive Daytona 200 victory and third total Daytona 200 victory.
Nolan Siegel won the Indy Lights race from St. Petersburg. Lochie Hughes and Nikita Johnson split the USF Pro 2000 races. Max Garcia swept the U.S. F2000 races.
Richard Verschoor (sprint) and Enzo Fittipaldi (feature) split the Formula Two races from Jeddah.
Tomoki Nojiri won the Super Formula race from Suzuka.
Jett Lawrence won the Supercross race from Birmingham, his fourth victory of the season. Tom Vialle won the 250cc race, his second consecutive victory.
Coming Up This Weekend
12 Hours of Sebring.
Formula E is back in São Paulo.
NASCAR is racing on Bristol's concrete.
Supercross heads to Indianapolis.
