There was a old-school race of attrition at Spa-Francorchamps. Jorge Lorenzo won at Le Mans while Marc Márquez fell and Lorenzo leaves France with the championship lead. NASCAR had a Saturday night race and I actually enjoyed it. The Friday night race could have been better or at least officiated better. Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters kicked off its season. The Supercross season capped off in the mud. The WTCC went back to Africa and to a familiar city but a different course and Citroën was shut out for the first time in a year and a half. Here is a run down of what got me thinking.
Danger vs. Difficulty
I listened to the Motor Sport Magazine podcast on Saturday morning and Frank Dernie, who worked at Williams F1 and was a consultant with Toyota F1, was the guest. At the end of the podcast, Dernie brought up how all the focus in recent years has been on aerodynamics and downforce being the reason for less than stellar racing. He proposed an alternative to the decline the competition being that the cars have become to easy to drive with semi-automatic gearboxes and the high degradation of tires are the problem.
Today, tires degrade like a husky shedding its winter coat. Klag builds offline and makes it impossible for a driver to make a pass because if they go offline there is no grip compared to the racing line and instead of completing a pass, a driver is likely just going lose time and even worse could let the trailing car by.
Dernie harked on gear changes involving no skill today. Back in the day, a driver had to work the car and drivers use to make mistakes. Nobody makes misses gearshifts today. A driver can afford to watch their mirrors because they aren't doing anything. The hands are always on the wheel. There is much less skill in just playing with the pedals and flicking the paddles behind the steering wheel.
Everyone wants to see the cars be more difficult to drive but it's not a simple science of just taking off downforce or making the tires degrade like meat falling off the bone in a crockpot or going back to a standard gearbox. The domed skid was added to the DW12 chassis and drivers (Honda drivers) have noted how unstable the car is with the domed skid and the increased strain on suspension pieces. Some said it was a good thing the car was unstable as the domed skid made the car more difficult to drive but the car can be made more difficult to drive without increasing the risk of a structural failure. James Hinchcliffe was shish-kebabed last season. While that was a freak accident, there is no reason to increase the risk of having another driver nearly bleed to death in the car.
In Formula One, the change was made to return to single-clutch devices, which has mixed up the starts of the races this season. We have seen drivers drop like rocks at starts of races and unlikely faces jump up three or four positions in the first two corners. Imagine if an entire race could be as interesting as the starts of the races have been. A simple change such as the single-clutch has done wonders but it is only used once and within five laps it is back to usual.
When making cars more difficult to drive, it is a mix of taking off downforce (especially on ovals to make a driver lift in the corners), a balanced tire and making a driver work in the cockpit. Making a car more difficult to drive does not have to make it more dangerous. Like any good recipe, you need to get each ingredient right, not one, for a satisfying dish.
Date Equity in Motion
The FIA World Endurance Championship is in its fifth season and looking over the five calendars, the series has been consistent. Other than Circuit of the Americas replacing the 12 Hours of Sebring (which was and still is a good move) and Nürburgring replacing Interlagos, the series has consistently gone to the same places on the same dates and it is paying off.
Spa-Francorchamps has been held all five years at the beginning of May and this year's race had an announced attendance of 56,000, the largest crowd. The Shanghai round has consistently been late-October, early-November and the growth in that event is noticeable. There have been a few shifts. Silverstone moved from August to April but has been in April for the past four seasons. Bahrain originally was held in September but has been in November the past four seasons. Things are going really well for FIA WEC and the calendar grew by one round with the addition of Mexico City.
Compared to IndyCar, the series with the man at the helm who has spouted about date equity like a evangelist on the street corner, FIA WEC is showing that date equity has its dividends, it just needs to be practiced. Fontana returned to the IndyCar calendar the same year FIA WEC ran its first season. While Spa-Francorchamps, Shanghai, Fuji and Le Mans have all been held in the same time period each year of the FIA WEC and Silverstone, Austin and Bahrain have been the same time for the last three season, Fontana went from September 15th to October 19th to August 30th to June 27th. Milwaukee returned to the IndyCar calendar in 2011 and after being on Father's Day weekend for three years it moved to the middle of August and then the middle of July.
IndyCar and its tracks need to give these events time to grow. Instead of playing small ball, they are swinging for the fences but ending up on one knee in the dirt. Growth takes time and having a IndyCar race become part of a local community's psyche is worth the wait. IndyCar should become synonymous with a time of the year. When July rolls around in Iowa, the locals should think, "hey, IndyCar is coming to town" same with Barber in April and Pocono in August and any other race on the calendar. The successful IndyCar races have been held on the same dates for decades, the most notable of course being the Indianapolis 500 but also Long Beach, which has been held in the middle of April for over 40 years and Mid-Ohio has been held in late-July, early-August dating back to the middle of the 1990s.
Date equity works when it is practiced and IndyCar has failed to produce date equity with recent additions to the calendar. FIA WEC knows what it wants its calendar to be and it makes it work. IndyCar has yet to take ownership over its calendar. IndyCar's failure to tend its races like plants in a garden has led to stunted growth or, frankly, no growth at all. You can't plant seeds and expect something to sprout in five minutes. Patience leads to larger rewards. If Mark Miles was a gardener, he would know that.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Jorge Lorenzo but did you know...
The #8 Audi R18 e-tron quattro of Oliver Jarvis, Lucas di Grassi and Loïc Duval won the WEC 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. Nicolas Lapierre, American Gustavo Menezes and Stéphane Richelmi won LMP2 in the #36 Signatech Alpine Alpine-Nissan. Davide Rigon and Sam Bird won their second consecutive race in GTE-Pro in the #71 AF Corse Ferrari. The #98 Aston Martin of Paul Dalla Lana, Pedro Lamy and Mathias Lauda won in GTE-Am.
Super GT ran at Fuji on Wednesday and the #1 NISMO Nissan GT-R of Tsugio Matsuda and Ronnie Quintarelli won the race. In GT300, the #3 NDDP Racing Nissan GT-R GT3 of Jann Mardenborough and Kazuki Hoshino were victorious.
Álex Rins won the Moto2 race from Le Mans. Brad Binder won his second consecutive race in Moto3.
Kyle Busch won the NASCAR Cup race from Kansas. William Byron won the Truck race.
Edoardo Mortara and Paul di Resta split the DTM opening weekend at Hockenheimring.
Craig Lowndes and Mark Winterbottom split the V8 Supercars weekend at Barbagallo Raceway.
The #33 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT Audi R8 LMS of Christopher Mies and Enzo Ide won the Blancpain Sprint Series race from Brands Hatch. The #86 HTP Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Bernd Schneider and Jules Szymkowiak won the qualifying race.
Tom Coronel and Robert Huff split the WTCC weekend from Marrakech.
Ryan Dungey capped off his AMA Supercross championship by winning the season finale from Las Vegas.
Coming Up This Weekend
IndyCar runs the Grand Prix of Indianapolis with all three Road to Indy series in tow.
Formula One heads to Spain for the fifth round of 2016.
NASCAR will be at Dover a little earlier this year.
European Le Mans Series runs its second round of 2016 at Imola.
Blancpain Endurance Series runs its second round of 2016 at Silverstone.
World Superbike gets away from Europe and takes a trip to Sepang.
Covering All Motorsports. From Indianapolis to Le Mans, Daytona to Monaco.
Monday, May 9, 2016
Friday, May 6, 2016
Can I Love This?
When the news Mario Domínguez was in consideration for an Indianapolis 500 entry with Michael Shank Racing broke, the finer details were daggers to the heart. It's nothing personal against Domínguez. You can't hate the player, you have to hate the game and right now the game no longer tickles my fancy.
Domínguez's story would intrigue the non-diehard fans. Eight years ago, Domínguez was the final driver on track trying to bump his way into the Indianapolis 500. His first lap was on pace to make the field. He didn't complete a second lap. A spin in turn one ended the dream and after running a handful of races with Pacific Coast Motorsports later in 2008, Domínguez's career fizzled out. A few FIA GT1 World Championships races ran in 2009 but then four years on the sidelines before returning to competition in NASCAR Toyota Series in Mexico. Domínguez's story is one of redemption. A man getting a second chance many thought would never come. However, his second chance comes because of the game's thirst for green.
Domínguez has money. Somehow, a man who has been out of top tier competitive motorsports for most of the last decade has the funding for an Indianapolis 500 program. Gabby Chaves might have finished all but one race on his way to being IndyCar's 2015 Rookie of the Year and that lone retirement was an engine failure when he was in contention for a podium at Pocono but the 22-year-old's check apparently pales in comparison to the Mexicans and that is all that matters. Chaves completed the second most laps in 2015 behind only Ryan Hunter-Reay. Chaves showed he has the ability to be fighting the big boys in IndyCar and deserves another crack at the Indianapolis 500 but even recent success does not trump the check from an inactive driver.
It's nothing personal against Domínguez. I think he should attempt to qualify from the Indianapolis 500 but the drama of Bump Day has disappeared because it now takes place in boardrooms over who has the largest check and not on the track over who can run the fastest over ten miles. I want the Indianapolis 500 starting grid to be determined on the racetrack. I want Domínguez, Chaves, Katherine Legge, James Davison, Brian Vickers, Sebastián Saavedra and whoever else is working on an Indianapolis 500 deal in the shadows to let the stopwatch decide whether or not they race and not a team owner who wants his or her pocket padded.
Motorsports want to be taken serious and in the United States. Whether it is IndyCar or NASCAR, they want to be taken seriously by the greater sporting world. They want to be on SportsCenter between LeBron James dunks and Bryce Harper home runs. But how can any sports fan fall in love when money decides who competes and who doesn't? People want to see competition, not a bidding war and they want to see talent and success rewarded.
After years of struggling to fill the field, once IndyCar reunified Bump Day returned to the dramatic day we all knew and loved. In 2008, it was Domínguez vs. Marty Roth. Not Mike Tyson vs. Buster Douglas but still something. In 2009, Nelson Philippe and Milko Duno forced John Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay to scramble to make it back into the field and Alex Tagliani ended up on the outside. The following year saw Tony Kanaan struggle to make the race. Paul Tracy and Jay Howard continued to withdraw fast enough times to qualify and Sebastián Saavedra made the race despite being in hospital after an accident in practice and not bumping his way in. The final year of the Dallara IR07 chassis saw the Penske of Ryan Briscoe needing to qualify on the final day and Paul Tracy again in danger of failing to qualify. When the gun went off, two Andretti cars failed to qualify and another five were also on the outside. You don't need a hundred cars to make Bump Day dramatic. Four or five cars can lead to a notable name in danger of making the race.
IndyCar isn't the only series where the dollar rules. GP2 champions can't make it to Formula One but the driver who finished fourth gets a ride with no problems. Plenty of talented drivers are choosing sports cars over Formula One. There is nothing wrong with choosing sports cars over single-seaters but how can a series bill itself as that best series in the world when the top prospects choose a different path?
Can I love the current state of motorsports? No. The concerning thing is the series don't seem to think it is a problem but it is. People want to see the best compete and not the richest. Instead of accepting the way it is, changes should be made especially as series try to attract more viewers. People want competition and they want it on the racetrack, not behind closed doors.
Domínguez's story would intrigue the non-diehard fans. Eight years ago, Domínguez was the final driver on track trying to bump his way into the Indianapolis 500. His first lap was on pace to make the field. He didn't complete a second lap. A spin in turn one ended the dream and after running a handful of races with Pacific Coast Motorsports later in 2008, Domínguez's career fizzled out. A few FIA GT1 World Championships races ran in 2009 but then four years on the sidelines before returning to competition in NASCAR Toyota Series in Mexico. Domínguez's story is one of redemption. A man getting a second chance many thought would never come. However, his second chance comes because of the game's thirst for green.
Domínguez has money. Somehow, a man who has been out of top tier competitive motorsports for most of the last decade has the funding for an Indianapolis 500 program. Gabby Chaves might have finished all but one race on his way to being IndyCar's 2015 Rookie of the Year and that lone retirement was an engine failure when he was in contention for a podium at Pocono but the 22-year-old's check apparently pales in comparison to the Mexicans and that is all that matters. Chaves completed the second most laps in 2015 behind only Ryan Hunter-Reay. Chaves showed he has the ability to be fighting the big boys in IndyCar and deserves another crack at the Indianapolis 500 but even recent success does not trump the check from an inactive driver.
It's nothing personal against Domínguez. I think he should attempt to qualify from the Indianapolis 500 but the drama of Bump Day has disappeared because it now takes place in boardrooms over who has the largest check and not on the track over who can run the fastest over ten miles. I want the Indianapolis 500 starting grid to be determined on the racetrack. I want Domínguez, Chaves, Katherine Legge, James Davison, Brian Vickers, Sebastián Saavedra and whoever else is working on an Indianapolis 500 deal in the shadows to let the stopwatch decide whether or not they race and not a team owner who wants his or her pocket padded.
Motorsports want to be taken serious and in the United States. Whether it is IndyCar or NASCAR, they want to be taken seriously by the greater sporting world. They want to be on SportsCenter between LeBron James dunks and Bryce Harper home runs. But how can any sports fan fall in love when money decides who competes and who doesn't? People want to see competition, not a bidding war and they want to see talent and success rewarded.
After years of struggling to fill the field, once IndyCar reunified Bump Day returned to the dramatic day we all knew and loved. In 2008, it was Domínguez vs. Marty Roth. Not Mike Tyson vs. Buster Douglas but still something. In 2009, Nelson Philippe and Milko Duno forced John Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay to scramble to make it back into the field and Alex Tagliani ended up on the outside. The following year saw Tony Kanaan struggle to make the race. Paul Tracy and Jay Howard continued to withdraw fast enough times to qualify and Sebastián Saavedra made the race despite being in hospital after an accident in practice and not bumping his way in. The final year of the Dallara IR07 chassis saw the Penske of Ryan Briscoe needing to qualify on the final day and Paul Tracy again in danger of failing to qualify. When the gun went off, two Andretti cars failed to qualify and another five were also on the outside. You don't need a hundred cars to make Bump Day dramatic. Four or five cars can lead to a notable name in danger of making the race.
IndyCar isn't the only series where the dollar rules. GP2 champions can't make it to Formula One but the driver who finished fourth gets a ride with no problems. Plenty of talented drivers are choosing sports cars over Formula One. There is nothing wrong with choosing sports cars over single-seaters but how can a series bill itself as that best series in the world when the top prospects choose a different path?
Can I love the current state of motorsports? No. The concerning thing is the series don't seem to think it is a problem but it is. People want to see the best compete and not the richest. Instead of accepting the way it is, changes should be made especially as series try to attract more viewers. People want competition and they want it on the racetrack, not behind closed doors.
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
In 2016, The Indianapolis 500 Is Not the Greatest Race in the World
As Sebastián Saavedra threw in the towel on AFS Racing's attempt to qualify for the Indianapolis 500, it became clear the Indianapolis 500 (the race many believe, foolishly or not, is the greatest race in the world) is no longer worth a roll of the dice. Teams would rather not give it a go than face an uphill battle at a chance to be a part of a race that was once great, if not the greatest in the world.
Saavedra said there isn't enough time yet qualifying is three weeks away. Three weeks! There was once a time when three weeks was plenty of time. Deals would be finalized hours before a qualifying attempt. Year-old cars were a norm to fight to make the Indianapolis 500. Now, a team and driver don't want to go out and give it a shot with year-old bodywork. Making the Indianapolis 500 use to be hitting the jackpot and winning the race was dying and going to Heaven. Now, starting the race doesn't cover the costs and to break even teams need to finish in the top two.
The Indianapolis 500 has been stuck in the past for the last thirty years, if not more. Spectators still show up but that doesn't mean every thing is hunky-dory. The Indianapolis 500 was a meritocracy. It wasn't about being one of the first 33 people to get an engine lease or chassis deal. It was about getting the 33 fastest cars regardless of what it took, even if it meant putting a bus engine in a car. People would throw the kitchen sink at making the race. A team might have been a 250-1 underdog to win the race and likely wouldn't even make it a full 500 miles but they were going to give it all they got.
Teams and drivers would come from around the world to the Indianapolis 500 to give it a go with no clue what would happen. Now, no chances are taken. No driver is intrigued enough to come across the pond and throw caution to the wind to try and make history. If there is any positive to take away from this is it's that drivers are still interested in competing in the Indianapolis 500. We know Saavedra was working on it. We know Katherine Legge wants to give it a shot, same for Gabby Chaves and James Davison and Brian Vickers. Hell, even Mario Domínguez came out of nowhere and is trying to fund an attempt. I am sure there are another half-dozen drivers who want to be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in line to qualify in a few weeks. It's not just drivers that want to be at Indianapolis. Teams want to be there as well. Michael Shank Racing, Carlin and Grace Autosport all have been rumored to be working on Indianapolis 500 deals.
The odds of Saavedra, Legge, Chaves, Davison, Vickers or Domínguez winning the Indianapolis 500 might be slim to none but why should that stop them from attempting to qualify and why should that deem their absence not important? If the Indianapolis 500 was just about the drivers who could win on paper then only 12-17 cars would enter each year. No one wants to see that. The beauty of sports and the beauty of the Indianapolis 500 is we never know what will happen. A driver might be a long shot to make the race but put together a magical four laps and end up in the race. That's what is the Indianapolis 500 is about. It's about trying to beat the odds regardless of what is written on paper.
The problem is the means are not there for these drivers to try and the economics don't make any sense. If IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway want the Indianapolis 500 to at least challenge again to be the greatest race in the world it needs to look to be more inclusive and more affordable for teams or the race needs to pay more to start. If it is going to cost around a half-million to run a car for one-race, the prize for starting should be high enough to cover the costs. Money just doesn't fall from the sky and to increase the purse something will have to be done, such as selling title sponsorship to the race and not at a hometown discount to a local company.
Nothing will change under the status quo. A few regulation changes could make it possible for the handful of wishful drivers above to actual attempt to make the Indianapolis 500 by turning a four-lap qualifying run instead of scrapping pennies together and more inclusive regulations could encourage more teams and drivers to show up during the month of May. It may even bring drivers from around the world to the Indianapolis 500.
I really don't want to write about the Indianapolis 500. At least not like this. I don't want to write about the wishy-washy state of a race that was once great. Teams deciding the Indianapolis 500 is not worth the time and effort cannot be good enough for those in charge of the series and the Speedway. The Indianapolis 500 was the greatest race in the world for most of the 20th century but to make it back to that mountain top the Indianapolis 500 needs to enter the 21st century.
Saavedra said there isn't enough time yet qualifying is three weeks away. Three weeks! There was once a time when three weeks was plenty of time. Deals would be finalized hours before a qualifying attempt. Year-old cars were a norm to fight to make the Indianapolis 500. Now, a team and driver don't want to go out and give it a shot with year-old bodywork. Making the Indianapolis 500 use to be hitting the jackpot and winning the race was dying and going to Heaven. Now, starting the race doesn't cover the costs and to break even teams need to finish in the top two.
The Indianapolis 500 has been stuck in the past for the last thirty years, if not more. Spectators still show up but that doesn't mean every thing is hunky-dory. The Indianapolis 500 was a meritocracy. It wasn't about being one of the first 33 people to get an engine lease or chassis deal. It was about getting the 33 fastest cars regardless of what it took, even if it meant putting a bus engine in a car. People would throw the kitchen sink at making the race. A team might have been a 250-1 underdog to win the race and likely wouldn't even make it a full 500 miles but they were going to give it all they got.
Teams and drivers would come from around the world to the Indianapolis 500 to give it a go with no clue what would happen. Now, no chances are taken. No driver is intrigued enough to come across the pond and throw caution to the wind to try and make history. If there is any positive to take away from this is it's that drivers are still interested in competing in the Indianapolis 500. We know Saavedra was working on it. We know Katherine Legge wants to give it a shot, same for Gabby Chaves and James Davison and Brian Vickers. Hell, even Mario Domínguez came out of nowhere and is trying to fund an attempt. I am sure there are another half-dozen drivers who want to be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in line to qualify in a few weeks. It's not just drivers that want to be at Indianapolis. Teams want to be there as well. Michael Shank Racing, Carlin and Grace Autosport all have been rumored to be working on Indianapolis 500 deals.
The odds of Saavedra, Legge, Chaves, Davison, Vickers or Domínguez winning the Indianapolis 500 might be slim to none but why should that stop them from attempting to qualify and why should that deem their absence not important? If the Indianapolis 500 was just about the drivers who could win on paper then only 12-17 cars would enter each year. No one wants to see that. The beauty of sports and the beauty of the Indianapolis 500 is we never know what will happen. A driver might be a long shot to make the race but put together a magical four laps and end up in the race. That's what is the Indianapolis 500 is about. It's about trying to beat the odds regardless of what is written on paper.
The problem is the means are not there for these drivers to try and the economics don't make any sense. If IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway want the Indianapolis 500 to at least challenge again to be the greatest race in the world it needs to look to be more inclusive and more affordable for teams or the race needs to pay more to start. If it is going to cost around a half-million to run a car for one-race, the prize for starting should be high enough to cover the costs. Money just doesn't fall from the sky and to increase the purse something will have to be done, such as selling title sponsorship to the race and not at a hometown discount to a local company.
Nothing will change under the status quo. A few regulation changes could make it possible for the handful of wishful drivers above to actual attempt to make the Indianapolis 500 by turning a four-lap qualifying run instead of scrapping pennies together and more inclusive regulations could encourage more teams and drivers to show up during the month of May. It may even bring drivers from around the world to the Indianapolis 500.
I really don't want to write about the Indianapolis 500. At least not like this. I don't want to write about the wishy-washy state of a race that was once great. Teams deciding the Indianapolis 500 is not worth the time and effort cannot be good enough for those in charge of the series and the Speedway. The Indianapolis 500 was the greatest race in the world for most of the 20th century but to make it back to that mountain top the Indianapolis 500 needs to enter the 21st century.
Monday, May 2, 2016
Musings From the Weekend: How Thin is the Talent Pool?
The month of May is here. The 2016 World Drivers' Championship is firmly in Nico Rosberg's hand after he won in Sochi. IndyCar's Labor Day will not be spent in Boston. NASCAR had a confusing finish and a ginormous amount of damaged race cars. V8 Supercars is dropping the "V8." Red Bull tested an "aeroscreen." There was a first-time and popular winner at Laguna Seca. Ryan Dungey clinched his third career AMA Supercross championship. Here is a run down of what got me thinking.
How Thin is the Talent Pool?
For a young driver hoping to make it to the top of motorsports, whether it be Formula One, IndyCar, NASCAR or whatever it could be, track time is getting harder and harder to come by. Drivers used to test like crazy during the offseason, running thousands of miles in preparation for an upcoming season. Rookies would enter a season with hours of track time and a vast working knowledge of a car. Drivers would know what setup they liked and could slide right into a series and be competitive.
Costs have expanded and now offseason testing consists of one or two two-day sessions. A driver goes months without being behind the wheel of a car. Most drivers enter on a wing and a prayer of getting top results in their first season. Rookie balance the expectations to be as great as their predecessors with a fifth of the testing and to bring the car home in one piece because checkbooks are tight and teams don't want to pay for spares.
The quality of future grids is likely to go down in the next few years as the last of the generation of testers approach retirement. This lack of testing has lengthened the careers of a handful of drivers (Tony Kanaan, Hélio Castroneves, Juan Pablo Montoya) but eventually they will need to be replaced and the youngsters will likely be overlooked. It's not that drivers born in the 1990s aren't as talented because they don't rush to get their drivers' licenses like previous generations but they have raced in an era where track time only ever comes on a race weekend and the expectation has been to supplement real-life testing for computer simulations. Let's just say, there is no experience that makes up for the real thing.
Some people are worried, especially with the month of May beginning. Six rookies are currently entered for the Indianapolis 500. That's not a bad thing and this abundance of rookies isn't a new thing. Just two years ago there were seven rookies. Back in 1992 there were seven rookies including two future champions, Paul Tracy and Jimmy Vasser. The 1995 Indianapolis 500 had six rookies and two finished in the top four and three in the top eleven.
What people are concerned about is the lack of oval experience in this rookie class. Of the six rookies, three made their first oval start ever at Phoenix in April (Alexander Rossi, Max Chilton, Luca Filippi) and the other three haven't raced an oval in IndyCar but have oval experience in Indy Lights and all three have raced the Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Spencer Pigot, Matthew Brabham, Stefan Wilson). Only Brabham has yet to make an IndyCar start but he is scheduled to debut in the Grand Prix of Indianapolis.
Comparing this rookie class to the 2014 class, they aren't that different. All seven had never run an IndyCar oval race entering that year's race. Of the seven, two had never run an oval race prior (Mikhail Aleshin and Carlos Huertas). The other five all had oval experience and all had experience at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Jack Hawksworth, James Davison, Martin Plowman and Sage Karam had all raced the Freedom 100 and Kurt Busch was well versed in ovals from his NASCAR experience. Busch and Karam were the only two drivers making their IndyCar debuts.
Is the concern over experience just another storyline being created out of thin air? Probably. There wasn't nearly as much concern in 2014 and you could argue that class was less prepared that 2016. Two of these rookies went on to finish in the top ten, five finished all 200 laps and all seven were running at the finish. Heck this rookie class is arguably more experienced then the 1995 class. André Ribeiro had four ovals starts in Indy Lights and two in IndyCar, both coming earlier that season. Alessandro Zampedri had three IndyCar oval starts. Gil de Ferran's only IndyCar oval starts were at Phoenix and Nazareth earlier that season, same for Eliseo Salazar and Christian Fittipaldi. Carlos Guerrero ran Nazareth the month prior.
The aero kits and the domed skids are what have been making people twitchy. The domed skids have never been raced. Whether you agree with something being implemented for the first time in the Indianapolis 500 or not it is happening. It would have been nice for IndyCar to race the domed skid prior and maybe IndyCar should increase the requirements if a driver wants to attempt the Indianapolis 500. If a driver, regardless of what they have done in their careers, wants to run the 24 Hours Nürburgring in GT3 machinery, a driver must not only compete in but finish two VLN events around the Nordschleife with at least 18 laps driven and in the top 75% of class with a minimum of three starters.
If IndyCar wants to make sure the drivers are better prepared, requiring them to run at least one, if not two IndyCar oval races before going to Indianapolis isn't necessarily a bad idea, especially with testing being so limited. IndyCar already has Phoenix prior to the "500." Adding a 1.5-mile oval before the month of May could be another chance for drivers to get oval experience and allow IndyCar to test any technical changes, such as the domed skids. As for worries about drivers getting the funding to run these races, I am sure it could be found and IndyCar could use their television partner to its advantage. The network races give sponsors more exposure and the ovals could be shown on ABC (I would even argue ovals should be the only IndyCar races shown on network but that's a discussion for another day).
Ultimately, what IndyCar wants to be comes down to IndyCar. If IndyCar wants its drivers to have more experience, it is up to IndyCar to raise the standards and make sure it is possible for those standards to be met. Raising the standards would not only help the series but help the young drivers get experience that the top teams want when it comes to hiring a driver.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Nico Rosberg but did you know...
Brad Keselowski won the NASCAR Cup race from Talladega. Elliott Sadler won the Grand National Series race.
The #60 Michael Shank Racing Ligier-Honda of Oswaldo Negri, Jr. and John Pew won the IMSA race from Laguna Seca. Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook took the Ford GT's first victory in GTLM since its return to competition in the #67 Ford GT.
The #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca of Tom Kimber-Smith and Robert Alon won the PC/GTD race at Laguna Seca. The #23 Heart of Racing/Alex Job Racing Porsche of Alex Riberas and Mario Farnbacher won in GTD.
Chaz Davies swept the World Superbike races from Imola, the second time he swept a weekend this season. Davies swept Aragón a month ago. Kenan Sofuoglu won the World Supersport race.
Ken Roczen won the AMA Supercross race from East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Coming Up This Weekend
FIA WEC will run six hours around Spa-Francorchamps.
NASCAR will run Saturday night at Kansas.
MotoGP heads to Le Mans.
Super GT runs mid-week at Fuji.
DTM opens its season at the Hockenheimring.
V8 Supercars head west to Barbagallo Raceway, just north of Perth.
Blancpain Sprint Series will be at Brands Hatch.
WTCC return to the streets of Marrakech.
AMA Supercross ends its season in Las Vegas.
How Thin is the Talent Pool?
For a young driver hoping to make it to the top of motorsports, whether it be Formula One, IndyCar, NASCAR or whatever it could be, track time is getting harder and harder to come by. Drivers used to test like crazy during the offseason, running thousands of miles in preparation for an upcoming season. Rookies would enter a season with hours of track time and a vast working knowledge of a car. Drivers would know what setup they liked and could slide right into a series and be competitive.
Costs have expanded and now offseason testing consists of one or two two-day sessions. A driver goes months without being behind the wheel of a car. Most drivers enter on a wing and a prayer of getting top results in their first season. Rookie balance the expectations to be as great as their predecessors with a fifth of the testing and to bring the car home in one piece because checkbooks are tight and teams don't want to pay for spares.
The quality of future grids is likely to go down in the next few years as the last of the generation of testers approach retirement. This lack of testing has lengthened the careers of a handful of drivers (Tony Kanaan, Hélio Castroneves, Juan Pablo Montoya) but eventually they will need to be replaced and the youngsters will likely be overlooked. It's not that drivers born in the 1990s aren't as talented because they don't rush to get their drivers' licenses like previous generations but they have raced in an era where track time only ever comes on a race weekend and the expectation has been to supplement real-life testing for computer simulations. Let's just say, there is no experience that makes up for the real thing.
Some people are worried, especially with the month of May beginning. Six rookies are currently entered for the Indianapolis 500. That's not a bad thing and this abundance of rookies isn't a new thing. Just two years ago there were seven rookies. Back in 1992 there were seven rookies including two future champions, Paul Tracy and Jimmy Vasser. The 1995 Indianapolis 500 had six rookies and two finished in the top four and three in the top eleven.
What people are concerned about is the lack of oval experience in this rookie class. Of the six rookies, three made their first oval start ever at Phoenix in April (Alexander Rossi, Max Chilton, Luca Filippi) and the other three haven't raced an oval in IndyCar but have oval experience in Indy Lights and all three have raced the Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Spencer Pigot, Matthew Brabham, Stefan Wilson). Only Brabham has yet to make an IndyCar start but he is scheduled to debut in the Grand Prix of Indianapolis.
Comparing this rookie class to the 2014 class, they aren't that different. All seven had never run an IndyCar oval race entering that year's race. Of the seven, two had never run an oval race prior (Mikhail Aleshin and Carlos Huertas). The other five all had oval experience and all had experience at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Jack Hawksworth, James Davison, Martin Plowman and Sage Karam had all raced the Freedom 100 and Kurt Busch was well versed in ovals from his NASCAR experience. Busch and Karam were the only two drivers making their IndyCar debuts.
Is the concern over experience just another storyline being created out of thin air? Probably. There wasn't nearly as much concern in 2014 and you could argue that class was less prepared that 2016. Two of these rookies went on to finish in the top ten, five finished all 200 laps and all seven were running at the finish. Heck this rookie class is arguably more experienced then the 1995 class. André Ribeiro had four ovals starts in Indy Lights and two in IndyCar, both coming earlier that season. Alessandro Zampedri had three IndyCar oval starts. Gil de Ferran's only IndyCar oval starts were at Phoenix and Nazareth earlier that season, same for Eliseo Salazar and Christian Fittipaldi. Carlos Guerrero ran Nazareth the month prior.
The aero kits and the domed skids are what have been making people twitchy. The domed skids have never been raced. Whether you agree with something being implemented for the first time in the Indianapolis 500 or not it is happening. It would have been nice for IndyCar to race the domed skid prior and maybe IndyCar should increase the requirements if a driver wants to attempt the Indianapolis 500. If a driver, regardless of what they have done in their careers, wants to run the 24 Hours Nürburgring in GT3 machinery, a driver must not only compete in but finish two VLN events around the Nordschleife with at least 18 laps driven and in the top 75% of class with a minimum of three starters.
If IndyCar wants to make sure the drivers are better prepared, requiring them to run at least one, if not two IndyCar oval races before going to Indianapolis isn't necessarily a bad idea, especially with testing being so limited. IndyCar already has Phoenix prior to the "500." Adding a 1.5-mile oval before the month of May could be another chance for drivers to get oval experience and allow IndyCar to test any technical changes, such as the domed skids. As for worries about drivers getting the funding to run these races, I am sure it could be found and IndyCar could use their television partner to its advantage. The network races give sponsors more exposure and the ovals could be shown on ABC (I would even argue ovals should be the only IndyCar races shown on network but that's a discussion for another day).
Ultimately, what IndyCar wants to be comes down to IndyCar. If IndyCar wants its drivers to have more experience, it is up to IndyCar to raise the standards and make sure it is possible for those standards to be met. Raising the standards would not only help the series but help the young drivers get experience that the top teams want when it comes to hiring a driver.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Nico Rosberg but did you know...
Brad Keselowski won the NASCAR Cup race from Talladega. Elliott Sadler won the Grand National Series race.
The #60 Michael Shank Racing Ligier-Honda of Oswaldo Negri, Jr. and John Pew won the IMSA race from Laguna Seca. Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook took the Ford GT's first victory in GTLM since its return to competition in the #67 Ford GT.
The #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca of Tom Kimber-Smith and Robert Alon won the PC/GTD race at Laguna Seca. The #23 Heart of Racing/Alex Job Racing Porsche of Alex Riberas and Mario Farnbacher won in GTD.
Chaz Davies swept the World Superbike races from Imola, the second time he swept a weekend this season. Davies swept Aragón a month ago. Kenan Sofuoglu won the World Supersport race.
Ken Roczen won the AMA Supercross race from East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Coming Up This Weekend
FIA WEC will run six hours around Spa-Francorchamps.
NASCAR will run Saturday night at Kansas.
MotoGP heads to Le Mans.
Super GT runs mid-week at Fuji.
DTM opens its season at the Hockenheimring.
V8 Supercars head west to Barbagallo Raceway, just north of Perth.
Blancpain Sprint Series will be at Brands Hatch.
WTCC return to the streets of Marrakech.
AMA Supercross ends its season in Las Vegas.
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
There Needs to be a Change in Etiquette
A week and a half ago, I ran the 10k portion of a 5k/10k run. The course was set up where at the end of lap one those participating in the 5k made a right hand turn to the finish line while the 10k runners made a left and did another lap of the course. Within a half-mile of the second lap, I and the rest of the 10k runner around me caught the tail end of runners as the starts were staggered by pace. It wasn't a problem. There were four lanes of roadway plus bike lanes. Plenty of room as the 10k runners stayed to the left. However, the second part of the lap funneled from four lanes to park trails that a Smart Car would have trouble driving along. Now the 10k runners were mixed in the 5k runners with nowhere to go. Eventually it widened enough that you could pass and the left hand side of the path was open to 10k runners.
A simple "on your left" or "excuse me" would be said to let slower runners know someone was coming and they would move out of the way and let you by. No one tried to intentionally cut a faster runner off. There was nothing to gain by being rude. It was a little difficult to have to navigate the crowd but it worked out.
A charity 5k/10k event isn't at the same level of a Verizon IndyCar Series race but the same difficulty of dealing with slower competitors came into play at Barber Motorsports Park last Sunday. Back markers played a significant role in the outcome of last Sunday's race. First, Conor Daly held up leader Simon Pagenaud allowing Will Power and Graham Rahal to catch the Frenchman. Then Sébastien Bourdais held up his countryman, which set the stage for the battle between Pagenaud and Rahal that eventually ended when the Ohioan clipped the back marker of Jack Hawksworth, damaging his wing and leaving him as a dead duck running four-plus seconds slower of Pagenaud per lap.
Many commented that back markers have a right to fight to stay on the lead lap and that it is a rule. However, the word "lapped" appears in the rulebook three times and once is in the glossary. No such rule exists. The "right to fight" rule is unwritten, just like kicking the ball out of play in soccer for an opponent that is down or not flipping your bat after hitting a home run in baseball.
I covered this a little bit after the race on Sunday but the "right to fight" belief is full of traps. First, it devalues leading and takes power away from the leader. The leader should always be the most powerful car on track especially when dealing with back markers. They are the leader after all. By allowing back markers the "right to fight," we saw the leader lose his advantage but the cars in second, third, fourth and so on do not have to face the same fight. The current etiquette is you have the "right to fight" but once you are a lap down you have to lie down like a dead dog for other cars on the lead. It is absurd that the leader has to struggle while second, third, fourth and so on get a free pass by the slower car.
Second, the whole idea of "right to fight" is absurd. You race what is ahead of you, not what is behind. If you are 20th, you aren't racing the leader; you are racing for 19th. The leader is the least of your concerns. You have a long way to go until you have to be dealing with the leader. Another way to think about it is if you are 20th and let the leader by and that etiquette is held by the entire field then eventually the leader will catch 19th and put that driver a lap down and so on. Either way, 20th isn't racing for the lead and shouldn't be racing the leader. Twentieth should focus on 19th
Third, Pandora's box is on the verge of exploding open if the current etiquette continues. The limits of "right to fight" is bound to be pushed by a back marker soon and there will come a race where a back marker has been emboldened to really fight the leader and might even hit them. A back marker should never be enabled to push the leader off course or bump them or take them out of the race but "right to fight" is on the verge of promoting it. Should a back marker take out a leader, especially later in the season and that leader be a championship contender, all hell will break loose. This needs to be nipped now so IndyCar doesn't have another pain-in-the-ass storyline that make the series appear even more incompetent.
Many who have been supporting "right to fight" say it made the finish exciting and while that is true that doesn't justify its existences. If having the flag man throw thumb tacks on the track at the start/finish line made the racing exciting, should IndyCar allow it? Hell no. If the back markers are allowed to hold up the leader and allow second and third place to catch the leader then why not adopt the "caution clock" NASCAR has implemented in the Truck Series? They both accomplish the same thing: Bunching the field back up and hopefully creating passing.
I bet some of you read that and thought, "The 'caution clock' is manipulative while 'right to fight' is natural and the leader should have to pass the back marker." The problem is IndyCar is closer than ever and with the cars being so aero dependent, even passing back markers is a challenge. This isn't Formula One where Mercedes is running 3-5 miles per hour faster a lap a third of the grid. A mile-and-a-half per hour covers the entire field in IndyCar. Even with push-to-pass, passing isn't a given and the leader shouldn't have to burn push-to-passes to lap cars.
I don't understand why people care if 20th stays on the lead lap. Lapping cars is a natural part of racing. Cars should finish a lap down. Not everyone should finish on the lead lap. I won't go as far as to say the culture of participation trophies is the reason why people want to see as many cars finish on the lead lap as possible but this "right to fight" idea seems to be relatively new.
Simon Pagenaud probably would have won Sunday's race by eight-to-ten seconds had it not been for back markers hindering his progress but should slower cars really be playing that significant of a role in deciding a race? The lead lap is a privilege and not a right. Some races will see one person dominate and there is nothing wrong with that. Enabling slower cars with a "right to fight" might have provided a thrilling finish at Barber but it gives back markers way too much power. Back markers will always exist but they shouldn't be the reason why a lead goes from over four seconds to less than a second in six laps. Knowing IndyCar, "right to fight" is only bound to lead to more trouble.
A simple "on your left" or "excuse me" would be said to let slower runners know someone was coming and they would move out of the way and let you by. No one tried to intentionally cut a faster runner off. There was nothing to gain by being rude. It was a little difficult to have to navigate the crowd but it worked out.
A charity 5k/10k event isn't at the same level of a Verizon IndyCar Series race but the same difficulty of dealing with slower competitors came into play at Barber Motorsports Park last Sunday. Back markers played a significant role in the outcome of last Sunday's race. First, Conor Daly held up leader Simon Pagenaud allowing Will Power and Graham Rahal to catch the Frenchman. Then Sébastien Bourdais held up his countryman, which set the stage for the battle between Pagenaud and Rahal that eventually ended when the Ohioan clipped the back marker of Jack Hawksworth, damaging his wing and leaving him as a dead duck running four-plus seconds slower of Pagenaud per lap.
Many commented that back markers have a right to fight to stay on the lead lap and that it is a rule. However, the word "lapped" appears in the rulebook three times and once is in the glossary. No such rule exists. The "right to fight" rule is unwritten, just like kicking the ball out of play in soccer for an opponent that is down or not flipping your bat after hitting a home run in baseball.
I covered this a little bit after the race on Sunday but the "right to fight" belief is full of traps. First, it devalues leading and takes power away from the leader. The leader should always be the most powerful car on track especially when dealing with back markers. They are the leader after all. By allowing back markers the "right to fight," we saw the leader lose his advantage but the cars in second, third, fourth and so on do not have to face the same fight. The current etiquette is you have the "right to fight" but once you are a lap down you have to lie down like a dead dog for other cars on the lead. It is absurd that the leader has to struggle while second, third, fourth and so on get a free pass by the slower car.
Second, the whole idea of "right to fight" is absurd. You race what is ahead of you, not what is behind. If you are 20th, you aren't racing the leader; you are racing for 19th. The leader is the least of your concerns. You have a long way to go until you have to be dealing with the leader. Another way to think about it is if you are 20th and let the leader by and that etiquette is held by the entire field then eventually the leader will catch 19th and put that driver a lap down and so on. Either way, 20th isn't racing for the lead and shouldn't be racing the leader. Twentieth should focus on 19th
Third, Pandora's box is on the verge of exploding open if the current etiquette continues. The limits of "right to fight" is bound to be pushed by a back marker soon and there will come a race where a back marker has been emboldened to really fight the leader and might even hit them. A back marker should never be enabled to push the leader off course or bump them or take them out of the race but "right to fight" is on the verge of promoting it. Should a back marker take out a leader, especially later in the season and that leader be a championship contender, all hell will break loose. This needs to be nipped now so IndyCar doesn't have another pain-in-the-ass storyline that make the series appear even more incompetent.
Many who have been supporting "right to fight" say it made the finish exciting and while that is true that doesn't justify its existences. If having the flag man throw thumb tacks on the track at the start/finish line made the racing exciting, should IndyCar allow it? Hell no. If the back markers are allowed to hold up the leader and allow second and third place to catch the leader then why not adopt the "caution clock" NASCAR has implemented in the Truck Series? They both accomplish the same thing: Bunching the field back up and hopefully creating passing.
I bet some of you read that and thought, "The 'caution clock' is manipulative while 'right to fight' is natural and the leader should have to pass the back marker." The problem is IndyCar is closer than ever and with the cars being so aero dependent, even passing back markers is a challenge. This isn't Formula One where Mercedes is running 3-5 miles per hour faster a lap a third of the grid. A mile-and-a-half per hour covers the entire field in IndyCar. Even with push-to-pass, passing isn't a given and the leader shouldn't have to burn push-to-passes to lap cars.
I don't understand why people care if 20th stays on the lead lap. Lapping cars is a natural part of racing. Cars should finish a lap down. Not everyone should finish on the lead lap. I won't go as far as to say the culture of participation trophies is the reason why people want to see as many cars finish on the lead lap as possible but this "right to fight" idea seems to be relatively new.
Simon Pagenaud probably would have won Sunday's race by eight-to-ten seconds had it not been for back markers hindering his progress but should slower cars really be playing that significant of a role in deciding a race? The lead lap is a privilege and not a right. Some races will see one person dominate and there is nothing wrong with that. Enabling slower cars with a "right to fight" might have provided a thrilling finish at Barber but it gives back markers way too much power. Back markers will always exist but they shouldn't be the reason why a lead goes from over four seconds to less than a second in six laps. Knowing IndyCar, "right to fight" is only bound to lead to more trouble.
Monday, April 25, 2016
Musings From the Weekend: Busting Balls
There was a lot of traffic at Barber. The Eiffel Tower was in the background of the Formula E race. NASCAR raced in the daylight. WTCC raced in the rain. Someone went from last to first. There were first time winner in multiple series on multiple continents. New Zealanders won all over the place but none were the New Zealander you are thinking of. There was a usual face on the top step of the podium in Spain. Speaking of Spain, Oriol Servià landed a ride for the Indianapolis 500. Stefan Wilson is close to landing a ride. Stoffel Vandoorne made an impressive debut in Super Formula with a third place finish. Imagine what Vandoorne could do in IndyCar. Here is a run down of what got me thinking.
Busting Balls
We are pretty much at 33 entries for this year's Indianapolis 500. A 34th entry appears to be likely. Any more is a stretch but would not be unthinkable. Andretti Autosport will have five cars. A.J. Foyt Racing, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and Dale Coyne Racing will all run three cars. Coyne is partnered with Jonathan Byrd's Racing. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing will have two cars. That's 17 Honda entries.
Penske and Ganassi will each have four. Ed Carpenter Racing will have three. KV Racing should have three if the Stefan Wilson deal is finalized. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing will return with a car and it appears Buddy Lazier will give it another go with his family's team. That's 16 Chevrolet entries.
Missing from that list is Grace Autosport, the team that was announced more than 11 months ago and led by Beth Paretta to encourage young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math. Grace Autosport was supposed to be an all-female team and Katherine Legge was selected to be the driver. Grace Autosport has reportedly tried to partner with a current team such as KV Racing but that appears as if it will not come to fruition.
It is hard for me to believe that Grace Autosport will not be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway come the month of May considering how the program would be such a positive for IndyCar and the Indianapolis 500 but it speaks to the difficulties of any one who wants to enter the series. Engines are hoarded. Chassis are tough to come by. It makes IndyCar seem like a boy's club where the only way to get in is to know the right people. With each engine manufacture committing to 17 engine leases for the Indianapolis 500, pursuing the dream of competing in one of the greatest races in the world has gone from fighting for hundredths of a second on Bump Day to a game of boardroom musical chairs.
It's not like Grace Autosport could put a stock block engine or a school bus engine in a car and give it a go. Grace Autosport, just like any other team with aspirations to race in the Indianapolis 500, are at the mercy of the two engine manufactures. If all the leases are filled then you don't even get the opportunity. It is infuriating just thinking about it. The 17th Chevrolet entry, if it happens at all, appears will be Gary Petersen's AFS-sponsored entry for Sebastián Saavedra; just another man already in IndyCar's inner-circle benefitting from being able to rub the right elbows (UPDATE: AFS will run Saavedra). That's a great message to send.
I doubt Grace Autosport announced this program last May and then waited until the 11th hour to put the pieces together like a college student with a term paper. This team has the potential to put IndyCar in a positive spotlight and attract more female viewers to a series that needs to grow. Grace Autosport could open the door of opportunity to a segment of the population that is far unrepresented in motorsports in general, let alone IndyCar. I can't believe none of the established IndyCar teams and their sponsors and neither engine manufacture sees how positive Grace Autosport could be for the series and partner with them. I can't find a negative to a team partnering with Grace Autosport. It is a win-win situation and I can't believe everyone is passing it up.
IndyCar could get actual exposure from Grace Autosport and if the team could expand into a full-time operation from an Indianapolis 500 one-off, it could be a monumental gain for the series. Grace Autosport not being on the entry list for this year's Indianapolis 500 would be another loss for IndyCar and probably be a gain for another series. Unlike in IndyCar, Grace Autosport would probably have no issues getting a chassis or engine program for the DPi class in IMSA next year or start a GT3 program. Grace Autosport might be better off moving on from IndyCar and never looking back. At least Grace Autosport might have a chance of actually getting on the racetrack.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Simon Pagenaud but did you know...
Ed Jones and Santiago Urrutia split the Indy Lights races from Barber. Pato O'Ward swept the Pro Mazda races. Parker Thompson swept the U.S. F2000 races.
Álvaro Parente and Michael Cooper split the Pirelli World Challenge GT races from Barber. Jade Buford swept the GTS races in the #45 SIN R1 GT4.
Valentino Rossi won MotoGP's Spanish Grand Prix from Jerez. Sam Lowes won the Moto2 race. Brad Binder won the Moto3 races from 35th, dead last on the grid.
Lucas di Grassi won the Paris ePrix.
The #59 Garage 59 McLaren 650S GT3 of Shane Van Gisbergen, Rob Bell and Côme Ledogar won the Blancpain Endurance Series season opener from Monza.
Carl Edwards won the NASCAR Cup race at Richmond. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won the NASCAR Grand National Series race.
Naoki Yamamoto won the Super Formula season opener from Suzuka.
New Zealander Hayden Paddon won Rally Argentina, his first WRC victory.
Ken Roczen won the AMA Supercross race from Foxborough, Massachusetts.
Mehdi Bennani and José María López split the WTCC races from Hungary.
Coming Up This Weekend
Formula One is already heading back to Russia.
NASCAR heads to Talladega.
IMSA will run split races at Laguna Seca. Prototypes and GTLM first followed by PC/GTD.
World Superbikes will be at Imola.
AMA Supercross remains on the east coast for the penultimate round in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Busting Balls
We are pretty much at 33 entries for this year's Indianapolis 500. A 34th entry appears to be likely. Any more is a stretch but would not be unthinkable. Andretti Autosport will have five cars. A.J. Foyt Racing, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and Dale Coyne Racing will all run three cars. Coyne is partnered with Jonathan Byrd's Racing. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing will have two cars. That's 17 Honda entries.
Penske and Ganassi will each have four. Ed Carpenter Racing will have three. KV Racing should have three if the Stefan Wilson deal is finalized. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing will return with a car and it appears Buddy Lazier will give it another go with his family's team. That's 16 Chevrolet entries.
Missing from that list is Grace Autosport, the team that was announced more than 11 months ago and led by Beth Paretta to encourage young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math. Grace Autosport was supposed to be an all-female team and Katherine Legge was selected to be the driver. Grace Autosport has reportedly tried to partner with a current team such as KV Racing but that appears as if it will not come to fruition.
It is hard for me to believe that Grace Autosport will not be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway come the month of May considering how the program would be such a positive for IndyCar and the Indianapolis 500 but it speaks to the difficulties of any one who wants to enter the series. Engines are hoarded. Chassis are tough to come by. It makes IndyCar seem like a boy's club where the only way to get in is to know the right people. With each engine manufacture committing to 17 engine leases for the Indianapolis 500, pursuing the dream of competing in one of the greatest races in the world has gone from fighting for hundredths of a second on Bump Day to a game of boardroom musical chairs.
It's not like Grace Autosport could put a stock block engine or a school bus engine in a car and give it a go. Grace Autosport, just like any other team with aspirations to race in the Indianapolis 500, are at the mercy of the two engine manufactures. If all the leases are filled then you don't even get the opportunity. It is infuriating just thinking about it. The 17th Chevrolet entry, if it happens at all, appears will be Gary Petersen's AFS-sponsored entry for Sebastián Saavedra; just another man already in IndyCar's inner-circle benefitting from being able to rub the right elbows (UPDATE: AFS will run Saavedra). That's a great message to send.
I doubt Grace Autosport announced this program last May and then waited until the 11th hour to put the pieces together like a college student with a term paper. This team has the potential to put IndyCar in a positive spotlight and attract more female viewers to a series that needs to grow. Grace Autosport could open the door of opportunity to a segment of the population that is far unrepresented in motorsports in general, let alone IndyCar. I can't believe none of the established IndyCar teams and their sponsors and neither engine manufacture sees how positive Grace Autosport could be for the series and partner with them. I can't find a negative to a team partnering with Grace Autosport. It is a win-win situation and I can't believe everyone is passing it up.
IndyCar could get actual exposure from Grace Autosport and if the team could expand into a full-time operation from an Indianapolis 500 one-off, it could be a monumental gain for the series. Grace Autosport not being on the entry list for this year's Indianapolis 500 would be another loss for IndyCar and probably be a gain for another series. Unlike in IndyCar, Grace Autosport would probably have no issues getting a chassis or engine program for the DPi class in IMSA next year or start a GT3 program. Grace Autosport might be better off moving on from IndyCar and never looking back. At least Grace Autosport might have a chance of actually getting on the racetrack.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Simon Pagenaud but did you know...
Ed Jones and Santiago Urrutia split the Indy Lights races from Barber. Pato O'Ward swept the Pro Mazda races. Parker Thompson swept the U.S. F2000 races.
Álvaro Parente and Michael Cooper split the Pirelli World Challenge GT races from Barber. Jade Buford swept the GTS races in the #45 SIN R1 GT4.
Valentino Rossi won MotoGP's Spanish Grand Prix from Jerez. Sam Lowes won the Moto2 race. Brad Binder won the Moto3 races from 35th, dead last on the grid.
Lucas di Grassi won the Paris ePrix.
The #59 Garage 59 McLaren 650S GT3 of Shane Van Gisbergen, Rob Bell and Côme Ledogar won the Blancpain Endurance Series season opener from Monza.
Carl Edwards won the NASCAR Cup race at Richmond. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won the NASCAR Grand National Series race.
Naoki Yamamoto won the Super Formula season opener from Suzuka.
New Zealander Hayden Paddon won Rally Argentina, his first WRC victory.
Ken Roczen won the AMA Supercross race from Foxborough, Massachusetts.
Mehdi Bennani and José María López split the WTCC races from Hungary.
Coming Up This Weekend
Formula One is already heading back to Russia.
NASCAR heads to Talladega.
IMSA will run split races at Laguna Seca. Prototypes and GTLM first followed by PC/GTD.
World Superbikes will be at Imola.
AMA Supercross remains on the east coast for the penultimate round in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Sunday, April 24, 2016
First Impressions: Barber 2016
1. The race was exciting but that isn't necessarily a good thing. If driving etiquette was different, Simon Pagenaud might have won by 13.7476 seconds anyway. Either way, he and Graham Rahal had a great battle and unfortunately the back marker of Jack Hawksworth made a cameo. Pagenaud is the 14th driver since 1946 to have four podiums from the first four races. He is in command of the championship through the first quarter of the season.
2. Graham Rahal worked his way to the front and nearly won. He and Pagenaud had to battle lap traffic and unfortunately Hawksworth choose Rahal's lane instead of Pagenaud's. Rahal breaks his front wing and runs laps three seconds slower than the Frenchman. He nursed it home to second, which is every impressive. It must suck to be that close and lose it in such a way.
3. Josef Newgarden snuck onto the podium. While Pagenaud and Rahal and back markers where banging into one another, Newgarden slid by Will Power as they were chasing the wounded duck of Rahal. Another good run for Newgarden heading into the month of May.
4. Remember when Will Power missed St. Petersburg and everyone thought it would kill his championship run? Third, seventh and fourth from Power in his three starts this season. He is fine. He is eighth in the championship He will be in contention for the championship. Of course, if Pagenaud keeps finishing on the podium, it won't matter what Power does.
5. Juan Pablo Montoya went from 21st to fifth. He benefitted from Carlos Muñoz tapping Mikhail Aleshin and the Russian spinning into the path of Hawksworth before the green came out and then from Sébastien Bourdais tapping Scott Dixon. Still impressive from Montoya.
6. James Hinchcliffe finished sixth. Another strong race for Hinchcliffe as he was in the top ten all day. He battle with Montoya, Hélio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan through out the race and held his own.
7. Hélio Castroneves started and finished seventh. He did nothing sexy in this race. He never appeared to be making strides to the front.
8. Tony Kanaan started ninth and finished eighth. If it weren't for Dixon being spun, he would have started ninth and finished ninth. He and Castroneves ran the same race.
9. Charlie Kimball finished ninth. He made a few really impressive moves at the start but faded a little bit. Kimball has finished tenth, 11th, 12th and ninth through four races. So what is next, an eighth or a 13th?
10. Scott Dixon's podium streak ends at Barber, as does Chip Ganassi Racing's podium streak. He did a great job to keep the car running after being spun and worked his way back to tenth. Perhaps he could have given Pagenaud and company a run for their money. We will never know.
11. Andretti Autosport looks better in this race but not great. Ryan Hunter-Reay got up to 11th. Marco Andretti got up to 12th. They are still a step off but this is better than Long Beach.
12. A.J. Foyt Racing should petition for IndyCar races to be held on Fridays. Takuma Sato finished 13th and Hawksworth was 19th but they were both in the top five on Friday. Something is a miss and that can't be blamed on Honda.
13. Speaking of Andretti Autosport, Carlos Muñoz finished 14th despite his contact prior to the green flag and Alexander Rossi finished 15th. Rossi had a great start but the Andretti cars weren't able to take advantage of strategy like Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports.
14. Quickly through the rest of the field: Sébastien Bourdais spun Dixon and was penalized and never recovered. Mikhail Aleshin was spun but never was a threat. Luca Filippi continues to have great qualifying runs and terrible races. We have talked so much about Jack Hawksworth already and he only finished 19th. Conor Daly and Max Chilton rounded out the field.
15. We need to talk about back marker etiquette. A driver should never race out his or her mirrors so when a car on the tail end of the lead lap sees the leader is approaching they should let the leader by. By saying a driver has "the right to fight to stay on the lead lap" gives a back marker more power than they should ever have. Does that mean they can run the leader wide or block or make contact with the leader? No. The power should always be in the hands of the leader. If the leader is reeling in a back marker, the leader should be allowed to go by because the back marker isn't racing the leader, the back marker is racing the driver ahead of them. Conor Daly was 20th and the leader Simon Pagenaud caught him. Daly isn't racing Pagenaud; he is racing the driver in 19th.
16. What if position in the championship determined how many push-to-passes a driver received? Watching James Hinchcliffe struggle behind Tony Kanaan and losing time to the leaders during the second stint got me thinking that a varying amount of push-to-passes could spice up a race. Give the drivers a base of ten pushes but give a few more to drivers lower in the championship. There were 21 drivers in the field. The top seven in the championship could get the base ten pushes with the next seven getting 18 pushes and the final third getting 15 pushes. Instead of playing with the aero kits, just balance it with pushes-to-pass. It could lead to more passing on track. I am sure it is something the engine manufactures could make possible.
17. We are one-fourth of the way through the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series season and now the month of May and two races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I need a nap after this one. Luckily there are two weeks off until the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. Sleep well my friends. And don't forget to be polite to faster traffic.
2. Graham Rahal worked his way to the front and nearly won. He and Pagenaud had to battle lap traffic and unfortunately Hawksworth choose Rahal's lane instead of Pagenaud's. Rahal breaks his front wing and runs laps three seconds slower than the Frenchman. He nursed it home to second, which is every impressive. It must suck to be that close and lose it in such a way.
3. Josef Newgarden snuck onto the podium. While Pagenaud and Rahal and back markers where banging into one another, Newgarden slid by Will Power as they were chasing the wounded duck of Rahal. Another good run for Newgarden heading into the month of May.
4. Remember when Will Power missed St. Petersburg and everyone thought it would kill his championship run? Third, seventh and fourth from Power in his three starts this season. He is fine. He is eighth in the championship He will be in contention for the championship. Of course, if Pagenaud keeps finishing on the podium, it won't matter what Power does.
5. Juan Pablo Montoya went from 21st to fifth. He benefitted from Carlos Muñoz tapping Mikhail Aleshin and the Russian spinning into the path of Hawksworth before the green came out and then from Sébastien Bourdais tapping Scott Dixon. Still impressive from Montoya.
6. James Hinchcliffe finished sixth. Another strong race for Hinchcliffe as he was in the top ten all day. He battle with Montoya, Hélio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan through out the race and held his own.
7. Hélio Castroneves started and finished seventh. He did nothing sexy in this race. He never appeared to be making strides to the front.
8. Tony Kanaan started ninth and finished eighth. If it weren't for Dixon being spun, he would have started ninth and finished ninth. He and Castroneves ran the same race.
9. Charlie Kimball finished ninth. He made a few really impressive moves at the start but faded a little bit. Kimball has finished tenth, 11th, 12th and ninth through four races. So what is next, an eighth or a 13th?
10. Scott Dixon's podium streak ends at Barber, as does Chip Ganassi Racing's podium streak. He did a great job to keep the car running after being spun and worked his way back to tenth. Perhaps he could have given Pagenaud and company a run for their money. We will never know.
11. Andretti Autosport looks better in this race but not great. Ryan Hunter-Reay got up to 11th. Marco Andretti got up to 12th. They are still a step off but this is better than Long Beach.
12. A.J. Foyt Racing should petition for IndyCar races to be held on Fridays. Takuma Sato finished 13th and Hawksworth was 19th but they were both in the top five on Friday. Something is a miss and that can't be blamed on Honda.
13. Speaking of Andretti Autosport, Carlos Muñoz finished 14th despite his contact prior to the green flag and Alexander Rossi finished 15th. Rossi had a great start but the Andretti cars weren't able to take advantage of strategy like Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports.
14. Quickly through the rest of the field: Sébastien Bourdais spun Dixon and was penalized and never recovered. Mikhail Aleshin was spun but never was a threat. Luca Filippi continues to have great qualifying runs and terrible races. We have talked so much about Jack Hawksworth already and he only finished 19th. Conor Daly and Max Chilton rounded out the field.
15. We need to talk about back marker etiquette. A driver should never race out his or her mirrors so when a car on the tail end of the lead lap sees the leader is approaching they should let the leader by. By saying a driver has "the right to fight to stay on the lead lap" gives a back marker more power than they should ever have. Does that mean they can run the leader wide or block or make contact with the leader? No. The power should always be in the hands of the leader. If the leader is reeling in a back marker, the leader should be allowed to go by because the back marker isn't racing the leader, the back marker is racing the driver ahead of them. Conor Daly was 20th and the leader Simon Pagenaud caught him. Daly isn't racing Pagenaud; he is racing the driver in 19th.
16. What if position in the championship determined how many push-to-passes a driver received? Watching James Hinchcliffe struggle behind Tony Kanaan and losing time to the leaders during the second stint got me thinking that a varying amount of push-to-passes could spice up a race. Give the drivers a base of ten pushes but give a few more to drivers lower in the championship. There were 21 drivers in the field. The top seven in the championship could get the base ten pushes with the next seven getting 18 pushes and the final third getting 15 pushes. Instead of playing with the aero kits, just balance it with pushes-to-pass. It could lead to more passing on track. I am sure it is something the engine manufactures could make possible.
17. We are one-fourth of the way through the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series season and now the month of May and two races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I need a nap after this one. Luckily there are two weeks off until the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. Sleep well my friends. And don't forget to be polite to faster traffic.
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