The second month is the quickest and we are onto another collection of positivity as this year is 1/6 of the way over.
Business is picking up. NASCAR has started. The FIA World Endurance Championship is racing at time of posting. Australia has been busy. Supercross is already in Daytona. Formula One is testing. MotoGP and IndyCar open this weekend.
The silence of winter is breaking and soon with the warmth will be an abundance of motorsports as far as the eye can see.
Possible IndyCar Milestones
With IndyCar practice beginning today, it is a good time to keep in mind what little bits of history we could see in 2025. A few things are rather significant. We do not see all-time records break that often, at least not records of significant, but one is poised to change, and change rather soon at a historical venue.
Scott Dixon: All-Time Leader in Starts
Late in the 2024 season, Dixon became only the second driver to reach 400 career starts. Entering 2025 on 402 starts, Dixon has the record in his sight. Mario Andretti made 407 starts from 1964 to 1994. If everything goes as expected, Dixon should make start #408 in the 109th Indianapolis 500.
For over two decades, Dixon has been the torchbearer for greatness in IndyCar. He has already ascended to second all-time in championships and second all-time in victories. Dixon is already the leader in top five finishes. Nobody has won in more seasons than Dixon. There are not many categories where Dixon is not somewhere at the top.
This will feel right. In 24 seasons, Dixon has only missed one race. He has been Mr. Consistent from almost the very beginning. For him to have this spot in history is fitting, and to some it will likely be surprising. When Andretti retired, I don't know if many believed if some of his records would be touched again. Less than seven years after Andretti’s final career start, an unassuming boy from New Zealand came along and proceeded to re-write history.
Dixon: All-Time Leader in Podium Finishes
Andretti has not just one record in jeopardy, but two!
Dixon enters 2025 with 142 podium finishes. That is two behind Andretti's all-time record.
Like the starts, it is not a matter of "if" but "when."
With the starts, we at least have an exact idea when it will broken. Podiums is a little more flexible. It could be in three races at Long Beach, the earliest it could be broken. It could be in the final race in Nashville. There is a chance it is not broken in 2025, but keep in mind Dixon has had at least three podium finishes in 19 consecutive seasons! In all 19 of those seasons, Dixon has had at least four podium finishes.
Dixon: 300 Career Top Ten Finishes
Every year we do this it gets a little boring because there are about five or six milestones Scott Dixon could hit that are significant. This is entire practice and be a little redundant because the drivers that are most likely to hit significant milestones have been around for a while, and it ends up being the same cast of character.
In this case though, we must give Dixon the attention, because 300 top ten finishes is incredible. IndyCar does not publish official records on top ten results, but you need at least 300 starts to have 300 top ten finishes, and there are only nine other drivers to reach 300 starts, so you know the list cannot be long.
Like podium finishes, Dixon is three away from this milestone. His 297 top ten finishes in 402 starts translate to top ten finish percentage of 73.88%.
Graham Rahal: 300 Career Starts
Speaking of 300 career starts, we are on the verge of someone else joining that club. Graham Rahal is about to join a club that even his father Bobby is not a member.
The younger Rahal is eight starts away from becoming the 11th driver to hit 300 career starts. It would come at Gateway.
It might not be the most decorated career we would have expected at 300 starts, but Rahal's career is one of perseverance. Rahal has come back from rough seasons and been a winner when most thought he was a disappointment. Even now, he continues to press on looking for more.
Conor Daly: Most starts before a first career victory
Here is a record no one wants, but they wouldn't mind having it. Conor Daly has made 115 starts over 11 IndyCar seasons. Daly has raced for 11 teams during that time. He has become a journey for a new generation the same way we once had Roberto Moreno or Oriol Servià.
Daly has not had many race-winning capable race cars. One could argue he has had none. The fifth Andretti Autosport car has a slim shot. It doesn't mean Daly has not come close, and Daly has had a few good races in his career. Luck and the bounces didn't quite go in his direction for an upset, but Daly keeps trying and life is a number's game. Eventually, it will go you way.
If it does go Daly's way, there is a chance he could make history.
If Daly does not miss a race and does not win until the 12th round of the season at Iowa, he will set the record for most starts before a first career victory.
Currently, Michel Jourdain, Jr. holds the record with 126 starts before he won for the first time at Milwaukee in 2003. If Daly wins at any point between now and the first Iowa race, he will still be ranked second all-time.
It isn't a great record but if you have it that means you won at least one race. Daly would love to have just one. It is better than being tied for sixth all-time with Tom Bigelow for most starts without a victory, which is where Daly is presently. Daly is three spots away from surpassing Hiro Matsushita in that category. If Daly does not win at all this season, he would pass Vitor Meira for fourth all-time with 132 starts and zero victories.
Josef Newgarden: 20 Career Oval Victories
As much as we love first time winners, we love history, and Josef Newgarden has plenty of potential history in front of him in 2025. One piece that you might not realize is Newgarden is three victories away from 20 oval victories in his career. It does not sound like much, but it is more rare than you think.
Only ten drivers in IndyCar history have won at least 20 oval races. Newgarden would be the 11th. Hélio Castroneves has 18 oval victories, but it appears unlikely Castroneves will get there. Newgarden has a longer runway and he is the only other driver that is close.
Among active full-time drivers, only three have ten career oval victories. Scott Dixon has 25, Newgarden is on 17 and Will Power has ten. The next closest is Patricio O'Ward on three.
There are not many oval races on the schedule. A few years ago, I contemplated how Scott Dixon might be the last driver for a long time to reach 20 oval victories in a career, and Newgarden had a chance at it but he was the only likely driver to reach the mark. Newgarden is there, but we are looking at only the third driver to begin their career in the last 49 years to reach 20 oval victories. The only other driver to meet that criteria is Rick Mears.
It is tougher to do than you would think. With only five or six oval races a season, it requires being brilliant to get close to 20. Newgarden has been brilliant. He has won at least three oval races in two of the last three seasons. His last eight victories have been on ovals. This feel more "when" than "if" and when could be in 2025.
Alexander Rossi and Álex Palou: 50 Career Top Five Finishes
Both Alexs are on the verge of something only 33 drivers have achieved. Fifty top five finishes does not sound like much, but not many have made it to that milestone.
For Rossi, he is one away, sitting on 49 top five finishes. Palou is seven away, with 43 top five finishes in 81 career starts. It could be a fun bet to see who gets there first.
Alexander Rossi and Álex Palou: 1,000 Laps Led
The two Alexs are on the verge of another club. There are a few more members but it is still rather impressive to reach. Only 43 members have reached 1,000 laps led. Two drivers reached it last year. Those were Scott McLaughlin and Colton Herta. This year, there are two drivers right on the precipice.
Rossi has led 995 laps in his career. Palou has led 956 laps. Again, it could be a fun bet to see who gets there first.
Will Power: Top Five All-Time in Top Five Finishes
Like Dixon, Power could probably hit a dozen milestones this season. This one is a little more historic.
Currently, eighth all-time in top five finishes, Power has 136 to his name. The top five is within reach. In fifth is Al Unser, Jr. on 141 top five finishes. Last year, Power had seven top five finishes. If Power repeats that, he could jump as high as fourth. Seven more would take Power to 143 and one more than Hélio Castroneves.
Of course, Castroneves could secure fourth all-time if he were to finish in the top five of the Indianapolis 500, but Power is looking to climb a few more spots this season. Theoretically, Power could become the third driver to reach 150 top five finishes in a career. That would require a staggering 14 top five results. Power's personal best in a season was 12 two years ago.
Hélio Castroneves: 25 Indianapolis 500 Starts
We usually hold off on Indianapolis 500 stuff until... well, you know... May, but I think this one deserves early recognition. Castroneves is a four-time Indianapolis 500 winner after all.
Only three drivers have made at least 25 Indianapolis 500 starts. A.J. Foyt (35), Mario Andretti (29) and Al Unser (27). That's it. That is the list!
Castroneves must qualify, but we don't think speed should be a concern. The Brazilian will also make another bit of history. He will be 50 years and 15 days old when the green flag waves to start the Indianapolis 500. Should he make the race, Castroneves will become the 13th driver since 1946 to start a race after the age of 50. He would become the the first driver over the age of 50 to start the Indianapolis 500 since...
Lyn St. James! I bet you didn't see that one coming St. James was 53 years and 26 days old when she made her final start in the 2000 Indianapolis 500. That is also the last time we have seen any driver over the age of 50 start an IndyCar race.
It is kind of staggering we haven't had anyone over the age of 50 start an IndyCar race in nearly a quarter-century. Not many drivers race to that age, but you would think one or two would have done it. It was once commonplace not long ago that a NASCAR Cup race would have multiple drivers over the age of 50 competing.
I don't think anyone considered more drivers reaching 25 Indianapolis 500 starts a decade or so ago. Twenty felt like the limit. Plenty of outstanding drivers didn't reach 20 Indianapolis 500 starts. Rodger Ward, Bobby Unser, Tom Sneva, Rick Mears, Danny Sullivan, none of them reached 20.
Part of that is the times have changed. Bobby Unser was 29 years old when he made his first Indianapolis 500 start. Time was not conducive to 20 Indianapolis 500 starts. There was also danger. Drivers got hurt. Some reached a certain age and decided they were done, getting out alive, milestones be damned.
Castroneves hitting this mark would be a testament to his longevity but also the safety improvements motorsports have made, especially in the 21st century.
Ok, About Something That Really Happened in February
It is nice to wax about what we could see, but none of that has happened. None of it is guaranteed to happen. It definitely isn't happening in February 2025. What about something in February? What was something nice that we saw in the last 28 days that should be shared?
Daytona 500 qualifying?
For the first time in a while it felt like their were real stakes on the line for making the Daytona 500. Thirty-six of the spots are locked up. A vast majority of the drivers are showing up knowing they only have to worry about Sunday. For a much smaller group, qualifying on Wednesday and the qualifying races on Thursday are suffocating.
Almost everyone attempting the Daytona 500 as an open entry is basing their season on that one race. Most are only attempting Daytona. The rest might have a part-time schedule, but the Daytona 500 has been the only race drivers have failed to qualify for since 2019. Running at Atlanta and Michigan and the Brickyard 400 doesn't make up for missing the Daytona 500.
The crop of open drivers is what made this year feel heightened.
Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and two-time Daytona 500 winner Jimmie Johnson had to qualify for the Daytona 500.
NASCAR Cup Series champion and three-time vice-champion Martin Truex, Jr. had to qualify for the Daytona 500.
The first Cup Series entry for Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s JR Motorsports with Justin Allgaier had to qualify for the Daytona 500.
Hélio Castroneves ended up benefitting from the first ever Open Entry Provisional to lock himself into the race, but Castroneves could have made it without relying on the provisional.
Either way, there were only four spots on the line with eight drivers competing for them.
It ended up being a little anti-climatic as the two biggest names ended up being the fastest two Open qualifiers on Wednesday, and Truex, Jr. and Johnson were locked in on speed. There is more intrigue if one of them or neither of them makes it on speed and must race in.
It ended up following the most logical outcome. Truex, Jr. and Johnson make it, Allgaier and JR Motorsports race in, Corey LaJoie in a Rick Ware Racing car, which was full-time last year, raced in and the teams and drivers that missed were...
J.J. Yeley and NY Racing Team, which has next-no funding and was the second-slowest car in qualifying...
Chandler Smith and Garage 66, which hadn't attempted the Daytona 500 since 2022...
B.J. McLeod and Live Fast Motorsports, which failed to make the Daytona 500 the year before and it is a under-funded team...
And Anthony Alfredo and Beard Motorsports, which has been a regular entry at superspeedway races and has had some good results over the last eight years, but it is still a small organization.
The results on paper is what we got.
Though it went as expected, it was still enthralling. It is lacking because these teams have such a narrow path into the race. One spot available to the top finisher in each qualifying race is rather disappointing. I would love to see Daytona 500 qualifying return to how it once was where the front row was locked up, the best 14 finishers from each qualifying race take the next spots on the grid and then the remaining spots are filled in on qualifying speed.
Let's consider if it was done that way. Of course, that would have changed how teams would have prepared for qualifying on Wednesday night and how drivers raced on Thursday night this year, but for the sake of the experiment, let's say the teams and drivers acted as if they had to race in and charter teams were not locked in.
We would have ended up with LaJoie still racing in, Alfredo racing in, and then Zane Smith, Alex Bowman, Brad Keselowski, Truex, Jr., Noah Gragson, Daniel Suárez, Johnson, Justin Haley, Cole Custer and Carson Hocevar falling back on qualifying times. The drivers that would have missed are Castroneves, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Chandler Smith, McLeod and Yeley.
Essentially, the only difference between the historic system and the current system would have been Alfredo making it and Stenhouse, Jr. missing it as the one stunner. Castroneves only made the race because of the OEP. He missed the race and then caught a saving grace.
Maybe this is something NASCAR should explore. The charter teams wouldn't like the risk but it makes all of Thursday more important. That added tension could be a good thing. It would be a better way to drum up interest ahead of the big race on Sunday.
March Preview
We are going to do a mini-Super Formula preview here because that series begins next weekend in a rather early start for that championship. This will be the longest Super Formula season as there will be 12 races with five doubleheader rounds scheduled.
Suzuka opens with two races over March 8-9. Motegi hosts a doubleheader over April 19-20. Autopolis is one race on May 18. Fuji is two races over July 19-20. Sportsland SUGO is one race on August 10. Then there is two months until the second Fuji round, another doubleheader on October 11-12. Suzuka closes out the season with two races November 22-23.
Last year, only one car featured an international driver, and it featured three. The #19 Team Impul Toyota had Théo Pourchaire, Ben Barnicoat and Nyck de Vries combine to run five races. The other four saw Hibiki Taira behind the wheel.
This year, there are four international drivers set to run the full season.
Defending champion Sho Tsuboi has Sacha Fenestraz as his teammate at Team TOM'S. Fenestraz is returning after being championship runner-up in 2021. The Argentine driver will also race for Toyota in a Super GT GT500 entry.
Zak O'Sullivan will be Kenta Yamashita's teammate at Kondo Racing. O'Sullivan won two Formula Two races last year before his funding dried up and he lost his Williams Driver Academy spot. Dane Oliver Rasmussen moves from a Hertz Team Jota hypercar role to the #19 Team Impul Toyota with Mitsunori Takaboshi as his teammate. Brazilian Igor Fraga will drive for Nakajima Racing after spending the previous two years in Super GT's GT300 class.
Among domestic talent, Tomoki Nojiri was second last year in the championship, and he has finished in the top three of the championship in four consecutive seasons and in the championship top five in six consecutive seasons. Nojiri pairs with Ayamu Iwasa at Team Mugen.
Kakunoshin Ohta ended last season with two consecutive victories, and Ohta and Team Dandelion Racing teammate Tadasuke Makino were third and fourth in the championship last year. Makino also won two races.
Kamui Kobayashi continues to look for his first career Super Formula victory. Kobayashi remains at Team KCMG with Nirei Fukuzumi as his teammate. In 70 starts over the previous ten seasons, Kobayashi has yet to win with five runner-up finishes and eight total podium results.
This Super Formula season will see the absence of a few notable names. Three-time champion Naoki Yamamoto retired as did two-time champion Yuki Kunimoto. Both drivers will still compete in Super GT this season.
Other events of note in March:
There will be Race of Champions next week from Sydney, Australia.
Formula One begins with two races in Australia and China.
The 12 Hours of Sebring comes along.
IndyCar returns to Thermal Club, and this time it counts.
MotoGP has plans to race in Argentina and the United States.
NASCAR will have some races.
Supercross continues.
