2021 IndyCar Miscellaneous Thread

[Kiante]

2021 starts here:

DragonSpeed shuts down it's IndyCar program, on the other hand, the chassis they owned has by purchased by MSR:

DragonSpeed shutters IndyCar program

Elton Julian’s dream of competing in the NTT IndyCar Series and at the Indianapolis 500 has been realized, and with a new push towards growing DragonSpeed’s sports car operations, the team has sold…

racer.com

 

[FLRacingFan]

Jenna Fryer says she thinks Palou is going to the #10 which would be surprising.

 

[FLRacingFan]

 

[Kiante]

Holy moly, Claire was right:

 

[rd45usa]

McLaughlin rookie test on 10/28 and a few pointers from Rick Mears.

 

[Hotrod]

Now if we can just find a spot for Kevin Magnussen we will be set.

 

[Tony_K]

I really like Felix and hope the McLaren team and him will improve this year. See no reason why they can't get a win.

 

[Kiante]

Looks like RHR will be returning:

 

[rd45usa]

Testing in Indy for next years #Indy500 package.

 

[rd45usa]

Some lap times from Barber today, 90 mins still left.

 

[FLRacingFan]

All things considered, I don’t think that’s a bad time at all for Jimmie. He gained a little over 2.5 seconds between the morning and afternoon sessions. I don’t put much stock into the standings as a lot of this is checking off different boxes (as shown by Penske), but looks like Felix da Costa did very well too.

 

[FLRacingFan]

 

[kkfan91]

I mean Jimmie almost caught up to Marco already

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

This is so bad ass he’s doing this, but I’m worried he’s lost something in NASCAR and if that’s true how is he going to find the speed in Indy Car to be competitive.

 

[gnomesayin]

 

[donthaveanickname]

Bourdais back full-time, Palou to CGR, JJ coming in, McLaughlin coming in, Helio doing some more races...
A couple more oval races and it would be perfect.

 

[racingfan7]

Bourdais back full-time, Palou to CGR, JJ coming in, McLaughlin coming in, Helio doing some more races...
A couple more oval races and it would be perfect.

We keep dreaming and dreaming of Richmond, Pocono, NHMS. Hell Milwaukee too.

 

[donthaveanickname]

We keep dreaming and dreaming of Richmond, Pocono, NHMS. Hell Milwaukee too.

I'd love to see Pocono back but I'm not a big fan of shorter tracks in IndyCar because passing is very difficult at those tracks. I'd prefer tracks like Kentucky, Chicago or Michigan being added.

 

[racingfan7]

I'd love to see Pocono back but I'm not a big fan of shorter tracks in IndyCar because passing is very difficult at those tracks. I'd prefer tracks like Kentucky, Chicago or Michigan being added.

I honestly wish Kentucky would stick around as an IndyCar/NXS/Truck standalone venue, more so than Chicago due to fan support.

I’m a little appalled honestly that the Kentucky fans got screwed, it seemed like nobody cared in Joliet/Chicago, IMO anyway.

Having the “Michigan 500”, “Pocono 500”, and “Indianapolis 500” would be pretty sweet. I think with the windscreen it should be considered again.

 

[rd45usa]

Captain is not happy with Indy Lights series.

Roger Penske frustrated with response to loss of Freedom 100 on 2021 Indy Lights schedule

Amidst all he's done in his first year in charge of IndyCar, Roger Penske has tried to look out for the Road to Indy program, but he's not feeling the appreciation after his latest decision.

www.indystar.com

 

[FLRacingFan]

Captain is not happy with Indy Lights series.

Roger Penske frustrated with response to loss of Freedom 100 on 2021 Indy Lights schedule

Amidst all he's done in his first year in charge of IndyCar, Roger Penske has tried to look out for the Road to Indy program, but he's not feeling the appreciation after his latest decision.

www.indystar.com

Pretty rare to see Roger pissed like that. Kinda surprised he wasn’t expecting it go over that poorly though. The messaging behind it wasn’t very good.

Hopefully Dan Andersen is right here and it’s behind them, and that the car count gets back into double digits as anticipated.

Expectations high for Indy Lights' 2021 return

The goal is unchanged for Road To Indy boss Dan Andersen, whose Andersen Promotions runs the three-tiered ladder system that feeds the NTT IndyCar Series with high-caliber talent. Facing last seaso…

racer.com

 

[FLRacingFan]

Bourdais back full-time, Palou to CGR, JJ coming in, McLaughlin coming in, Helio doing some more races...
A couple more oval races and it would be perfect.

I hope they can get more crowds back next year, especially for the 500, because there’s so much lost revenue that it might be pretty dire if some of these promoters get impacted again. IMS and the series is said to have lost a sum of money closer to nine figures than to seven figures in 2020. So that’s what I want to see the most, because as you said there’s a fair amount of intrigue in several areas that it would suck to see overshadowed.

 

[Kiante]

This is huge for IndyLights:

 

[FLRacingFan]

 

[Kiante]

Wait a minute, I thought Bryant was a long-time sponsor of AJ Foyt Enterprises?

 

[FLRacingFan]

Wait a minute, I thought Bryant was a long-time sponsor of AJ Foyt Enterprises?

They’ve been with a lot of teams at one point or another, they were with Foyt at points before for sure but they’ve been with Kanaan at Andretti, KV, and Ganassi before too.

 

[FLRacingFan]

This is a very good interview (about half an hour). No question Jimmie is serious about this deal and wants to be competitive. I was surprised to hear they’re even kicking around the idea of him getting in an F3 car or something similar to get around the testing blackout periods.

The Week In IndyCar, Nov 23, with Jimmie Johnson

New Chip Ganassi Racing driver Jimmie Johnson pays his first visit to The Week In IndyCar show to answer a variety of questions submitted by fans via social media, including: Sharing the No. 48 Hon…

racer.com

 

[FLRacingFan]

 

[racingfan7]

Can’t believe Iowa Speedway still has life. Maybe in 2022?

 

[LewTheShoe]

Not a surprise. Maybe a slight disappointment but nothing more than that.

 

[Reck]

Not a surprise. Maybe a slight disappointment but nothing more than that.

They need to get their **** together and in F1 first. They’re a mess up there.

 

[Kiante]

Colton is moving to the 26 with full-sponsorship from Gainbridge:

 

[FLRacingFan]

Woah, good to see JPM back after a three-year absence.

 

[StandOnIt]

wow time flies, go JPM

 

[Kiante]

 

[Kiante]

Long Beach is slated to be the finale of the 2021 season:

Long Beach moves 2021 event to September; becomes IndyCar season finale

The Long Beach Grand Prix has moved its 2021 event from mid-April to late September. As RACER wrote last week, an alternate date of September 25-26 was floated to the NTT IndyCar Series and IMSA’s …

racer.com

 

[StandOnIt]

Good plan

 

[FLRacingFan]

Good deal. Hopefully he can run the other three ovals with Carlin again too.

 

[Kiante]

I appreciate Ed's contributions, however I feel as if the team is never going to move forward with him still filling in on the ovals in the 20 car.

 

[FLRacingFan]

More F3 running for Jimbo at Sebring and Homestead this week.