2024 IndyCar News/Misc.

donthaveanickname said:
Pietro Fittipaldi will be full-time in RLL's third car.
Didn't expect that but excited to see him in a full-time ride.
www.motorsport.com

Pietro Fittipaldi joins Rahal Letterman Lanigan for 2024 IndyCar season

www.motorsport.com www.motorsport.com
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Kind of a “meh” hire imo, but Pietro brings a lot of money wherever he goes and this is probably the best equipment he’s ever had in single-seaters.

RLL are keeping Vips on board as a long-term interest and are trying to get him an IMSA LMP2 seat with someone. Still a lot of work left to do on budget for a fourth Indy entry of their own.

racer.com

Vips retained by RLL; fourth IndyCar entry possible for 2024

Juri Vips has been retained by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Despite losing out on the third full-time RLL NTT IndyCar Series seat that went to Pietro Fittipaldi, team co-owner Bobby Rahal says t…
racer.com racer.com
 

ED CARPENTER RACING WELCOMES CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN FOR THE 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SEASON | Ed Carpenter Racing

www.edcarpenterracing.com www.edcarpenterracing.com

Christian Rasmussen into the old Conor Daly car for the road/street circuits, plus he'll be in the 3rd car for the 500.

Also read this article on the hybrid system for 2024: I wasn't aware it was manually engaged to charge on the ovals. If they can translate that to viewers, that's gonna be really cool IMO. Hate to say :video game like" but it sorta is.

www.indycar.com

Five Questions with … Will Power

Two-time series champion Will Power has done plenty of testing of the new hybrid system for Chevrolet, so he's uniquely qualified to talk about the exciting new tool drivers will have in the ****pit starting in the 2024 season.
www.indycar.com www.indycar.com
 
virtualbalboa said:

ED CARPENTER RACING WELCOMES CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN FOR THE 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SEASON | Ed Carpenter Racing

www.edcarpenterracing.com www.edcarpenterracing.com

Christian Rasmussen into the old Conor Daly car for the road/street circuits, plus he'll be in the 3rd car for the 500.
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On one hand I’m glad an NXT champ was able to get a seat immediately this time; on the other, does Ed need to be splitting rides still anymore? It makes sense for ECR to consolidate from 2.5 to 2 entries, but Ed has been past it on ovals for a few years now, and Christian won at both Iowa and Gateway this season. Maybe there was a funding shortfall or something but that just stunts his progress I think.
 
I will be heated if Ilott doesn’t have a solid ride next season. Rumors are they were targeting Grosjean to replace Canapino until they found funding for Agustin and re-signed him last week. Now Grosjean is rumored to take over for Ilott. Grosjean and Ilott would’ve been a formidable duo, and with Canapino’s fans that team is going to be a toxic nightmare for any teammates if they get into any on-track conflicts as long as he’s there.

 
FLRacingFan said:
I will be heated if Ilott doesn’t have a solid ride next season. Rumors are they were targeting Grosjean to replace Canapino until they found funding for Agustin and re-signed him last week. Now Grosjean is rumored to take over for Ilott. Grosjean and Ilott would’ve been a formidable duo, and with Canapino’s fans that team is going to be a toxic nightmare for any teammates if they get into any on-track conflicts as long as he’s there.

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It's Romain.
www.motorsport.com

Grosjean signs with Juncos Hollinger Racing for 2024 IndyCar season

www.motorsport.com www.motorsport.com
 
FLRacingFan said:
I will be heated if Ilott doesn’t have a solid ride next season. Rumors are they were targeting Grosjean to replace Canapino until they found funding for Agustin and re-signed him last week. Now Grosjean is rumored to take over for Ilott. Grosjean and Ilott would’ve been a formidable duo, and with Canapino’s fans that team is going to be a toxic nightmare for any teammates if they get into any on-track conflicts as long as he’s there.

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I doubt Callum will get a seat without major funding. I personally would love to see GM keep Callum for GT or even GTP/Hypercar action. Just a shame such a talent is falling through the cracks like this.

Maybe IF RWR stays attached to the 51. I could see Callum taking that seat, but Callum is too damn talented to be ousted of the series. Juncos had been talking to Grojsean after Portland, so they should have let him go sooner instead of stringing him along.

Kinda irritating.
 
Im binging the 93 Indy Car season, gosh Mansell is a beast. Also Raul Bosel was a huge cry baby, like whines every time he’s interviewed. Also Paul Tracy crashed alot, Rick Mears couldn’t salvage him thus far
 
Jorge De Guzman said:
Im binging the 93 Indy Car season, gosh Mansell is a beast. Also Raul Bosel was a huge cry baby, like whines every time he’s interviewed. Also Paul Tracy crashed alot, Rick Mears couldn’t salvage him thus far
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It's so weird to see 1992 and 1993 Paul Tracy, then the nasty bastard he evolved into in present day SRX.

Every now and then I like to go back and watch the 1992 season. Not sure why I have such a big attachment to it.
 
Could not imagine a worse couple of days of offseason PR for this series.

Such a stark contrast from the competition side of IndyCar - good drivers, good teams, good tracks, and good racing - to the business side. Just a constant stream of bad news for years on end.



 
RP bought the whole kit and left the same individuals running the show from TG's reign.

Something has got to give or we're going to lose this amazing series.
 
Kiante said:
RP bought the whole kit and left the same individuals running the show from TG's reign.

Something has got to give or we're going to lose this amazing series.
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Penske has been trying to run a fine line with the introduction of the hybrids because he doesn't have alternatives without massive outlay of capital. He knows that money wouldn't be coming back either, which is why he isn't spending it. If Honda leaves, all the events they sponsor (Long Beach, Mid-Ohio, Toronto, among others) are also on the potential chopping block along with lots of team support and thus teams. The junkyard formula of the 50s and 60s isn't a viable solution now because carbon fiber tubs are too expensive to maintain and operate. The series and speedway likely gets sold at that point and like you said, the series is gone at that point.

But here's the thing: Does anyone here think NASCAR operates an open wheel racing series? No. Does anyone think Liberty Media wanted to run a lot of ovals when acquiring Indycar? No. The reason why Tony George came to Roger Penske to act as a caretaker for the race and series is because everyone else wanted to demolish what the Indy 500 was and make it something else, whether it be a Cup race or a Goodwood style event. If he had someone else who wanted to operate a racing series more akin to the IRL, he'd have sold it to them. That person doesn't exist.

You might argue that what Roger has done doomed Indycar. Indycar was doomed without Roger. Roger at least gave it a shot and gave it some runway to try and pull a safe landing and perhaps gain ground again and find an audience. If 2022-2025 winds up being like the Peugeot/Audi era of Le Mans and it goes to a dark, boring place for awhile (or forever), at least you got to enjoy that. In the meantime, RTA and NASCAR doesn't have a working deal past 2025 and the sprint car series Kyle Larson is part owner of is instituting charters. Things will get more interesting before they get boring.
 
virtualbalboa said:
Penske has been trying to run a fine line with the introduction of the hybrids because he doesn't have alternatives without massive outlay of capital. He knows that money wouldn't be coming back either, which is why he isn't spending it. If Honda leaves, all the events they sponsor (Long Beach, Mid-Ohio, Toronto, among others) are also on the potential chopping block along with lots of team support and thus teams. The junkyard formula of the 50s and 60s isn't a viable solution now because carbon fiber tubs are too expensive to maintain and operate. The series and speedway likely gets sold at that point and like you said, the series is gone at that point.

But here's the thing: Does anyone here think NASCAR operates an open wheel racing series? No. Does anyone think Liberty Media wanted to run a lot of ovals when acquiring Indycar? No. The reason why Tony George came to Roger Penske to act as a caretaker for the race and series is because everyone else wanted to demolish what the Indy 500 was and make it something else, whether it be a Cup race or a Goodwood style event. If he had someone else who wanted to operate a racing series more akin to the IRL, he'd have sold it to them. That person doesn't exist.

You might argue that what Roger has done doomed Indycar. Indycar was doomed without Roger. Roger at least gave it a shot and gave it some runway to try and pull a safe landing and perhaps gain ground again and find an audience. If 2022-2025 winds up being like the Peugeot/Audi era of Le Mans and it goes to a dark, boring place for awhile (or forever), at least you got to enjoy that. In the meantime, RTA and NASCAR doesn't have a working deal past 2025 and the sprint car series Kyle Larson is part owner of is instituting charters. Things will get more interesting before they get boring.
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Your point of this period perhaps reflecting the Diesel Wars is a good one. The series is still very fun in the present and should remain so in the near term.

I think if Honda is making this statement publicly things are probably worse behind the scenes. They already lose money on each engine lease, they spent a bunch of money developing the 2.4L that won’t run (although it was adapted for the Acura LMDh), and had to take over development of the ****** MAHLE super capacitors. And if they drop out after 2026, you can count on GM being gone as well (and associated events such as Detroit). At which point Penske probably has to use Ilmor to build a spec engine for the whole field, which probably shrinks the grid to 16-18. At that point you probably don’t have the hybrids either, since that was something Honda had mostly been pushing for themselves.

The argument that NASCAR would be a benefactor just doesn’t sit well with me. Jim France has been great for IMSA because sports car racing has long been his main passion anyways. I don’t see anyone there who would have the best interests of American open wheel racing at heart.

Unfortunately, if Honda bails I just don’t see a soft landing spot. But perhaps this statement is a swift kick in the ass to Penske Entertainment to do all they can to keep Honda in the fold.
 
aunty dive said:
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May as well rip the bandaid off. Come 2027, with or without Honda, there will effectively be a spec engine regardless. Everyone joining the top level of sports car racing at the moment has said the biggest gains with the regulations are to be made with open software development. Which follows as modern road cars are more and more gigantic computers than anything else. There certainly won’t be anyone coming into IndyCar to develop bespoke racing engines to be leased at a loss anymore. That much is for certain.
 
From the contrast in comments made by Larry Foyt to the tweet posted by Pedersen today, I think we have another contract saga on our hands - albeit a very boring one. Though I think Robb is better than Pedersen and he brings an even bigger check, a rumored ~ $8.5M, to a team that’s been pretty sore financially since ABC Supply left. That probably allows them to retain Santino and bring in someone like Ilott for a few races as well.
 
FLRacingFan said:
From the contrast in comments made by Larry Foyt to the tweet posted by Pedersen today, I think we have another contract saga on our hands - albeit a very boring one. Though I think Robb is better than Pedersen and he brings an even bigger check, a rumored ~ $8.5M, to a team that’s been pretty sore financially since ABC Supply left. That probably allows them to retain Santino and bring in someone like Ilott for a few races as well.
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Wasn't Kallett with K-Line bringing almost something along the lines of 10 million a year? K-Line practically kept Foyt alive through the pandemic.

They really needed this influx of funding, especially with Penske technical partnership in the mix. It can't be cheap.
 
Kiante said:
Wasn't Kallett with K-Line bringing almost something along the lines of 10 million a year? K-Line practically kept Foyt alive through the pandemic.

They really needed this influx of funding, especially with Penske technical partnership in the mix. It can't be cheap.
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Kellett and Sexton Properties both kept that operation afloat, especially when the whole ROKiT debacle went down. Though I’m not sure how much it was. What Robb is bringing is something very few pay drivers or sponsors are capabale of bringing; $8.5-9M is pretty much Gainbridge territory. And that’s a massive step up in financial security if this tidbit from MP is fact:

They went with Indy NXT race winner Benjamin Pedersen, which wasn’t a bad idea. Where things go sideways, according to what I’ve heard from multiple sources, is that Pedersen’s multi-year deal is said to be worth approximately half of what it takes to run a car per season. I’ve also heard the Pedersen family does not have to pay for crash damage which, in light of the numerous crashes — including the chassis that was destroyed on the first lap of the season — means the solid second-car budget it had with Kellett has been replaced by one that would place the No. 55 Chevy on precarious financial grounds.
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racer.com

The RACER Mailbag, November 22

Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers can be sent to [email protected]. We can’t guarantee that every letter will be published, but we’ll answer as many as we can. Publ…
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On the surface it’s not a sexy signing at all, but it’s more lucrative for Foyt and Robb also has more ability than Pedersen and certainly Kellett ever did (though Dalton is a great dude).
 
Kiante said:
I think Foyt is expanding. Something tells me that someone is a placeholder in this group pending on Myles Rowe's performance next year...
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I think 2025 seems to be the expectation, but Indy NXT is going to be huge next season at an estimated 22 entries, and I think developing talent deserve two seasons at each rung of the ladder to prove themselves. I hope they don’t try to rush him up or that he feels pressure to perform right away in year 1.
 
If IndyCar really wants to expand the schedule, and I think they do, this next TV contract they sign for 2025 and beyond needs to be significantly more lucrative. Something that allows the series more financial flexibility in maybe trying to take on more risk and promote some more of their own events. That and they need to make sure they don’t take on too many that teams aren’t left with a budget shortfall. Anything international like Argentina would involve significant sanctioning fees to cover freight and then some, even generating a profit for the participating teams. Expanding the domestic calendar is a different story.

I’d certainly like to see expansion to the Mountain region or Mid-Atlantic, hopefully whatever potential big new event they’re referencing for 2025 is in either of those.

racer.com

IndyCar looking to add new, major event for 2025, Miles says

Having watched as NASCAR made a big splash in Chicago with its first street race and Formula 1 continued to thrive in the U.S. with huge new events in Miami and Las Vegas, Penske Entertainment CEO …
racer.com racer.com
 
FLRacingFan said:
If IndyCar really wants to expand the schedule, and I think they do, this next TV contract they sign for 2025 and beyond needs to be significantly more lucrative. Something that allows the series more financial flexibility in maybe trying to take on more risk and promote some more of their own events. That and they need to make sure they don’t take on too many that teams aren’t left with a budget shortfall. Anything international like Argentina would involve significant sanctioning fees to cover freight and then some, even generating a profit for the participating teams. Expanding the domestic calendar is a different story.

I’d certainly like to see expansion to the Mountain region or Mid-Atlantic, hopefully whatever potential big new event they’re referencing for 2025 is in either of those.

racer.com

IndyCar looking to add new, major event for 2025, Miles says

Having watched as NASCAR made a big splash in Chicago with its first street race and Formula 1 continued to thrive in the U.S. with huge new events in Miami and Las Vegas, Penske Entertainment CEO …
racer.com racer.com
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They can use my idea that I have floated for NASCAR. 2026 is the 250th birthday of the US, street race in Philly called the Freedom 250.
 
FLRacingFan said:
If IndyCar really wants to expand the schedule, and I think they do, this next TV contract they sign for 2025 and beyond needs to be significantly more lucrative. Something that allows the series more financial flexibility in maybe trying to take on more risk and promote some more of their own events. That and they need to make sure they don’t take on too many that teams aren’t left with a budget shortfall. Anything international like Argentina would involve significant sanctioning fees to cover freight and then some, even generating a profit for the participating teams. Expanding the domestic calendar is a different story.

I’d certainly like to see expansion to the Mountain region or Mid-Atlantic, hopefully whatever potential big new event they’re referencing for 2025 is in either of those.

racer.com

IndyCar looking to add new, major event for 2025, Miles says

Having watched as NASCAR made a big splash in Chicago with its first street race and Formula 1 continued to thrive in the U.S. with huge new events in Miami and Las Vegas, Penske Entertainment CEO …
racer.com racer.com
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I think the IndyCar Series is missing the boat and I’m surprised they don’t consider networks such as The CW or ABC/ESPN/ESPN2/ESPN+.

I just can’t for the life of me figure out why SMI/ISC (NASCAR) can’t work together more with Penske/IndyCar on building racing and spreading the wealth and date equity around. It’s counterproductive to corner markets.

I could go on.
 
racingfan7 said:
I think the IndyCar Series is missing the boat and I’m surprised they don’t consider networks such as The CW or ABC/ESPN/ESPN2/ESPN+.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if The CW has a big role in the next TV deal. NBC offers great reach and wall-to-wall Peacock coverage, but they need a bigger financial package and The CW might be the one to offer that.
 
FLRacingFan said:
I wouldn’t be surprised if The CW has a big role in the next TV deal. NBC offers great reach and wall-to-wall Peacock coverage, but they need a bigger financial package and The CW might be the one to offer that.
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The CW needs to get their free phone app working for live events. But overall I agree.
 
FLRacingFan said:
I wouldn’t be surprised if The CW has a big role in the next TV deal. NBC offers great reach and wall-to-wall Peacock coverage, but they need a bigger financial package and The CW might be the one to offer that.
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CW's target demographic is roughly 14-25 year olds, so cultivating young fans is a good thing.
 
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