IndyCar: Its Past and Present #BlogPost

With Fernando Alonso running the Indy 500 this year, the entire Motorsports world is focused on the Indy 500, and many F1 fans who have not watched IndyCar are now interested. Being an IndyCar fan first and foremost, I’ve decided to write about the modern history of IndyCar to help out any F1 fans who have questions about this form of racing. I will be covering the seasons between 1994 and present, as 1994 really marks the true start of the event that would shape IndyCar as it is today.

The modern history really begins in 1993 when Tony George, President of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, states publicly that the Indy 500 feels as if it was becoming less significant comparative to the main American Open Wheel Racing (AOWR) Series in the United States, CART (Championship Auto Racing Teams). In January 1994, Englishman Andrew Craig was placed as CART President and states his intentions to expand the series beyond it’s traditional base. George immediately resigned from his CART board seat in protest.

At the Indy 500, CART Team Owner Roger Penske exploited a loophole in the rules, giving the Penske PC-23 up to 200whp more than the rest of the field. Penske’s cars led 193 laps of the 200 lap Indy 500. This angered George, immediately changing the rules and entry for the 1995 Indianapolis 500 and limiting Turbo-Pressure for purpose built engines like what the PC-23 was running, and not allowing them to run in the 1995 Indy 500. This cost engine manufacturer Ilmor over a Million dollars. Tensions grew, until they finally broke. In Late 1994, Tony George announced the Indy Racing League (IRL). The IRL would be an all-Oval, American based, non-turbocharged engined racing series. This would split AOWR into two different series, running on the same day of the week, and splitting fans between both series. IRL would run its first race at Walt Disney World Speedway in January 1996.

In December 1994, USAC (United States Auto Club, sanctioning body of the IRL and Indianapolis Motor Speedway) announces new chassis specs that are critically different from CART specifications. The infuriates CART Teams, as they would have to build completely new cars to run at Indianapolis. Many CART Teams still ran the 500, but wasted a lot of money doing so.

In July 1995, the conflict between USAC (IRL) and CART reached a climax. For the 1996 Indy 500, a rule would be put in place to guarantee 25 out of the 33 starting spots to IRL Teams, and only have 8 CART competitors in the Indianapolis 500. Due to the so-called 25/8 rule, CART Teams boycotted the 1996 Indianapolis 500. This would lead CART Team Owner Roger Penske and CART to announce a new 500 Mile race to be held the same day as the Indianapolis 500. It would be called the U.S. 500, and would be run at Penske’s Michigan Speedway, only a 3 hour drive from Indianapolis.

With the former Indianapolis 500 Superstars in Michigan for 1996, and a new 3.5 Liter engine formula for the IRL, USAC needed to make changes to get the traditional 33 cars for the Indianapolis 500. They had to lower the minimum age to start from 21 to 18 and even go as far as to fund many driver’s to race into the event. CART also had problems getting 33 cars, with only 27 showing up to Michigan. At Indianapolis, Arie Luyendyk would set both the Qualifying lap average record and the All-Time lap record, at a 239.260mph average lap. In Michigan, Chip Ganassi driver Jimmy Vasser would set the Qualifying record at Michigan with a lap of 232.026mph. On May 26th, 1996, the split between CART and the IRL became a reality.

At Indianapolis, reality was tragedy and embarrassment for Tony George. On May 17th, during the 2nd week of practice, driver Scott Brayton was trying out his back-up car for the 500, when the rear end broke loose going through Turn 2. Brayton passed away on impact with the outside retaining wall. George’s month of May was about to get even worse in terms of IRL publicity. The race only saw 5 competitive cars compete in the race, and only 3 actually finishing the event. The U.S. 500 seemed destined to have won the first battle, until they didn’t. Coming to the green flag, pole sitter Jimmy Vasser and 2nd place Adrián Fernández collided, sparking a 12 car accident before the U.S. 500 could even get going. After an hour wait, it was announced that involved drivers would allowed to run spare cars. Jimmy Vasser took the victory by 10 seconds over Maurício Gugelmin.

As months went by, IRL crowds dwindled, but CART’s crowds were staying stagnant. Many IRL fans refused to support CART, and chose to watch NASCAR instead, leading to the boom that NASCAR went through in the Late 1990’s and Early 2000’s. CART soon became the superior series, the last moment of the 1996 Season cemented CART’s popularity. The final race of 1996 was held at Laguna Seca, and fans witnessed one of the greatest moments in racing. Bryan Herta and Alex Zanardi were battling for the victory, and on the last lap, Zanardi passed Herta through the Corkscrew, going on to take victory. Jimmy Vasser would take the Championship.

CART would soon become known for its fantastically insane cars and races. CART’s cars were running up to 900whp on four different chassis between Lola, Reynard, Swift and Penske, with engine suppliers Ilmor, Honda, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota. The manufacturer and chassis differences grew CART to unbelievable heights. Races like 1997 at Portland, 1997 at Detroit and 1998 at Long Beach. CART birthed new stars like Greg Moore, Alex Zanardi, Bryan Herta, Dario Franchitti and Patrick Carpentier. It was a golden age for American Open Wheel Racing.

IRL wouldn’t have the same success. In 1997, the IRL announced a new chassis that would be radically different from CART specifications. The number of regular entries dwindled with the high-running costs. The Oval based schedule also competed directly with NASCAR, which was, in many fan’s eyes, a better show. CART’s Oval crowds started to dwindle at NASCAR tracks, but grew at Road Courses. In Late 1999, CART and IRL went into talks to reunify AWOR, but Tony George backed out at the last minute.

CART’s races would soon be marred with tragedy. In Qualifying for the 1999 Event at Laguna Seca, Gonzalo Rodríguez would lose his brakes going into the Corkscrew, going through the tire wall at the end of the straight and flipping into the trees on the outside of the track. He was killed instantly. At California Speedway, Greg Moore crashed on Lap 10. The car had spun down the backstraightaway, and when the car dug into the infield grass, it rolled the car and sent Moore helmet first into the wall. CART had lost two young stars in the span of 3 months.

CART started to run into problems around this time. CART’s crowds were dwindling, and its teams had talks of leaving CART. In 2000, Chip Ganassi became the first major CART Team to field a car in the Indianapolis 500 since 1995, with Juan Pablo Montoya, who would go on to win the race. For 2000, CART would leave what was supposed to be their flagship event, the U.S. 500 wouldn’t be run, citing low attendance. For 2001, CART would sign Texas Motor Speedway to an event to directly compete with the IRL, a mistake that would cost CART dearly.

The 2001 Season became a embarrassment for CART. At their event in Texas, the cars were so fast and the banking was so steep that the G-Forces were causing drivers to fall unconscious, leading to the race’s cancellation. You can read about the full situation here. 6 CART Teams entered the Indy 500 for 2001 and took the Top 6 spots. CART star Alex Zanardi lost both legs during the race at EuroSpeedway. After a few missteps, canceled races and officiating errors, Honda and Toyota announced they would leave CART at the end of the 2001 Season, leaving Ford as the only engine manufacturer in CART. Roger Penske, Co-Founder of CART, announced in November that Team Penske would switch to IRL in 2002, with Chip Ganassi announcing the same thing weeks later. CART would declare bankruptcy after the 2003 Season.

IRL would suffer too, with controversy haunting the series. The 2002 Indianapolis 500 was the climax of politics within AOWR. With two laps to go in the event, Helio Castroneves, an IRL Driver, was battling with Paul Tracey, a CART driver. They were side-by-side when a crash occurred in Turn 2. Both drivers roared through Turn 3 when the caution came out. Both Tracey and Castroneves had thought they had won, but IRL had stated that Castroneves had won. This ignited a firestorm, and the IRL was accused of robbing the CART driver from a win. The win stood, but many were disgusted at the actions of the IRL.

Attendance was far lower than it should have been and, in 2003, IRL had its worst case scenario when trying to rebound. At the final race at Texas Motor Speedway, Kenny Brack was severely injured in an accident with only a few laps remaining in the Championship race. Brack would sustain 214 G’s in the accident, the most a human has ever survived. Then, at a tire test at Indianapolis, Chip Ganassi was testing with his two drivers for the 2004 Indianapolis 500. Scott Dixon had completed his test, and new driver Tony Renna would go out on October 22nd. On his 4th Lap, something went wrong. Renna’s car spun on the back straightaway, lifted into the air, and went through the catch fencing. To anyone there that day, it is said to be the worst accident in Motorsport, and it would have put an end to racing had it happened on race day. Renna’s car had shattered when it hit the catchfence. Bodywork, Engine Parts and parts of Renna were found throughout the Turn 3 grandstand, and even outside the track. No video has ever been released of the incident, and the IRL gained a lot of bad press out of the incidents.

Throughout the IRL’s struggles, a new series was born out of what was left of CART. The Champ Car World Series would run its first race at Long Beach on April 18th, 2004. Only 14 races would be run in the season, with only two ovals, at Las Vegas and Milwaukee. Sébastien Bourdais would win the Championship. Over the next few years, Champ Car and IRL’s attendance and ratings would suffer. Champ Car would suffer from more problems than the IRL, however. Canceled races, an expensive new chassis and poorly design tracks crippled the series. In 2008, Champ Car and IRL announced their reunification, and that IRL would pledge a million dollars to help any Champ Car team that wanted to race at the IRL race in Homestead. It was announced that Champ Car’s final race would be in Long Beach, on the 20th of April.

In 2008, it was announced that there would be a single chassis for the 2008 Championship, the Dallara IR-05. A new car would be designed to race in the 2012 Season. The first several years of the new series, renamed IndyCar in 2011, went smoothly, until the last race of the 2011 Season. IndyCar had provided incentives for any teams who would like to enter the final race of the season at Las Vegas, leading to 34 starters in the race. Since Champ Car had run at Las Vegas, the track had been reconfigured into a 24 Degree Banked track, rather than the previous 12 degrees. This made the track flat out all the way around, and grouped the cars together in one large pack at over 220mph. Dan Wheldon, the 2011 Indianapolis 500 winner, took a bet from IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard. If he started last in the race, and came through the pack to win, he would be given $5 Million (USD). By Lap 11, Wheldon had made his way into the Top 30. Up in front, Wade Cunningham and James Hinchcliffe made contact, sparking an accident. Wheldon had next to no time to react, and launched over Charlie Kimball’s car. Wheldon flew into the catchfence, and died on impact.

IndyCar and Wheldon had been working on a safer car for the 2012 Season, and it was to be implemented even after Wheldon’s passing. It would be named the Dallara DW12, in tribute to Wheldon. Wheldon’s passing shocked the IndyCar world. IndyCar immediately cut their 5 year contract with Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway, stating that 1.5 Mile “Bowl” type racetracks were too dangerous to run in IndyCar. Texas Motor Speedway is the only 1.5 Mile racetrack left on the IndyCar schedule.

The DW12 has proved to be a great car for IndyCar. The last 5 Indianapolis 500’s that have been run with the DW12 have set records for lead changes, with the 2013 edition seeing the most at 68. The most lead changes in an IndyCar race was also set with the DW12, with 80 during the absolutely amazing 2015 MAV-TV 500. In 2015 it was announced that manufacturers Honda and Chevy would not only produce engines, but their own aerokits. More manufacturer support led to an incredible battle between the Honda and Chevy aerokits at both Oval and Road Courses, but Chevy has won the last two Championships.

So that brings us to present day. So far, IndyCar has run 4 races in 2017, and I will go ahead and recap all of them. The first race was run on the Streets of St. Petersburg, Florida on March 12th. Sébastien Bourdais started in last on the grid, but midway through the first cycle of pit stops a caution came out for contact between Mikhail Aleshin (#7) and Tony Kanaan (#10). Bourdais had already pitted, allowing him to pass all of the cars who hadn’t pitted yet. Bourdais restarted 2nd behind reining champion Simon Pagenaud. Bourdais took the lead and never looked back, winning in the lowest funded car on the grid. You can watch the full race here.

At the second round in Long Beach, Hélio Castroneves started on pole, but got a bad start, losing the lead by turn 1. The race then became a question on whether or not drivers could make it to the end on two or three pit stops. During the last pit cycle, it looked as if being on the newer tires of a three stop strategy would pay off with how massive the tire wear is on the Long Beach street circuit. However, in between the second and third pit stops, Alexander Rossi’s Andretti-Honda engine blew up, bringing out a safety car. This allowed the drivers who hadn’t made their third stop yet to stay out infront of the drivers who had already made their second stop. James Hinchcliffe took over the lead, but Ryan Hunter-Reay’s Andretti Autosport Honda was catching him, but with 5 Laps remaining, Hunter-Reay lost an engine while attempting an overtake on Hinchcliffe. Hinchcliffe would hold of all challenges from Josef Newgarden and Bourdais to win at Long Beach. Click Here for the Full Race.

At Barber Motorsports Park, Will Power qualified on the pole and led over Josef Newgarden and Scott Dixon, who battled all race long. With 15 Laps remaining, Power lost a left rear tire, leaving Newgarden and Dixon to battle for the rest of the race. Newgarden would fend off the challenge from Dixon, taking his first victory since joining Team Penske during the offseason. Here is the full race.

At Phoenix, the Penske cars dominated Qualifying, and it looked as if it was Will Power’s race to lose once again. During the second to last pit stop cycle, Takuma Sato crashed into the Turn 4 wall, bringing out a caution. Simon Pagenaud hadn’t taken a pit stop yet, trapping all but 4 other cars 1 lap down. Pagenaud pulled away and won the race. Click here for the full race.

I hope this answered any questions you have about IndyCar, if you have any more then I’ll be happy to answer them in the comments.