The RACER Mailbag, July 16

Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers can be sent to mailbag@racer.com. We love hearing your comments and opinions, but letters that include a question are more likely to be published. Questions received after 3pm ET each Monday will be saved for the following week. 

Q: The racing at Iowa was better than expected, and crowds were far worse. Can we go back next year for a Wednesday/Thursday night double-header that follows the MLB All-Star game and is held under the lights with a network audience?

Dan, Brownsburg, INtwo

MARSHALL PRUETT: Field of IndyCar Dreams. I’m all-in on this. And let’s just do a single day, single race and make it special. If that doesn’t work, nothing will.

Q: Are engine replacements reported somewhere fans can see? Would be interesting to see when teams chose or had to replace an engine.

Do you know if Will Power had to get a new engine for Iowa? I watched Chevy guys really looking at his engine in the garage after he was out of the Mid-Ohio race.

Craig

MP: Chevy and Honda supply IndyCar with lists of available engines as they’re built/rebuilt and ready to be used, and IndyCar picks them at random and tells Chevy/Honda to send that motor to the team in need. IndyCar then does a serial number confirmation to ensure what’s in the car matches what they said to put in the car.

Power got a fresh engine for Iowa, yes. 

Q: I believe Scott McLaughlin has what it takes to be an IndyCar series champion. Should it happen, it’d make him the champion of two different top tier series. How many people – and who – have been able to pull that off?

Shawn, MD

MP: Strange to see so many unforced errors in his fifth season. He was my pre-season pick for the title. Of those who come immediately to mind in recent times, Simon Pagenaud won the 2010 ALMS Prototype championship and the 2016 IndyCar title. Juan Pablo Montoya won the 1999 CART IndyCar championship and the 2019 IMSA DPi championship as well. I’m sure there are others.

Q: Just heard towards the end of Saturday’s Iowa race that Chevy messaged all Chevy teams telling them to not use the attack mode setting anymore. I assume Chevy will have nothing to say about this. Do you think they saw some data that made them worry about the engine giving out?

Craig

MP: Correct on Chevy having a consistent policy on not talking about such things. Without knowing what was or wasn’t messaged, yes, if a manufacturer asks teams to not do something, there’s usually a reason for it.  

Q: I just watched Iowa Race 1. A few interesting storylines (Penske’s resurgence, O’Ward’s first win of 2025, Chevy running up front), but the empty grandstands are a total embarrassment. 

The threatening weather was certainly a factor, but how did they go from sellout crowds to this debacle so quickly? Was Hy-Vee giving away tickets a few years back? Did the ridiculous ticket prices with the concerts drive people away for good? Has the single-lane racing caused mass disinterest? I assume some combination of those, but this is unacceptable humiliation.

There must be a solution for this great facility and terrific fans there. Maybe one race, and on Saturday or Sunday night (not late afternoon)? There are races at Knoxville this weekend, that will likely have better attendance. Maybe Penske Entertainment could benefit from a title sponsor that can market the open-wheel weekend at both tracks? Obviously, they’ll go with whoever offers money to sponsor the race, but IndyCar obviously failed badly as a promoter here. Something worked well in the recent past.

Tom Pate, Macomb, MI

MP: Ever seen where a popular band loses its recording deal with a major label and returns on a smaller one — or they start their own label — and they shed all of the general interest fans and are left with just the diehards? That’s what everyone just saw at Iowa Speedway after Hy-Vee left as co-promoter, sponsor, marketing force, and bringer of big musical acts.

With Penske Entertainment as the sole promoter, and minus the vast reach and resources Hy-Vee was willing to commit, there was always going to be a decline in attendance. Then factor in the brutally bad racing last year when attendance was slightly down — even with the giant country acts and whatever crossover category that befits Post Malone — on not one, but two 275-lap occasions, and you have the recipe that creates a lot of empty stands last weekend.

Saturday’s race wasn’t a sustained thriller, but it got better as it went on and the second lane was revealed to a number of drivers as something that could be used to pass. Sunday was better — not like the crazy-great Iowas of the past — and showed some life for most of the contest.

If Sunday’s Iowa race could be slightly improved upon, it’s well worth going back, but the sparse crowd is what nothing but diehards look like. I don’t know if one driver leading 242 laps on Saturday with Newgarden and Palou leading 194 of 275 on Sunday would jump out as amazing to casual fans and get them to return — assuming they watched the races on FOX – and with those visuals of the event being unworthy of widespread attendance, that’s another item to consider.

I think of last year’s doubleheader like a musical act as well, and it put on two bad concerts. Unless I was a total devotee to the band and didn’t care if the concerts were terrible, how would the average person react if they heard the same band was returning for two more concerts? I think most people would pass, which likely explains the abundance of shiny and empty aluminum seats.

If an IndyCar drives past and nobody is in the grandstand to hear it, does it still make a sound? Joe Skibinski/IMS

Q: It’s no secret that IndyCar has little or no interest outside of basically four events: the 500, Road America, Long Beach and Mid-Ohio. The rest of the races have little to no attendance. People are clamoring for more ovals, but yet nobody shows up.  I am all for doubling the Road America and Mid-Ohio rounds, where people show up in droves, to keep the schedule up in the mid-teens. How does the series survive without people in the stands?

Concerned in Colorado 

MP: Can’t agree with the first statement, but there’s no arguing the greater point you make. I’ve run out of new ways to say that IndyCar cannot continue to race at places where people barely show up – not while it’s in a long-term rebuilding process – but it also faces the issue of not having enough new tracks to visit that would solve the low-attendance problem. Which makes your idea one to consider, provided the Road Americas and Mid-Ohios are confident they could draw two big crowds twice a year.

Q: Just finished watching Race 1 from Iowa. It was an entertaining race that showed the quality of racing the series provides. The crowd, however, was beyond disappointing. Embarrassing, actually. Not sure what the answer is, but ovals other than Indy just don’t sell for the series. Design a new car that can safely race on the existing road courses like Road Atlanta, Mosport, VIR, hopefully find a few more street circuits, and leave the ovals to Indy.

Michael Veretta, Ilderton, Ontario, Canada 

MP: Milwaukee had an impressive crowd on its return last year. Nashville also did better than expected after a really long absence by IndyCar. Gateway (WWTR) has been good — with good being different from great — despite some shrinkage from the early years of its return.

I didn’t grow up with short ovals, but have come to love them almost more than road and street courses, which is my pre-IndyCar background. I’d welcome all the road courses you mention, but I’d never want to shed the non-Indy ovals.   

Q: What an embarrassment, seeing all the thousands of racing fans disguised as empty seats both days at Iowa. How can you have 350,000 people at Indy and 350 people at Iowa? Maybe next year – if there is a race – they should give away all tickets for free and try to make up the lost revenue in parking and concessions. By the way, both races were great and very exciting.

Don, Grand Rapids

MP: Catch-22 here. If IndyCar needs to maintain its oval variety and stay between 16-18 races, Iowa Speedway is a great location to consider. If IndyCar (Penske Entertainment) needs to make money, well, free tickets isn’t the way to prop up a lack of demand unless someone believes it’s a marketing investment that might get Big Company X to spend a ton on becoming a Hy-Vee-level sponsor for 2027 and bring people back through immense promotions and attractions beyond the racing.

Q: Josef Newgarden fired everyone seemingly on his team except for his family after 2023. Not sure who was in his ear (or if he was just in his own head), but aside from a second 500 win, he seems like a miserable person. Does he think that alone was worth it?  He’s perceived as a cheater, a liar, and bad guy – by me and many others. It’s also clear to me that at least one of his teammates feels like me. Is this ‘makeover’ all Josef’s doing? If so, like someone who represents himself in court, he has a fool for a client. If not, I’d submit he fired the wrong person/people.

Mike DeQuardo, Elkhart Lake

MP: Really hard to answer, Mike. Josef keeps his inner circle small, but two things stand out from the periphery: He’s got a crew on the No. 2 Chevy who are as ride-or-die as I’ve come across. From his crew chief to the rest of the mechanics to the engineers on the timing stand, that’s a tight-knit group right there. I know what it’s like to loathe an unpleasant driver from my time as an IndyCar crew member, and I don’t see that on the 2 car.

He’s gone from being a wide-open person, a friend to the paddock, with lots of free time for people, to someone who shows up on a mission to focus on his work, just with the members of his Penske tribe, and isn’t trying to be the wide-open guy of old. And I respect that. He’s been searching to find something that’s been missing since the end of 2019 when his last championship was won, and that’s involved some personnel changes that haven’t always been handled the right way, from what I’ve been told.

I’d love to meet the person who thinks they can tell Penske what to do, but yes, as the team’s most successful driver since he arrived there in 2017, you’d assume that comes with a level of influence that is real and significant.  

He’s also been in a rolling kick to the crotch for almost two straight months starting with Pole Day on May 18. Even the second-place in Iowa Race 1 had a downside after being the fastest all day, and it happened again in Race 2, but came with a 10th-place result.

If he was winning, I’d bet there wouldn’t be much to talk about. But since he isn’t, and has come tantalizingly close and lost again – twice in under 24 hours in Iowa – it’s a story that continues to build in a negative direction. There would be something wrong with him is he wasn’t feeling miserable since May. 

Newgarden’s public persona has changed over the years, but the fact that those closest to him on the team side are still all-in counts for plenty. Joe Skibinski/IMS

Q: I am very happy with FOX. But I have one complaint. It seems that FOX keeps engine sounds cranked up, covering the announcers’ voices. It makes it very hard to watch and listen.

I’m sure that I am alone. Please pass this along to your friends at FOX. FYI, after the Iowa race, I switched back and forth between the IMSA and the NASCAR Cup Series races. Neither network over amplified the car sounds and that made a better viewing experience 

Last weekend’s races prove how great ovals are for IndyCar. We need more ovals, short or long, on the schedule. The shame is how empty the stands were on both days

Mike, Cincinnati 

MP: Message inbound, FOX. Can you hear me now? 

Q: Do media personalities, such as you, who are assigned to interview Newgarden (or try to) when he doesn’t win a race, automatically get an extra day off?  If not, they should.

He’s gone from one of my favorites to my least.

Red 

MP: ‘Media personalities’ is an interesting turn of phrase. ‘Dip**** who asks questions’ is more accurate.

Q: I empathize with the challenges that can emerge during a tough season, much like those experienced by Josef Newgarden and the Penske team this year. However, Josef’s reactions appear somewhat immature, especially given his track record of success, which would typically indicate a more composed response to setbacks.

In contrast, Scott Dixon exemplifies a more resilient attitude in similar circumstances, not storming off. While it’s understandable to feel disappointment and frustration, Josef’s inclination to withdraw and skip interviews, in my opinion, does not cast him in a favorable light. This behavior is not isolated; it seems to be becoming a recurring theme. What do you think? 

Andrew Heid

MP: The wave of Josef questions right after Iowa wasn’t on my radar.

Some people care about how they are perceived. Josef appeared to fall into that category for the first 10 years of his IndyCar career, and then that appeared to become of less importance and he leaned heavily into a DGAF approach. He’s among the most self-aware and intelligent drivers I know, so he’d know his reactions of late would be received in a negative manner.

Said another way, if he cared about public perception, I’m sure he’d stay and wait for cameras and microphones to appear when whatever things go wrong to ensure his thoughts are shared and his view is understood. And since he isn’t waiting to be seen and heard most times, and since he’s extremely deliberate in his actions, I’d take what you see for what it is.

I’d also close by saying that if this was new-guy-at-Penske Josef, I don’t think he walks away a single time. That was also the before-Penske-owned-everything times when Roger was on a timing stand – not necessarily Josef’s, but there on someone’s Penske entry – at all the races and you don’t pull that kind of stuff with The Captain nearby. With Cindric gone and with Roger no longer on pit lane with his team, I can see how this has become a thing.

Can you imagine it becoming a thing at Ganassi, though? Or Arrow McLaren? Chip would apply ‘corrective behavior’ in an instant. You’d hear the shouting inside the transporter from a mile away, and it would never happen again. Same with Zak or TK. But different teams and different cultures here…

Q: What a contrast between Race 1 and Race 2 in Iowa. The way the yellows fell in Race 1 had little effect on the outcome. Not the same story in Race 2.  Luck reared its ugly head in the form of yellow caution flags.

Teams have complained about cautions in IndyCar for a long time. More casual fans of the series become frustrated with how the races unfold. IndyCar never seems to have an acceptable solution. With IndyCar on the cusp of real ratings success, changes must be made. We have reached an inflection point in the series. 

I’ve heard it said, “it’s only a problem if you have a solution”. Well, I would like to propose a solution. Pitting under yellow would not be permitted. All cars must pit under green to ensure all pit stops take place under similar conditions.

If a car cannot potentially complete the duration of a caution due to running out of fuel, then that car can pit for a ‘splash and go’ only and rejoin the field in the same position it occupied at the start of that yellow. However, to ensure that no team would attempt to do a ‘splash and go’ to get to the checkered flag without stopping again, that car would be required to pit within two laps of the green flag and take on a full load of fuel regardless of the remaining distance of the race… 275 laps or three laps, no matter.

While I may be missing a point or two, I believe we must start somewhere and begin coming up with some reasonable solutions. It is vital for the future of IndyCar to always do everything possible to maximize skill and minimize luck.

St. Louis Spencer

MP: I get your point, but name a sport where skill isn’t maximized and luck isn’t an influence in the outcome in every game or race? Closing the pits has been done before, and then you take away the dumpster divers who had poor qualifying runs from hitting pit lane early under caution, just as Scott Dixon did at Mid-Ohio, and bringing fun and interesting strategies into play among the majority who stick to the popular strategy.

Sometimes the pitcher loses control of the ball and hits the batter who goes on to score the winning run who wouldn’t be on base if it wasn’t for the pitcher’s bad luck. Sometimes the receiver can’t grasp the ball and it gets tipped straight to the safety who takes the interception to the house and scores the game-winning touchdown. Do we rewrite the rules to say a struck batter can’t score because of the ill-timed oops? Interceptions can’t be returned to the end zone if the receiver touched the ball? Just wondering how far we go to strip untimely or unwanted happenings from a game to ensure the outcome hasn’t been influenced by good or bad luck.

And if we prevent all pit stops that aren’t done under green to safeguard against chance and variety, do we also mandate what tire compounds teams can use and when as to prevent luck and variety there? Maybe we add two or three breaks during the race– almost at different stages – as well?

Bad things happen. It’s part of every single sporting event and it alters the score or finishing order in some capacity. Not sure how taking choices away and removing options and creativity improves the games. 

Q: All three Andretti cars had a right front tire failure at the Iowa Speedway. Does Firestone provide the teams and the series with maximum static camber recommendations and minimum starting cold inflation pressure recommendations for each race? If the answer is yes, does the series check the camber settings in tech inspection, and does the series monitor tire inflation pressure via telemetry?

Dave, Ohio

MP: Recommendations, yes. ‘Recommendations’ being different from technical regulations. Firestone is extremely active in monitoring pressures and going straight to teams when it sees something that’s out of bounds.

Firestone offers guidelines for what a tire might like on any given weekend, but teams are free to do their own thing. Joe Skibinski/IMS

Q: Great races in Iowa. I’m wondering how Honda is able to have such a fuel advantage over Chevy? Is it just a more efficient engine? Is there something specific that Chevy can try to match? Has it always been an advantage for Honda? 

Rob, Tampa

MP: Chevy’s been known as the mid-range and top-end king with this motor formula and Honda’s been known as the bottom-end and fuel-mileage king. The two have been impossibly close in all those areas at times since 2012, traded those strengths and weaknesses, and snapped back as well. When it comes to mileage, it has been a Honda year. 

Q: Two questions. First, how can it be that McLaren doesn’t have a reserve driver? They couldn’t bring one in? They did it before with Theo Pourchaire when Rossi broke his thumb in Toronto in 2024. Their sponsors cannot be happy about having the No.6 parked. [ED: This letter arrived before Arrow McLaren put Linus Lundqvist on standby ahead of Toronto]. Secondly, it appears that Toronto might be on the chopping block and Watkins Glen might be in the mix for coming back? Help me out here because I haven’t heard any chatter locally about this. 

Rob, Rochester, NY

MP: Most IndyCar teams do not have reserve drivers, so that’s the norm. I’d think the sponsors of a car would be sympathetic to the plight of a young man who got hurt and are with a team that has the resources to hire a driver on short notice to represent them at a high level. Not like this is the first time a injured driver has been a question mark for the next race.

IndyCar president Doug Boles told us last week that he expects Toronto to return. Watkins has been a subject of speculation for no reason whatsoever. Being there during the aero kit era and seeing the max-downforce Indy cars fly through the corners at mind-bending speed was like a religious experience. But there are no plans for a return next year.

Q: I thought the double-header at Iowa Speedway was a great weekend for IndyCar. There was fantastic racing, lots of passing, strategy, stiff competition, and surprise endings (Chevy finally gets a win, Palou proves the Indy 500 was not a fluke).

The crowd for both races was very light, probably 25% capacity or less. Given the small crowds this year, is Iowa likely to remain a double-header in 2026?

The yellow flag laps were actually quite helpful at Iowa, because the sweepers wisely used the time to clean the track, opening the high lane for 10 or more laps. How can NASCAR run at Texas, WWTR and Iowa side-by-side all day long, but IndyCar, on the same tracks in the same conditions, only gets 10-15 clean laps before the marbles build up, making the high-lane treacherous?  Clearly NASCAR tires shed rubber, so why aren’t they dealing with the same problem?  

Here’s what we know: NASCAR has heavier cars, totally different aerodynamics, runs at slower speeds, with different loads, a different tire manufacturer with a different tire compound, different tire sizes, and responds favorably to PJ-1 and repaved tracks. So which of those differences is the primary factor that allows NASCAR to run the high-lane on these ovals, but IndyCar effectively cannot for more than 10 laps?

Kevin P., Los Angeles, CA

MP: NASCAR: Slow in corners, fast on straights. Tires aren’t grinding away on straights. IndyCar: Fast in corners, fast on straights. Tires are grinding in the corners. Marbles. 

Q: Lundgaard got lapped at least twice and finished sixth. VeeKay got lapped probably four times and finished eighth. Abel was a moving chicane and got lapped who knows how many times and finished 15th. None of those guys had to earn any of those laps back, they just got handed them with the added benefit of pitting a lap later than the leaders. As a result, they finish ahead of cars that lapped them multiple times. What’s the explanation for IndyCar’s wave-around rule where lapped cars get their lap back and then also get to pit a lap after the leaders? At least NASCAR forces you to forgo your pit stop if you want the wave-around (besides the lucky dog). 

Also, why doesn’t Firestone get any criticism for the tires this year? Zero tire deg at Iowa, and we’ve seen quite a few races this year where one tire has been absolutely useless to the point we may as well have only had one tire option. I get the hybrid adds a challenge, but it’s been more than a year since they’ve been implemented, not to mention all the testing that was done prior to that. 

Brent

MP: The explanation is IndyCar allows everything you mentioned and NASCAR doesn’t? Hate to be Captain Obvious here (not really), but it’s what IndyCar wants to do, so they do it. It doesn’t base its rules on what another series does or doesn’t do.

Not sure how to respond to the Firestone comment because they’ve been heavily criticized when it’s been warranted. I know because I’ve listened to the complaints and written those stories, or included those complaints in race reports. And written positive things when positives have been spoken. I assume other reporters do the same.  

Q: Congratulations to Miles Rowe on his historic victory at Iowa. IndyCar needs him to succeed, and hopefully he will get a ride next year.

Meanwhile here’s an idea that could keep oval racing including Iowa: The IndyCar Series should offer discount/travel packages to Indy 500 attendees at other IndyCar oval racing events. Some have shown a willingness to travel to other ovals based on the location in the Midwest like WWTR, Iowa and Milwaukee. 

I think it can boost attendance at the other ovals by emailing an offer of cheaper tickets, and perhaps a travel packages to the other ovals that IndyCar is currently promoting. Years ago NHRA did something similar by offering discounts to their fan base and a deal with Motel 6. 

If 10% of 500 attendees were intrigued by the deal, all our other ovals would look full and we wouldn’t have to wring our hands about the future of the series every time we go to a non-street/road course. To me I think this could help Iowa and perhaps add other ovals races like Michigan, Richmond, New Hampshire and Homestead. 

Alistair, Springfield, MO 

MP: Penske Travel, a new subsidiary of Penske Corporation. I quite like that idea, Alistair.  

And if you want to make Penske Travel really interesting… Donald Miralle/Getty Images

Q: I’m sure you’ll get a lot of questions on this issue, but I wanted to ask from an international perspective.

I love watching an oval race, but it seems people aren’t turning up. My question is why, and how do we improve these numbers? Are ovals harder to get to than the road courses, or is it a lack of presence in games a hindrance?

The other thing that strikes me is the lack of action on the schedule for ovals. I know there aren’t many series that race on ovals, but why not consider the US Pro Series (maybe bring back the Road to Indy) or some off-track action? Crazy Carts have been a hit in the BTCC on Saturday; maybe IndyCar should do that. Expand to include more fan zones and Q&A sessions, among other things.

Now, since I’m UK-based, I’d have to invest a lot of money to travel and watch an IndyCar race in person. However, I’d get better value for my money at Long Beach (since it doubles up IMSA) or a trip to Road America. So I’m more likely to go to those than an oval. Look, I love watching oval racing, and it makes IndyCar stand out, but unless we change this, it won’t be long before we’re back to a late Champ Car series with the Indy 500.

Also, while I have you, what do we have to do to get the GTP class at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park? (And to add, brilliant to see Team Jota win with the Caddy).

Dan Mayhew 

MP: Newton, Iowa, is 20-30 minutes from anywhere, so it involves a drive. But that’s also true for Laguna Seca, Mid-Ohio, Road America, Barber, WWTR to a lesser degree, and Nashville. Some of those tracks are packed while others are empty, so it’s not the driving or proximity to major cities.

Some of those places have IndyCar races hosted while it’s broiling hot, but if there’s trees or ready shade, folks show up. When I think of Iowa, it’s just hot, with no shade, with no sense of community like some of the others where folks camp and fellowship and make their own parties over the weekend. It’s a sit-in-the-stands-and-watch-racing event now that the big concerts are gone, and once upon a time, that was more than enough to attract an audience.

Your idea of packing each day with other stuff is a good one, but it’s a fairly sparse venue with limited options for those who like to have a bigger hand in creating their own experience at a motor race. Long Beach is the ultimate example of variety where you can sit in the stands, go down and see the cars, go inside the convention center and see and buy more cool stuff, eat at a range of restaurants, and never suffer from boredom.

At some of the others, you can bring all the fun and variety in your car or truck, put up a tent, and camp with like-minded folks around you. At an Iowa, or a Nashville, or a WWTR, there’s nothing there to entertain you beyond the cars, and no camping, and no shade. For those who want more than the sit-in-the-stands experience, which seems to be a growing segment, it does present a concern for the series. 

Q: Is there any recommendation from IndyCar doctors to drivers about what position to hold when they are going to crash? I’m asking because when Nolan Siegel spun he moved his head forward a lot. That looked painful.

I don’t know if other drivers do the same. But wouldn’t it be better to keep your head resting in the back of the cockpit?

William Mazeo

MP: Haven’t heard of a series or its medical staff telling drivers how to position themselves in a crash, but yes, minimizing the distance between one’s helmet and the cushioning effect created by the head surround would seem like the right move every time in an impact. 

Q: Will all the stakeholders in the Iowa races be able to save its place on the IndyCar schedule? It feels like no one is willing to compromise and fans end up being offered a product that is a poor value. The lack of 2025 attendance reflects the poor value being offered to fans. How many fans can be expected to pay several hundred dollars to attend 2026 race(s) given the following?

Both 2024 races were terrible.

Drivers were unanimously predicting boring racing after the 2025 test.

Saturday’s race was boring.

Sunday’s race was reasonably entertaining.

Races are completely run during the day in July (at a track with lights that has previously held night races).

Bleachers offer zero shade.

The homepage of the track website literally does not mention the race.

Many tickets are more expensive than seats at the Indy 500 for races that take half the time.

Fans are not allowed to bring in food.

Fans are only allowed to bring in two unopened water bottles.

Kyle 

MP: I believe the stakeholder is IndyCar, which put on this year’s event. If IndyCar wants to return, I’d assume Iowa Speedway will take its money.  

Q: I hear there are some problems with Iowa. Promotion, attendance, time of day etc. I hope it all gets worked out because except for one year when it was a one-lane track, the racing there is really good. Bravery and talent on full display. Malukas and Palou battling and Newgarden’s in-car showing some of his killer laps come to mind, but there was lots more. And that was just Race 2. 

There was also good action in NXT when Myles Rowe made a race-winning outside pass on the hotshoe rookie Hauger after working him a bit. Seeing as this is Rowe’s second year and he has good support, are there plans to move him up? Also do we know where Hauger is going?  

Chris, Colorado

MP: I know of one team that continues to tell me they’re interested in Hauger. But there aren’t many paying seats for 2026, and unless there’s a big financial package to offer, the other seats aren’t an option. I need to get an update from Penske Entertainment on Myles. There was the hope he’d be ready for IndyCar next year, but one NXT win isn’t enough to say he’s truly prepared to jump into the series. With another win or two, that might change.

With a better than 50% win rate in NXT this year, Hauger’s definitely doing his bit to get onto the IndyCar radar. Matt Fraver/IMS

Q: I was not able to watch the IndyCar Iowa races live, so I watched the short highlights version on the IndyCar website. I seriously thought I watched Race 1 twice – both had Josef Newgarden taken out of contention by ill-timed pit stops due to cautions… by the same two drivers causing the cautions?

And what about the tire blow-ups? Was it the tire compounds, chassis settings, air pressure?

John, Downers Grove

MP: That would be the same two different drivers in Ericsson and Herta. It wasn’t the compounds because every team had the same compounds and only the Andretti drivers experienced failures. One out of 27 cars in Race 1 and two out of 27 in Race 2.

Nobody would look to chance as being the cause for all three cars from a single team being the only ones to have failures, so yes, chassis settings would be the natural place to look. If the three right-front tires were over or under inflated, or overheating, the team should have seen it each time on telemetry. 

Q: During the second race, a comment was heard on the radio that “the Honda guys” are all blocking. Who said that? I have seen a few conspiracy theorists say that Andretti purposely sacrificed their cars for timely yellow to ensure Honda the win. Was it worth the hundred thousand dollars in damage? (chuckle)

Dino, New Hanover, PA

MP: Hundred grand? Let’s start at a half-million and keep counting. Please use the mute or block or unfriend buttons with joy and remove the idiots from your timelines. 

Q: Do you believe IndyCar’s in-caution procedures need to be tweaked or overhauled? The first Iowa race had two cautions that irked me (see below) and I’ve felt for years there are improvement opportunities.

Caution 1: Herta’s spin at the start. The caution was eight laps, which felt too long. Race Control was happy with the order by lap five, there was no track cleanup or sweeping needed*, and no one needed to pit.

Caution 2: Siegel’s spin, which was eventually red-flagged. It was due to the time needed to make track repairs. I asked if it was surprising when it didn’t happen at WWTR, which is relevant for me as I believe when track integrity is compromised there should be a red flag.

Philosophically I don’t like sweepers coming out during cautions since I feel it’s a partial track/race reset instead of race neutralization. I’d appreciate your opinion on this, too.

Atilla Veyssal, West Allis, WI

MP: I’m fine with the oval procedures we saw. Doesn’t mean my view is right, but I wasn’t irked. People use towels to mop up sweat around the painted area at basketball games after free throws are shot. It’s done for safety so players don’t return to the paint and slip and hurt themselves, and also keeps the paint open for play so it isn’t avoided due to the excessive and hazardous nature of the moisture on the ground.

If the game has been paused for a longer duration that allows IndyCar to use its version of mopping up the paint so safer play and more widespread use of the court is possible, I’m all for it.

Q: Can you explain why Newgarden lost all those places by pitting before the yellow flags? I’m a bit confused with the pit stops and yellow flags – or did he get lapped while in the pits?
Bill, Elk Grove

MP: Lapped while in the pits. Super short lap of 18-19 seconds. Total time in and out of pit lane is around 36 seconds. Pitting right when it goes yellow there, in particular, is the kiss of competitive death if it’s late in the race. Not so much if it’s earlier, which also happened to him, but he raced his way back to the lead, only to have it happen again.

Q: Has Rasmussen done enough recently to secure another year at ECR? He’s passed Rossi in the standings over the last few weeks.

Bob

MP: From the Indy 500 through Iowa, he has four top 10 finishes, including a podium at WWTR and a sixth at the Speedway. Rossi has a single top 10 over that same span. There are reasons both drivers do not have better finishes, as always, but in a cold look at the numbers, yes, Rasmussen is a worthy driver to receive a return invitation. Credit Rossi for helping him to learn more this year than he did all of 2024 as a rookie.

And Rasmussen has also pissed off a lot of veterans with his unpredictable moves on ovals, which he needs to clean up. Last thing he needs is to be treated in a hostile manner – the same way a growing number of vets feel about him as a hostile presence on track – because those strong oval finishes can easily turn into meetings with the wall if the vets grow tired of his selfish approach.

Rasmussen’s making himself known. Chris Jones/IMS

Q: I am a lifelong fan of Roger Penske, and was so excited when he bought IMS and the IndyCar Series from the Hulmans. Now, I believe, Roger must reflect on what is best for the series overall, as even though the 500 itself appears to be on solid ground, the series is not. The Iowa weekend, as good as it was, was an embarrassment attendance-wise, and a total reflection on Penske’s marketing program – or the lack thereof. Now I read about Toronto contemplating a switch to Formula E!

I agree with Michael Andretti and Zak Brown that the series has much potential but would require some substantial investment. Has the idea of making the series a separate public corporation inviting significant outside investment been discussed?

I don’t think one could have a 500 in its current form without a series and I would hate to see the day when the Indy 500 is a NASCAR race.

Denny Jones, Ft Scott, KS

MP: Haven’t heard of a separate public corp, but that sounds like something to ask Zak about when I see him. 

Q: I’m currently listening to The Bill Simmons podcast on a Monday morning in the depths of the July sports lull. The leading segment for this particular episode is lauding how great the F1 movie is and how it has Bill and his guess itching to watch F1. 

 They were mesmerized by the glitz, glamour, risk, and sex appeal that F1 has to offer. They routinely referred to the movie as “sexy”. Bill even called it “The best sports movie of the 21st century” and implored his listeners to go see the movie in theaters. 
This is fantastic and well-earned mainstream sports praise that will likely reach millions of listeners. There’s a decent chance that a portion of the audience will even head to theaters and start to tune into grand prix. Quite an easy win for the sport.  

Juxtapose that with IndyCar this weekend racing in the middle of Iowa (not trying to hate, but it isn’t exactly Miami) in front of empty bleachers and, likely, TVs. Great racing, as always, but it’s becoming a bit of a tree falling in the woods situation. 

That brings me to my ultimate point which is that IndyCar needs an entire image makeover. 

IndyCar used to be feared. The races were scary. People went to and watched races because they knew they were watching guys risk death to win. The teams and drivers pushed speed limits and made special moments because the drivers were basically seen as superheroes. This isn’t to argue against current safety standards, but I think a lot of the thrill is gone from IndyCar. It’s a sport that barely tries to change itself. Look at what happened this weekend without Hy-Vee bringing in some big-name country music stars. Meanwhile, F1 has people spending their life savings to buy Paddock Club tickets.

The worst part about all of this is not that people don’t want to watch IndyCar. I’m not entirely sure they even know what IndyCar is. There’s just simply no visibility on the sport. 

I hope the new car works out. I hope being on FOX attracts new viewers. I’m just not seeing the vision.

I love IndyCar, but it’s not going to be around for much longer if some pretty drastic changes aren’t made soon. 

Paul, New York

MP: That’s great to hear on Simmons. He gave zero farts about racing at ESPN and again when he started Grantland and now The Ringer. Love to see the change from total disinterest, thanks to the movie.

Agree in the image makeover. FOX is IndyCar’s new promotional arm, or at least that is what it looks like, and they’ve been going hard at selling the series on its channels as fast and interesting and cool, and doing so with some force and quirk and testosterone. It fits the sports audience they’ve cultivated and know. But is that fast/cool/etc. approach the right one for where younger and newer fans are today?

The series tells me it’s seeing huge growth in 18-34 viewers, so the answer appears to be a yes. But what’s the vision? We continue to wait and hope to hear such things.

Q: I’m old enough to remember when it was common for a half dozen engines to go up in smoke during a typical IndyCar race, but in today’s spec world it’s extremely rare to see an engine failure. Looking at Will Power’s two failures in three races, it’s tempting to blame it on the current dysfunction at Team Penske, but I don’t think the teams can really do much of anything with tuning the powerplants these days. Is that an accurate assumption and what have you heard about the cause of those two engine failures?

Alan, Orlando, FL 

MP: No word on the cause (that might happen one out of a hundred times), and Chevy’s IndyCar engine boss said it was on them, not the team, in the quote provided to us by Chevy. 

Not much Penske – or Power – could have done about the No.12’s recent kerblammos. (That’s the technical term). Travis Hinkle/IMS

Q: Loving the IndyCar season so far.As you rightly say, what Alex Palou is doing in a race car right now is very special. What comes close? The only similar form of dominance that I can recall was only for the second half of the season, and that was Zanardi the year that Vasser won the championship at Ganassi. I’m sure there are others, but I sure can’t recall a season like this one.  

Another comment was regarding the formation at the start for Mid-Ohio. Perfect start!  Is IndyCar working on getting better two-by-two at the green, or is it more a function of the tracks they are at?  

Andy R., Detroit

MP: Good call on the second half of 1996. Zanardi made it clear that while he wasn’t able to overtake Jimmy in the standings, he’d be returning and unleashing a beating on CART in ‘97. Dixon running the table in 2020, winning the opener and leading the championship from start to finish. Pagenaud in 2016 was just on a different planet in the highest-downforce-ever season with five wins and a 127-point championship victory over Power.  

The Indy Racing League doesn’t get as much respect or love as CART/Champ Car, and there were some years where it deserved to be panned, but that doesn’t apply to what Sam Hornish and Panther Racing achieved in 2001 when they were on a different wave and ran away with the title. Dan Wheldon’s six win and 80-point championship in 2005 also stands out.

I’d say the loooong runway to reach the starter’s stand at Mid-Ohio is the magic ingredient here

Q: In answering Bill Baily in last week’s Mailbag, and after consulting his tequila bottle last night, Big Possum does remember that there were rear-engine sprint cars that reared their ugly heads in the early 70s. Tom Senva drove one to several wins, as well as George Snyder. USAC thankfully banned them to preserve the tradition and badassness of sprint car racing (in addition to preserving car counts and not forcing car owners to spend money to go rear-engine).

Keep in mind that it would not be hard to put starters on sprints aidgets but push truck starts are part of the show and the tradition – and show it is – a very passionate fan base, healthy and growing part of motorsports. The four-wide salute to the fans on the parade lap is what you save you lunch money for!

And yes, Mark Donahue drove a rear-engine pavement midget to victory at Lime Rock back in the day.

Big Possum is very disappointed that FOX does not show the National Anthem prior to races, but happy that Bobby Rahal did give the command to start engines at Mid-Ohio in the respectful manner of Tony Hulman – no screaming like some WWF wrestling announcer. Big Possum still prefers ‘gentlemen’ rather than ‘drivers’ when no females are in the field. Unless it has been determined that Santino is not a gentleman. But he is Big Possum’s favorite driver – reminds big Possum slightly of Marlon Brando. Big Possum does not have a question because he knows most things.

Big Possum

MP: Is this the right time to mention Big Possum (and Little Possum) gave me a possum shirt in May at the Indy 500? I hung it up in the office and my wife walked in, looked at me like I’d lost my mind, and asked why I bought a possum shirt. I then got to explain the existence of Big Possum and Little Possum, their connection to the Mailbag, etc., and she shook her head and left after saying she was concerned about me…

Q: You know Sebastien Bourdais as well as anyone. What made him choose to race in the WEC over IMSA? Was he not considered for a Cadillac ride here in the U.S., or did he just want to move back to Europe with his family?

Gary, Anza, CA

MP: With WTR taking over the program, it already had pairs of lead drivers for both cars, there was a hope that Ganassi might have a replacement program, and the other team, AXR, needed an answer while he was keeping the door open for CGR. GM wanted him to remain a leader within the program, so it became WEC with the new JOTA Cadillac campaign and a secondary season of LMP2 in IMSA.  

Q: What’s the biggest obstacle to IndyCar expanding its schedule? Obviously money, but is it TV money, finding enough sponsors, added costs, profitable events, etc? I would love to see the series add a few dates in the spring. That’s such a dead period.

Jim, Milwaukee

MP: Venues. If we ignore all the other aspects, there just aren’t enough tracks that are pining to hold an IndyCar race at the moment. There are plenty that could, of course. It’s not a case of there being a lack of potential tracks. It’s a lack of tracks that want IndyCar, can pay for IndyCar, and, critically, have the right local fan base to deliver a strong crowd.

It’s easy to come up with tracks to add, but they lack one or more of the things that are must-haves. Thermal is the perfect example. Excited owner. Ready to spend. Interesting facility. No crowd. They could return, and have the county greenlight a capacity of 20,000, and it just won’t matter. Not because IndyCar isn’t awesome or doesn’t deserve it, but because there’s no demand for IndyCar in that area.

That’s why we see Mexico City being considered as a track rental where IndyCar would take the financial risk. That’s what Iowa has become without Hy-Vee as the big spender; it’s IndyCar renting and promoting and hoping it can make it work without the big concerts and big promotional spend brought forth by its former sponsor/event partner.

That’s also why the amazing interest and dedication from the folks behind the upcoming Grand Prix of Arlington is the goal for IndyCar to develop with other new venues. Arlington is what interest in IndyCar looks like. Just need a lot more of it.

Q: Any intel on what three-pedal car Alex Palou is pedaling in this FOX ‘This is Alex Palou…’ promo? I seem to recall Townsend throwing a bit of shade at Palou’s heel/toe work during a broadcast not too long ago. Screenshot for evidence:

West Coast Mike

MP: No clue. Looks like a GT car of some sort, which makes me think it’s generic footage.

Q: For nearly 50 years, American open-wheel racing has wrestled with how to balance the gravity of the Indianapolis 500 with the broader pursuit of a season-long championship.

CART came the closest to resolving this tension — building a compelling narrative around the entire championship trail post-Indy — until the fracture of 1996.

Since reunification, however, the modern IndyCar Series has struggled to define its philosophical purpose beyond the 500. To fans and sponsors alike, that ‘why’ remains elusive. Last Sunday’s 750,000-viewer number for Mid-Ohio only underscores the issue.

We are all aware that IndyCar’s greatest marketing failure since 1995 has been a failure to answer one fundamental question: What is the point?

Well, I think I’ve found it.

The purpose of IndyCar – beyond even the Indianapolis 500 – is to crown the National Driving Champion.

This isn’t some hollow title. It’s a lineage that predates the 500 itself. Only IndyCar – or rather, Champ Car – has the right to lay claim to this legacy: a 120-year tradition that stretches back to the Gilded Age.

An IndyCar Champion doesn’t just win a trophy. They become part of a story built by the likes of the Vanderbilts, Carnegies, and Fishers. Titans who built not just American motorsport, but America itself.

This is the story that needs to be told.

This is why people should care.

This is what makes IndyCar special.

We don’t just crown a race winner. We crown the most complete driver on the planet. The National Champion. A title that carries the weight of history, endurance, versatility, and legacy.

Let the Indy 500 remain what it is: our high holiday, our crown jewel.

To the newer fans of racing – those brought in by the Netflix-era boom of Formula 1 – much of IndyCar’s internal history is a mystery. The split, the reunification, the politics… it’s a tangled legacy that’s hard to explain.

But what might resonate with these fans isn’t just one race on a Sunday afternoon in Indiana-it’s the idea that IndyCar is the continuation of the National Championship, a lineage that dates back to 1905, older than F1 itself.

While oval racing – especially 500 miles of it – can be an acquired taste, the broader narrative of crowning not only the National Champion but also the most well-rounded, adaptable driver in the world may be what captures the imagination of the modern, global motorsport fan. There’s prestige in that, legacy in that – and perhaps, finally, an answer to why IndyCar matters.

Jah, ATL 

MP: Sometimes it’s fun to make up a problem and then solve it.

Q: There is no doubt that with the exception of St. Pete and the 500, IndyCar’s TV ratings have been mostly underwhelming. it appears FOX is certainly trying to promote and grow the series, but what is lacking to elevate the series? What do you think can, and should, be done differently? Also, do we have any idea what the viewership numbers are for practice, qualifying, NXT races or IndyCar race replays?

I’m just looking for a silver lining and wondering if maybe people who cannot watch the race watch the replay or other content? Also, to keep a positive theme, at least race attendance appears to be pretty strong this year. I am writing this before Iowa, and as I bought my tickets, I can see that Iowa will be an exception to my last comment.

Brian Joliet, Illinois 

MP: We’re a little over halfway through the first season on FOX. Everyone hoped it would be million-plus numbers at every race but that hasn’t been the case, as you noted. My main takeaway is we’re seeing the real place where IndyCar lives in terms of national awareness and interest.

That’s what the shift to FOX has done – presented a clean slate to gauge how many existing fans would follow the series over to its new home and to see how many new fans would emerge from the placement on FOX.

The dream was to have the all-network deal on FOX deliver a big uptick in average network viewers – somehow, by trading NBC for FOX, a big new wave of fans would appear at the onset – but when you go back and look at what numbers IndyCar put up on big NBC last year, FOX is down in four of the seven network vs network comparisons leading into Iowa.