Simply put, IndyCar took some hits during the last month of 2023, including the delay of the long-anticipated Hybrid Assist Unit and some concerning comments from Honda, one of its most important partners.
Tuesday night in Indianapolis, key senior officials of IndyCar and Penske Corporation had a private dinner at the famed St. Elmo Steakhouse with five of the top drivers in the series to lay out their plan for a brighter and more impactful future.
Drivers at the dinner included reigning Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden of Team Penske, 2022 Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson, now with Andretti Global, 100th Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi, now with Arrow McLaren, and 17-year veteran driver Graham Rahal of Rahal. Letterman Lanigan Racing and six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion and 2008 Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing.
A driving force from five of IndyCar’s most no-nonsense groups met with IndyCar president Jay Frye, Indianapolis Motor Speedway president Doug Boles and other key executives from Penske Entertainment and Penske Corporation, owners of IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
All five drivers left the dinner excited about IndyCar’s plans to take the game in a greater direction.
Mark Ericsson
“It was nice to sit there and chat a little bit with other people,” Ericsson said Thursday morning on the second day of IndyCar Content Days. “I think what I don’t forget to the fullest are all the paintings that are exhibited in the exhibition. There are a lot of paintings on stage, other people are doing their best to move this series forward. It’s not shown from the outside consistently, but I think, from what I understood and what I was told at that dinner, there’s a lot of clever stuff that’s going to come out here in the next few months about the screen, about where we’re headed.
“If all of those things come true, I think there is a lot of excitement for us as a series.”
IndyCar came into the holiday fending off controversy and criticism, adding that a key Honda executive in the U. S. had been in charge of the accident. The U. S. Department of Homeland Security said the series needed to focus on keeping prices in check for Chevrolet and Honda, or Honda could simply exit the series after the 2026 season.
Those comments were meant to deliver a message to IndyCar executives and believe that message was received as intended.
I had a chance to talk to Penske Entertainment President and CEO Mark Miles on January 11 at the JW Marriott Hotel in Indianapolis, site of IndyCar Content Days.
Miles did not attend the dinner with the drivers, but he still explained the reasons why it took place.
“It becomes kind of routine,” Miles told me. Last year we had a similar strategy with five or six drivers in our 16th Street office and we took them through the blueprints. The next meeting was held with all the riders at the Thermal Club.
“To me, with the speed of the offseason, it makes a lot of sense to look forward to what comes next and what plans are being implemented. We need all of our stakeholders to feel included and heard.
“It’s the first step with the drivers. “
Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles
Miles was asked if he would play defense before the December offseason.
“I understand why people would think of it that way and that is fine, but the way I think of it is we get through the offseason, we finalize our plans with budgets and creative, then you start having discussions with key stakeholder groups,” Miles said. “We think what we have in store for this year is positive and we think they took the same approach.
“He doesn’t feel like others this year. “
Miles also showed me that the Leaders Circle Fund, which will pay IndyCar’s 22 most sensible entrants to participate throughout the season, will be particularly larger in 2024. He did not disclose the amount of the higher payment.
As for the drivers present at the meeting, they left with a renewed sense of optimism about the direction of IndyCar.
“You have to accept the process as true,” Rossi said. We all do. But at the end of the day, the other people who lead the shipment and are in charge of the orientation are the right people to do it. “
“I think there will be a lot of positive news in the next three to five months that will excite other people. Obviously there was wonderful news with the return of IndyCar to iRacing, which is fantastic. “
Ericsson admitted that IndyCar’s offseason has been a bit hectic, but overall, he’s confident that IndyCar is making sound decisions.
“I think it’s easy to focus on the negative,” Ericsson said. “This offseason arguably wouldn’t have been the quietest for IndyCar, however, there are a lot of things we deserve to be proud of and satisfied with, and it’s exciting. “to start this new era with the hybrid. And the network is the largest that’s been around in a long time. There are a lot of strong, healthy teams. There’s a lot of clever stuff going on in the show.
“That’s the most important thing, just hearing what the vision is for next season and beyond as well. ”
The 2024 IndyCar season includes a fully sponsored entry lineup, while the normal IndyCar grid has increased to 27-28 full-time entries.
“I think it’s good,” Dixon said. I think the exhibit aptitude is probably the most productive I’ve noticed in a long time. I think when you look at the number of cars, the teams, the number of sponsors and the intensity of the sponsors, it’s anything. very proud of.
“I think we’re at a point where we can’t settle for more registrations. It’s a smart position. There are even other groups that say they could have more cars with the number of sponsors they have. “
“But locating other people or renting engines is kind of a limiting challenge right now. It’s positive. “
“Obviously there will be a transition with the arrival of Roger and his group. Having spent some time with those other people over the past few days, I think there are a lot of wonderful things in the works and great adjustments that are to come.
“With the hybrid thing, that’s a difficult situation, but you’ve definitely got to lay it out in a way that it’s going to be worthwhile and reliable, and I think they’ve done a really good job in not just diving in and creating more of a mess.
“I think it’s vital for the program, it’s vital for the long term of the program. I think you have. . . I think when you’re a specific driving force and you’re so close to him and you’re dominating. For him, you need to make everything happen as quickly as possible. ” temporarily possible, but that is not the reality.
“But I think we’re in a positive scenario now. “
Rahal just celebrated his 35th birthday and will become a team principal at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing when is racing career is over and his father, Bobby, turns over the leadership role.
Graham Rahal. (Photo via Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire Getty Images)
IndyCar’s expansion and good fortune are vital to Rahal, long after his racing career is over.
“I’m almost crystal when it comes to IndyCar racing,” Graham Rahal said. “The truth is, I’m everybody in a lot of things because I see things maybe differently than most others. “
“But I’ve always committed my life to being in this sport and have a bigger part in the sport than just a driver.
“As I left last night, yes, there was a few of us that were fortunate to sit down and have conversations. I think it validated a lot of things I was already thinking were happening. There’s stuff you’ll hear about soon I can’t speak about that I think are major positives for the sport.
“Are there things they like to see differently?
“Of course. We all have opinions. I’d like to see careers overseas. I would like us to be at the forefront and competitive when it comes to Europe or other spaces that I like. “
Rahal admitted there are some spaces in IndyCar where he’d like to see changes. With time they come, but for now the base of the series is in a position to allow for this growth.
“The truth is, when you’re sitting in a room and you hear the things that are being done and you’re actually seeing the things that are being done, they’re not things that you or we can do today, I still think it’s on a larger scale and in the long term,” Rahal said. “I feel positive about it. As I made clear last night and to Bud Denker (chairman of Penske Corporation) and everyone over the years, Don’t think today that I’m just a driver; That’s my role. But in a few years, that’s probably not my role, and my role will be that of owner, manager, or whatever. Secondly, my considerations are different from the point of view of being a driver.
“Most drivers, when they finish their careers, they just move on. They go home. They’ll do anything. So my considerations are not focused on me. It’s more about where we’re going to go. “
It could have been a grim end to 2023, but even as strong, cold winter winds blow through downtown Indianapolis, Rahal and his fellow IndyCar drivers at a dinner in St. Indianapolis. John’s. Elmo on Tuesday night see a brighter future.
“We have a very strong foundation with Penske and I think the long run is wonderful,” Rahal said. “I don’t know how many of you know Greg Penske (Roger Penske’s son and vice president of Penske Corporation), but Greg is a wonderful kid.
“Maybe I guess it’s him, but I’m pretty sure, and he’s a wonderful guy. I think the long term is very bright. I’m excited about that. “
“We’re going to have our challenges, but we’re fighting a lot of external elements, and I’ll tell you from a sponsorship standpoint, five hours, and it’s completely new in everybody’s mind, it shows the validity of IndyCar racing. .
“This is motorsport where you can get the price for cash globally right now. There’s still a lot of intrigue and a lot of interest in being a component of it.
Roger Penske owns the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar and the Indianapolis 500 and is the owner of the most successful team in motorsports history.
Last May, one of its drivers, Josef Newgarden, won the Indianapolis 500 and took Penske’s record to 19 race wins.
“I really feel positive about a lot of things,” Newgarden said. It’s probably been a tougher offseason in terms of speed and news, but I think 2024 can be another big step for us in the IndyCar series.
Josef Newgarden with his sculpted portrait on the Borg Warner Trophy for winning the Indianapolis race. . . [ ] 500. (Photo via Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire Getty Images)
“We have so many positive things going on, so I’m kind of excited about the season finally getting here and getting into the swing of it. It helps when we get back to the track because we just have a great racing product, too.
“I think it’s rarely easy when we go off the track, but when we’re racing, it’s simple to communicate our competition point, and I think the race point we have in this series.
“Last night was a clever recording. I think the folks at Penske Entertainment are looking to do a smart job of staying engaged with everyone on screen so we can perceive where they’re headed and what the plan is.
“But there’s a lot of smart stuff on the horizon. Nothing I’m going to face specifically. Obviously, the hybrid is probably the most exciting detail this year, so we’re still fully prepared for that, looking to find out. “Precisely how we’re going to approach this post-Indianapolis era. I think that’s probably the number one issue right now.
IndyCar, Penske, and Penske Corporation have a transparent view of where the game is headed. Now it’s a matter of implementing and executing those plans.
“I think the other people who are in the driver’s seat, the other people at Penske Corp, the other people at IMS, the other people at IndyCar, they all have the same love and fondness for the game that we play, and that’s why we’re not going to do it. Let’s let things fall apart,” Rossi said. Possibly they would have another technique and another way to solve the disorders and fix them, but they still have the purpose of developing the series, making the Indy 500. the biggest game occasion for a day globally and making sure that the track product we have is better than anything else. And I don’t think there’s anything historically, especially in the last nine years, where I’ve been worried about this show. , which make anyone doubt, because year after year it grows, it gets bigger.
“Like I said, over the next few months, I think some things will come out and other people will be excited about them. “
Josef Newgarden celebrates with a bottle of milk in victory lane after winning the 107th Indianapolis 500 race on May 28, 2023, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire Getty Images)