Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers may be despatched to mailbag@racer.com. We love listening to your feedback and opinions, however letters that embody a query usually tend to be revealed. Questions obtained after 3pm ET every Monday will probably be saved for the next week.
Q: Why did Sebastien Bourdais not signal with Meyer Shank for IMSA like his Cadillac teammate Renger van der Zande? Was he signed elsewhere at the beginning was finalized with Acura? Was there just one seat? Politics of racing?
Kim
MARSHALL PRUETT: Seb was retained by GM/Cadillac to race within the WEC. He and Renger went to/stayed the place they have been wished most.
Q: I’ve been finding out this 12 months’s oval IndyCar races and have just a few observations:
After a number of years of oval domination, Josef Newgarden had a troublesome time this 12 months. Whereas he did win the Indy 500 and the race at WWTR, his different oval outcomes needed to be disappointing to him after the dominance of the earlier years.
In the meantime, his Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin established himself as a drive to be reckoned with on ovals. Scott had two wins a second and a 3rd, certified on the pole 4 occasions and second twice. He led by far essentially the most oval laps at 554, greater than double that of second-placed Will Energy with 240 and virtually one third of the entire oval laps (1666).
Group Penske continued its oval domination. The three drivers led a complete of 895 of the 1666 laps, or 53.7%. They led extra laps than all the opposite groups mixed. As well as, the group had a file of 5 wins, two seconds and three thirds from the seven oval races. Additionally they had 5 poles and 5 different entrance row begins, together with an entire shutout of the entrance row on the Indy 500.
Regardless of this dominance they didn’t win the championship, which helps the notion that the perfect all-around group that finishes nicely in all disciplines would be the possible champion, as seen by Alex Palou’s third title in solely 4 years with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Lastly, I’ve to present an enormous shoutout to Colton Herta. After 5 years of disappointing oval outcomes, a fourth, two fifths and two sixths, he certified nicely in 2024 and received a win and a 3rd. Maybe these oval performances will proceed and put him within the higher echelon of title contenders.
I can’t wait till subsequent 12 months to see how issues unfold. Regardless of the doom and gloom championed by lots of the Mailbag readers, IndyCar is the perfect racing on the planet.
Doug Mayer
MP: Agreed, Doug. Regardless of its many issues and shortcoming, most of these objects don’t detract from the on-track product. Necessary 12 months forward for Penske. Its driver trio is solely superb. Full cease. It’s the streaky nature of their amazingness that has saved them arising simply shy within the championship runs since 2020 whereas Ganassi’ has taken 4 of the final 5.
McLaughlin seems to be poised to have a breakthrough in that regard. He doesn’t must hit dwelling runs in each race. A few dingers and a gentle weight loss program of doubles and triples will make him an IndyCar champion; it’s the precise method Palou has used to stifle Penske’s gaudy stats.
The 2025 grid isn’t even full but, however you may already rely McLaughlin among the many title contenders. Michael Levitt/Motorsport Pictures
Q: With Roger Penske shopping for GPALB and the unique proper to stage races at Lengthy Seashore till 2028, is Inexperienced Savoree the subsequent firm he’s pondering of shopping for? They personal 4 tracks, and three of them want far more consideration and funding. The St. Pete GP is just one that appears OK, however it nonetheless might use having the IMSA WeatherTech sequence added on to make it a correct big-time occasion – an East Coast Lengthy Seashore.
I do hope Roger doesn’t mess what Jim Michaelian and his group have performed for LBGP for 50 years. If something they want few extra TV screens, higher audio system and a greater reserving agent to draw higher acts, particularly for a metropolis like Lengthy Seashore that has nice native authentic music scene.
The opposite most important query is, can Roger persuade the Lengthy Seashore council to re-up the subsequent contract? Or Will Liberty Media with Chris Pook or NASCAR bid for the subsequent contract?
Dale Gribble, Arlen, TX
MP: Inexperienced Savoree would have to be on the market for that to occur. Forsythe was desirous about promoting to the proper purchaser. I miss the times of St. Pete being an IndyCar/ALMS occasion. Penske’s observe file is one among taking management of or beginning occasions and investing or making vital enhancements, and if I’m the town council, that’s one thing to financial institution on.
Q: I can’t say sufficient how pleased I’m to see the present optimistic vibe of sports activities automotive racing each in IMSA and WEC. That is all due to permitting LMDh and Hypercar options to be obtainable for potential producers to make the most of! GTP will probably be all of the richer for it, and my yearly Rolex 24 journey since 2016 will probably be much more thrilling with Aston Martin’s beautiful Valkyrie becoming a member of the line-up of superior machines from the present OEMs.
Folks argue about what resolution is healthier, however each are wonderful. With LMDh, massive makes like GM, Porsche or Honda can become involved utilizing their powertrain tech and design language in addition to different tips of the commerce growing a automotive that could be very a lot their very own with out having to begin from scratch with a customized monocoque and different bespoke components.
For Hypercar, a big producer that wishes to construct from scratch and take up the duty of growing all the pieces for the problem, or to offer a automotive obtainable for buy resembling Toyota or Ferrari, can accomplish that too. What’s extra, a smaller producer that doesn’t make its personal engines can nonetheless construct their very own automobile and symbolize themselves accordingly, like Glickenhaus did.
This logical method has given us so many cool automobiles to take pleasure in on observe and wonderful racing. I hope this momentum continues to hold on. Although it’s years away, the hydrogen idea race automobiles Alpine, Hyundai, and Toyota have proven off have me feeling optimistic concerning the future for sports activities automotive racing! Cheers to that and a little bit of positivity for the Mailbag.
Derrick Fonseca
MP: There’s no actual debate to have; each formulation are wonderful and supply producers with the choice that most closely fits their needs and monetary capabilities. I don’t know what to do with all of this Mailbag heat and kindness!
