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The NTT IndyCar Series calendar needs help, we’ve discussed that plenty on The Pit Straight.
One event that has served as a bright spot on the series’ schedule is the doubleheader weekend at Iowa Speedway. However, this past weekend was a blot on the face of the 2024 calendar. Fans who forked out comparatively large sums of cash for weekend tickets were treated to two days of follow-the-leader racing with zero on-track passes for the lead.
Was this due to NASCAR’s recent repaving of the track’s turns? The extra weight coming from IndyCar’s new hybrid power unit? A combination of both? Tom Blackburn and Wyatt Watson join Alex Gintz on this week’s episode to find out.
The Pit Straight is Frontstretch‘s open-wheel racing podcast, available during the racing season weekly on Tuesdays on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and right here on the web.
About the author
Alex is the IndyCar Content Director at Frontstretch, having initially joined as an entry-level contributor in 2021. He also serves as Managing Director of The Asia Cable, a publication focused on the international affairs and politics of the Asia-Pacific region which he co-founded in 2023. With previous experience in China, Japan and Poland, Alex is particularly passionate about the international realm of motorsport and the politics that make the wheels turn - literally - behind the scenes.
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My opinion, racing needs equipment degradation/failure. On one hand, it’s phenomenal the engineering that has made traveling in a 4 wheel buggy at speeds over 200 mph for hours on end mundane, but it kind of takes away from separating the grain from the chaff when it comes to drivers, doesn’t it? Most above average racers can push hard and turn fast laps, but how many can master the art of turning fast laps while simultaneously making your equipment last longer than the other guys?
While I know there is no turning back time on engine/suspension reliability, there is one area still in play; the tires. Iowa highlights how important it is to have tire deg a part of the racing product. Those who can master set up/driving technique to best manage their tires have an advantage. The second part is, tire deg lessens the odds of a fuel mileage race. That was the main problem at Iowa – every single one of them was racing to a fuel number. Thank goodness for Ferrucci actually racing and giving the booth something to talk about!
Finally, the track “repave”. Can someone explain to me why they did patchwork strips through the corners rather than doing the whole corner from the apron to the wall? Would that not have helped make the outside lane more of a possibility than the patchwork that was there?
I’m also not sold on the regenerative hybrid boost adding much to the racing product. At least push to pass has a limited amount of time it can be used, so strategy comes into play with that system. If all drivers can regenerate boost lap after lap with no limit, then it just becomes what the powertrain has in it. Or, does it hinder the racing product because you have to lift early and coast to regenerate (hard to drive deep and accelerate off if you’re coasting), and likewise if you use all your boost off of one corner to drive it deep and make a move in the next, you don’t have any left to accelerate off and complete the pass (because the guy on the outside saved his boost to use on corner exit, thus effectively blocking the pass). At this time, I see it as merely a talking point and expensive distraction. Hope it evolves into something better, but right now I don’t see the vision.