The Official Blog of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

This is INDYCAR.

Welcome to 2011. No, Splash And Go is not working on the Roman or Julian calendar. It’s just getting quite busy around here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as preparations for this season — especially the 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500 on May 29 — are pedal to the metal.

Everything is just as hectic in the world of INDYCAR, where good news continues to be generated at a breakneck pace. The first big change is the elimination of the old Indy Racing League name and the creation of a new logo. INDYCAR CEO Randy Bernard is right — the old name conjures too much bad mojo, too many memories of the split.

So INDYCAR it shall be. You won’t see any mention of Irrelevant Racing Lingo (IRL) around here anymore. Big-time open-wheel racing in North America is INDYCAR, baby.

That was just the start of the news surrounding INDYCAR during a major summit with teams, drivers and sponsors Tuesday, Jan. 11 in Indianapolis. Among other IZOD IndyCar Series nuggets, Edmonton is back on the 2011 schedule, engine displacement is being reduced from the planned 2.4 liters to 2.2 liters in 2012, double-wide restarts on ovals in 2011 will start at Indy, restarts will take place closer to the start-finish line and more.

The dramatic buzz created by these changes and other positive developments is catching the eyes of the INDYCAR blogosphere and media. Robin Miller at SPEEDTV.com pays tribute to Bernard’s role in INDYCAR’s resurgence, while Tony Johns at Pop Off Valve talks about the vital, smart decisions Bernard has made in the last 10 months. Mike Knapp at 15 Days in May mirrors the optimism of nearly every INDYCAR fan, while Christopher Leone at Open Wheel America looks at the importance the strengthened Mazda Road To Indy ladder system will play in INDYCAR’s future.

These are Timbuk3 times for INDYCAR. (Remember the classic one-hit wonder, “The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades?” Yeah, they sang it.)

The good news could keep on rolling on the television front, as a proposed merger between NBC and Comcast could signal a significant change for the IZOD IndyCar Series TV package.

NASCAR also is on the verge of a major change, as NASCAR.com reported Jan. 11 that drivers will be forced to choose one of the three major series in which they want to earn championship points in 2011. This could reduce the number of Sprint Cup drivers dipping into the Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series, as they won’t be eligible for championships.

This proposed move is going to take some digesting, just like the big Christmas meal I enjoyed. The ramifications are huge.

Will it reduce the marquee value of the Nationwide and Truck series if fewer Cup drivers participate? How can a driver who performs regular double or triple duty, such as Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick, lure or keep a sponsor for the two lower series if he’s not running for a championship? How will that effect race teams in Nationwide and Busch owned by Cup drivers?

In another change, California Speedway is reducing its spring race distance from 500 to 400 miles. Halle-freaking-lujah. Here’s to hoping other tracks follow suit. Forcing fans to sit in front of a TV for a 500-mile race is just too much in the ADD world in which we live, especially when prominent drivers such as Dale Earnhardt Jr. even admit the middle stages of those long races are nothing but parades to cut down laps to get to the final fuel stint. Five-hundred milers should be saved for a few special places and special races.

Dustin Long remains one of the top writers on the NASCAR beat, and he came up with this interpretive gem: It seems more and more Cup teams are hiring younger drivers, but the average age of participants in the Chase for the Sprint Cup continues to rise. Age and experience always can overcome youthful exuberance, I guess.

INDYCAR and NASCAR weren’t the only series with big news this week. MotoGP seismographs jiggled Tuesday when Valentino Rossi made his official debut as a Ducati rider at the annual VROOM winter media gathering in the Italian Alps. Former American MotoGP standout John Hopkins may resurface this season in British Superbikes after an injury-ravaged spell in World Superbikes, and 2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Raikkonen looks set to stay in the World Rally Championship for another year.

Finally, CNN reported Tuesday that 49 of the 50 U.S. states were under snow. That’s not exactly a race fan’s dream. So unless you’re into ice racing or snowmobile racing, watch this incredible high-def video of Richie Tobias in a big-block modified last October at Syracuse to keep your racing fires stoked until the snow melts.

The month of May is a busy month for the IndyCar teams, employees and fans of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway preparing for the Indianapolis 500. Preparation for a fan is key to having an exciting and unforgettable experience.

Before I was old enough to understand the importance of the Indianapolis 500, I was strutting through Lot 2 on Georgetown Road like it was my backyard. Little did I know, I would become a fan of the atmosphere the month of May presents, and many fans do not experience what I have the past three years working for the speedway.

When I think of experiences that are unforgettable, I immediately think of my first opening day for parking at last year’s Indy 500.  I woke up on a Thursday morning at 6 a.m., walked half a block on Georgetown to Lot 2 and noticed something I have never seen before at the speedway. Motorhomes galore is the way to explain it. Hundreds of RVs, campers and trucks were lined down Georgetown as far my 20/20 vision could see.

The lot opened at 7 a.m. as we spent the day parking every lined vehicle waiting for their 20 by 40 spot. As the fans waited patiently to be parked, I talked with familiar faces, but, more importantly, I met younger, first-time campers for the race.  Many fans shared their excitement for the upcoming weekend asking me to ‘park them where the party is at.’

The party takes place all weekend and they wanted to be a part of it. Thursday morning it was exciting to see new fans that come to enjoy their first 500, because the weekend was only beginning.

Always a big turn out at Indy

The party starts on the Thursday before the race; however, there are plenty of events to take place before drivers take the track for Sunday’s 500 miles. Thursday may not have any events, but there are events throughout the weekend.

Friday, traditionally known as the Miller Lite Carb Day, includes the final day of practice for the IZOD IndyCar Series, and continues to be one of the many living traditions of the Indianapolis 500. In 2007, Kid Rock held a concert behind the pagoda where thousands of fans crowded around. The day also includes a pit stop challenge and the Firestone Indy Lights race.

It's concert time!

Saturday does not have any on-track activity, but it will include driver’s meeting and the annual 500 Festival Parade through downtown Indianapolis.

The month of May has many exciting events for fans, but for fans wanting a true experience, there is more to “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” than 500 miles. Fans should plan for an exciting Memorial Day weekend as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway celebrates 100 years of world-wide leadership in motorsports.

Greatest 33 Cars at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Greatest 33 Cars at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Have you ever played poker and held a hand you know can’t be topped? Just sat there quietly while everyone else showed their cards and then blew them away with your straight flush or four of a kind?

That’s how I felt while reviewing the Interwebs today before writing this edition of Splash And Go. I knew it would be highly unlikely that I’d find anything in NASCAR, MotoGP, Formula One or anywhere else in racing that would top the seismic impact of THE news of the day in worldwide motorsport on a date that will be circled in red for a long, long time in INDYCAR annals: Chevrolet is returning to the IZOD IndyCar Series as an engine manufacturer starting in 2012.

The Bowtie is back, baby!

The Bowtie is back. Roll that off your tongue as many times as you’d like, open-wheel racing fans. Manufacturer competition is back in IndyCar, and Chevy’s return to take on Honda hopefully will tip another fence-sitter or two among car manufacturers into the IZOD IndyCar Series as an engine builder.

It’s impossible to overestimate how huge this announcement is for the IZOD IndyCar Series. Competition. An iconic American manufacturer with deep, successful roots in IndyCar racing. Penske Racing as Chevy’s first customer. And most importantly, a validation from the colossus known as General Motors that the technical package created for 2012 by the ICONIC committee is attractive to auto manufacturers.

This wasn’t just a home run or a knockout. This was Reggie Jackson taking Dock Ellis more than 500 feet deep and out of Tiger Stadium in the 1971 All-Star Game. This was Manny Pacquiao transporting Ricky Hatton into la-la land with one left hook in the second round.

This was big. But the announcement was important for more than just engine competition. Chevy officials also indicated they are interested in building an aero package, a significant development.

If Chevy builds aero kits for the new Dallara Safety Cell, can Honda be far behind? After all, if Chevy builds a very efficient aero kit, will Honda want cars powered by its engine to wear Chevy clothing? I think not. Lotus has expressed interest in building an aero kit, and you have to figure Dallara will offer one, too.

So we have at least two engines and at least three body kits — with Honda as a probable fourth — for 2012. The series still has plenty of hurdles to jump, but rays from that proverbial light toward the back of the tunnel are burning more brightly today.

Full compliments to INDYCAR CEO Randy Bernard, who listens and then gets things done. Full compliments to Roger Penske, whose influence, wisdom and business and racing wizardry got the IndyCar door re-opened with Chevy. Full compliments to the ICONIC committee, which was validated big-time today. Full compliments to Honda, which requested competition and welcomes it. And full compliments to Chevrolet and GM, which showed great vision to see IndyCar racing as a place for growth, relevant technological development and strong marketing of its passenger vehicles.

It’s a damn good day to be an IndyCar fan.

A.J. Watson with the #5 Car (1959)

Donald Davidson talks about A.J. Watson

1969 Practice- Mario Andretti

Mario Andretti 1969 Champion

Harlan Fengler in 1924

Donald Davidson discusses Harlan Fengler

I think the most magical time to be at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is during sunrise. It’s a time for reflection. A time for peace. The light allows you to view this stadium in a totally different way. This experience transcends racing and reveals a place of historical importance with victorious and heartbreaking stories to tell. It’s what I value most in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. You never know what you’ll see.

A moment caught on race day in May

This morning was definitely planned. But it’s hard to plan for something like this. Around 7 A.M.this morning, IMS and IndyCar staff rolled out 33 winning Indianapolis 500 race cars.

[More]

Tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick. Where’s that iconic stopwatch from the opening of “60 Minutes” when I need it? Time is short — very short — before the IZOD IndyCar Series title showdown Saturday night here in South Florida, and there is a lot going on in IndyCarland.

First, the obvious. Points leader Will Power and second place Dario Franchitti are gearing up for the Cafes do Brasil Indy 300 on Saturday night, and Will is keeping it simple as he clings to his 12-point lead. Keep Dario in his mirrors, and the title is his. Problem is, that task isn’t so simple. Power has no career victories on ovals, and Franchitti is the inaugural A.J. Foyt Oval Championship Trophy winner this season for being the best performer on roundy-rounds.

So, is Power the underdog despite entering this race as the points leader? VERSUS.com suggests so in this promo.

I don’t know what to make of it. I still think Dario is too tough on ovals to top. But then again, staying ahead of Franchitti might not be such a tough order for an hombre who returned to racing this year after suffering a broken back in a crash midway through last season. Both of these cats have a ton of commitment and very large attachments, as David Hobbs likes to say on SPEED’s F1 telecasts.

He finished the Thursday Night Bowling League with a 217 average.

The lovely Cameron freezes another dude in his tracks.

Either Power or Franchitti will hoist an interesting-looking new IZOD IndyCar Series championship trophy that was unveiled Tuesday in Miami. What do you think? It’s not your typical bowling trophy. It’s certainly … different.

You must admit, the trophy does look nice next to IZOD Trophy Girl Cameron. Then again, Cameron makes everything look nice.

While watching the IndyCar finale Saturday, it won’t be hard to notice Sarah Fisher’s Dallara on the 1.5-mile oval at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Sarah is driving an all-pink car for the second consecutive year at Homestead to increase awareness of breast cancer and help Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Another great gesture from one of the finest people in the series. Way to go, Sarah.

There appears to be some off-track news cooking for the IZOD IndyCar Series, according to Indianapolis Business Journal reporter Anthony Schoettle. He is reporting that the series is close to landing another big fish in the sponsorship pond.

It seems like off-track news is about all that NASCAR can generate these days. How to change the Chase, how to lift flagging TV ratings, the Great Clint Bowyer Controversy, etc. It sort of reminds me of the scene from the classic Led Zeppelin concert movie, “The Song Remains The Same,” in which Robert Plant shrieks the lyric, “Does anybody remember laughter?” during “Stairway to Heaven.”

With all apologies to Plant, does anybody remember the racing in NASCAR? There still is paint-trading going on every weekend as 12 drivers try to beat each others’ brains out to win the Sprint Cup. Yet fans are still bitching. A lot. And Ed Hinton at ESPN.com is getting damn sick of it.

Still, it’s pretty hard to avoid the stock car soap opera du jour, NASCAR’s denial of the appeal filed by Richard Childress Racing of the penalties imposed on Clint Bowyer and his crew chief, Shane Wilson, after Bowyer’s car was found a hair-width out of spec after winning the opening race of the Chase, in New Hampshire.

Childress is steamed and said he will take the appeal to the Chief Appellate Officer (whomever that is). The accident reconstruction expert Childress hired to testify for the team in the hearing Tuesday also thinks he was smeared like mayo on a BLT by NASCAR.

It’s getting fugly, folks. Despite this imbroglio and the pending second appeal, Childress insists it won’t affect the team’s three-car assault on the Cup with Bowyer, Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton. Let’s see: Bowyer’s chances of regaining 150 points lost from the NASCAR penalties and jumping back into the thick of the Chase hang on more off-track proceedings, and Bowyer and RC are not supposed to be distracted?

Yeah, OK.

Hey, there is good news in this melodrama. Harvick and Denny Hamlin have kissed and made up after Harvick played Smash-Up Derby with Hamlin in practice last weekend at Dover, angry at a verbal swipe Hamlin took at Harvick’s RCR teammate Bowyer over the New Hampshire penalties.

Will Volkswagen go NASCAR racing soon? I snuck that in there quietly because I know so many NASCAR fans went apocalyptically berserk when Toyota joined the Cup series even though Toyotas are built by workers who earn real George Washington dollars in Alabama, Kentucky, Indiana, Texas and West Virginia, strongholds of God-fearing, Lee Greenwood-singing American patriots.

So, shhhhh on VW. Sorry I even mentioned it.

Off to MotoGP, where the series starts a three-race-in-three-weekend stretch this Sunday at Twin Ring Motegi.

Points leader Jorge Lorenzo isn’t exactly in cruise control despite leading 2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP winner Dani Pedrosa by 56 points with five races to go. Seven-time and reigning MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi will be on the grid, but fans might see 2011 Monster Yamaha Tech 3 signing Cal Crutchlow on a Fiat Yamaha for the last two races of the season if Rossi follows through with surgery on his nagging shoulder injury. Welcome to the big time, Cal. No pressure, matey!

One thing Rossi claims he won’t do this offseason, new surgical scar on his shoulder or not, is form and manage a Moto2 team for 2011. He’ll probably be too busy, anyways, talking about his new red ride for 2011 with longtime crew chief Jeremy Burgess, whom it looks increasingly likely will follow The Doctor from Yamaha to Ducati.

A provisional 2011 MotoGP schedule finally is out. While David Emmett at Motomatters.com does his usual excellent analysis of all things Grand Prix motorcycle racing, there’s really only one fact you need to know: The fourth annual Red Bull Indianapolis GP is Aug. 26-28, 2011 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and you better damn well be there!

Finally, the coolest car in the World Rally Championship in 2011 was unveiled Wednesday. Mini is returning to top-flight rallying with its Countryman model. Simply bad-ass!

There are very few grains of sand left in the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series hourglass, as the offseason gets underway this Saturday night after the season-ending Cafes do Brasil Indy 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. So it’s time to start zeroing in on the big finale and championship chase before the long winter gets underway.

John Oreovicz of ESPN.com takes a closer look at the title tussle between points leader Will Power and reigning champion Dario Franchitti, who is just 12 points behind in second.

Power and Franchitti are leaving nothing to chance, joining the list of drivers who tested Monday at the aqua-walled Homestead oval. Also among the testers were Power’s Penske teammates, Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe, and Dixon’s Ganassi teammate, Scott Dixon. You can bet their engineers’ laptops will be wide open to Power and Franchitti as every last byte of data is examined to try and find an edge heading into the race Saturday.

Fans of arguably the most talented and definitely the most delightful rookie in the IZOD IndyCar Series this season, Simona de Silvestro, can exhale: She will compete in the season finale this Saturday night for HVM Racing. Rumors swirled like a strong breeze in a Manhattan concrete canyon that Simona and the team shut down. Thankfully, that’s not true, according to team owner Keith Wiggins.

Let’s hope HVM finds the dough that Simona’s talent deserves. She’s a keeper for the IZOD IndyCar Series.

One lady in the IndyCar paddock who doesn’t need to worry about her next paycheck is Danica Patrick. But the multi-million dollar question looms high above the 5-foot frame of America’s Princess of Speed: IndyCar or NASCAR? Jeff Olson examines both sides of the story in his blog at VERSUS.com.

Speaking of money and racing, it seemed like NASCAR was the petroleum-fueled land of milk and honey during the boom years of the sport last decade. Now NASCAR drivers and teams are hurting for cubic dollars to power their teams just like their brothers and sisters in every other form of racing in North America. And Jeff Gluck writes that the recoiling of Corporate America at 200-mph billboards could have a negative effect on the talent pool in NASCAR.

Hey, Kenny: What's that, Rusty's money clip?

Gluck also stays on the topic of money in this interesting short about the Twitter feud between SPEED NASCAR announcer and former NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace and Brian Scott, who was released by Braun Racing on Monday despite heading toward the Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year title.

It seems that Herman touched a nerve with Master Scott because he suggested that Scott’s daddy had plenty of money that would help buy Sonny a ride. Gasp – ride buyers in NASCAR?

But one reader comment beneath Gluck’s blog post also pointed out the irony of Wallace complaining about ride-buying, as his nephew Steven probably never would have received a Nationwide Series ride if his father wasn’t one Rusty Wallace. Zing!

Then again, some ride buyers in NASCAR eventually develop into solid drivers. Terry Blount of ESPN.com wrote about how Paul Menard has evolved into more than just a kid playing with his father’s money this season and is worthy of his ride for 2011 at Richard Childress Racing. Menard’s father, John, owns the major home improvement chain Menards, which is an institution across the upper Midwest.

Enough about money and racing. It’s too depressing. Let’s get back to the racing itself, and the relentless meat grinder known as the Chase for the Sprint Cup continues this weekend at the 1.5-mile cookie cutter at Kansas.

Jimmie Johnson appears to have big-time momentum after winning last Sunday at Dover and pulling to within 35 points of leader Denny Hamlin. But Jim McCoy makes a good point at All Left Turns: Don’t hand the Cup to JJ and Chad Knaus just yet.

Everyone was ready to deep-six Johnson after he finished 25th in the Chase opener Sept. 19 at New Hampshire, and now many are calling the engravers to prepare the trophy after Johnson won at Dover. I still think Johnson will complete a successful Drive for Five, but maybe it’s not that simple.

With apologies to Ivan Drago of "Rocky IV" fame, "JJ, I will break you."

A few very solid alternatives to the trendy pick of Johnson to ride the wave to his fifth title are Carl Edwards and the Busch brothers, Kyle and Kurt. It would be great if four or five drivers had a realistic chance at the title — not just one of those bogus, mathematical “if Jupiter and Pluto align just right and Jimmie Johnson catches whooping cough” kinds of chances — entering the season finale at Homestead.

But I’ll believe it when I see it.

Another thing I’ll believe when I see is Ferrari holding to a commitment to cut costs in Formula One. The gap between the have’s and have-not’s in F1 resembles that in a Third World country. And there’s absolutely no reason why mega-buck superteams like Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull want anyone from the outhouse to join them in the penthouse.

Moving on to MotoGP, reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi expects a painful time this weekend during the Grand Prix of Japan at Motegi, mainly because the circuit’s layout will aggravate his chronic shoulder injury. I wouldn’t be surprised if Rossi follows through on his plan to skip the last two races of the season to have shoulder surgery and be completely ready for preseason testing in 2011 for his new employer, Ducati.

Finally, one of the coolest races in North America to which almost nobody pays attention is scheduled for this weekend, the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta. The American Le Mans Series features an impressive variety of machinery in a motorsports world that has become mind-numbingly spec these days.

SPEED.com takes a look at the GT class — production-based GT sports cars — that will compete this weekend in the Petit.