The RACER Mailbag, 26 February

Today at 05:03 AM

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: With the effort that FOX has put forth since the beginning of the partnership with IndyCar, how seriously are Roger, Mark Miles and the whole of Penske Entertainment taking how critical this year is for the short and long term success of the series?

I’m not knocking the great things that have come in the past years since the sale to Penske, but there are going to be so many eyes on the series with the promotion that FOX has provided already, and their dedication to the entire championship. Thinking back to controversial items such as the red flag in the 2023 Indy 500, the push to pass scandal last year, and the risk of losing Honda and having no public interest from new OEM’s, I really am both cautiously optimistic that the mistakes of the past have been learned from to ensure that this year goes on without any issues, but I am also wary that complacency still exists from how close the field typically is.

Like all of us, I want to see the series taken to the level it deserves to be held on outside of the fanbase, but I am also worried that this year could be more of the same and end up stagnant amongst casual fans and racing fans that don’t typically follow the series outside of the 500.

Alan Bandi, Sarver, PA

MARSHALL PRUETT: Roger is one of the greatest business minds in racing, so I'm confident he's fully aware of how much is at stake with his series in 2025.

Like any sporting league, IndyCar has its problems. More than I'd like, for sure, and more than the people in the paddock want, as well. But nothing that I know of will prevent excellent racing from taking place over the next 17 events. Assuming the product remains at a high level and new and existing fans tune in a ton on FOX and turn up to buy lots of tickets to watch live, what happens in 2025 should be amazing.

It's in the stuff beyond 2025, with engine supply contracts ending after 2026, and getting a new car going, which seems like it's fallen from 2027 to 2028, and cutting costs with great immediacy, where the ongoing concerns do fall.

But if you just want to watch the racing and enjoy a distraction from real life, I'm serious when I say to ignore all of the inside-baseball stuff that's worrying, delight in the amazing talents of the Patos and Newgardens and Palous and Hertas, and let time and nature handle the rest.

Q: I am having some difficulty finding the answer to this question. How will broadcast conflicts between IndyCar and NASCAR be handled by FOX? As an example, on March 2, IndyCar will go first on Sunday followed by NASCAR later in the afternoon. If for some reason IndyCar runs late, will FOX finish the IndyCar race and then move over to NASCAR, or would it cut to NASCAR before the end of the IndyCar race? There are a lot of permutations as to how any Sunday might play out. What will the general policy be at FOX?

Spencer

MP: Spoke to FOX Sports and they told us there's an hour-long buffer between Sunday's IndyCar race and the start of the Cup race. They also said it will be a case-by-case basis on any future needs to switch from IndyCar to NASCAR, and if a switch is necessary, it will be made plain by its announcers and on the ticker at the bottom of the screen with info on where to go within FOX's myriad channels.

My own input would be that with NASCAR ranking as FOX's top racing series by a wide margin, and with a deep desire to convert as many NASCAR viewers into IndyCar viewers, the one way to kill that concept is by making Cup followers miss what they tuned in to see on FOX. So if there's a time crunch, I'd expect FOX to serve its larger Cup-loving audience and move IndyCar to another destination.

Also, we're only talking about March, April and May before streamers and NBC take the NASCAR baton from FOX, so there's a smaller number of opportunities for this running-late scenario to play out.

Q: What is your opinion on what impact the newly-cancelled Honda-Nissan merger may have on Honda’s decision to either leave or stay after its IndyCar contract expires in 2026?

Let’s face it, Nissan is a mess, having the last quarter’s profits fall from $2.1 billion to only $33 million and a stock price loss of 25% in the last year. But Honda is not much better off, suffering a stock price loss of 15% in the last year. In my opinion it not going to be about a new car, IndyCar’s value or expansion plans, but about what Honda has to do to financially survive. It needed this merger, and it looks like me that leaving IndyCar is the odds-on favorite.

So, the follow-up question remains. What is your take on Penske’s contingency plan if this most likely situation occurs?

Glenn, Palos Verdes Estate, CA

MP: Zero impact. I've never heard the Nissan thing mentioned in any of the many conversations I've had with Honda Racing US people since the start of the year. Not once.

If Honda leaves, Roger Penske's engine company Ilmor Engineering, where he's co-founder and co-owner, is the obvious choice to supply engines to the entire field. Or, if there's a desire, he can seek bids from Cosworth and any other specialist racing engine builders to do a spec motor, but since Ilmor makes the motor for Chevy that's won the last few Manufacturers' championships, it seems like there's an easy solution to pursue.