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 embrace a query usually tend to be printed. Questions obtained after 3pm ET every Monday can 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 races and have a number of 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 instances 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 overall 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 workforce had a document 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 workforce that finishes effectively in all disciplines would be the seemingly champion, as seen by Alex Palou’s third title in solely 4 years with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Lastly, I’ve to offer an enormous shoutout to Colton Herta. After 5 years of disappointing oval outcomes, a fourth, two fifths and two sixths, he certified effectively in 2024 and obtained 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 most 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. Essential 12 months forward for Penske. Its driver trio is solely wonderful. Full cease. It’s the streaky nature of their amazingness that has saved them developing simply shy within the championship runs since 2020 whereas Ganassi’ has taken 4 of the final 5.
McLaughlin appears to be like poised to have a breakthrough in that regard. He doesn’t must hit dwelling runs in each race. A few dingers and a gradual weight loss plan of doubles and triples will make him an IndyCar champion; it’s the precise formulation Palou has used to stifle Penske’s gaudy stats.
The 2025 grid isn’t even full but, however you possibly can already depend McLaughlin among the many title contenders. Michael Levitt/Motorsport Pictures
Q: With Roger Penske shopping for GPLBA and the unique proper to stage races at Lengthy Seaside till 2028, is Inexperienced Savoree subsequent firm he’s considering 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 Collection added on to make it a correct big-time occasion – an east coast Lengthy Seaside.
I do hope Roger doesn’t mess what Jim Michaelian and his workforce have completed 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 Seaside that has nice native unique music scene.
The opposite predominant query is, can Roger persuade the Lengthy Seaside 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 all in favour of promoting to the suitable purchaser. I miss the times of St. Pete being an IndyCar/ALMS occasion. Penske’s observe document is one in every of taking management of or beginning occasions and investing or making important enhancements, and if I’m the town council, that’s one thing to financial institution on.
Q: I can’t say sufficient how comfortable I’m to see the present constructive vibe of sportscar racing each in IMSA and WEC. That is all because of permitting LMDH and Hypercar options to be obtainable for potential producers to make the most of! GTP can be all of the richer for it, and my yearly Rolex 24 journey since 2016 can be much more thrilling with Aston Martin’s beautiful Valkyrie becoming a member of the lineup of superior machines from the present OEMs.
Individuals argue about what answer is healthier, however each are glorious. With LMDH, huge 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 start out from scratch with a customized monocoque and different bespoke elements.
For Hypercar, a big producer that desires 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 signify themselves accordingly, like Glickenhaus did.
This logical strategy has given us so many cool automobiles to get pleasure from on observe and glorious racing. I hope this momentum continues to hold on. Regardless that it’s years away, the hydrogen idea racecars Alpine, Hyundai, and Toyota have proven off have me feeling constructive in regards to the future for sportscar 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 glorious and supply producers with the choice that most closely fits their wishes and monetary capabilities. I don’t know what to do with all of this Mailbag heat and kindness!
