Robin Miller's Mailbag for April 12, presented by Honda Racing / HPD

Your questions for Robin should continue to be sent to millersmailbag@racer.com We cannot guarantee we’ll publish all your questions and answers, but Robin will reply to you. And if you have a question about the technology side of racing, Robin will pass these on to Marshall Pruett and he will also answer here.

Q: How did Honda make such a big jump in performance in the off-season? Has there been an increase engine performance, or did they figure out some really good aero combinations? If it was the engine, I thought that engine development was limited by the rules. How did Chevy seemingly make so few improvements over the winter? It's hard to believe Chevy was resting on its laurels.

Kevin, Idaho

RM: Going back to last May it was believed Honda was making more power, and over the weekend Helio said he thought he was losing a couple tenths on the straightaway, so it's not necessarily anything new in that department. What's made the difference is adding Ganassi and having the feedback of Scott Dixon, Sebastien Bourdais, Craig Hampson and Tony Kanaan – plus the development in the wind tunnel and 7-post shaker rig. It's aero, mechanical, drive-ability, horsepower and more bullets in Honda's gun. But Chevy has captured both pole positions in 2017, and don't think for a second it's resting. I'm sure Ilmor's Paul Ray & co will have some answers next month.

Q: I have been reading the Mailbag for about two years now, and always enjoy it. This is my first time writing. I am a millennial who loves IndyCar, PWC, and F1. A few of us do like racing! I'm a big Honda fan. I feel like Honda is making steps in motor racing right now with IndyCar off to a good start, investing in the NSX program, and the new big-bang MotoGP engine. HPD has clearly made some steps in getting more drivability out of both the Indy aero kit and the engine. HPD let the Andretti team down at Long Beach, but I know they will get on top of it.

Honda F1 on the other hand ... I do not have that confidence. Honda F1 recently posted an ad for various positions (in Milton Keynes) including a quality engineer. My question is that if Honda F1 has been so reluctant to get outside help, why don't they look internally to HPD before looking for new blood? Yes, the engines have huge fundamental differences, but HPD has consistently been in open-wheel racing for years and has far more experience than Honda F1. They have developed many processes to building racing engines, dyno testing, tuning, and other quality tests. HPD has a formula that builds competitive engines. Does Japan not even want to let HPD help them? Or is it an issue of fighting for resources?

Barney, Memphis, TN

RM: According to a Honda spokesman: "HPD and HRD have exchanged race engine technology learnings for years and continue to do so. There are certainly points of similarity between the Indy and F1 V6 turbo engines, as well as a number of areas where the two differ. If there were ever a case where HRD thought that HPD could contribute to their programs they would ask HPD (as they have done a number of times in the past)."

Q: Do you want to weigh in on the Power/Kimball incident? I can see how Kimball thought he was past Power to turn in the way he did.

Jim Doyle, Hoboken, NJ

RM: Let's ask Townsend Bell. "They went 50/50 through the previous corner. Will held his ground. I thought Charlie would have given 'racer's room' at the next corner, but he chopped across the bow like nobody was there. I could make an argument that Kimball would have assumed Power backed off and was in his blind spot."

Q: Another good race and great coverage. It's really good for the series and the fans to see two small teams take the checkered flag in the first two races. I'm also happy for Hinch and for Sam Schmidt. How about Coyne leading the points for two races in a row? Last year Andretti mostly struggled; this year, they have started out well and look much better. Do you have any word on what happened to the four Andretti cars? Is it unique to Andretti, or does Honda have some explaining to do? It is good to see them running well, as that provides a good counter to the Penske-Ganassi juggernaut, in addition to Coyne and Schmidt. But as RHR said, running well doesn't mean much if you can't finish it.

John Balestrieri, Greenfield, WI

RM: Andretti seems poised to join The Big Three again (Coyne, Schmidt-Peterson) because they've been fast in practice, qualifying and the races. Rossi (ABOVE) and Hunter-Reay both looked like potential winners, Sato has been competitive and Marco seems to have regained his confidence. As for their problems at Long Beach, two were engines and two were electrical.

Q: IndyCar needs a points system for doing bad things on track. Impeding a driver in qualifying (though I would not have given Pagenaud a penalty - Helio wasn't on a flying lap, as far as I know), causing contact on track, blocking, and other miscellaneous stupidity should have points assigned to a driver's license similar to what they do in F1. How many incidents is Charlie Kimball going to be involved in before IndyCar does something for repeat violations? The answer right now is infinite, because the rules aren't set up to hand out punishments based on driver history. Power was capable of giving him enough room to exit the fountain turn side-by-side, but Charlie decides Will is going to disappear for the next corner and then Power "turned him?"

Ryan in West Michigan

P.S. If Helio wasn't on a flying lap, that penalty handed out to Simon was a farce.

RM: I only saw one replay of the incident and it looked like "one of them racin' deals", to quote Sterling Marlin. Will wasn't all the way alongside Charlie so he could have backed off, and Kimball likely knew Power was there so he didn't have to turn in as abruptly. Townsend said something about "racer's room" in a previous answer so maybe Kimball squeezed him, but I seem to recall Power doing something similar to Pagenaud at Long Beach a few years ago. The bottom line is that street racing is a contact sport more often than not, and sometimes it's intentional, sometimes it's hard racing and sometimes it's brain fade. But I agree with you about Pagenaud's penalty; the three teammates were trying to create some space and Castroneves just happened to get balked. It didn't look intentional, and he still made the cut anyway.

Q: So it's five laps under caution because Race Control decides to sweep the marbles when Rossi goes out. Rossi could have been yanked in two laps - max. Think there is a little race manipulation here, since it was a fuel conservation race to begin with? If there was no caution the marbles would still be there, and everyone has to deal with them. It's part of the race. Your thoughts?

Jeff, Florida

RM: They cleared the marbles, got the lapped cars out of the way and let the leaders have at it for the final few laps, but maybe Dixon and Newgarden would have had more of a chance with less caution because of fresher tires. All the final pit stops had been made, and it actually helped Dixon close up to see if he could challenge. But I get that it's boring to watch all that caution.

Q: OK Miller, you have been hard on ABC's coverage of IndyCar over the years, but NBC's coverage was disappointing this weekend. I'm watching Hinch leave the pits on his last stop at Long Beach, expecting the coverage to move to his exit and show his proximity to Hunter-Reay and Rossi. Instead, the crack producer shows the pit stops of some mid-pack cars. And can't the commentators jump in and tell us what's going on that's important, instead of telling us how P8's pit stop is going? It was the most important moment in the race, and they were ignoring it! Then a bit later, while Dixon is in the pits, you can clearly see Rossi going slowly down the main stretch, past Dixon's pit. The on-the-spot crew in the booth doesn't mention it right away. I could see it on TV, how come they can't see it as it's happening?

Rich R., Elmhurst, Illinois

RM: All I can say that if we missed it then it's a rarity, because nobody stays on top of a race better than Terry Lingner and T. Bell and P.T. do a great job of anticipating the action and guessing strategies. Listening to the telecast on my headset, I never got the impression we didn't know what was going on, but if we were slow to react then it was a rare mistake.

Q: My son and I heading to Barber for the first time. From what I see, Barber is a "forget the grandstand" type of place. I'm assuming the best gig is to take lawn chairs and buy a general admission? I have a track map from the website, so can you advise the best area for viewing to see as much of the track as possible, and hopefully that includes a view of a big screen? Is there any truth to the rumor I heard that they limit the number of tickets they sell?

Forrester L Morgan, Myrtle Beach, SC.

RM: I would either pitch a tent on the big hill past Turn 1 or head over to the wooded area, because both offer great views and you can see a lot of the track. And there is no reserve seating so there's no limit on tickets sold. Have fun.

Q: Long Beach was a very compelling race. Interesting and exciting to the end. Are the alternate pit strategies, tire options, and push-to-pass seen solely as gimmicks? This what make the series as wide open, and watchable as it is.

Mike, Avon

RM: Street races have always been a challenge because you have 235 mph cars going 40 mph through a concrete jungle, and now you've got no w&%kers in the series so passing is really at a premium. The tire options are certainly a tool to make things more interesting, but push-to-pass is definitely a gimmick to try and promote passing. And everything works to make it more watchable than some of those old shows where Mario lapped the field.

Q: Just spent another Sunday listening to the TV announcers talk more about fuel saving then racing. While I realize fuel strategy is part of the game, why doesn't IndyCar do something so that a two-stop is not possible from the start of the race? If they cannot do it with race length, why don't they limit the amount of fuel each car starts with? It's getting to be more races are won by saving fuel then burning fuel.

Bob from Minnesota

RM: I'm told IndyCar wanted to add 10 extra laps to guarantee it would be a three-stopper, but the promoter only allowed five to be added and don't ask me why. But maybe they like the option. I was talking to some veteran mechanics on the grid about the fact there was never fuel saving back in the day, but I guess technology has changed everything and it doesn't seem to matter how much fuel you have in your car or tank – people are always trying to save it. And, to your point, talking about saving fuel doesn't exactly make you run to your television set.

Q: I want to return to the topic of closing the pits under caution. The fans are near-universal in hating it. Drivers also don't seem to like it - they rip on the "lottery effect" in interviews before and after every street and road course race. We all want the drivers, crews, and safety workers to be safe, but I've yet to hear a plausible explanation for closing the pits on every caution. There are readily-available solutions: make greater use of local yellows, and/or use a virtual safety car to prevent racing to the pits and speeding to pick up the safety car. How does closing the pits make it safer for the safety workers if they are responding to a broken winglet on the opposite end of the track, sometimes more than a mile away from pit lane? Why is this system preferable to a VSC? And is there any chatter about changing the rule?

Justin, Indianapolis, IN

RM: When Beaux Barfield was chief steward he tried delaying the caution until the leaders had a chance to pit if it was a car in the tires or debris – and it served the same purpose as leaving the pits open. That was popular for a while, but he was told to stop it by his boss, and when he opted to leave the pits open, a lot of teams bitched because they said they couldn't plan strategy. A virtual safety car has been discussed but obviously the fans and some of the drivers seem do favor leaving the pits open. I haven't heard any talk lately, but I think IndyCar likes the crapshoot.

Q: Greg Moore, J. Villenueve, Tracy, Hinchcliffe, Scott Goodyear: all Canadians, all race or championship winners. Who would you rank as the best?

Anthony Jenkins

RM: Villenueve won an F1 and CART title, but Tracy and Moore (ABOVE) were always a thrill show and made you watch.

Q. How many Dallara IR-12 (DW12) chassis have been manufactured? Of this number, how many are of sufficient specification that they could be used in this year's Indianapolis 500? How many have been retired due to damage, aged-out or provenance (i.e. became collector/museum pieces)? These numbers should give you the absolute maximum number of cars that could be entered for the Indy 500 — of course, that would be if the entrants could get both engines and aero kits. Last year, Grace Autosport claimed that they could not get a car and thus not make the race. This seemed like a convenient excuse. How tight is the supply of Dallara chassis?

Al, Boston, MA

RM: Good lord Al, I don't have time to find out how many cars have been sold or crashed or are sitting around, but it really doesn't matter. The bottom line is that there are plenty of cars but not nearly enough owners. The Harding/Reinbold team just bought two new Dallaras for Gabby Chaves, so if you've got the money you can buy a new car right from the factory.

Q: Does Andretti have the most to gain financially from a third manufacturer joining the series, other than the series as a whole? Chevy has Penske, Honda just brought Ganassi in, and the no-name possible third manufacturer is going to want a big team. No offense, but a third OEM is not going to want a lineup of Foyt, ECR, etc running their engines. While I'm sure Andretti already has it good from Honda by simply having Sato on the team, joining the other two oligarchs of IndyCar in having a sweet deal from an OEM seems guaranteed should a third OEM sign on.

Stephen, Florida

RM: It would certainly seem like IndyCar would steer a new manufacturer to Andretti because of its size and history, but RLL, SPM and Coyne might make a persuasive argument.

Q: About engines for IMS: I believe several months ago you mentioned at least one team who couldn't get an engine for Indy, and therefore didn't run. Would this not be IndyCar shooting themselves in the foot? Why wouldn't they give people cost breaks for one-off or limited entries? The 500 is the only thing right now that can save the viewership with the current costs and limited promotion such as that done by ESPN. I also keep hearing that X manufacturer can only produce engines for 17 teams. What is the barrier to producing enough engines for anyone who wants one and can afford it? They're several years into this engine format, so I would think they have the production capability available.

Cody from Hillsboro, OR

RM: There is always a reduced rate for May, which comes with reduced mileage, and both Honda and Chevy commit to 17 engines apiece but there's nobody being denied because it's hard to scratch up 33 cars. Mike Shank bought a car but couldn't get an engine a few years ago and that was a black eye, so I think IndyCar will make sure that if you want to run the full season, you will have an engine.

Q: Saw the picture of Mario, Super Tex, Rufus Parnell and Mr. Daniel Sexton Gurney during Friday practice. Wow! Thank You for arranging that priceless photo. Truly the greatest America has ever produced all in one shot. The Golden Age. Please re-print for all who missed it, and I would love to see it again.

Bill P.

RM: It wasn't easy because A.J. was hungry and tired of sitting on the stage, but he graciously stopped and posed when he saw Parnelli. Getting Mount Rushmore together for a photo was the only goal Steve Shunck and I had last week and, thankfully, we pulled it off. Then Mario tweeted the shot and said something about posing with his "heroes." Very cool.

Q: Looking at the car count for Indy: what is the story with Buddy Lazier? Is Carpenter going to run a third car? Has Dreyer and Reinbold replaced Kingdom Racing with Harding Racing? What is the latest on Juncos Racing?

Oklahoma Jim

RM: Bob Lazier said it's a work in progress, but they need money. Ed Carpenter will not run a third car, and Ricardo Juncos has a plan but still needs funding. It sounds like D&R is partners on the Gabby Chaves' entry.

Rick Johnson, Lynnwood, WA

RM: Evi Gurney is sorting through the thousands of photos, and I'm hoping we get something by Christmas.

Q: Just wanted to let you know just how much I enjoyed that 10-minute video of AJ and Dan. Rarely am I envious of anyone, but to have been in your shoes and listen to them share their stories ... wow! I couldn't stop grinning at their jabs and barbs at each other, but it clearly evident was their absolute mutual respect. People tend to use the word "legends" or "heroes" today way too easily. There is no doubt you were in the company of legends. Not only was it fun watching AJ and Dan, but you were clearly enjoying the moment. Did they have more fun than you did? Cherish that one forever.

Chip Stetson

RM: A couple years ago, Dan was signing posters on race morning at Long Beach and I kept pestering A.J. to go over and see his old pal. He kept refusing, but finally relented and they spent 20 minutes talking and laughing, and Tex even thanked me for making him go. And they had a great time last Thursday posing in front of their Le Mans winner and reliving those memories. A.J. doesn't have a lot of time for a lot of people, but he's always got time if it's Gurney or Parnelli. Hell, he even calls me back now and then.

Q: Here's one I haven't seen explained. We all seem to agree that too much aero dependence isn't good for the oval racing, right? That was the whole issue with last year's race at Phoenix - a one-mile flat track, and they're basically running wide open. Reduce grip enough that they have to brake, or even just lift to make the corner, and now the trailing driver has an opportunity to make a move on corner entry. IndyCar knows this with its direction for the 2018 cars, but here's my question: Why don't we mandate the super speedway aero at the short tracks as well? After all, the low downforce thing works for the USAC guys, right?

Gabe from Northwest Indiana

RM: All I can tell you is that IndyCar did a lot of testing, and the new aero package for 2018 should make Phoenix a kick-ass race. Just be patient another year, because this month's may be a lot like last year's, where Ryan Hunter-Reay was about the only guy who looked like he could make passes.

Q: I'm a long-time fan of Juan Pablo Montoya. Why did his full-time ride with Penske go away? I don't think his skills have eroded much.

Dan Foster

RM: It was a matter of timing. JPM's contract was up, The Captain knew that Josef Newgarden was a free agent, and he made a decision for the future. But Montoya is still plenty quick and he will be driven next month to show everyone he's not ready for the old folks' home.

Q: Was wondering why they won't go back to making the cars out of honey-combed aluminum while still making the tub carbon fiber to protect the drivers? I realize it's not cutting-edge by any stretch. It would cut costs down I would think. Would the savings be considerable enough? Or is it strictly a matter of safety and structural soundness of the cars?

Al Schonberg, Loves Park, IL

RM: It would be cheaper, and possibly draw more interest from car builders, but with all the efforts to make racing safer and all the testing and regulations, I can't see it happening.

Justin Park City, UT

RM: I think IndyCar has some fun personalities (Hinch, T.K., JoNew, GR, Pagenaud) to explore, and a show hosted by Hinch and Newgarden would be an instant hit. But getting those personalities out to the general public requires commercials, programming and lots of eyeballs so it's more about funding the funding. And Helio has his moments when he's not pimping for Verizon.

Q: People on the Formula 1 subreddit (basically just a big forum for F1 fans) have been complaining an awful lot lately about the advertisements on NBC's broadcasts of F1 and IndyCar. I don't really have any issues with them myself, because my local Univision channel broadcasts F1 ad-free so I can switch during the breaks, but they claim that it's driving away viewers. Do you think that a subscription service to watch F1 and IndyCar on NBC without ads is feasible in any way, or if it's a good idea in the first place?

Joey

RM: It's a slippery slope. We all want non-stop action, but without sponsorship there's no racing. NASCAR was big enough that it could probably survive with pay-per-view, but don't think it's feasible for IndyCar or F1 in this country.

Q: It's the opinion of just one fan, but I have to say, absolutely love the idea submitted by Rob from Louisville to have the Pocono 500 become the new double-points finale. It checks off basically every box for the IndyCar management, and for IndyCar fans. Rob listed several good reasons, but most important is to make the IndyCar championship race seem like a big-time, classic IndyCar event. (Sorry, Sonoma). Think it's got a chance?

Nick, Wisconsin

RM: The season finale needs speed, passing, drama and a good crowd so finding all that will not be easy. I think Phoenix or Gateway has a better shot at getting a crowd in September and Pocono has yet to draw as well as Sonoma. But it must be an oval.

Q: I'm a 31-year-old female that used to think it was so silly that my family would watch a bunch of cars drive around in a circle every May - how boring! But then in 2005, my Dad forced me to experience the Indy 500 and everything changed. (M`y family has had tickets since the '60s). I saw this cute driver in the garages that was so happy and friendl - his name was Dan Wheldon. I decided he was my favorite. Well, my favorite won the race (ABOVE), and I was hooked. My family has been to Indy, Richmond, Homestead, Loudon, Baltimore, Pocono, and St. Pete. This year we are trying out Barber and then will be back to Indy and Pocono.

But the point is, I became a fan because I was dragged to the track, and now I don't miss a race. I think what IndyCar needs is exposure before they worry about innovation to gain fans. If no one knows there is a race happening, it doesn't matter what they try to do - they need eyes watching. My 89-year-old grandfather is the one that started the racing bug in our family. He doesn't have the internet yet knows when the Indy 500 is, but if my Dad didn't print out a schedule for him, he would have no clue about the other races. Can't IMS afford to send out a magnet with the IndyCar schedule on it to anyone that purchased a ticket last year? IndyCar needs people at the track and watching on TV. But if people don't know the race is even happening, IndyCar won't grow.

Katie from PA

RM: Glad you got hooked Katie, but here's a response from IndyCar's C.J. O'Donnell to your question: "The internet, social media and our online advertising proves to be the most efficient means to reach our core fans and prospects. Print advertising, including newspapers, helps. A refrigerator magnet is far more costly per person. Even if we tried this approach, we may not have the correct addresses for these older fans. It's hard to reach every fan, but we certainly try."

Q: I don't believe we will ever see another America drive in an F1 car. I was hoping a driver like Alexander Rossi or Josef Newgarden would get a chance, but I think the view from F1 owners is that they're just not talented. What do you think?

Alistair

RM: I think Newgarden, Kimball and Conor Daly all tested the waters over there, but Rossi was the only one to get a F1 shot and it wasn't much of one. I don't think F1 cares if it ever has another American driver. I mean, Gene Haas said he wanted one but that talk all went away.

Q: Well, I gotta tell you that I am baffled by some of RACER.com's readers. There have been a few pieces recently that highlighted new car sponsors, two of which were UFD coming back to Andretti, and Loki the Wolfdog sponsoring Spencer Pigot's car. Several readers then jumped in, bashing the series and wondering how someone could possibly sponsor that car, or that driver, or this series. It's absolutely incredible what these "fans" are doing. When you think that the people in charge of these companies and their marketing teams can easily set up notifications in Google that tells them when their company is mentioned, it's crazy. I honestly think that some of these people are costing teams and the series sponsors. So, my question for the week is, can you guys get out the Ban Hammer one of these days and get rid of the obvious trolls and couple of the rusty tools?

Gary Nelson, Flagstaff, AZ

Q: Is the Mickey Mouse money so good that IndyCar can't possibly turn it down? They've spoken previously of the tradition of the having the 500 on the same network for almost 50 years, but with the quality of the show they produce lately I see the relevance of their 'tradition' somewhere just short of the cows that produce the milk for the 101 promotional bottles.

Continuity and production quality are on the side of NBC Universal, and NASCAR is proving right now that diversity of programming doesn't help much. NASCAR recently reallocated the second New Hampshire race weekend and XFINITY race from Kentucky to Las Vegas in 2018. Is it feasible that Jay Frye could leverage those relationships he leveraged to get back into Phoenix to maybe jump back into the fray at other SMI facilities? I know NH was a disaster last time out, and I know Kentucky's numbers dwindled before they were left off the schedule. But if there are events at SMI tracks that have previously been marketed that are removed from the NASCAR schedule, and there are fans who seemingly might attend, does it make sense for IndyCar to try to get into that space and possibly provide value to ticket holders or local racing fans who planned on one event but might be willing to try another? Or is it pie in the sky to think tracks with dwindling NASCAR attendance numbers could draw a decent IndyCar crowd?

Dan W., Ft. Worth, TX

RM: I know Mark Miles is trying to get the best new deal for IndyCar on television and a lot of fans want NBC/NBCSN, but ABC always seems intent on keeping Indianapolis. Jay is looking at different tracks because I think he figured out a permanent facility with some history might be a better fit than trying another new street race. Loudon was 50,000-plus in 1995 for CART, so it had some interest. Ditto for Kentucky (ABOVE) when the IRL first went there. But, drum roll, it's got to make cents for promoter and sanctioning body.

Q: Just read this week's naive entry in the "why aren't they at Milwaukee?" series. This seems to be a subject that just will not go away. So many fans think that all that has to be done is a finger snap, and IndyCars are back at Milwaukee. Living here, I am aware of the situation, both from personal observation and Dave Kallmann's periodic updates in the Milwaukee paper.

Friends, racing - not just IndyCars - is dead at Milwaukee. Fans fail to realize that it takes a promoter with deep pockets to put on a race, and after the previous several promoters lost money big-time, that it is just not going to happen. One has to bear in mind that the facility is owned by the State of Wisconsin and governed by an appointed board, none of whom have any knowledge of racing. All they want to do is have the facility be profitable for the state.

In addition, there still remains millions of dollars of debt for the grandstands, and the Board wants any promoter to assume that debt. Big chance of that happening. The Andretti group rented the track for just the race weekend, and was not interested in any other type of promotion involvement. Still, although they tried everything they could, they still lost money and faced the inevitable, having to bail out.

As far as co-promotion with Road America, that has been done before. Back in the 1990s Carl Haas was not only the promoter for Milwaukee, but was also on the Board of Directors of Road America. For a few years there was cross-promotion and ticket packages. If that had worked well, it would have remained in place rather than going away.

To wrap up, I get a kick out of these people who think that all they have to do is tap their ruby slippers together and Milwaukee will magically reappear on the schedule the week after Indy and draw a crowd of 45,000 at the least. Dream on, not going to happen. Milwaukee is toast.

Tom Schultz, Wauwatosa, Wis.

RM: I appreciate the information Tom and, sadly, a bastion of open-wheel and IndyCars for 90 years is likely gone forever.