Robin Miller's Mailbag for June 27, 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: I thought Road America was a good race. A normal race, if you want. Fastest driver-car combination won, RHR challenged, and it was noticeable that, as he said, he was running at 110%, and so was Dixie. There are some voices claiming that this was the worst race ever. I think those people have not seen a lot of races, and the fact that there were no passes for the lead does not make racing less interesting.

I must say that I was a bit disappointed with NBC broadcast. It's way better than ABC (although I miss Beekhuis) but they were just a bit shy about showing all the action back in the pack. Back to the race... One thing I found interesting is the fact that, despite this car being so difficult to drive, there aren't many going off, and I can't even remember when was the last race without a full-course yellow!

P.S. I loved your feature on The Invisible Champion.

P.S.2: I'll leave the argument about Rossi's driving to my fellow fans, but I'd rather see IndyCar let the drivers race than applying silly penalties all the time.

Ignacio, from Argentina

RM: With about 14 laps to go, the first six drivers were all within seven seconds of each other around a 4-mile road course without a single yellow flag to bunch up the field. Dixon pushed RHR as hard as RHR pushed Newgarden, and they never flinched. They drove as hard as possible for 100 minutes without making a mistake. I think that’s the essence of road racing. I thought it was a damn good race and I was in the pits watching the monitor. I imagine if we had two or three more cameras we’d catch all the action, because our producer loves to jump around and show the good battles. But it’s tough to cover four miles. Last race with no cautions was 2017 at Sonoma (thanks Russ Thompson for the stat).

Q: My wife and I just left Road America for the third year in a row. Again we had a great time. However my wife said as we left..."that was a boring race." So what was your feeling? It seemed to me that there was hardly any passing even mid-pack. They were talking about dirty air after the race. I thought the new bodywork was supposed to be cleaner. What, if anything, has gone wrong?

Paul, Indianapolis

RM: Like I said above, anytime you have three drivers battling to the end on a 4-mile road course with no yellow flags it’s a helluva race – especially considering the trio that was chasing each other. Of course it’s in the eye of the beholder, but I heard from a lot of road racing fans that loved the balls-out, error-free driving for an hour and a half. But I think there was more passing than you imagined. IndyCar says there were 161 total on-track passes (Hinch and Pagenaud each had 14) and 125 total on-track position passes (Hinch and Pagenaud had 11 each) so at least for the first 10-12 laps it was pretty racy. But I’ve seen Mario or Michael or Al Junior or Zanardi win by almost a lap at road courses, and that was boring. Not Sunday.

Canada Corner - Image by IMS Photo

Q: Great weekend at RA. Your article pretty much nailed the great atmosphere. Why do they call Turn 12 at Road American 'Canada Corner'? I heard a tale that if your brakes fail entering, you will end up in Canada? Can you give us the real story?

Steve Strom

RM: John Ewart, RA’s communications director kindly confirmed the legend:

“During Road America's first season in 1955, the track owner hired the local Boy Scouts to pick up all the garbage under the grandstands after each event. Among the usual litter were large amounts of empty Canadian beer cans and lots of empty Canadian cigarette packs. Corner workers and volunteers got wind of this and renamed Turn 12, Canada Corner.”

Q: Nice article regarding Elkhart Lake weekend on RACER, including the mention of the promoter’s work that made it such a success. I think the future for additional races is probably on traditional road racing circuits (Mid-Ohio) etc. not owned by ISC. Unfortunately, I don’t see much promotion here in Toronto for a Mosport race (even Hinch and Wickens seem to favor Montreal). I find it strange, as in my view IndyCar would draw pretty much as well at Mosport at it does at Elkhart Lake, and also has IndyCar history (albeit one that dates back to the late 70s). I know safety is often mentioned as an issue, but I can’t see any real difference from Road America on that one. Can’t even figure out why a point-and-squirt circuit like Montreal seems popular with the Canadian drivers, other than an anticipated large crowd. Heck, Mont Tremblant, north of Montreal, is a fabulous track as well.

Mark Kidson, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

RM: HInch and Wickens favor Montreal over Toronto? You mean the track, not the city I assume? Everyone says Mosport is too dangerous (there is a letter about Jeff Green further down in the Mailbag that sheds some light) and Road America has a much better run-off area (although I love Bob Rahal’s line about how much run-off does Indy have at 230 mph?) I do think Mosport would draw well, and I was at Mount Tremblant in 2007 for Champ Car and it’s a great layout that drew decently considering how far it is from Montreal. But with Wickens and Hinch, at least two races in Canada should be mandatory.

Image by Abbott/LAT

Q: I am beginning to have a problem with Rossi. I think he can drive the s%$# out of a car and he is a Honda driver so naturally I want to root for him. However, after St. Pete with Wickens and the whining and not taking ownership of his own mistakes, I am growing tired. After Road America, I feel that I am about to pull the plug. After watching Rossi push Wickens out of the way and then Sato later on, I call bulls***. He just runs them wide, as he knows they have to back out or wreck. He can keep his line tighter and give them room, but no. What were the NBC boys saying? The competitors? Race Control? I have to watch the races in Portuguese, and I don’t understand Portuguese!

Rossi is reminding me of the bully/arrogant kid that needs a good slap before he will start respecting others. Also, early in the race it sure looked like Rahal was bobbing and weaving something fierce to keep Andretti behind him. Something I thought was an easy penalty to call, but apparently not. Hell, he wasn’t making one move as allowed, he was making three or four moves. Any thoughts on this?

Josh R., Salem, OR

RM: Rossi is ruthless (Wickens’ words in the Indy Star story today) but I kinda like it because IndyCar needs a bad guy who is also a badass. Rossi has a little Bobby Unser/Zanardi/Montoya/Tracy in him, and if other drivers feel he’s not racing them cleanly, then they can always retaliate, but I’d rather see that than a penalty for what we saw Sunday. And if Race Control did deem it a dirty move, then just make him give up the position – don’t ruin the race, because our fans want to see that kind of action. Our booth immediately questioned whether there would be a penalty for the Turn 5 confrontations, but it always cracks me up to hear P.T. say it because, after all, he was the king of the Chrome Horn. I didn’t see Graham and Marco, but the booth made it clear they thought Rahal should be penalized.

Q: Michael Andretti's possible F1 team interest was mentioned briefly in last week’s Mailbag, but there was a detail Tim B. did not ask about. In addition to Michael being in Montreal, J.F. Thormann (President of Andretti Autosport) and Pieter Rossi (Alexander Rossi's father) were accompanying him. Think anything business-related was going on with those two or just part of Michael's entourage?

Stephen, FL

RM: I can’t imagine Michael or anyone else raising the money to do F1 (even as a partner), so I imagine it was more about the McLaren details for IndyCar. And I can’t imagine Rossi wanting to go back to F1 with a car that would undoubtedly be five seconds slower out of the gate when he’s suddenly having fun and being a factor in every IndyCar race.

Q: McLaren, wow, this is 90's era silly season at its finest. Psyched to hear they could be here with two cars next year! Equally amazed at the money thrown at Dixie, and surprised that Alonso is possibly not on the cards. Couple questions/musings...did Michael Andretti leave Newman/Haas for Team Green with the agreement that he would join its ownership? Could that sort of thing get Scott to stay with CGR? Should he leave for McLaren, combined with two additional entries, does this push Chip to give Chevrolet a call?

Greg, Belleville, NJ

RM: Let me say this: If anybody tells you they know what’s going to happen with McLaren, Andretti, Honda, Dixon, Alonso, Ganassi, Chevy – they are guessing. If they say they know how much Dixon is being offered, they are guessing. Stefan Johansson told us last week that other teams are talking to Dixie, but nothing has been signed or decided. I heard back at Barber that Scott was headed for Andretti and I didn’t really believe there was much to it until Marshall broke the McLaren interest story last week. And Marshall and I have said (and written) time and again that Honda of Japan isn’t happy with Alonso because of all his negative comments about the F1 engine, but does that mean it wouldn’t support his IndyCar effort or at least lease McLaren engines? Don’t know. Is Dixon the No.1 choice of Honda Performance Development because Honda loves him? Possibly. Will the McLaren deal only happen with Alonso? Can’t say. Is it two cars? Maybe. Is it a done deal? Some think it is, but who is ‘some’? If Ganassi lost Dixon who would he go after? Felix Rosenquvist? Colton Herta? Pagenaud, if he became a free agent? Sure. Zak Brown has talked to Chevrolet; not sure about Chip because I don’t know his contract length with Honda. As for Mikey, I think we were all surprised he became a car owner, but I think everyone is glad he did. I’m not sure there was anything set in stone with Barry Green. Hope that clears up everything (smile).

Image by IMS Photo

Q: I know this is story is still in the rumor stage and I might be in the minority, but this Dixon to McLaren story is a massive letdown. The only thing that would change my mind is if Alonso decides to either partner with him to run the full season, or it’s a one-car team and Alonso runs it alone. Why? If it turns out that Dixon is the headliner at a McLaren IndyCar team, what does it prove? Nothing. He already has titles, he’s already third in wins, he probably will continue to win – it’s just moving chess pieces around. This is no different than if Dixon moved to Penske; it proves nothing. I want to see Ali vs. Frazier, and a two-team effort of Alonso and Dixon gives you that. Let’s see how good Dixon really is against one of the world’s best in equal equipment. Everyone says Dixie is IndyCar’s best, and this will be the true test. If it’s Alonso running full time alone, it’s IndyCar’s best vs. Alonso. In either case, Alonso has to be a part of the equation to create the drama we all want to see. I remember the Mansell days and the intrigue of him against IndyCar's best, and I want to see that again. On the positive, the McLaren team being in IndyCar seems to be a bit more solidified, so that’s the only silver lining here.

Phil, Cleveland, OH

RM: I’ll grant you Phil that Alonso would be a big deal for IndyCar and I hope it happens, and it would be great to see him and Dixon team up or simply become rivals on different teams. But I also understand why a Kiwi would want to drive for McLaren, and after 20 years maybe Scott just wants a change of scenery. And maybe he’s not going anywhere. My question is, where will the money come from for McLaren if not Honda of Japan?

Image by Tee/LAT

Q: God, there is so much to un-package in RACER’s Silly Season article. Personally, I feel like no matter what, McLaren has to get a part of an Alonso Triple Crown. As friendly as Zak Brown has been about letting Alonso go and run for other manufacturers, if McLaren goes to Honda with Honda funding and they don't want Alonso, and Brown lets Alonso run IndyCar for someone else, especially with the intent to keep him in the stable for the poorly-kept secret of a McLaren Le Mans effort, it almost wouldn't be worth it. If McLaren enables Alonso to pursue the Triple Crown and doesn't get any of his victories in McLaren car, that's a failure in my view.

I guess I'm curious about a few things. One, if they have backing from Honda and Latiffi, is there a possibility of a two-car effort with the young Latiffi in one of the seats? I could see RLL adding two cars, they would have the room, or perhaps McLaren would run an effort out of its own building if it's paired with Andretti? Also, if Andretti is full and the Herta-RLL thing was to happen, what would happen with Rossi and Marco? Not sure if Rossi's contract is with Andretti or Herta, and with Marco currently in Herta's car with Herta as a strategist, what would happen there? Lastly, if McLaren partners with Chevy using its funding from Latiffi, is there potential for a McLaren/Penske effort with Alonso?

Alex M. from Michigan

RM: I think Fernando has shown he wants to be competitive regardless of the engine or series, so not sure how much McLaren factors into his decision. Marshall wrote about that Latiffi scenario with his son, and I guess RLL could expand to three cars if the money was right. Rossi has a multi-year deal but I assume it’s with Andretti, not Herta, although I should ask Bryan. Can’t see The Captain going after a 37-year-old, even with Alonso’s pedigree.

Q: With the increasing possibility of Alonso joining the series next year, is Indycar doing anything to leverage this and promote the sport outside the U.S.? I live in Asia and love the series, but as far as I know it is impossible to watch the races live on TV or even by streaming, as I do not have a US provider. The only option is to watch races a few days later on YouTube, which is not the same. At a time when F1 is clearly split into two divisions, races are frequently dull and most fans detest the halo, there has never been a better time to promote IndyCar, and showing the races outside the U.S. (as NASCAR does) would be a good step. I know it has been discussed for a while, but surely now is the time to start broadening the series to include a couple of international races. A good opportunity to look at Spain or the UK to leverage the Alonso/McLaren effect, and then longer-term, a race in Asia or Australia. Brands Hatch full circuit next year would be a good way to start! Never has there been a better time to develop the series and try to bring in international interest and sponsors. Should it happen, Alonso might only be there for one year, so I hope that IndyCar already has a team looking how to maximize a golden opportunity.

Mike Bishop

RM: A response from Mark Miles: “IndyCar races are currently available on TV (mostly live or very near live) in approximately 180 countries around the world. In some countries (Spain and Italy, for example) our races are broadcast by the same partners as F1 races. In other cases there are different broadcasters, such as on CANAL+ in France, we have good exposure but on different networks than F1. I’m not sure where you live in Asia but we’d be happy to connect you to our race broadcaster wherever you live. Except in Brazil, all of our current broadcast agreements expire at the end of this season. We are in the process of making new arrangements and look forward to being able to announce specific arrangements by country prior to the 2019 season. Thanks for being a fan abroad. Just as in the U.S., next year we expect our international exposure (and your ability to watch races wherever you live) to improve. Thanks again.”

Image by Feistman/LAT

Q: First off, great race at Road America! I know there wasn’t a lot of passing up front in the second half of the race, but the first half was fantastic and the field stayed tight throughout. Cars in the mid-pack could dice it up, and I think we saw some pretty nice moves. Secondly, I saw that Phoenix will not be returning to the IndyCar schedule for next year. I know a lot of old-timers are disappointed since Phoenix has traditionally been a mainstay for open-wheel racing, but as a fan who just likes to see great racing, all I can say is “good riddance”! For three years in a row we’ve been treated to snoozefests in the desert, each time with the promise that “It’ll be better next year.” Well, time’s finally up, and to be honest, I’m surprised it took them this long to pull the plug. The drivers, who have been apologizing to the fans for the bad racing at Phoenix since the series returned finally seemed to admit this year that there was no chance to improve the show there. Downforce levels don’t seem to matter; the straightaways are just too short to set up a pass, and I think that you could hear the sense of resignation in the voices of the drivers and the media at this year’s race. Now, this leaves us with an interesting question: With Phoenix off the schedule, what track takes its place? Watkins Glen? Laguna Seca? Watkins Glen? COTA? Watkins Glen? Seriously, I think The Glen would be a perfect fit! An early spring race there would be far enough removed from the NASCAR event so as not to create congestion on the calendar, and it’s in a region where IndyCar currently lacks a presence. Besides, I’m sure that the new IndyCar aero package would put on an excellent race there. What do you think?

Garrick, Mobile, AL

RM: I think Homestead will take Phoenix’s place on the 2019 schedule, and also serve as spring training. But the sad thing about PIR/ISM Raceway is that is was such a bastion for Indy cars for four decades before it became a NASCAR track. I guess IndyCar could have tried a couple more years with the new grandstand/suites, because I don’t see Homestead being any better an option considering its past history with Indy cars. It’s just tough right now to find an oval with a good promoter and great sponsor (aka Gateway). I’d love to be at The Glen with the right date.

Image by Levitt/LAT

Q: With all the talk about the new teams coming to IndyCar, I was wondering about the health of the existing IndyCar teams. Are any of them in danger of folding or looking to merge with another team? Also, what is the long-term future of Team Penske after RP is no longer with us? Does Roger have a succession plan for his team? Is there a family member who will carry the team forward after he is gone?

Ben, Westfield, IN

RM: Ricardo Juncos needs a full-time sponsor so he can run the full season, and Mike Shank is working on one. Brian Barnhart said Harding Racing is looking at two cars in 2019, but I still wish he had at least one major backer. Sage Karam said Dennis Reinbold is serous about returning full-time so that would be awesome, and Scuderia Corsa seems intent on coming in full-time as well. Hell, there could be 38 cars at Indy next May. As for The Captain, he’s going to be making deals and flying all over the world when he’s 100, so I wouldn’t worry about his race team. I’m pretty sure it will continue after he’s gone because it’s his passion.

Q: I’m sad and disappointed and not terribly surprised to hear that Indycar and Phoenix have decided to part ways (and not too happy that the nearest oval races to me are now two time zones away). But it makes me think: what, alongside the need for the usual ebb-and-flow of racing economics to turn upward again, will it take for IndyCar to recover its mojo with ovals? It’s the sport’s legacy and often site of the best racing. It’d be a shame to have to turn totally to stock cars to get that particular fix. Also, what’s the word on Kyle Kaiser? Is Mr. Juncos going to be able to put him in the car at least one more time this season?

Garrett from San Diego

RM: I’m not sure IndyCar will ever regain its mojo/status/attendance at ovals. Think about this: In 1995 there were 50,000 at Milwaukee, 60,000 at Phoenix and 70,000 at Michigan. During the next decade those tracks became ghost towns. Where did all those people go? NASCAR? Pissed off at Tony George and CART? They haven’t come back except for Gateway, so I have no idea how IndyCar recaptures that audience. Well, that’s not true. If you ran Milwaukee the Sunday after Indy at 1 p.m. with George Briuggenthies & Company doing the promoting and with John Menard sponsorship, it could work again. But Phoenix is dead in the water, and MIS isn’t interested. I think Kyle will be at Iowa and Pocono.

Q: One of the many great scenes in "Darkest Hour," the mostly true film about Winston Churchill in May 1940, is after various appeasers urge negotiating with Hitler, Churchill shouts "When will the lesson be learned? When will the lesson be learned? You can not negotiate with a tiger when your head is in his mouth!" I say to IndyCar and its community: You can not do business with ISC. The dismal crowds at Phoenix prove what we have seen for the last 20 years. ISC (NASCAR, I don't care if they legally are separate organizations, for all practical purposes they are one and the same) does not care one bit about IndyCar. They will not promote it beyond getting enough to pay back the sanction fee. If IndyCar should go out of business, they will open bottles of champagne and celebrate big-time.

I also say this to you with your talk about how IndyCar should run double-headers with IMSA. IMSA is a NASCAR organization. Jim France is chairman, enough said. IndyCar has to make its own way. I don't know what to suggest for more tracks. Norris McDonald in Toronto suggests Montreal and Calgary. I go to Montreal every few years for F1 and always have a great time, so I would like an IndyCar date there. But what the obstacles are: promoter, logistics using a track that is essentially a recreational park, I don't know. You want to call Eddie Gossage's bluff and go to COTA and risk losing Texas and another oval date, fine with me. But no more ISC unless the Hulman family buys the company or NASCAR (which would be funny if it happened).

James H. Overmeyer, Islip, NY

Image by IMS Photo

RM: I do think NASCAR sold Tony George a lot of false promises when the IRL started and he learned they really weren’t his partner a couple of years later, but I don’t blame Bryan Sperber and his ISC people for the lack of bodies/interest at Phoenix. IndyCar had to underwrite that race so it was the copromoter and I don’t think either side spent much money promoting. But IMSA and IndyCar share Long Beach and Detroit, and it’s a winner for both series and both promoters so it could certainly work at Watkins Glen. Plus, Jay Frye has a good relationship with ISC, so if ISC was to ever truly pay a sanction fee, I think it would try and promote it much better than those old IRL days. But I don’t think it’s a contentious relationship. And the Hulman/George family will not be buying any sanctioning bodies or racetracks.

Q: I see the sporty-car drivers are out in force celebrating the failure of Phoenix. Do you have a prediction on how soon the IndyCar schedule will be 15 street races and one oval?

Chris, Colorado Springs

RM: No, but that’s kinda sad if sports car folks are celebrating any kind of IndyCar failure. I think it could be Indianapolis and maybe Gateway and Iowa and one other oval in the next few years, because it’s such a tough nut for promoters to crack these days. And IndyCar doesn’t want to keep underwriting oval races, even though it’s their heritage.

Image by Dole/LAT

Q: What the heck, Phoenix is out. I thought there was a good thing going. The series needs that solid mix of streets, road courses, short ovals, and big ovals. Since ISM is out, can we get MIS or a short oval as replacement? I know you're going to say they don't draw and there is a lack of cheeks in the seats and so on. This isn't "A Field of Dreams" though, you can't simply build it and they will come. The race fan will always come out to watch a race; it's the casual observer we need to come out to buy $8 beers and take selfies with screaming IndyCars in the background. I really feel like the solution is one-day events at the oval thrown in with a concert and a food/beer festival in the infield followed by post-race fireworks. If we look at Indy, most of the people who go to the race aren't there for the race. One quick IMSA question, is there a reason why we don't just team up with them during their Six Hours of the Glen weekend? IndyCar races are great at the Glen, and what's the crime in giving fans a super weekend?

C.J. Shoemaker

RM: It’s just not that simple. First you have to find an oval that’s got the wherewithal to host an IndyCar race, and one that wants to host an IndyCar race. Then you have to find a date that works and make sure it doesn’t conflict with a NASCAR race or two. I’ve always favored one-day oval events to save everyone money, but nobody else wants to do it on the track side. And I don’t even think the old diehards go like they used to – easier to watch on television. But I do think Miles and Frye might approach Jim France about a Glen doubleheader – especially since NBC could cover them both.

Q: This seems like a perfect opportunity for Cavaliers’ owner Dan Gilbert to step up and bring IndyCar racing back to the Burke Lakefront Airport. Unlike Phoenix, Cleveland is a Midwestern race that fans will actually attend. Gilbert's already sponsored the Duel of Detroit in the past, and I have a feeling that in a few weeks his team will no longer have the highest payroll in the NBA. Has Mark Miles made any overtures to return to airport racing?

Don Davis, Chardon, Ohio

RM: I believe Mark and Jay have discussed Cleveland in the past two years, and Mike Lanigan always says he’d come back and promote it in a heartbeat with a true title sponsor but that’s the hang-up – finding money. I imagine Mr. Gilbert may be a little preoccupied with that LeBron guy.

Image by LePage/LAT

Q: While I’m disappointed to see Phoenix fall off the schedule, I’m not surprised. This year’s race was easily the best of the three, but it felt like the improved racing was too little, too late. The memories I have from the return to Phoenix are of the leader being unable to pass lapped traffic. After each restart in 2016 and 2017, there was a 15 to 20-lap sprint to the last-placed car. After catching backmarkers, it was nearly impossible to pass them. Even this year, passing lapped traffic was a struggle. Early in the race, leader Bourdais needed about five laps to pass the last place, and at least 10 laps to pass the second-to-last car. After Power took the lead, he needed 20 laps to pass the last-placed car. I understand passing on short ovals isn’t easy, and that short ovals aren’t going to have side-by-side racing, but I don't think it should take 10 to 20 laps for the leader to pass backmarkers. Would passing backmarkers on other short ovals be as difficult as it was at Phoenix? Part of me would love to see another short track added to the schedule, but I’m concerned attendance will suffer if the series’ best drivers need 20+ laps of a 250-lap race to pass lapped traffic.

Kyle in Raleigh

RM: One of the difficulties at Phoenix is that the straightaways aren’t very long, so that makes it really tough to get runs and make passes since everyone is so close. Fontana and Texas have staged two of the wildest, scariest, most thrilling races ever, and it had no little, if any affect on attendance, although Texas looked up this month.

Q: Since Phoenix is off the next year’s schedule, do you think Charlotte would be possible either next year or a year or so down the road? I think that would be a great track for ICS. I’m so looking forward to NBC taking over next year for ICS. I am sure it will be 200% better coverage than ABC/ESPN crap. I am good friends with Linda Rosenberg and heard you are doing well with your health. Good luck and continued good health!

Rob Kinder

RM: No, I don’t think Charlotte will ever host another IndyCar race after the three fan fatalities in 1999. Thanks for your wishes, and Linda is the darling of the IndyCar paddock and the brains behind the Shunck/Miller T-shirt empire.

Q: Eddie Gossage has made it clear that he wants the first date after the Indy 500 for Texas Motor Speedway. How about giving it to him in exchange for IndyCar running at COTA in March? Instead of IndyCar going back to tracks that do not suit the IndyCars or draw crowds, IndyCar needs to be running at COTA.

Russell Mill, Austin, TX

RM: I think a lot of teams and fans would be happy to go to Texas or Milwaukee or Iowa the week after the Indy 500 and then skip a week and go to Detroit, but that’s not going to happen as long as RP runs Belle Isle. It’s my understanding Gossage has always had some kind of clause in his contract to prevent IndyCar from running COTA, but I don’t think he’s got that kind of clout anymore and IndyCar does need to try COTA some day.

Q: So now that Phoenix is off the 2019 schedule, I'm sure you will be bombarded with the typical replacement requests. So I figured I'd throw one from left field. What about Darlington? Now hear me out. It does have a (small) open-wheel history, AAA and USAC ran Champ Car events in the 1950s. It seats around 65,000, so 30k fans would appear at least half-full. Geographically it's nowhere near any of our other races. And most importantly, Darlington makes stock cars look fast. Could you imagine IndyCars there? Hey, no one thought Barber would work in stock car country. Why not here?

Dennis Czosek, Streamwood, IL

RM: I like the way you think, and here’s a shot (above) of the Triple AAA race in either 1950, 1951 or 1954 (Johnie Parsons won the first, Walt Faulkner the second and Manny Ayuelo the third). In 1956, USAC went to the “Track Too Tough To Tame” and Pat O’Connor was victorious. Randy Bernard contacted Rockingham once about a race, but it needed too much work. Darlington might work because of the novelty and history, and it would be Wicked Fast (thanks Bones). I’d like to see Richmond return to the schedule – are you listening, Dennis Bickmeier?

Q: I just finished reading the June 20th Mailbag while on my way to Road America. Someone mentioned wanting an endurance race to be run at Road America, which got me thinking. Do you think there would ever be a possibility that Road America could become a double-header? I know it’s probably wishful thinking considering how packed the weekend is already with other forms of racing, but I’d still like to hear your thoughts.

Kaitlyn, Minnesota

RM: Although USAC ran some cool doubleheaders at IRP, Brainerd, St. Jovite, Mosport and Kent (Wash.) in the late 1960s, I can’t imagine George Bruggenthies messing with a good formula. But I like the idea of twin 150s on ovals and road courses if it spices up attendance, which Road America hasn’t needed in three years.

Q: Hey Robin! After reading that Phoenix was being dropped from the IndyCar schedule, I wondered what new locations we could see in the near future? Are Mexico/Calgary talks still going on, and are there any other serious candidates to hold an IndyCar race?

Ian McFarland, Greenville, South Carolina

RM: I think if Pato O’Ward continues his career ascension, Mexico City could still have a shot some day soon, and I believe Kevin Savoree and Kim Green are still looking at Calgary. Tony Cotman has looked at a lot of potential venues in the past two years, but nothing to report just yet.

Q: In a recent article you mentioned the need of an additional warm weather venue and an oval for IndyCar to replace Phoenix and add more dates to the calendar. You mentioned Homestead. I have always wondered what prevented IndyCar from running the road course at Daytona. I understand the competition between IndyCar and the NASCAR/IMSA/France family dynamic. Still, it perplexed me, as there seemed to be room on the early or late schedule for Daytona to be a factor without having to run in the heat of the Florida summers. The combination of the infield road course along with the high banks of the oval would surely be a challenge for the engineers, and provide many opportunities for overtaking.

Andrew Wiggin

RM: The IRL tested there once, but I think ISC is plenty happy to have one major road race a year with the Rolex 24. Can’t see it being much of a draw for IndyCar – not their market.

Image by LePage/LAT

Q: With Phoenix off the schedule for 2019, why not revive the Toronto doubleheader? 1. It's one more race in Canada 2. It's a popular venue 3. The series has two great hometown drivers they can use to draw in fans 4. It's a race in the Northeast (maybe the only one remaining if Pocono doesn't work out). Seems like a no-brainer to me.

Rob Peterson, Rochester, NY

RM: I’m not sure why all the doubleheaders other than Belle Isle went away, but I’ll ask Kevin Savoree and Kim Green why they chose to stop it. With Hinch and Wickens it’s a natural, provided the logistics and money are still aligned.

Q: I have a “what if” question. If the France family should decide to divest themselves of the NASCAR series, would the ISC tracks be sold as well? And if that were to take place, do you foresee any potential for IndyCar to return to tracks such as Michigan? The Penske organization puts tremendous time and treasure into the Belle Isle race and it’s a quality experience if the weather cooperates, but I’ll be damned if I can understand how an IndyCar event in the Irish Hills can detract from the Captain’s Belle Isle effort! I could understand if the oval track race was scheduled too close to the Detroit race. But the races at IMS were absolutely edge of your seat excitement as a rule.

Add to that the opportunity to hang out for the weekend in a resort area where the kiddies can run, swim, fish and so on and still see quality track action, and it’s a lot of family fun. I go to MIS because even NASCAR racing is better than no racing, and some of the crowd I hang with at Indy would jump at the opportunity to travel three hours to see the blistering track action MIS can offer! Wishful thinking I suppose, but what racing! There were no less than 50 of us who went to those races and would again. We sponsored 20+ laps and made a helluva lot of vendors mighty happy to boot!

Rand, Trenton, Michigan

RM: First off, my understanding is that Jim France doesn’t want to sell NASCAR but the ISC connection isn’t the deterrent for not going back to MIS. There just doesn’t seem to be any interest on either side, but don’t forget MIS and Belle Isle ran on the CART schedule together from 1989-2001 (including back-to-back dates in 1999).

Image by Abbott/LAT

Q: For me this year’s race at Texas proved IndyCar can run a competitive, entertaining, non-pack race on a 1.5 mile ‘cookie-cutter’ oval. While these tracks weren’t mentioned in your interview with Mark Miles in regards to expansion, I’d like to think it could open things up for IndyCar down the road at venues that were previously off the board -- your thoughts?

Kevin in S.C.

RM: People have suggested going back to Kentucky, Kansas or Chicago but the crowds kept dropping at all three until the plug was pulled. I would think Kentucky might be the best shot in terms of drawing people back if it had any interest – which doesn’t appear to be the case at the moment.

Q: I enjoyed the NBC team coverage today except for the annoying drumbeat and music during the run-up to the start. Had I not had CC, I could not have understood the broadcast commentary. This seems to be a wasted effort to build excitement prior to race, similar to the track announcers yelling "Are you ready." Hell yes we are ready, or we wouldn't be there. Your piece on Dixon was good. I hope you return to grid runs soon!

Charlie, Greenville, NC

RM: I sent your note to the folks who mix the sound/music, so thanks for the update and there is a response further down about how to make sure the live noise doesn’t drown out our announcers. Thanks for the note abut Dixon; Taylor Rollins puts those essays together and does a wonderful job, and I think we can tell more of a story with those than a quick grid run – although those are fun too, and we may bring a couple back before season’s end.

Image by Abbott/LAT

Q: First, please let us know when the Penske engineers figure out what happened to Power's engine. That was really unusual. Second, what's going on with Hinch this season? He's looking really bad compared to Wickens in the same car. Is it a situation like Pagenaud, where he just can't seem to get a handle on the new aero package?

Alan Hummel

RM: I thought Will’s problem was a header, but it was almost like all the boost got dumped instantly at the start. Too bad there was no morning warm-up, that would have saved him. Hinch has qualified 7-5-8-5-4-9-6 out of nine races and, of course, missing Indy was a disaster but I don’t blame him as much as SPM’s failure to respond in the final hour. He raced good last Sunday and pretty much came from 18th to 10th, so while Wickens has been mighty impressive, James is trying to sort out his revolving engineers. He’s just fine.

Q: Another exciting IndyCar race from Elkhart Lake. Congrats to JoNew, RHR and especially Dixie. Smart driving all around. The points battle is tight, and I am loving this season. I also watched the French GP from Circuit Paul Ricard prior to IndyCar, so I was well-rested for the IndyCar race ( I fell asleep twice during F1). Question: Before the F1 race, Charles Leclerc was interviewed and mentioned that F1 had become pay TV only in France and that had caused a drop in viewers. Is F1 planning to try the same thing here in the U.S. at some point in the future? If so, count me out. Free advice for the Captain: Get Chevrolet to back Fernando Alonso, stick it to Honda who won't touch him over here, and bring him full-time to IndyCar and potentially have him win: Rookie of the Year, the Indy 500 and the IndyCar Championship. Smart PR chance all around, and a way increase viewers worldwide. Great to have NBCSN covering the races from here on out, and even better having you in the mix.

Tom Patrick, Lake Arrowhead, CA

RM: I was told that F1 gave ESPN the rights and telecast for free with the understanding it would be pay-for-view streaming in a year or two. There is a letter from Mark Miles earlier this mailbag that lays out his international TV plans. Thanks for watching NBCSN and we all hope Alonso comes over full-time.

Q: I love reading your Mailbag and I’m a big IndyCar fan. I’m 57 and born in Trenton, and I remember going to the Trenton Speedway as a kid. My father, who worked in construction, actually helped build the Dogleg. I was wondering, what is your best memory from that long-lost speedway? I also went to Nazareth every year, and always go to Pocono. I live in central New Jersey and haven’t seen one promotion yet for the Pocono 500. What is indyCar thinking?

Tim Schwing

RM: Running the pit board and being the vent man for pit stops for Lloyd Ruby was a fond memory of Trenton, and just how cool that track was. Personally, I ran a USAC midget race there and managed not to kill myself, but I had no business being there since I had about 10 races under my belt and none larger than a half-mile dirt track. It was insanity, and Bill Vukovich, who won the second feature, said afterwards that if he ever thought about driving a midget at Trenton again he wanted someone to take a wheel hammer and smack him in the head. Pocono is the promoter, not IndyCar, but I imagine they’ll start concentrating on Pennsylvania soon, and maybe Jersey. Thanks for being a longtime fan.

Q: The IndyCars sure look better than the last few years. How about a couple more changes. Shorter races: a couple 25-lappers for starting position, and a 50-lap feature. Sprint races, period. No more fuel mileage discussions, or refueling window nonsense. Why tear up cars in the first 200 laps, see who's left and then have a sprint race? Out here in TV land, everybody changed channels or fell asleep. Hard tire compound, no options, so sick of hearing about tire degradation… let's see these cars slide around on pavement. (See Dave MacDonald, Riverside, 1963) If IndyCars looked like that on road courses you would need more grandstands! Harder tires will mean more lifting, throttle control, late braking, etc. You know, stuff race car drivers are supposed to do. Crazy suggestions? Maybe, but technology has taken most of the fun out of watching "big time" racing. Saw the USAC sprints at the Grove last weekend, just the best!

CD, Beer Hill, Pa.

RM: I always loved the twin 125s or twin 150s at Michigan, and that’s the kind of format that could help save IndyCar’s ovals – give the fans twice as much with a little intermission. Sprint races where fuel is no issue. USAC sprints are the best.

Image by LePage/LAT

Q: Last week someone in the Mailbag talked about some of the promising Indy Lights drivers without a ride. I find it surprising that these groups of millennials aren’t utilizing crowdfunding, especially when there are video games in the top four all-time multi-millions dollars acquired. Is this old-school logic or do most drivers find this as a negative of sustaining a ride?

Paul Hirsch

RM: Not sure anybody has gone that route yet, but obviously it’s probably going to happen sooner than later. Maybe they think it’s more for helping sick people or others who have encountered hardships, and asking for money to race might not be embraced.

Q: As a tribute to the IndyCar greats that won Le Mans (Dan Gurney and AJ), I propose that an all-American team of Newgarden, Rossi and Hunter-Reay enter a first-rate LMP2 car next year. Josef is Dan's twin (handsome, as my wife would say), Alexander and Ryan equally talented. Assuming money was not an obstacle, could something like this really happen? I can contribute $20 to a GoFundMe account...

Jonathan and Cleide Morris , Ventura, CA

RM: It’s a nice thought, but a Le Mans budget would likely take five million $20 contributions to get started, so just keep buying lottery tickets and fund your own team and name it after yourself. That would be cool.

Q: Just read your Mailbag from June 20. In the question about Mr. Hulman and the IRL/CART split, I agree USAC/IMS was stagnant and Gurney's white paper was correct in pointing that out and how to grow the sport. I also agree with your statement that CART didn't do a very good job of embracing TG, although a better way of putting it would have been CART thumbed their arrogant noses at him and told him to go away. What I don't understand is how some really big issues with CART are consistently either glossed over or not mentioned at all. First of all, how can a multi-million dollar organization like CART be run by 20 owners, all with their own agenda but equal votes? Anyone that knows the first thing about business knows this situation is doomed to fail. Love the taxicab racing or hate it, there's always one guy at the top in charge and steering the ship. Second, even though CART was, as you say, at its zenith in the mid-90s were they going to stay? They had morphed into a big money operation forced to hire "furriners" with sponsorship money over actual talent. Nigel Mansell is one thing, Milka Duno is another. I don't think this was sustainable. And finally, and along this same line. I have always felt that when Jeff Gordon, arguably the best talent to ever come out of USAC, couldn't even get a sniff from CART it was all over. CART got Hiro instead of a Hero.

Mike Bray, Flower Mound, TX

RM: I’ve written and said on many occasions that CART woke up one day in 1993 and had Nigel Mansell and the best series in the world in spite of the car owners. But Gurney was spot-on in his critique of all that was wrong with USAC, and it’s archaic thinking. If Dan had run the show, IndyCar would likely be light years ahead of NASCAR today. But CART still managed to raise open-wheel racing to a level it’s never seen before or since in the ‘90s, and Tony George couldn’t have picked a worse time to divide it. But nobody could predict what would have happened without The Split – except I did. I said it would ruin Indy and IndyCar racing and it would never recover. Well, Indy has finally made a comeback in the past few Mays (thankfully) and reclaimed Indianapolis from the NASCAR race, but the rest of the series (sans Long Beach, Road America, Mid-Ohio, Barber and Gateway) still struggles to attract new fans and bring back the old ones.

Image by Levitt/LAT

Q: Just a note to tell you how much I enjoy your interviews and features. They really make the telecasts. Unfortunately the audio on all the NBCSN races is horrible. All the commentators are drowned out by the ambiance, music and FX by maybe 10db. It's awful. It's like they're running all sound through one bus. The race at Elkhart even had the in-car audio drown out the post race interviews when they showed race footage during the interviews. Hope you can pass this along. I'm a retired audio engineer, so I find it really bad. Keep up your good work, Robin.

Robert Baldwin, Arbor Vitae, Wisconsin

RM: Thanks Robert, here are some tips from our NBC people on how to alleviate this problem:

“One of the many creative reasons we went from Stereo to 5.1 surround sound was that we could place the in-car microphones for IndyCar and F1 in a 30/70 ratio/balance in the home speakers so that the listener could hear the engine mostly behind them when we cut to the In-car shots, thus helping to really put them inside the driver's seat. Also placing particular microphones with a longer 'reach' as the cars approach the corners where they are quieter, with the intention to 'pull' as much of the sound of the car slowing into the corner and pulling as much of the deceleration fuel 'popping' in the exhaust.

“NBC's sound design for motorsports is based around an 'aggressive' mix of the natural sounds of the event. We are going to place a lot of microphones very close to (and on) the cars rather than plant a few microphones far away.

“You may know that it takes more than one audio mixer (A1) or one audio mixing console to bring all these sounds into one combined mix. There are separate consoles and A1s for all the driver radios, for the radio microphones, for the mix of just the track microphones and for the mixing of all the taped pieces and announcers into the combined feed. These mixers are the best in the business, and at the top of their game. It goes without saying that we are highly critical of our own audio mixes, and we continuously check and recheck to ensure that our mixes, both 5.1 and stereo are being received at home and online without issue.

“The main technical issue with audio we have in all our productions comes from the set-up of home entertainment systems. Sometimes 5.1 speaker's arrangements are incorrectly balanced, and that imbalance causes the announcer audio to be perceived as either too soft or too loud. For stereo listeners at home the biggest issue is their smart TVs and the settings that are built into them by the manufacturers.

“In some cases people have a Samsung SMART TV and it has a setting called 'Virtual surround.' If this is turned on then the Samsung algorithm tries to make surround sound from a two-channel speaker... badly. It attempts to simulate natural 'comb filtering' to create the impression of sounds located in 3D space. It is the main offender when announcers are unclear. There is no real evidence to suggest the 'fact' that this setting can get turned on intermittently when going between Netflix and other apps on your TV and yes sometime the kids even somehow do it!

“In the age of social media NBC would be inundated chasing our 'bad audio' We have learned that if there is a large section of complaints on forums/twitter etc then there might in fact be a problem of our own making. In this case our social media teams will reach out to our transmission operations center so that they can confirm their output and then reach out to the multiple NBC regional networks particularly if our social media teams can pinpoint a section of the country that might be having an issue. Regional networks can have equipment issues which can potentially affect the audio mixes that they transmit to their audience

“It is always the last resort to alert the remote broadcast truck that they might have an issue. Obviously that change of focus is not without risk to the show they are producing at that time. We hope some of this helps your understanding of the issue so that you might be able to assist some of your readers in enjoying the total authenticity, professionalism and passion we put into our motorsports mixes.

“Here is our No.1 suggestion: Check that you have no processing of any type set up in your TV audio configuration. Below are just a few links to support the reason for the buried announcers. TV manufacturers know the issue

Other Networks know the issue

A million ways to screw up your sound.