The RACER Mailbag, March 2

Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers can be sent to mailbag@racer.com. Due to the high volume of questions received, we can’t guarantee that every letter will be published, but we’ll answer as many as we can. Published questions may be edited for length and clarity.

Q: This is something I’ve noticed over the past few years of watching IndyCar. Whenever a journalist from NBC or wherever is interviewing a driver or owner or chief, they never say thank you when they’re done interviewing the – they immediately switch to a comment directed toward the broadcast team. It makes for the most awkward transition, because the viewer can tell that the interviewee isn’t sure whether they’re done. In other sports it’s usually “Thanks, Coach” then some comment. Is this just something with motorsports journalists or NBC?

Matthew, Columbus, OH

MARSHALL PRUETT: My guess is that when we do our in-event interviews, it’s as the race is taking place, not during a quarter or halftime break where there’s no action taking place. It really isn’t the time for hellos and goodbyes and whatnot when you have radio chatter in your ear and six different screens to monitor, so I’ve never thought of the strictly-business interview style to be out of place. What you don’t see is what takes place quite often after the director cuts away, and that’s the interviewer giving the interviewee a thumbs up, a dap, or a thank-you as they pull away and wander down to the next pit box.

Q: I have one of the free versions of Peacock and I was sitting around with not much to do so I thought I would see if they were offering the second practice at St. Pete for free. They were not, but I found out that they were offerin – for a limited time, of course, up to 12 months of premium free depending on which cable service you use. You have to register a credit card, but you can cancel at anytime. So that means you can get the entire season for free plus all the other programming they have. Worth a look, for sure.

Tom in Waco

MP: Tom! IndyCar fans in need of Peacock, go forth, be fruitful, and register.

Q: Let's say Andretti gets this F1 deal done, and Gainbridge is a major sponsor. Should one Mr. Zach Veach expect a bigass ‘thank you’ gift basket from Michael?

Matt Philpott

MP: If Zach isn’t invited to do the Young Drivers Test, I’m going to stop supporting Andretti Global and spend all of my money on USF1 merchandise. Kidding aside, I saw Mr. Veach last weekend, who was in town to drive the two-seater and told me he’s doing 15 sprint car races this summer. I love that guy.

He'll be taking selfies in front of a sprint car this summer. Gavin Baker/Motorsport Images

Q: I'd like to share a positive note regarding one of the newer sponsorships in the IndyCar circuit.

I live in the Kansas City metropolitan area and stopped by a recently-refurbished Hy-Vee grocery store yesterday – and thought I was magically transported into a grocery in Speedway during May! The entire store was decorated with promotional materials for the No.45 Hy-Vee car, Jack Harvey cutouts, and posters advertising the Iowa race that Hy-Vee is sponsoring later this season. Even better, I engaged in conversations with a handful of the store employees and they were all able to speak to some level of the sponsorship, telling me they've been trained to enhance the visual promotion materials.

It was such a pleasant surprise, and even though I have two competing grocery stores within a stone's throw of my house, I will be making the longer trip for my groceries and be a regular visitor to Hy-Vee.

John, Lee's Summit, MO

MP: Yes! This is how it’s supposed to work. Thanks for sharing, John.

Q: On a lot of IndyCar broadcasts, or racing in general, mental mindsets are a big topic, whether it’s focusing on the next lap and pushing mistakes out of your mind, or not letting crashes rattle yu. Physical talent is one thing, but it seems like cooler heads prevail.

Drivers are certainly under a lot of pressure, with needing sponsorship dollars and having to perform to keep their careers going. I would assume the anxiety and highs and lows are a lot to push through.

Where do drivers get their mental training? Do they use dedicated mental coaches? Is there a specific program or philosophy drivers prescribe to?

Chris Kulawik, Wheaton, IL

MP: I don’t know how many drivers are working with mental/performance coaches, but I hear it spoken of more frequently than it was just a few years ago. Simon Pagenaud might be the most well-known driver who openly speaks about the use of such a coach but, since he’s a competitor, he tends to stop short of naming the person…

Q: How about a pat on the back for my man Kyle Kirkwood? He qualified 12th and ran a clean race, bringing the car home a respectable 18th and on the lead lap. Considering that was his first IndyCar race and the level of equipment he was driving, that’s not a bad result at all. 

I think Kirkwood could easily become the next big American star of IndyCar, especially if Colton Herta jumps ship for F1 in the near future. And honestly, I think it would be a great success story for IndyCar. After all, Kirkwood earned his way into IndyCar by dominating the Road to Indy like no one before him (ahem, unlike a certain Andretti driver). That’s a story I can get behind.

Garrick, Huntsville, Alabama

MP: He was part of the three-stopper brigade who were torpedoed by the timing of the one and only caution. Remove that from his day, and he’s leaving in a happy place. Kyle spent a decent chunk of the race right behind Josef Newgarden, matching his pace in a team that has no business keeping up with Penske’s two-time champ. Plus, he’s a great kid. IndyCar is in safe hands once the new generation takes over.

Q: Any insight into what went on with Rossi's weekend?  Things looked better than last year, with Rossi knocking over a second off his best time in P2 from P1.  He improved again in qualifying, but it looks like others improved more than Rossi.

Let's talk race. Like last year, Rossi at one point seemed to be doing OK, but then it went sideways. Was it bad strategy? It's not like he has forgotten how to drive. The practice results show that. I know the car has changed since his peak performance years, but the results are just not there. Rahal suffered last year from what looked like poor strategy, but things look up for him after St. Pete. I can't say the same for Rossi. He's a damn good driver but what the heck is going on?

John

MP: Other than a brief hello in passing, I didn’t get to connect with Alexander after the race and download on the entirety of his weekend. Andretti COO Rob Edwards confirmed the race strategy call to stay out during the lap 25 caution for the David Malukas crash was intentional; the No. 27 team wasn’t pleased with the life they’d gotten while running on Firestone’s alternates prior to the race, so they stayed out to stretch the time spent on primaries and thought another yellow might come to let them change onto alternates without giving up a lot of track position. That yellow never arrived, Rossi pitted under green, and his race was over.

As for the rest of the weekend, he was third among Andretti drivers in FP1, second in FP2 after Grosjean took himself out early in the session, third in qualifying and third in the race. Minus the odd strategery call, I’d have to believe he’d be much higher up in the final running order. Nonetheless, he leaves St. Pete holding 20th in the standings, which is brutal.

Q: I think the articles about an Andretti F1 team and Colton Herta being the driver were a bit misleading. In the articles I read, it was stated that Michael Andretti wants to start an F1 team, and Colton Herta drives for the Andretti IndyCar team, and Colton Herta is American, therefore Colton Herta will be going to F1 with Andretti. 

 I don’t believe that for a second, because in your podcast interview with Colton last year I clearly remember him talking about an F1 future as a firm “maybe”. I also remember he talked about wanting to be in IndyCar to win championships and the Indy 500. And didn’t he say he would only consider going to F1 if it was with a top team that is able to win? Colton is too much of a talent and too smart to jump ship from the most competitive series in the world to F1, where a 15th place finish is a considered good day. 

Rick Schneider, Charlotte

MP: Colton might be young, but he’s 100 percent his own man. If he wants to do F1 and an opportunity is presented that piques his interest, I’m sure he’ll consider it. But as you point out, he’s not one of those drivers whose life will never be complete if he doesn’t race in F1.

For those who don't want to get lost in the details, take it as read that Rossi's weekend didn't follow the script. Michael Levitt/Motorsport Images

Q: I knew this was going to happen with all the races on NBC. They didn't allot enough time for the end of the race. I would have liked to have seen interviews with at least the top three or five drivers. 

It was a total let down after a great race and the first win for a new driver. I also wanted to know about the strategies or issues were that kept other drivers from challenging for the lead. We would have found out about these things if it was on NBC Sports, as they would have had enough time to do the post-race.

Shyam Cherupalla

MP: I hear you and I’m with you. Formula 1 does an amazing job of analyzing the race that just happened in forensic detail. Even if it’s a move to Peacock or NBC Sports Twitter account, there’s a big mentality change that needs to happen if IndyCar is going to simply match what it’s biggest U.S. open-wheel rival offers its fans. And since IndyCar is doing all it can to bring in F1 fans to follow Grosjean, it seriously needs to work with its TV partner to evolve its post-race presentation style to keep those Romain fans from tuning out.

Q: After seeing the rollouts of the 2022 Formula 1 cars, I find it interesting how similar they are in appearance. There have been so many letters in the past to the Mailbag bemoaning how IndyCar chassis design is stagnated by having Dallara as the sole supplier. If the choice of chassis design was open to other manufacturers for IndyCar, it might have the same result as Formula 1. Different chassis names but the same look with increased cost due to competing brands. With the Formula 1 teams having access to their own wind tunnels, it appears they come to the same conclusion what shape works best.

I know there are other factors that come into play regarding who has the competitive edge, such as the different engines and variations in suspension, but what is your take on why there appears to be such a commonality in Formula 1 design?  I think IndyCar cars look just as racy and have the fraction of cost as Formula 1.

Dave Wells, French Lick, IN  

MP: F1 set some new design parameters that gave us cars that look more spec than usual, but there are some interesting differences to be found, for sure. The interesting part is the copycat testing game that kicks off once cars start testing. Every team has photographers snapping away and bringing back detailed images of their rivals’ cars, and for the parts they find interesting and different, most will have them made and tested — either virtually or through 3D printing or model making — to test the aero benefits and determine if they’re worth trying in a slightly altered form on their cars.

Chevy and Honda did the same thing when we had the manufacturer aero kits, specifically with replicating front and rear wing elements and searching for performance numbers and benefits that might be borrowed.

Q: Maybe I'm cranky because I've run out of things to bitch about with The Book of Boba Fett, but I don't get this new IndyCar ad. Why only one American driver? Why Grosjean? He hasn't won anything in F1 or here yet. Where's six-time champ Dixon? Where's the exciting American Colton Herta? Or Rossi? Or a name a lot of haven't-watched-in-a-long-time fans would know in Graham Rahal? Didn't we just have some guy named Helio Castroneves become a four-time Indy 500 winner? The first in 30 years? He got a lot less face time than Grosjean! If you blink, you'll miss him. Great PitFit commercial.

COME ON INDYCAR! You’ve got to do better!  In the future, please hire the P.R. genius that is Sean Heckman!

Chris , Ft Lauderdale, FL

MP: Boy, I had high hopes for The Book of Boba Fett, but it was a nothing burger. Yeah, IndyCar’s big new fan poll showed that Romain was its most popular driver by far so, no surprise, he’s being squeezed and hugged by the series like a new puppy on Christmas morning. I just hope they realize some of the other dogs — you know, the one’s who’ve actually won races and championships — still matter.

Q: Will RACER ever start covering more Drifting series like Formula Drift, D1GP, Drift Master? Or Time Attack series like Global Time Attack, GridLife, Super Lap Battle, World Time-Attack Challenge?

Both type of motorsports is growing popularity in prize demographics: 18-34. Both series have many great technologies, variety of vehicles makes and models. Open rule books to allow variety and innovation. Plus, we get to see homegrown builds from family garages to professional-grade squads duke it out on track. True David vs Goliath battles. And the series are ahead of the curve in the internet age then most traditional motorsports have been until recently. Plus, both have grassroots entry that average demographics can get involved compared to most traditional motorsports.

So why not cover it? So many stories can be told from drivers, race car builds in the series. RACER could easily become the leader in reporting on both type of motorsports. Which would be a nice add-on to its incredible work with what you already currently covering. 

Kevin, Long Beach

MP: Your endless passion for drifting and all the other properties you mentioned is impressive; I have about 100 DMs from you over the years asking the same question. The simple answer is nobody is asking for it from us. That doesn’t mean it isn’t worthy of coverage, but if nobody is asking for a specialty item to be added to the menu, and racing media outlets aren’t exactly swimming in cash, hiring and paying people to generate something that has no demand among our well-established IndyCar, F1, IMSA and NASCAR readers would be a challenge.

MARK GLENDENNING: As Marshall says, it’s the same scenario as the question we received about bike coverage a couple of weeks ago. We’re fans, but editorial budgets are not unlimited, so we have to direct them towards series that touch the majority of our readership. That said, it’s also true that we’re always looking at ways to plant seeds that could grow into new audiences, too. Regular readers might have spotted some of this ‘laying the groundwork’ content on the site over the past year or so, and you’ll be encouraged to know that we met with one of the organizations you mentioned recently. Don’t go expecting to see us covering drifting the way we cover IndyCar or NASCAR just yet, but rest assured that we’re not blind to it, either.

We don't have a shot of Sean Heckman handy, but fortunately there are other ways to photographically represent motorsport marketing brilliance. Motorsport Images

Q: Why does Long Beach Grand Prix never get same respect as marquee events on the calendar like the Indy 500? Yes, I get that Indy 500 started it all, is namesake of the cars that race and is 59 editions head start on LBGP. Despite that, what other one race on he calendar can make and revive one driving career? Or that drivers dream of racing at and adding their name on winner list? Grand Prix of Long Beach. Hunter-Reay’s, Conway’s and Sato’s career was saved by their wins at LBGP. Scott Pruett is still bitter at never getting that win; just coming close with a second and third in open-wheelers there. Andretti's, Unser, Tracy, Bourdais, Montoya, Zanardi, Rossi and Franchitti cherish their wins at the beach. Colton was excited to finally get his GP win at the beach. Even the folks that hate on Hinchcliffe for never getting a championship win or Indy 500 win ignore him picking up LBGP win. Is that still IRL mindset that only the Indy 500 matters and rest are fillers? Or since LBGP was marquee event for CART/Champ Car from ‘96-‘07 that it's obligated to belittle it for sake of the Indy 500?   

Kevin, Long Beach CA

MP: Come on, man. This is like asking why Jeff Andretti doesn’t get the same respect as Mario. They’re related, but one’s the GOAT and the other is not. Let’s not be silly.

Q: With the recent reveal of this year’s Formula 1 cars, I have been disappointed by the lack of sneak peaks at any of the IndyCar liveries for St. Pete. 

I understand an F1 team will typically stick with the one paint scheme for the entire season while an IndyCar might change theirs depending on sponsorship for different events. I feel like IndyCar teams are missing out on clicks and eyeballs when they are not showing off their challengers before the opening race weekend. 

Kaleb Hartman

MP: I know we’re answering this after the race weekend so we all know what the cars look like, but it’s still a great point. Other than Arrow McLaren SP, I’m not sure any of our teams make a big deal out of livery reveals. Granted, each year with F1, it’s new-car and new-livery reveals, so that’s a bigger deal than seeing how the same Indy cars are going to dress differently, but yes, overall, IndyCar loses out to F1 with this pre-season pageantry and if they wanted to coordinate with their teams, I bet that could change for the better next year.

Q: It's nice to see that Liberty Media is trying to grow F1 in the USA. We have a second race and now we have the prospect of Andretti entering F1 and using an American driver. But if they really want to grow F1 in America, they need a better media platform. ESPN tends to put practice and qualifying on channels that are not available even if you have your cable provider’s premium package. We need someone who give us our own panel like we had when we had Bob, Steve and David, and who will show all the sessions on a channel that most people get. 

Mark Bartholomew

MP: I’ve had every F1 session available on ESPN channels with our cable package on Comcast, so at least for me and others with their service, it’s not an issue. Can’t speak for others with different providers. Honestly, just about the only thing I’ve heard since F1 went to ESPN is how much people love having it readily available and without commercials. I think you’d get a lot of pushback from U.S. F1 fans if that changed.

Q: Last week Chuck Ney asked why ‘Drivers’ had replaced ‘Gentleman’ when all the drivers are men. Your response suggested he was sexist and out of date. 

It was a perfectly reasonable question, and I would like Chuck to know that he is not alone and does not need to be called names. Robin called a spade a spade, but was not political.

Oliver Wells

MP: Thanks for your letter, Oliver. I’ll work in reverse order: Politics were not mentioned in any way in my response. Not one word about politics. So that assertion is 100 percent false.

When someone submits something that starts off with, “Why the change from ‘Gentlemen Start Your Engines’ to ‘Drivers Start Your Engines’?”, we have a reasonable question. If it stopped there, you and I aren’t having this exchange.

But then when it moves in the next sentence to “And please don’t use the lazy excuse that there are more women in racing,” we’re not trying to be reasonable. We’re trying to make some sort of statement and pass it off as a question. And when it closes with “I hope this isn’t the racing industries attempt to appease the PC crowd,” we’ve also veered away from reason. The end result is the submission was loaded with this person’s bias and it landed with me as both sexist and out of date, so like Robin, I called a spade a spade.

And here’s this, just for good measure:

https://twitter.com/marshallpruett/status/1497971288752730113?s=20&t=yGYFOCDSns6kKgDgAOFDtQ

Q: I was surprised to see the letter complaining about the loss of the phrase, "Gentlemen, start your engines" vs "Drivers start your engines".  Beth Paretta was right when she pointed out that the current phrase "Drivers, start your engines" makes no sense.  If the powers that be at IndyCar are smart, they will change the phrase to "Racers, start your engines".  Then they will have an accurate phrase that will energize the fans at the beginning of a race.

Michael Aldea, Hawthorne, NJ

MP: I’m surprised by all kinds of things people complain about, but hey, that’s normal, I guess. The powers that be at IndyCar are indeed smart, and once they get a third manufacturer signed, a new car on the way, bigger TV ratings, more tickets sold, and an official IMS sandwich named after Robin Miller, I’m sure they’ll get to work on the perfect phrasing for the act of starting engines. May I be the first to suggest: “Racers, DEFY EVERYTHING!” (Sorry, I’m a smartass. Couldn’t resist.)

Q: Why on earth is Jamie Chadwick languishing in the W Series (again)? Just like Miller wanted to get someone to run Larson in the 500, we need to get someone to put Chadwick in a Lights car (if that interests her) this year. The Race for Equality and Change has a real opportunity to make an impact and I’d like to think there are sponsors who would be willing to step up and make that a reality. Chadwick already comes with half the budget as reigning champ, right?  Too bad the Lights season has started.

Ryan in West Michigan

MP: On rare occasion do we see a Lights team truly place someone in their car and pay for it. Most have sponsors or wealthy parents to cover the bills. Having half a budget isn’t what team owners are looking for. Totally agree with you that she’s well worth a look by many teams.

The planets haven't yet aligned for Chadwick to get onto the U.S. open-wheel ladder, but it looks like she's having fun in the meantime. Colin McMaster/Motorsport Images

Q: I have to say this to the readers and fans of IndyCar. Stop waiting on IndyCar to come up with the magic marketing idea, television series or whatever you think they need to do to get more fans. I don’t know if they are doing all they can, but they are doing what they can. Us fans need to do the next part. Throw an Indy 500 party like people do for a Superbowl. Show a friend the 2021 season review on YouTube. It’s a couple minutes to watch.

But most importantly, invite them to a race! My Dad watched the sport when I was young. I loved playing with my Hot Wheels and going to car shows, but I could not be pulled into a two-hour race on TV. The day he brought me to a live race for the first time changed my entire life. The sights, the smells, meeting the drivers (which was harder back then); it changed my entire outlook. I did the exact same thing to my son. Now he follows all the drivers on social media and shows me up. I brought my wife to the Indy 500, had her pick a favorite driver, and she loved it. When I talk about racing she’s mostly interested and previously never had any interest. I brought a friend to Joliet when they raced there, and he got interested. It’s visceral. Most tickets on Sunday are reasonable for anyone and many (like RA) allow kids in for free with a paying adult!

As a fan, you know what to show them at the track. Give them an experience they won’t forget. You can’t walk around the dugout or sideline of ball sports. 

Also, a question for you and Chris: Has anyone from the F1 community commented about Andretti making a bid to enter the sport? How well do you think he will be received? As an American I feel Americans have been a bit snubbed in the past. Haas is not a real good gauge either since he is a back marker. Will Andretti have trouble getting into the club?

Erik, IL

MP: Young Mr. Medland has indeed filed a few stories with insights and opinions from F1 team owners and principals. Well worth reading. I completely agree with your rant; many of us say the same thing — get to a race and experience it. If you don’t like it, we’ll pray for you. But if the series is going to spend its precious money on a marketing campaign, there’s every reason to expect it to deliver, and if it doesn’t, for it to be criticized. That’s life.

Q: I believe it was Cameron Glickenhaus that has developed an engine with no camshafts, so I assume it is totally computer-based valve timing. Could one then build a race engine that would be lower in height profile, lighter and more importantly, very ‘valve-timing-tunable’ over the racecourse, e.g., torque out of corners, high rpm on straights etc? Of course, marry this with computer-controlled fuel injection that we now have for even more versatility. Make it a flat six to really lower the profile. An electronic Honda VTEC.

Doug, who saw his first race in 1947.

MP: If they’ve developed that engine I missed it, Doug, but here’s a video of the TTV8 they commissioned Pipo Moteurs to make for its Le Mans Hypercar.

Q: I agree with your comment regarding the double-header at the Iowa Speedway. With Hy-Vee sponsorship on board, I hope the stands will be packed. Spectators have great views of the close racing anywhere in the track. 

Pat Rizk, The Woodlands, Texas

MP: I really hope I can get to Iowa for that event. It’s the folksiest track on the calendar, and that’s a good thing.

Q: Seems like both IndyCar and F1 have used BoP at times. Think of varying displacements for stock block vs turbo in IndyCar and fuel allotments and displacement for turbo vs NA in F1. Admittedly this wasn’t the race to race changes of current IMSA, but a form of it nonetheless

Doug Farrow, Plymouth, MN

MP: We’re talking about very different things here. Balance of Performance takes all of the cars, in ready-to-race trim, and then tries to make their performances even on the stopwatch. The formulas you mention were the total opposite of BoP: They let teams and constructors choose what they wanted to compete with and gave them the latitude to try and make whatever they picked from the displacement/weight/fuel menu to do better than the other person.

Q: When IndyCar announced its new hybrid engine formula, I remember it saying it wanted the engines to be "fast and loud". What can we expect in regards to the engine sound of the new package? I know it won't be anything like the glory days of the turbo V8 era, but anything close would be great.  

Andrew Wiss

MP: I’m told from those who’ve heard the 2.4-liter twin-turbo V6s running on the dynos that they do have a more aggressive tone. We tend to get bigger and better sound when the engines are more ferocious — making big power — and rev higher. The new rules hold the revs to the same 12,000 maximum we’ve had since 2012, so no changes there, but the bump in power to 800hp or so that we’ve been told to watch for is where I hope the audio improves.

Q:  Back in 2006, my dad took me to a Menards that was opening up in my town. I was four so I don't remember much, but Paul Menard was there as sort of a meet and greet thing. I got a picture of him and his car signed, and it hung in our basement for years till my little sister's friend smashed it.

Why is it so uncommon nowadays for teams to do those sorts of events with their sponsors? I haven't heard of any of those things in years, and I live in Indiana. I know schedules during racing season are already crammed, but one would think small events would help create fans and marketability, especially younger ones.

Oscar from Indiana

MP: Hey Oscar. I would assume that in the era of COVID, once the country gets back to normal in all 50 states and teams and sponsors feel more comfortable in doing public events at their stores, you’ll see them happening again on a regular basis.

I hope you went to your sister’s friend’s house and smashed something in kind.

What sort of monster destroys a picture of Paul Menard? Russell LaBounty/Motorsport Images

Q: An F1 question, but also applies to IndyCar at times: track limits. Starting somewhere around the late 1800s, gravel traps were used to keep cars on the track. But as you know, gravel traps can be problematic and require maintenance by the track to remain effective. The past few years, F1 tracks have been removing gravel traps and paving the area which drivers – being drivers – promptly starting using to their advantage. So now they have "track limits" consisting of a painted line and people reviewing video to make judgement calls. Or ignoring it completely like Hamilton 29 times last year in Bahrain.  

Why do you think a multi-billion dollar sport like F1 does not apply some 21st century technology to track limits and do away with judgement calls?  My idea is to embed a wire at the track limit and have sensors in the cars. Go over the wire and a rev limiter kicks in to cause a loss in time. If there's no advantage and the driver gets tired of of hitting his head on the steering wheel, there won't be any issues with track limits. Any reason something like this wouldn't work? 

Mike

MP: They use something like this in tennis to judge line call and we’ll likely see this in MLB in the future with calling balls and strikes; the TV broadcasters use the technology, but it’s just for entertainment. I can’t see why it wouldn’t work, but the difference here is the untold miles of cable embedding that would need to be done at every circuit on the calendar, at vast costs, just to so racing’s referees would no longer need to make judgement calls. Seems like a huge project and investment just to avoid human oversight.

Q: Now that F1 cars are using ground effect and undercar downforce similar to IndyCars, the cars are porpoising on the straights. I don’t recall this happening when IndyCar made similar aerodynamic changes. Did the IndyCar designers just do a better job of implementing ground effect? It’s hard to imagine F1 teams could miss this considering the resources they have available.

Grant from Victoria, BC

MP: IndyCar made some changes to its floor with the UAK18, but the majority of the updates were on the topside, so there was no real risk of porpoising becoming an issue. The problem is created by a lack of control of the floor/underwing and it being starved and then fed with onrushing air, and since nothing changed significantly on our end, we haven’t had DW12s breakdancing and doing the centipede down the straights.

Q: Proud of F1 for canceling the Russian GP - they can be leaders for all sports.

Bill

MP: I hear you, but to borrow a line from Chris Rock, I’m not sure F1 should be getting high praise for doing what they’re supposed to do.

Q: I just had to comment on the writer who made such derogatory remarks about Al Unser Jr. I will confess I have not read his book, but how dare someone judge a man who has admitted his problems publicly and has tried to turn his life around? Whatever happened between him and his family is between them. I have no idea the type of pressure that Al was under during his driving days, or the toll that took on him and his family. I met Al once in New York and he seemed like a decent and kind man. We should all applaud Al for his honesty about his problems and support him in his recovery. 

I did like your response, so thank you for that.

Jim Doyle, Hoboken, NJ

MP: Amen, Jim.

Q: Lewis Hamilton is no doubt a great driver. My gripe is that I am sick of the constant whining, crying and despair that he didn’t win the title last season. Seems to me that F1 fans and media think he should win every pole, every race and every title. It has been my contention that to be a good winner you have to be an equally good loser. He’s not a loser, but you get my point. So, move on to another season of racing and try again. Just for the record, I am a 77-year-old Vietnam vet who historically have been a NasCrap fan but they have turned into a circus. Thank you for this forum to allow us to praise, critic, vent and discuss racing today.

Don Ragan

MP: Thank you for your service to country, Don. If the 2021 F1 season reaffirmed something we already knew, it was how no middle ground exists between Lewis and Max fans. Not sure I agree on the Lewis-centric part of the championship argument, though. Count me among those who are mad at the FIA and F1’s race control for s******g the bed with its governance of the closing laps. It could have been Bottas and Perez locked in a duel for the F1 title and I would have been just as mad at the unacceptable officiating. Hamilton has certainly complained a lot over the years, but given how the finale played out, was he expected to be happy and complimentary of what went down?

Scrapping the Sochi race for 2022 was the easiest decision the FIA will ever have to make. Motorsport Images

Q: The IndyCar spotter's guide for St Pete did not include the radio frequencies as has been done for many years.  Why? 

David, Waxhaw, NC

MP: The contract between IndyCar and Racing Electronics — the company behind the scanner rentals and provider of SG frequencies — was not renewed. Can’t say why the new vendor, Racing Communications, and IndyCar didn’t come through for you and the rest of the scanner-loving community.

Q: I own a Racing Electronics RE3000, which programs driver frequencies over the air. While RE stopped coming to IndyCar events after 2019, I was able to OTA-program my scanner at 2020 and 2021 races I attended.

This was not the case at GP St. Pete. I was all over the track, in the stands, in the pit, in the paddock, and I was never able to get it to program. I am back in my hotel room now, doing some cyber sleuthing, and it appears RE has completely abandoned IndyCar, not even providing frequencies on the spotter guide.

What gives? Can fans really no longer use their RE equipment with ease at IndyCar races? This really sucks if that is the case. What quality alternatives are there for fans like me who don't know how to manually program a scanner?

Andrew, Chicago

MP: Racing Communications has moved into the IndyCar trailer where RE once lived. You’re one of many who’ve expressed the same frustration and feeling of abandonment here, Andrew. Word on the street is racing scanner sales have plummeted since COVID hit, so there’s that, and per the series, I’m told the frequency info isn’t gone:

“Frequencies are available on the interactive spotter guide located on INDYCAR.com. All driver radio communications during races are also available on the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.”

I used the Bearcat for many years and it worked well. The instructions that came with it told me how to program the frequencies.

Q: As I write, Mazepin's future in F1 is in question and young Fitipaldi is in line. It's quite common to see drivers leave F1 and come to IndyCar for budgetary reasons. Have there been any other drivers that couldn't put the money together for Indy but were able to make it up the F1 ladder?

Shawn in Maryland 

MP: Only one that comes to mind recently is Logan Sargeant, who was close-ish to something with Foyt, but stepped away and went to Williams. I won’t pretend to know how the money side went down, but the young American went from working with a restricted budget to a plum F1 development role, and those aren’t inexpensive.

THE FINAL WORD

From Robin Miller's Mailbag, March 4, 2015

Q: In your Feb 25 Mailbag, you expressed enthusiasm for a proposed TV ad featuring an Indy Lights car and a Cup car. Two days later a Cup car is stolen. Robin?

Tom Hinshaw, Santa Barbara, CA

ROBIN MILLER: That was my fault. It was pretty dark that night and I didn’t realize I was stealing No. 44, I thought it was No. 24. So I left it by the side of the road.