The RACER Mailbag, October 28

Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers can be sent to mailbag@racer.com. We love hearing your comments and opinions, but letters that include a question are more likely to be published. Questions received after 12pm ET each Monday will be saved for the following week.

Q: Has there ever been any serious discussion about transitioning IndyCar’s tire branding from Firestone to Bridgestone?

The historical significance of Firestone’s relationship with IndyCar is undeniable, and I certainly appreciate the heritage. However, I’ve long wondered whether the Firestone association does the series any favors from a broader brand positioning and perception standpoint.

Fairly or unfairly, Firestone still carries some reputational baggage from the Ford Explorer tire controversy of the late 1990s and early 2000s. More importantly, it’s generally perceived as the more pedestrian, mass-market brand within the Bridgestone family.

At a time when IndyCar is working to elevate its profile, attract premium sponsors and position itself as a world-class motorsports property, I wonder whether its association with Firestone subtly undermines those ambitions. Brand perception matters, and there’s something to be said for the optics of competing on Bridgestones rather than Firestones, particularly when both brands fall under the same corporate umbrella.

Bridgestone also has legitimate American open-wheel racing pedigree, so it’s hardly an exercise in abandoning the sport’s heritage.

Perhaps an interesting compromise would be a dual-brand arrangement: Honda-powered teams running Bridgestones and Chevrolet-powered teams running Firestones. Assuming the underlying tires remained identical, it could introduce another layer of manufacturer identity and marketing differentiation without sacrificing competitive parity.

Am I overestimating the importance of tire branding, or is there a legitimate argument that Bridgestone would better complement the premium image IndyCar is trying to cultivate? Have these conversations or something similar been had previously?

Possum Jones, Toad Hop, IN

MARSHALL PRUETT: Reputational baggage is an interesting one. This is an entirely made-up non-issue. Roughly half of IndyCar’s fan base weren’t born when that happened, so there’s nothing there to signal as a real issue.

Bridgestone was the brand used in Champ Car while Firestone was used in the Indy Racing League and its successor, the IndyCar Series. Firestone has as strong a reputation today just like any other leading tire brand. Bridgestone is seen as a higher-tier brand that’s more heavily associated with higher-tier sports cars. Since Firestone is seen as a more common brand that isn’t readily associated with $100,000-plus high-performance road cars, using the brand in IndyCar to associate the name with an extremely high-tier of performance is Marketing/Promotions 101. 

Aside from anything else, “Bridgehawk” doesn't have the same ring to it. James Black/Penske Entertainment

Q: Now that Spain’s IndyCar race is imminent, the obvious issue for teams is logistics. Would it not make sense to try and get a deal for a round in The Netherlands, Germany or UK as well? Surely if you are shipping all the equipment already, a visit to Zandvoort, Hockenheim or Brands Hatch would make sense?

Lukas 

MP: It most certainly would. But it’s not in the immediate plans. Wait until Rinus VeeKay is driving for Arrow McLaren in a few years. The IndyCar Netherlands Grand Prix will be a must. 

Q: I wanted to chime in on the email from last week’s Mailbag about Arlington.  I was there last year and thought it a massive success, especially for a first-time event.  Alas, I am not going this year. 

Raising ticket prices to that degree offends sensibilities. While it is an irritant to me personally, there were thousands of spectators at the event last year whose demographics cannot support that increase. They were mostly young people, precisely the people you need to expand the IndyCar family.  

Second, I inquired about a more elevated experience weeks ago as it was very hot in the sun, there was little shade and relatively few areas where you could sit and relax between events. It would include a tented area with tables, cash bar, food vending and the like with some amenities on top of that. I was hoping that this would be a $500-$1,000 ticket price point.

They responded with a suite program at $3,000 per ticket only, which is absurd. For that money I can fly to Milwaukee, rent a car, stay at an Airbnb, get tickets, golf cart, buy great meals and have real money left over. All with the benefit enjoying racing at the best road course in the U.S., if not North America. And yes, we are going to Road America in June 2027.

It is this type of thing that kills venues  over the long run. Unfortunately, they are about to make the same mistakes if they fail to get the message.

Lastly, the support races were good, but having Toyota GRs on track is pathetic. There are professional GT3/4 series that would love to do this. Better yet, TA2 and Trans Am.  Nashville did get that right, and I was there to see them run and it was a heck of a support event show. 

Emmett, Dallas, TX

MP: Oof. That’s rough. Everything costs more today, so an increase in ticket prices wouldn’t come as a surprise. If the costs of putting on the show go up, the tickets to the show will go up. I’d anticipate other tracks will do the same as Arlington. But there’s a limit to the average fans’ willingness to absorb those added costs. We’ll know in March whether that limit was reached with a small number of fans or a more worrying amount…  

Q: Any thoughts or rumors about how many seasons Graham Rahal has left as a full-timer? Do you get the sense that he’ll retire from the full season but return for a few Indys?

Randy, Milwaukee, WI

MP: I believe he has one more year on the current contract. He’ll turn 37 in January, so who knows if he’ll want to add more years to the story. But for his sake, I hope he retires after a strong season. He hasn’t placed better than 15th in the championship since 2023, and with the widescale changes to RLL’s engineering group that’s going on at the moment, Rahal should be able to run closer to the top 10.

On Indy 500 returns, I’d think it will hinge on whether the team is competitive at the Speedway. If they are, then yes, there would be a reason to chase wins. If not…