By Peter M. De Lorenzo
Detroit. The IndyCar season comes into focus this weekend with the Angie's List Grand Prix of Indianapolis at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Run clockwise on the Speedway's road course, the race sets the table for the biggest race on the IndyCar calendar - the Indianapolis 500. This year marks the 100th running of the 500-mile race, which is a hugely significant milestone. I've made no secret of my affection for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and what I consider to be the greatest automobile race in all of motorsport. Through all of the trials and tribulations that the sport of open-wheel racing has endured in this country over the last two decades, I'm happy to report that the Indianapolis 500 is vibrant and still great, which is simply remarkable considering what the sport has been through.
Are there problems? Absolutely. Despite the best efforts of the team owners, tracks, drivers and sponsors, IndyCar always seems to be on the ropes in one form or another. Even though I never considered the Boston race to be a legitimate possibility, especially given the anti-everything climate there, the fact that IndyCar had to walk back the date from the schedule was a giant bowl of Not Good. Hopefully, the chatter about a return to Watkins Glen for IndyCar on what was to be the Boston race weekend is true, because the image black eye the sport suffered would turn into something positive overnight. There's no question that the sport still struggles mightily with meager TV ratings and spotty attendance, so the arrival of Indianapolis on the IndyCar calendar helps tremendously. Last week, the Speedway made a big deal about reserve seating being "sold out" for this year's 500-mile race, and when you consider how many seats that represents, it actually is a big deal.
Talking about the glory days at The Speedway in the 60s when crowds of 200,000 people would show up for Pole Day to see the upward march of lap speeds has become tedious. Historically relevant, certainly, but it was a different time and a different era, and we'll never bring it back. But make no mistake, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is this nation's "Cathedral of Speed" and the historical significance of that magnificent edifice at the corner of W. 16th Street and Georgetown remains powerfully important.
It is not only IndyCar's only internationally significant race, it's one of the three greatest races in the world (along with Monaco and the 24 Hours of Le Mans). And even though I rate Indy over the other two, I get the sense that a lot of American racing fans have lost sight of the fact that the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indy 500 are revered around the world by racers and racing enthusiasts of all stripes.
Is it because many of our homegrown fans have learned to take The Speedway and the "500" itself for granted? Yes, I think there's something to that. And the rise of NASCAR to prominence - especially with the American stick-and-ball media - just when the sport of Indy car racing sunk to its lowest during the Dark Years, didn't exactly help.
But the powers that be at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Indy car racing didn't exactly help their cause during that "dark" period either. Spec cars and spec engines basically sucked the life out of The Speedway and the "500." True racing fans bemoaned the lack of mechanical and aero diversity, and the excitement that was traditionally such a part of the race waned with each passing year, along with fan interest, I might add. And I can relate because the most interesting part of the sport - or lack thereof - as it plays out at The Speedway is still a sore spot with me, too, because, guess what? Other than the two engine manufacturers participating, IndyCar is still basically a spec car series.
In spite of all of that and the incessant hand-wringing that the sport of open-wheel racing in America could and should be so much better, Indy is still Indy, thankfully. The Indianapolis 500 remains the greatest single motor race in the world and "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."
And the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is America's - and the world's - Cathedral of Speed.
If you haven't been to the Indianapolis 500 in a long time or have never been, you owe it to yourself to go. And if you do go, you will be reminded - like I am - that there really is nothing like the start of the Indianapolis 500. To me it remains the most electrifying moment in all of sport.
And that's the High-Octane Truth for this week.
Editor's Note: Ford has just released "Let's Race" - the third of five chapters in “The Return,” which is a long-form documentary that follows the development of both the street car and race car versions of the Ford GT from the decision to build the cars to the return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Watch chapter one, "The Decision," here and chapter two, "The Cutting Edge," here. (FYI: The Autoextremist makes a cameo appearance in chapter one.) -WG
Editor's Note: Many of you have seen Peter's references over the years to the Hydrogen Electric Racing Federation (HERF), which he launched in 2007. For those of you who weren't following AE at the time, you can read two of HERF's press releases here and here. And for even more details (including a link to Peter's announcement speech), check out the HERF entry on Wikipedia here. -WG
Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD
(Photo courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives)Indianapolis, Indiana, May 26, 1985. Danny Sullivan (No. 5 Roger Penske Miller American March/Cosworth) on his way to his "spin and win" victory in that year's Indianapolis 500. Mario Andretti (No. 3 Newman Haas Racing Beatrice Lola/Cosworth) finished second (after avoiding hitting Sullivan in the midst of the spin) and Roberto Guerrero (No. 9 Bignotti-Collier Master Mechanic March/Cosworth) was third. Watch a video here.
Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD