Throughout the many years of my life where I have been absolutely besotted with the world motorsport, I have tried to watch as many different series as I could. Unfortunately, with so many series and so little time, some found themselves being neglected, and others completely ignored. One that I would pay attention to every once in a blue moon was Indy Car. Now, as someone who spends a good chunk of their time over in the States, it’s kind of surprising that I’m quite ignorant of American motorsport. But, with the infamous month of May just around the corner for the Indy Car series, things might just be changing.
Although Indy Car is nothing new to me; my dad was a fan of the series before he switched to F1, and I regularly tune into the Indy 500 year upon year; I am by no means a genius when it comes to the ins and outs of the American series. Several years ago, let's say when Formula One's Fernando Alonso took part in the Indy 500 for the first time, I tried to be a regular Indy Car viewer, but as someone who also tries to have a life away from their motorsport obsession, I found myself missing race weekends and eventually not tuning in at all. Until the 2024 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, that is. Somewhere, something was telling me that now was the time to become a proper fan of Indy Car.
Since Liberty Media's takeover of the Formula One series in 2017, many fans, including myself, have this perception that modern day F1 is becoming too "Americanised," taking it far away from it's original roots and making it nothing more than a show. Some time ago driver introductions, street circuits like Miami or Vegas, and the emphasis of the show rather than the racing, would be almost unheard of. However, in Indy Car these shenanigans all make sense and represent the American culture, as we know it, down to a tee. And, contradictorily, that's an aspect that I quite like about the world of American motorsport. But, that's the thing. Formula One isn't American, Indy Car is. Apart from racing open single-seaters on a track, they are indeed very different series.
Another interesting aspect that is opening my eyes wider to the series on the other side of the pond is the amount of European-based drivers choosing a career in Indy rather than Formula One, with the former opening more doors to younger drivers such as the likes of Felix Rosenqvist, Jack Harvey, Alex Palou, Tom Blomqvist, Pietro Fittipaldi and, more recently, Theo Pourchaire, just to name a very small few. (I’ve included Rosenqvist, Harvey and Blomqvist in this because they are my generation of young driver!) It really is no secret that Indy Car is giving these drivers what Formula One has failed to do. I mean just look at Palou; before Indy Car he never got anywhere near an F1 car. Not only has he now tested one, he’s also given the series the ultimate middle finger by winning the Indy Car championship, not once but twice, in 2021 and 2023, respectively.
While watching the Grand Prix of Alabama, I was hooked on the amount of on-track battles and overtakes that were taking place. And, some of these drivers didn't hold back, with more aggressive driving styles at the forefront. Although some overtakes failed to come to fruition, Pato O'Ward was especially having a dismal race, I was impressed by the ones which did work out, considering the challenge Barber Motorsports Park presents each racing driver with.
Of course, like with many motorsport series; looking at you F1; Indy Car has found itself familiar with controversies. Take the recent “push to pass cheating scandal” that saw Team Penske disqualified from this year’s season opener in St Petersburg, Florida. I think non-Indy Car watchers even heard about that one. But I guess that’s just a part of motorsport, keeping us fans, drivers, teams on our heels at all times! That’s just motorsport, for you. At the end of the day though, I’m here for the racing, and honestly, watching Indy Car was a like a breath of fresh air. For me, it was having that excitement of the unknown. With plenty of on-track battles, aggressive, yet respectful, driving styles, full course cautions that threw the race on it’s backside and, the now infamous, Georgina that has taken the motorsport world by storm, I was hooked, with the motorsport adrenaline running through my veins once again.
I really do think I have a new found appreciation for Indy Car. It is, in some sense, a whole new kind of motorsport world to the usual Formula racing I am used to. And, with May now upon us, this really is the right time to be a “petrol head.” All I can say is that, one, I hope to keep up with Indy Car and it’s shenanigans, and two, I am so ready for the Indy 500, Monaco Grand Prix and Le Mans 24 Hour. Let’s gooooo!
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