The Izod IndyCar Series was officially announced today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The entire article link is below.

http://www.indycar.com/news/?story_id=15392

Talk about it more on IndyCarGarage.com

The IZOD IndyCar Series

The IZOD IndyCar Series

Speculation over the last few weeks in the IndyCar Series appears to have come to reality with today’s article in the Indianapolis Star. Curt Cavin is reporting that Thursday at 2 p.m., the IndyCar Series will announce that the clothing company IZOD will become the sponsor for the IndyCar series based out of Indianapolis.

The deal is rumored to be for 10 million per year over the course of a three to five year contract. Details of the contract are unlikely to be released according to Cavin, but the positive news for the IndyCar Series is a welcome sign.

A link to Cavins article is below:
http://www.indystar.com/article/20091103/SPORTS0107/911030318/1004/SPORTS/IndyCar+lands+title+sponsor+--+Izod

Other rumors and news circulating around the IndyCar Series

Ryan Hunter-Reay finalizing a ride with the Michael Andretti’s newly formed race team. Hunter-Reay’s deal includes backing from IZOD and would put him with a race team capable of winning races in 2010.

The Brazil race in Rio appeared to be a done deal, but rumors are spreading throughout the series that due to the Olympic bid being captured, the race is now on the back burner for the city. The series could possibly open in St. Pete.

The IndyCar Series will have a new logo to go with their new sponsor, the logo is expected to be released at the press conference on Thursday. The announcement on Thursday is expected to be a dual announcement not only in Indianapolis but in New York City as well.

The next American in the IndyCar Series?

If Eddie Wachs has anything to do with it, John Edwards will be next young American in the IndyCar Series in 2010. The 2009 Atlantic Championship series Champion and four time winner in 2009 John Edwards appears to be on the brink of greatness. Now comes the tough part, funding and formulating a plan to move in the ICS for 2010.

“We have very little interest in Indy Lights. We’ll make the jump – [IRL Chief Operating Officer Brian] Barnhart has to approve it – but that’s likely where we’ll be going.”Wachs is sitting on most of the equipment and infrastructure to transition to a single-car IndyCar program, but he says if NWR commits to the ICS, they will only do it with a guiding hand from an established outfit. That hand appears to be one of the late team owner, Paul Newman.

NHL Racing IndyCar outfit was co-owned by Wachs’ long-time friend, legendary actor and racer, Paul Newman. Through Wachs’ relationship with Newman, a strong friendship also developed with Haas, and in the absence of proper funding for NHL’s second Indycar, it wouldn’t take much to imagine an NWR and NHL tie-up in 2010.

Despite the natural fit for the two operations, Wachs says securing the funding necessary to compete in the IndyCar Series remains the biggest hurdle. In all comparisons, a young successful American headed to the ICS remains a good thing. The ICS would rather NOT go down memory lane if you want to list the names of young American drivers that went into NASCAR. Do the likes of Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, and Ryan Newman ring a bell? Let’s hope that John Edwards is the next young rising start in the IndyCar Series.

Part of this article originally appeared on Speedtv.com

The Next Danica Patrick?

Good looks? Check
American? Check
Community Member? Check
Skills to drive an IndyCar very fast? Check
Tested the NASCAR waters? Check

No, this isn’t Danica Patrick, this is Leilani Muntler, a 33 year old American Race car driver that has driven in the Firestone Indy Lights Series. Muntler has experienced moderate success at the lights level, and moderate success in minor league NASCAR. Muntler talent level is relevantly unknown within the open wheel ranks, as she has little to show in her lights career. She started 5th in the 2007 race at Kentucky Speedway and worked her way up to the top five before being collected in a multiple car crash.

Muntler will return to the Indy Lights Series this weekend at Homestead under the 3G Race Team umbrella. 3G has struggled throughout the entire year with their IndyCar Series program, they haven't been particpants in the Indy Lights Series. This will be Muntlers first race of the 2009 season in the Indy Lights Series. The race will be televised live on Versus at 4:30 p.m. following the IndyCar Series qualifications.

Just think if Danica goes to NASCAR, Muntler can fill in for her in the IndyCar Series. One American for another.

Danica Staying in the IndyCar Series for three more years and possible series sponsor news

News out of Indianapolis is that Danica Patrick has signed a three year contract to remain with her current team, Andretti Green Racing. Patrick reportedly signed the contract last week at Motegi, and will remain with her Motorola-based sponsorship. In other good news for the IndyCar Series, Terry Angstadt, the president of the Indy Racing League's commercial division, said Thursday that the series is close to signing a title sponsor for 2010 and beyond. The company IRL officials have been talking to is Phillips-Van Heusen, which has Izod as a brand. Izod is already in partnership with IndyCar.

For more news on this, check Friday editions of the Indianapolis Star at www.IndyStar.com

Indy Japan 300 Race Preview

The IndyCar Series travels overseas for their next to last race of the 2009 season, as Motegi, Japan will be the site for Friday Night’s race (Saturday in Japan). The last action we saw from the IndyCar Series was at Chicagoland Speedway in a very late start time, almost 10 p.m. eastern. The Chicagoland race provided some of the most exciting racing of the year as Ryan Briscoe edged Scott Dixon in a photo finish. In 2008 Danica Patrick made history at Motegi, as the first woman to win a major open wheel event. IndyCar Garage breaks down five things to watch for in the upcoming race.

1. The points championship is Ryan Briscoe’s to lose

Ryan Briscoe currently sits in first place by 25 points over second place Dario Franchitti. Briscoe has proven to be a threat on the 1.5 mile ovals this year by winning Kentucky and Chicago. Briscoe doesn’t need to race for the win, but a top five would be nice to give him a comfortable lead into Homestead. Briscoe will be the first driver since Tony Kanaan in 2004 to win the points championship but not win the Indy 500 if he can hold on for the last two races of the season.

2. Danica Patrick News

Danica Patrick has made major news in the last few weeks as reports of her NASCAR depute have circulated around the paddock and the news rooms. Tony Stewart was quoted throughout the last few weeks as saying he won’t be surprised when she is in NASCAR. Whatever the circumstances behind Danica and her possible move to NASCAR, it certainly could take a backseat if she could break through for her second career win. Danica’s first win came 18 months ago at this very track, as fuel strategy played out to her favor. Danica will continue to be in the news because she is the most marketable IndyCar driver and the most popular, the series needs her to win and stay around for as long as possible.

3. Diverse Entry List

Stanton Barrett, Kosuke Matsuura, and Roger Yasukawa all return to the IndyCar Series for one-off races at Motegi. Barrett had a full-time ride in the IndyCar Series until about race six, Barrett then went back to the NASCAR ranks. Thoughtfully it would be great to see other NASCAR drivers try to run IndyCars and see how they match up, it would maybe even out the discussion of how open wheel drivers can’t hang in NASCAR. Anyways, Matsuura and Yasukawa give the series some Japanese flavor and will help attendance figures. The bottom line is that none of these drivers are threats to win, but provide good story lines.

4. News around the IndyCar Series is making negative headway

News around the IndyCar Series since Chicago has been for the most part, negative. The Versus/Direct TV standoff, the late start time for Chicago, Danica departure rumors, no confirmation on Brazil, a NASCAR merger (which has no truth behind it) , and of course the common negative mailbag posted on speedtv.com from Robin Miller. All in all, the series needs something positive that will spark talk away from the thoughts listed above. Maybe we could start with Graham Rahal winning this weekend, a series sponsor, an announcement on the news cars in 2012, or maybe Tony George announcing that he has enough sponsorship for a five car team next year(YEAH RIGHT).

Take your pick, give us something positive to talk about in the IndyCar Series.

5. Speedway Students travel to Motegi

The Town of Speedway School Corporation has 16 students from 8th and 9th grade currently visiting the town of Motegi as part of a sister town program that allows students to travel across seas and be a part of daily life in Japan. The Speedway School Corporation is located within the Town of Speedway, which is surrounded by the City of Indianapolis. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is located within the Town of Speedway. The students will live, eat, visit, shop and observe Japanese style. Part of the trip will be attendance at the race on Saturday. Versus is scheduled to touch on this field trip in their pre-race coverage. Look for the students in bright green shirts and IRL hats.

Danica to try the Tony Stewart Route

Danica Patrick announced (officially she hasn’t said anything) through Tony Stewart that she “absolutely wants to do NASCAR”. This comes as a surprise to some of the IndyCar Fans, as she was supposed to be leaning toward staying in the IRL full time. The full time IndyCar plan is still in tack, but with more of a Stewart type flavor. Tony ran the IndyCar schedule back in 1998 (only around 10 races at the time) with a full-time ride from Joe Gibbs in the Busch Series (now Nationwide). This lead to a full time ride in 1999 with the formely Winston Cup Series and Joe Gibbs Racing. This was the end of Tony Stewarts IndyCar career as he only ran two more IRL races, the 1999 and 2001 Indy 500. Danica seems to want to follow a similar path.

IndyCarGarage wants to hear your thoughts and predications for Danica as she embarks on one of the most important decisions of her career.

Chicago Race Preview

The IndyCar Series heads to Chicago this weekend for a night race at Chicagoland Speedway. The IndyCar Series has three races remaining in their 17 race schedule, all three races will be run on 1.5 mile ovals. As the season winds, the points championship is a three driver race between two teams, Ryan Briscoe for Team Penske, and twosome combination of Dario Franchitt and Scott Dixon for Target Chip Ganassi Racing. IndyCar Garage breaks down five things to watch for heading into Saturday Night’s race.

1. Start time – Good or Bad?

Curt Cavin of the Indianapolis Star said in Friday’s Pit Pass section that the green flag won’t be dropped until around 10 p.m. eastern, with pre-race coverage starting at 9 p.m. on Versus. This is a late start for the IndyCar Series and could possibly mean one of two things, higher ratings for fans seeking a Saturday Night television program, or a limited audience with fans not knowing about the late start time. Let’s hope that fans make a night out of it and tune in for some great racing.

2. Keep an eye on the three drivers racing for the Championship

The Point’s Championship is down to three drivers from two different teams. Scott Dixon, Ganassi Racing, took the lead into Sonoma and left in third place after a 13th place finish. Dixon needs a strong performance to get back in the mix, and Chicago just might be the place for him to do it. Dixon has finished runner up four times at this track, including the past three years. Dario Franchitti will be the other Ganassi car involved in the championship battle, but he is only four points back on Briscoe. This race should set the tone for who is in the driver’s seat for the remaining two races.

3. Danica Announcement?

“I am just focusing on the last three races” – Danica Patrick
“We are close on an agreement” – Michael Andretti
“signs are pointing in that direction” – Danica Patrick

What does all of it mean? Danica Patrick, the most marketable driver and the most popular driver in the IndyCar Series is supposedly close to staying in the IndyCar Series with Andretti Green Racing, but no official word has been released yet. Rumors the past few weeks had this weekend as a possible announcement site, it doesn’t appear that it is likely now. All in all, the only thing that would top her announcing her stay in the IndyCar Series would be for her to take the checkered flag Saturday Night.

4. Side by Side by Side

Chicago should be the site for some of the most exciting racing of the entire season. The Kentucky race gave us an indictor that the league had fixed the passing problems, and Chicago should benefit from those changes as well. Chicago was the site of the closet 1,2,3 finish in league history back in 2003. We could possibly see three wide racing throughout the entire course of the race, and the push to pass feature should add excitement as well.

5. Sarah Fisher Racing – Back in Action

Sarah Fisher will be competing in her fifth race of the season in her Dollar General machine. Sarah recently received a new Dallara Chassis from one of her sponsors, she will use that chassis at the season finale at Homestead. Sarah finished a respectable 12th at Kentucky, and should be competitive in this race as well. Sarah is a fan favorite and a very generous driver for the fans. It’s great to see her back around the series and in a race car.

What the real schedule Tweak might look like

With the recent tweaks to the IndyCar Schedule for 2010, it appears a few things are evident. First, the chances of Milwaukee returning to the schedule look slim. Second, the Saturday night format for the Kentucky race will continue, even though it is now on Labor Day Weekend. Lastly, no one knows which national holiday Japan is observing, so moving the race is really obsolete to American fans.

The 2010 schedule was largely put together off what works well for the IRL. It was not put together with the idea that the IndyCar Series will try a location and hope it works. The IndyCar series knows that tracks on the schedule have worked before in terms of attendance, racing, promoters, and are banking on that for 2010. The global economy has put a damper on all of motorsports, and that has directly effected where and when the IndyCar Series has the means to race at. Throwing out the economy (which is hard to do) and the politics of motorsports (which is also impossible to do) IndyCarGarage put together what might appear to be a ideal 23 race schedule for the IndyCar Series.

The break down is 12 ovals and 11 road/street courses. The first idea to this schedule would be to keep the format of more ovals than road/street courses but have a competitive balance of tracks. The second idea would be to keep interest in the IndyCar Series throughout the peak months of early April to early September, this is shown by only two races being held during College Football and the NFL seasons.


23 races (12 ovals / 11 Road/Street Courses)

IndyCar Series schedule: We can dream can’t we?

Sunday, March 14, Brazil
NOTE: This race screams money and sponsorships, something every series needs

Sunday, March 28, St. Petersburg, Fla., 1.8-mile street course

NOTE: An AGR Promotions event , works well for the series

Sunday, April 4th - Phoenix International Raceway, Phoenix AZ, 1 mile tri-oval
NOTE: From 1950 – 2005 this was a mainstay event in open-wheel racing, it needs to return

Sunday, April 11, Barber Motorsports Park, 2.38-mile road course

NOTE: 2010 will be the first of a three year deal, early rumors about the course is that passing is limited, but 10,000 attended the test earlier in the summer.

Sunday, April 18, Long Beach, Calif., 1.968-mile street course

NOTE: Great venue, great attendance, good tradition, works for everyone involved

Saturday, May 1, Kansas Speedway, 1.5-mile oval

NOTE: The IRL has been there since 2001, an ISC track, which means it’s always questionable to return. There are better ovals to run on than Kansas

Sunday, May 30, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 2.5-mile oval

NOTE: 2011 will mark the 100th anniversary of the first Indy 500.

Sunday, June 6, The Milwaukee Mile – 1.0 Oval
NOTE: Lots of tradition and history at this track and a good event for the series, too bad the promoter situation is backwards right now.

Saturday Night, June 12– Texas Motor Speedway, 1.5 oval
NOTE: Some of the most exciting racing in IRL history has come at this track. Crowds are usually very good as well.

Sunday, June 20, Iowa Speedway, .875-mile oval

NOTE: Fairly new venue for the series, as the IRL has only hosted three races for open wheel. The race has sold out every year, but it only holds 42,000.

Sunday, July 4, Watkins Glen International, 3.37-mile road course

NOTE: The IRL has been there since 2005 and finally found a date that works for everyone, Independence Weekend.

Saturday/Sunday, July 9thth/11th – Cleveland Doubleheader
(Friday oval/Sunday Road Course)
NOTE: This has been talked about, and could be interesting. The road course has involved open wheel for decades, the oval part would be new. The problem with the DH format, short time in between races (five days), and teams would have to have two different cars setup, which for the smaller teams, they would need backup cars. Cleveland could return, but the DH is a long shot.

Sunday, July 18, Toronto, 1.721-mile street course

NOTE: This races along with Edmonton gives the series Canadian flavor and helps with sponsorships to the north. This is also another AGR Promotions event.

Sunday, July 25, Edmonton City Centre Airport, 1.973-mile airport course

NOTE: A Champ Car event that was added in 2008, as with Toronto, it helps sponsorship with Canadian drivers and markets.

Saturday/Sunday, July 31st/August 1st – Loudon, New Hamisphere, 1.0-mile oval
NOTE: Loudon has recently lobbied for a race, but sparse attendance is a fear of the IRL as they raced there from 1996-1998 and couldn’t fill half of the 105,000 seat racetrack. Tony Stewart won at this track in his brief open-wheel career.

Sunday, Aug. 8, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, 2.258-mile road course

NOTE: Open wheel goes back to 1980 at this course and it has proved for some great crowds recently, in part due to the support race of ALMS.

Sunday, Aug. 15, Infineon Raceway 2.245-mile road course

NOTE: The IRL started racing here in 2005 and it provided Marco Andretti his first and only victory in 2006. It was the site of a horrific crash for Will Power and Nelson Phillipe this year.

Saturday, August 21st, Homestead-Miami Speedway, 1.5 oval
NOTE: CART started racing here in 1996 and the IRL went there in 2001. It’s an ISC track so it always seems to be on the bubble every time the schedule release comes up. Attendance has been another issue as well at this track.

Saturday, Aug. 28, Chicagoland Speedway, 1.5-mile oval

NOTE: Similar to Kansas, this is a oval that has provided some of the most exciting racing for the IRL. It like Homestead and Kansas, are ISC tracks that focus on NASCAR events. Most ticket packages revolve around purchasing a season package of the two NASCAR events and the IndyCar race. Not necessarily the way you want to promote a race, although attendance has been strong.

Saturday, Sept. 4, Kentucky Speedway, 1.5-mile oval

NOTE: Kentucky is another track that has provided very exciting racing throughout it’s time of fielding IndyCar races and also proved to be the site of many historic accomplishments such as Sarah Fisher’s pole in 2002. Bruton Smith has been very outspoken about the direction of the IRL.

Sunday, Sept. 19, Twin Ring Motegi, 1.5-mile oval

NOTE: This race helps with the Honda sponsorships and also the overseas market. It gained notable popularity when Danica Patrick won in 2008.

Saturday, Oct. 2, Indianapolis Motor Speedway – 2.621-mile road course
NOTE: The biggest question out there right now, is why the season finale isn’t at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. The road course was originally built for F1, but since 2007, F1 hasn’t visited the IMS. Moto GP uses a modified version of the road course, but it could easily adjusted for the IndyCars. Of course you will have people say it takes away from the tradition of the 500, and they are correct, but times have changed. The tradition of the 500 was gone when NASCAR came in 1994. People now have more of a opportunities to visit the 16th & Georgetown. Tony George original vision for the IRL was that the season concluded with the Indianapolis 500, the series première event. That isn’t possible anymore, but wouldn’t it be great to crown the series champion at IMS , at the home track of IndyCar? Attendance would probably be the second highest event of the year.

Let the debating begin…..

IndyCar Grand Prix at Sonoma Race Reactions

IndyCar Grand Prix at Sonoma Race Reactions

The IndyCar Series completed their 14th race of the 2009 season by competing in Sonoma, California at Infineon Raceway. Dario Franchitti took home the checkered flag followed by Ryan Briscoe in second place and Mike Conway to round out the podium. IndyCarGarage gives you five race reactions from Sunday’s race.

1. Danica Patrick’s pre-race comments and news surrounding her from this week.

The most anticipated driver move of the off-season will surround Danica Patrick, and most anticipated a possible move to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. News out of Indianapolis this week surrounding Michael Andretti and Andretti Green Racing may have tipped the hand of Danica and her future plans. In a pre-race conversation, Danica was quoted as saying her plans aren’t finalized right now, but things are pointed in the direction of her joining the new version of Andretti-Green Racing, which will be solely owned by Michael Andretti and branded under a new name. This is hardly the move that many people expected as Danica seemed destine for a date with NASCAR, or at least a move to the mighty Ganassi Target Cars as rumors swirled throughout the last few months that Ganassi would field a third car for her. Danica Patrick is a huge fan draw for the IndyCar series and the most marketable driver in the series. Her decision to stay in IndyCar and with a team that doesn’t field a NASCAR program is HUGE!

2. Will Power and Nelson Phillipe miss the race with injuries

Will Power and Nelson Phillipe collided in Saturday’s practice and both drivers suffered severe injuries. Power suffered similar injuries to what Vitor Miera suffered at Indianapolis earlier in the season. It’s highly likely that Power is done for the rest of the 2009 season as his recovery is estimated at three months. Phillipe injuries weren’t as severe as Power’s, so it’s possible that Phillipe might be able to make it back to the cockpit in 2009. Both drivers are good young talents, Power probably more than Phillipe, and it’s unfortunate that they weren’t able to compete this weekend.

3. Dario Franchitti’s fourth win of the season is his most dominating of 2009

Dario Franchitti had his best day of the 2009 season by qualifying first, leading every lap of the race, and capturing his fourth win of the 2009 season. Franchitti now sits four points behind Ryan Briscoe in the Point’s championship. Dario clearly has proven to be the road course ace of the IndyCar series, as three of his four wins have come on road or street courses. Dario is showing to everyone that he hasn’t lost one step from his year absence in NASCAR.

4. The point’s championship = three drivers, three races, all within 20 points.

Ryan Briscoe now sits in first place in the point’s championship race, but by a very small four points. Dario Franchitti sits in second place with his performance on Sunday, and Scott Dixon slips from first to third, but still is in contention by trailing by 20 points. The point’s race has been very exciting throughout the season as first place has changed hands in 13 of the 14 races. The last three races of the season should be exciting to watch as no driver seems to have a clear advantage over the other.

5. Three races remain in the 2009 season and they are require many left turns.

The 2009 season will wind down with three 1.5 mile ovals, and it starts next Saturday night at Chicagoland Speedway. The IndyCar Series enjoyed a huge jump in competitive racing at Kentucky and that was largely due to the aero-dynamic package improvements, along with the push to pass button insert. Chicago has produced some of the most exciting racing in series history, Motegi is the site of Danica Patrick’s lone IndyCar win from a year ago, and Homestead will close out the season on October 10th. Look for the racing to be competitive and exciting down to the last lap.