IndyCar 2021: A Tentative Look

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Stareagle
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IndyCar 2021: A Tentative Look

Post by Stareagle »

Like 2020, the 2021 IndyCar season will mostly be happening in the background of the full IMSA resource-management game using Lights to Flag and a lot of spreadsheets.

IndyCar and Indy Lights will be simulated using sophisticated spreadsheets, but there aren't going to be any graphics. It will be updated on the wiki, once access is restored for new users, and news items will show up in the IMSA thread.

But I want to hear what you think the 2021 Road To Indy should look like. Here are the basics:
IndyCar Insight wrote: 2021 AirBnB IndyCar Series:

Schedule:
18-20 races, depending on a possible two-race trip to Europe for races at the Lausitzring and (maybe) Zandvoort.

These races are locked into the schedule:

Ovals: Indy, Michigan, Texas
Street: Long Beach, Belle Isle, Toronto, St. Petersburg
Road: Road America, Barber Park, Indy, Watkins Glen, Sonoma, Laguna Seca

That's 13 - 14 if Belle Isle keeps the doubleheader - with a lot of possible tracks out there.

Teams and Drivers:
1) Team Cassidy
#1 - Ashley Cassidy (3rd in 2020)
#65 - Nicholas Latifi (12th)

As the winner of the 2020 team championship, they get the #1 car and there's no reason to break up a winning combination.

2) Team Penske
#2 - Simon Pagenaud (10th)
#3 - Will Power (2nd)
#12 -
#22 - Thomas De Bock (5th)

James Hinchcliffe's 17th-place finish isn't getting him a contract for 2021. Scott McLaughlin has been the hot rumor, but is he worth passing up Danny Ricc, Alex Palou, Rinus VeeKay and Romain Grosjean?

3) Chip Ganassi Racing
#?? - Ryan Hunter-Reay (9th)
#9 - Josef Newgarden (Champion)
#10 - Patricio O'Ward (7th)
#?? -

Carlos Munoz isn't coming back. Does Ganassi give Jimmie Johnson a full-time ride or does he go with a younger driver? Speaking of which, Ryan Hunter-Reay just turned 40 and his team just sold his #8. Would Ganassi ditch the 2019 champion?

4) Andretti Autosport
#26 - Felipe Massa (6th)
#27 -
#28 - Scott Dixon (4th)

4a) Andretti-Herta
#98 - Colton Herta

4b) Andretti-LXIV Racing
#44 -

Marco is off to IMSA, and #27 is the betting-line favorite for Daniel Riccardo. Colton Herta replaces Alexander Rossi in the #98 because of racing nepotism, and also because Rossi had a terrible year before winning the season finale at Laguna Seca.

No one really believes the other thing is going to happen, even for just the 500. Right?

5) Rahal Letterman Lanigan
#15 - Graham Rahal (10th)
#16 - Esteban Guerrieri (13th)

They are probably stuck with Rahal, but with all this new talent, is Esteban Guerrieri worth it?

6) Ed Carpenter Racing
#19 -
#20 - Robert Wickens (21st)

After finishing 8th in road-course points and taking the pole at Laguna Seca, Wickens gets a full-time seat in 2021. Sergio Sette Camara is off to bigger things in Europe.

7) Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
#5 - Ryan McReynolds (14th)
#7 - Jack Christopherson Jr. (18th)

One podium all season, and the highlight was the old man finishing 7th in the Indy 500. This situation needs some re-evaluation.

8) Carlin
#11 -
#13 - Antonio Felix da Costa (7th, ROTY)

Ed Jones didn't qualify for the 500 and finished 25th in a series with 24 full-time drivers. Carlin is reportedly considering dropping out of IndyCar to focus more energy on its young-driver programs, but da Costa's going to get a ride somewhere.

9) Dale Coyne Racing
#51 -
#8 - Romain Grosjean

This will be Coyne-Ware Racing in 2021 and Grosjean is already talking about his contract on Twitter. Does Cody Ware get the other seat, or is he getting a Ware Racing seat in NASCAR?

10) A.J. Foyt Enterprises
#4 -
#14 - David Malukas

Last year was another disaster for Foyt Enterprises, with Matheus Leist finishing 22nd and Collin Pratchett finishing 24th. The rumor is that Malukas ends up here in a Foyt-HMD Motorsports deal.

11) ?????
#17 -
#18 -

Nothing official here, but IndyCar sources confirm this is a new team with 2019 Rookie of the Year Lance Stroll taking the #18 seat and a "well-known North American driver" getting the #17. That's probably Sergio Perez, unless it isn't.

2021 Indy Lights Series

There's going to be one, which is more than we could say last year at this time.

Plans are for a dozen races, mostly on street and road courses. Milwaukee was a success last year, but it might be the only oval they see this season. There are concerns about safety at Michigan and Texas, and they simply get lost in the shuffle at Indianapolis. Gateway is a possibility.

The usual developmental teams - Andretti, Juncos, Carlin and HMD - will all be back with some of the same drivers as 2020. However, there will be plenty of spots left on the grid with the one-year IMSA deal coming to an end. Eight drivers - four each from Menlo Park Motorsports and Nighthawk Racing - were given sponsorship deals in Indy Lights as part of the deal to provide testing for the new hybrid and electric sports cars.

Seven of the eight are moving to IMSA for the first year of competition with the new cars, and Menlo Park has left the series entirely to focus on electric-car racing. However, one of their drivers, 18-year-old Abbi Pulling, has decided to stick with open-wheel racing after winning at Milwaukee. She will be driving the #20 car for Nighthawk Racing, which will also be fielding a car for American Allison Mays.
Anyone or anything you'd like to see in IndyCar or Indy Lights? Drivers - real or fictional - teams or tracks?
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CaptainGetz12
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Re: IndyCar 2021: A Tentative Look

Post by CaptainGetz12 »

Autosport wrote:All American Racers to Return to IndyCar

SANTA ANA, CA: Today the All American Racers announce from their main plant in Southern California their official entry into the IndyCar Series, the team's first contest of American Open Wheel Racing since 1999.

"It is with great pride that we make our return to IndyCar." Spoke CEO Justin Gurney at the unveiling of their car. "We know this is a very competitive series, as it was when we left all those years ago, but we hope we can bring more victories back to the Gurney name and to one of America's most historic racing teams."

The team has not announced drivers at this time. They are expected to run ARWS veteran Nicolas Steele, who ran AAR's Indianapolis 500 entry last year. The team has not announced who will drive their second car. Analyst suspect Indy Lights driver Rio Haryanto, Formula E driver Felipe Nasr, and 2019 Rookie of the Year Lance Stroll are in the running for the second seat.
Klon wrote:What did poor André do to you for him to be insulted like that?
Kinnikuniverse
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Re: IndyCar 2021: A Tentative Look

Post by Kinnikuniverse »

OFFICIAL: TOYOTA TO RETURN TO INDYCARS IN 2022

Japanese manufacturer building hybrids amidst upcoming rule changes
________________________________________________________


Amidst the upcoming Hybrid revolution ofamerican motor racing revolution following the planned Penske-Frqnce merger, Toyota Motor Corporation has started their plans to return to the new continent, competing in the upcoming 2021 IMSA GT championship with their successful hybrid Prototypes and continuing their excellent run of form with the Camry in the NASCAR Cup Series. Now, the Aichi-based company has announced the final step of the plan: a return to Indycar for the first time since the early 2000s.

"We at Toyota are excited to return to the greatest race in the world amidst Indycar's upcoming switch to hybrid engines" said Toyota president Akiyo Toyoda at a press conference at Toyota of America's headquarters. "We feel that, with our knowledge and experience in building such engines, that we will be competitive right away and that we stand a great chance at not only becoming a top OEM in the sport, but also win the Indianapolis 500."

Toyota is enjoying a tremendous run of success in motorsports at large, becoming a top contender in NASCAR, winning many editions of the 24 hours of Le Mans and, most recently, finally winning the Formula 1 World Championship after so many years of trying, with Russian Artem Markelov taking the Toyota-powered BR Mansell to the title at the wire. Toyota is looking to one-up their eternal rivals Honda and Mazda in the race for the Borg-Warner and the Vanderbilt Cup. It remains to be seen, however, as to which Indycar Teams would be interested in running Toyota powerplants in 2022...
Stareagle
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Re: IndyCar 2021: A Tentative Look

Post by Stareagle »

American Racing News wrote:
IndyCar Silly Season Winding Down

With only a few weeks left until the start of the season in St. Petersburg, IndyCar teams are starting to finalize their lineups for what promises to be a fascinating 2021 season. With the Penske-France merger going into full effect in 2022, including a unified NASCAR/IMSA/IndyCar schedule, finding versatile drivers has become more important. Starting next season, there will be a $1 million prize for the driver who finishes with the best combined finish in the three series, as well as large cash bonuses for any driver who can win a combination of the Rolex 24 Hours, the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500.

The biggest check would go to any driver who can win the Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day Sunday and the U.S. 500 NASCAR race the next day on the same track. A driver who wins both races will earn a $5,000,000 prize, and there will be a $500,000 award to the driver who has the best-combined finishes in the two races.

In 2022, the Coca-Cola 600 will move to July 4th weekend to open a slot for the IndyCar/NASCAR doubleheader, both races will move by an hour in 2021 to give more drivers the chance at doing the Indy/Charlotte double. Drivers from both series have expressed interest.

IndyCar full-time rides:

Chip Ganassi Racing
1: Josef Newgarden (USA)
9: Alexander Rossi (USA)
10: Patricio O'Ward (MEX)
48: Jimmie Johnson (USA)

Cassidy Racing
64: Ashley Cassidy (USA)
65: Nicolas Latifi (CAN)

Team Penske
2: Scott McLaughlin (NZ)
3: Will Power (AUS)
12: Alex Palou (ESP)
22: Thomas de Bock (GER)

Andretti Autosport
26: Felipe Massa (BRZ)
27: Daniel Ricciardo (AUS)
28: Scott Dixon (NZ)

Andretti-Herta Racing
98: Colton Herta (USA)

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
15: Graham Rahal (USA)
16: Antonio Felix da Costa (POR)

HMD/Foyt Motorsports
4: David Malukas (USA)
14: Ryan Hunter-Reay (USA)

Ed Carpenter Racing
20: Robert Wickens (USA)
21: Rinus VeeKay (NED)

Dale Coyne Racing
7: Simon Pagenaud (FRA)
8: Romain Grosjean (FRA)

Aston Martin North America
18: Lance Stroll (CAN)
11: Sergio Perez (MEX)

All-American Racers
15: Nicolas Steele (USA)
16: ????

Arrow McLaren Racing
66: Sebastian Bourdais (FRA)
77: Oliver Askew (USA)
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