IndyCar

Last updated
IndyCar, LLC
INDYCAR logo.svg
SportAuto Racing
Category Open-wheel cars
JurisdictionFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
Founded1994 [1]
Affiliation ACCUS-FIA
Affiliation date1997
Headquarters Indianapolis, Indiana
PresidentJay Frye
CEO Mark Miles
Official website
indycar.com

IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an American-based auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis 500 as its centerpiece, and the developmental series Indy NXT. IndyCar is recognized as a member organization of the FIA through ACCUS.

Contents

The sanctioning body was formed in 1994 under the name Indy Racing League by Hulman & Company, which also owned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway complex, and began competition in 1996. The trademark name INDYCAR was officially adopted on January 1, 2011. The sport of open-wheel car racing, also historically referred to as championship car racing or Indy car racing, traces its roots to as early as 1905. It is the fourth major sanctioning body to govern the sport of Indy car racing, following the American Automobile Association's AAA Contest Board, the United States Auto Club (USAC), and Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), and operated alongside the Champ Car World Series before acquiring the latter.

Today, IndyCar is owned by Roger Penske via Penske Entertainment Corp., a subsidiary of Penske Corporation. Penske purchased IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from Hulman & Co. in November 2019. [2]

History

IndyCar name

The term "Indy Car" began as a nickname for the cars that competed in the USAC's Championship Division of open-wheel auto racing in the United States, deriving from the sport's most popular competition, the Indianapolis 500. The division's link with Indianapolis soon resulted in the term surpassing the official term "championship car" (or its short form "champ car") in common use and promotions.

The term continued to be used by the USAC's replacement as the dominant governing body for open-wheel racing, CART, which called its main series the "CART PPG Indy Car World Series" despite the body not sanctioning the 500. In 1992, during an attempt by CART to broaden their board membership, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway registered the camel case trademark IndyCar with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and licensed it to CART as their new trade name.

In 1996, Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Tony George launched a new national championship racing series, the Indy Racing League. This resulted in a legal battle over the IndyCar trademark: In March 1996, CART filed a lawsuit against the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in an effort to protect their license to the IndyCar mark after the Indianapolis Motor Speedway had attempted to terminate it. [3] In April, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway filed a separate lawsuit against CART to prevent them from further use of the mark.

Eventually a settlement was reached in which CART agreed to give up the use of the IndyCar mark following the 1996 season and the IRL agreed not to use the name before the end of the 2002 season. [4] CART returned to branding as simply CART for 1997, and resurrected the term "champ car" to describe their vehicles.

Following a six-year hiatus, the Indy Racing League announced it would rename their premier series the IndyCar Series for the 2003 racing season. CART, beset by team departures and other financial issues, filed for bankruptcy that year; a trio of former CART team owners were selected by the bankruptcy court to purchase CART's assets, which they used to reorganize the Champ Car World Series. The two series were unified for the 2008 season, with the unified series using the IndyCar Series name.

Post-unification, a heavy emphasis has been placed on deemphasizing the IRL name and replacing it with "IndyCar". This became official on January 1, 2011, as Indy Racing League LLC adopted as its trade name INDYCAR. On November 1, 2013, the company's legal name was changed to INDYCAR LLC. [5]

Split with CART

The dispute between CART and IRL centered on the Indianapolis 500, long considered the flagship race of the sport. From 1980 until 1995, the Indy 500 continued to be sanctioned by USAC while being run predominantly with drivers from CART and counting toward CART's standings. George felt that his opinions regarding increasing costs, and revenue sharing were being ignored, while CART teams owners felt George used his influence over USAC to have a disproportionate impact on the general operation of the sport.

After a number of attempts at a compromise board failed, IMS formed the Indy Racing League in 1994, with the series being slated to begin racing in 1996. CART had primarily sanctioned Indy car racing since 1979, when the organization broke away from USAC. George blueprinted the IRL as a lower-cost open-wheel alternative to CART, which he viewed had become technology-driven and dominated by a few wealthy multi-car teams. The IRL was designed only to run on oval tracks to promote American drivers from the midget and sprint car ranks to graduate to Indycars the way that of Indy racing A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Johnny Rutherford, and the Unsers had in the 1960s.

Starting with the first IRL season, the league proclaimed that 25 of the 33 spots in the Indy 500 starting grid would be reserved for cars from full-time IRL teams. [6] In 1996, CART retaliated by scheduling what was supposed to become its new showcase event, the U.S. 500, at Michigan International Speedway on Memorial Day, the traditional date for the Indy 500.

The new 1997 technical rules featured less expensive chassis and "production-based" engines that were purchased rather than leased, but most importantly, were technically incompatible with CART specifications. The IRL's early seasons consisted of sparse schedules and inexperienced teams, with the degradation in quality especially apparent during the Indianapolis 500, which saw a dramatic decline in prestige.

The IRL began to draw top teams from CART starting in 2002, contributing to the latter's bankruptcy, replacement by the Champ Car World Series in 2003, [7] and ultimate demise and absorption by the IRL in 2008.

After absorbing Champ Car, the IndyCar Series became what the CART series from which it separated was and its related European open-wheel formula counterparts: former prominent CART teams such as Chip Ganassi Racing and Team Penske are frequent race winners, there is a strong contingent of foreign-born drivers, the cars are increasingly electronic and aero dependent and the schedule includes more road and street courses than oval tracks.

Unification with Champ Car

On January 23, 2008, Tony George offered Champ Car management a proposal that included free cars and engine leases to Champ Car teams willing to run the entire 2008 IndyCar Series schedule in exchange for adding Champ Car's dates at Long Beach, Toronto, Edmonton, and Australia to the IndyCar Series schedule, effectively reuniting American open-wheel car racing. [8] The offer was initially made in November 2007. [8] On February 10, 2008, Tony George, along with IRL representatives Terry Angstadt and Brian Barnhart, plus former Honda executive Robert Clarke, traveled to Japan to discuss moving the Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi. [9] Moving that race, or postponing it, would be required in order to accommodate the Long Beach Grand Prix, which was scheduled for the same weekend. [9] Optimism following the meeting was high. [10]

In February 2008, Indy Racing League founder and CEO Tony George and owners of the Champ Car World Series completed an agreement to unify the sport for 2008. [11] The result was that the Champ Car World Series was suspended except for the Long Beach Grand Prix. Many of the former Champ Car teams moved to the IndyCar Series using equipment provided by the IRL.

Randy Bernard was announced as the new IRL CEO in February 2010. [12] In 2011, the sanctioning body dropped the Indy Racing League name, becoming IndyCar to reflect the merged series. The new Dallara DW12 racecar was introduced for the 2012 season. IndyCar collaborated with DreamWorks Animation to launch comedy film Turbo in 2013. Bernard was fired in October 2012, and replaced by Mark Miles.

Driver safety

Driver safety has also been a major point of concern, with a number of drivers seriously injured, particularly in the early years of the series. There have been five fatal crashes in the history of the series. Compared to road racing venues, the lack of run-offs on oval tracks, coupled with higher speeds due to the long straights and banked turns, means that there is far less margin for error. Car design was attributed as a leading cause of early injuries, and the series made improvements to chassis design to address those safety concerns. Following a series of spectacular high-profile accidents in 2003, including American racing legend Mario Andretti and former champion Kenny Bräck, as well as the death of Tony Renna in testing at Indianapolis, the IRL made additional changes to reduce speeds and increase safety.

IndyCar was the first racing series to adopt the SAFER soft wall safety system, which debuted at the Indianapolis 500 and has now been installed at almost all major oval racing circuits. The SAFER system research and design was supported and funded in large part by the Hulman-George family and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. [13] [14]

Fatalities

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indianapolis 500</span> Annual automobile race held in Speedway, Indiana, U.S.

The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis. The event is traditionally held over Memorial Day weekend, usually the last weekend of May. It is contested as part of the IndyCar Series, the top level of American open-wheel car racing, a formula colloquially known as "Indy car racing". The track itself is nicknamed the "Brickyard", as the racing surface was paved in brick in the fall of 1909. One yard of brick remains exposed at the start/finish line. The event, billed as The Greatest Spectacle in Racing, is considered part of the Triple Crown of Motorsport along with the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix, with which it typically shares a date.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Championship Auto Racing Teams</span> Defunct North American open wheel auto racing organization

Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) was a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 1979 until dissolving after the 2003 season. CART was founded in 1979 by United States Auto Club (USAC) Championship Division team owners who disagreed with the direction and leadership of USAC, with the then-novel idea of car owners sanctioning and promoting their own series collectively instead of relying on a neutral body to do so. Through the 1980s, the Indy Car World Series became the pre-eminent open-wheel auto racing series in North America, featuring street circuits, road courses, and oval track racing. CART drivers continued to compete at the USAC-sanctioned Indianapolis 500.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indianapolis Motor Speedway</span> Historic motorsport track in Speedway, Indiana, U.S.

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 and formerly the home of the United States Grand Prix and Indianapolis motorcycle Grand Prix. It is located six miles (9.7 km) west of Downtown Indianapolis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Auto Club</span> Auto racing sanctioning body in the United States

The United States Auto Club (USAC) is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapolis 500. Today, USAC serves as the sanctioning body for a number of racing series, including the Silver Crown Series, National Sprint Cars, National Midgets, Speed2 Midget Series, .25 Midget Series, Stadium Super Trucks, and Pirelli World Challenge. Seven-time USAC champion Levi Jones is USAC's Competition Director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony George</span> American auto racing executive

Anton Hulman "Tony" George is the former Chairman, President, and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Hulman & Company, serving from 1989 to 2009. He was also formerly on the Board of Directors of both entities. He founded the Indy Racing League and co-owned Vision Racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American open-wheel car racing</span> Category of professional-level automobile racing in North America

American open-wheel car racing, also known as Indy car racing, is a category of professional automobile racing in the United States. As of 2024, the top-level American open-wheel racing championship is sanctioned by IndyCar. Competitive events for professional-level, open-wheel race cars have been conducted under the auspices of various sanctioning bodies, tracing its roots as far back as 1902. A season-long, points-based, National Championship of drivers has been officially recognized in 1905, 1916, and each year since 1920. As such, for many years, the category of racing was known as Championship Car racing. That name has been permanently retired, and the term Indy car racing has become the preferred moniker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indy NXT</span> American automobile racing series

Indy NXT, previously Indy Lights, is an American developmental automobile racing series sanctioned by IndyCar, currently known as INDY NXT by Firestone for sponsorship reasons. Indy NXT is the highest step on the Road to Indy, a program of racing series leading up to the IndyCar Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1996 Indy Racing League</span> Sports season

The 1996 Indy Racing League was the first season in the history of the series, which was created and announced on March 11, 1994 by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as a supplementary Indy-car series to the established Indy Car World Series sanctioned by Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) since 1979. It consisted of only three races, as the season concluded with the 80th Indianapolis 500 in May. Walt Disney World Speedway was completed in time to host the first ever event of the Indy Racing League (IRL), and Phoenix International Raceway switched alliances from CART to the IRL, in order to host the second event of the season. At the conclusion of the three-race schedule, Scott Sharp and Buzz Calkins ended up tied for first place in the season championship. With no tiebreaker rule in place, the two drivers were declared co-champions. Its creation, and the opposition of Indy Car's teams and drivers to take part in it, marked the start of 'the Split', a 12-year period of competition between rival series at the top level of American Open Wheel racing that had lasting negative effects in the sport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Indianapolis 500</span> 86th running of the Indianapolis 500

The 86th Indianapolis 500-mile (800 km) race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 26, 2002. It was the seventh Indianapolis 500 held as part of the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series schedule, and was part of the 2002 Indy Racing League season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indy Japan 300</span> Grand Prix circuit

The Indy Japan 300 presented by Bridgestone was an Indy Racing League IndyCar Series race held at Twin Ring Motegi in Motegi, Japan. The 2008 race marked the historic first ever win for a woman driver in American open wheel racing when Danica Patrick of Andretti-Green Racing took the checkered flag.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1984 CART PPG Indy Car World Series</span> Sports season

The 1984 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season, the sixth in the CART era of U.S. open-wheel racing, consisted of 16 races, beginning in Long Beach, California on March 31 and concluding in Las Vegas, Nevada on November 10. The PPG Indy Car World Series Drivers' Champion was Mario Andretti and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Rick Mears. Rookie of the Year was Roberto Guerrero. The 68th Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by the USAC, but counted in the CART points standings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IndyCar Series</span> Auto racing series held in North America

The IndyCar Series, currently known as the NTT IndyCar Series under sponsorship, is the highest class of American open-wheel car racing in the United States, which has been conducted under the auspices of various sanctioning bodies since 1920 after two initial attempts in 1905 and 1916. The series is self-sanctioned by its parent company, IndyCar, LLC., which began in 1996 as the Indy Racing League (IRL) and was created by then Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George as a competitor to Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART). In 2008, the IndyCar Series merged with CART's successor, the Champ Car World Series and the history and statistics of both series, as well as those from its predecessors, were unified.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1990 CART PPG Indy Car World Series</span> Sports season

The 1990 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season was the 12th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by CART. The season consisted of 16 races, and one non-points exhibition event. Al Unser Jr. was the national champion, and the rookie of the year was Eddie Cheever. The 1990 Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by USAC, but counted towards the CART points championship. Arie Luyendyk won the Indy 500, his first-ever victory in championship-level competition, and the fastest 500 until the 2013 Indianapolis 500.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2001 CART season</span> Sports season

The 2001 FedEx Championship Series season was the twenty-third in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing. It consisted of 20 of the 22 originally scheduled races, beginning in Monterrey, Mexico on March 11 and concluding in Fontana, California on November 4. What would have been the third race in the season, the Firestone Firehawk 600 in Fort Worth, Texas, was canceled after qualifying due to safety concerns. The FedEx Championship Series Drivers' Champion was Gil de Ferran, while the Rookie of the Year was Scott Dixon.

The 1983 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season was the 5th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by CART. The season consisted of 13 races. Al Unser was the national champion, and the rookie of the year was Teo Fabi. The 1983 Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by USAC, but an arrangement was made such that it counted towards the CART points championship. Tom Sneva won the Indy 500, after three previous runner-up finishes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1992 PPG Indy Car World Series</span> Sports season

The 1992 PPG Indy Car World Series season was the 14th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by CART. The season consisted of 16 races. Bobby Rahal was the national champion, his third and final career CART title. Stefan Johansson was named the Rookie of the Year. The 1992 Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by USAC, but counted towards the CART points championship. Al Unser Jr. won the Indy 500 in the closest finish in the history of that event.

The 1979 USAC Championship Car season consisted of seven races, beginning in Ontario, California on March 25 and concluding in West Allis, Wisconsin on August 12. The USAC National Champion was A. J. Foyt and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Rick Mears. With the exception of the Indianapolis 500, most top drivers instead competed in races sanctioned by CART.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motorsport in the United States</span>

Motor sports are widely popular in the United States, but Americans generally ignore major international series, such as Formula One and MotoGP, in favor of home-grown racing series.

References

  1. ↑ "2011 Las Vegas Accident Information" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-02-25. Retrieved 2012-07-11.
  2. ↑ "Roger Penske buys Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar Series from Hulman family". CBS Sports. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  3. ↑ Whitaker, Sigur E. (2015-10-27). The Indy Car Wars: The 30-year Fight for Control of American Open-Wheel Racing. Jefferson, North Carolina. p. 76. ISBN   9781476619804. OCLC   926914971.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ↑ Whitaker, Sigur E. (2015-10-27). The Indy Car Wars: The 30-year Fight for Control of American Open-Wheel Racing. Jefferson, North Carolina. p. 81. ISBN   9781476619804. OCLC   926914971.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ↑ "INBiz: Your one-stop source for your business". bsd.sos.in.gov. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  6. ↑ Whitaker, Sigur E. (2015-10-27). The Indy Car Wars: The 30-year Fight for Control of American Open-Wheel Racing. Jefferson, North Carolina. p. 70. ISBN   9781476619804. OCLC   926914971.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ↑ Whitaker, Sigur E. (2015-10-27). The Indy Car Wars: The 30-year Fight for Control of American Open-Wheel Racing. Jefferson, North Carolina. p. 107. ISBN   9781476619804. OCLC   926914971.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. 1 2 "Tony George Makes an Offer for Unity". SpeedTV.com. 2008-01-23. Archived from the original on 2008-01-27. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
  9. 1 2 "George off to Japan in pursuit of unification". IndyStar.com. 2008-02-09. Archived from the original on 2008-02-18. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  10. ↑ "Official optimistic IRL-Champ Car merger talks will continue". IndyStar.com. 2008-02-12. Archived from the original on November 6, 2011. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  11. ↑ "Done Deal". IndyCar.com. Archived from the original on 2008-03-13. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
  12. ↑ Lewandowski, Dave (2010-02-02). "Meet the CEO". IndyCar Series . Indy Racing League. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
  13. ↑ "SAFER Barrier".
  14. ↑ "Owens Corning Foam Helps SAFER Barrier Protect Drivers".
  15. ↑ "AP". Archived from the original on 2015-11-07.
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