 The Autoweek Dispatch: Special Motorsports Edition After an unprecedented disruption of racing, the green flag falls on a weekend packed with action. BY NATALIE NEFF
QUOTE OF THE WEEK "I think it's huge. I think it's awesome. I mean, I love racing. I'm a race fan. Doesn't matter if it's Formula 1, NASCAR, Formula E, whatever it is, USAC. Anything like that is awesome. I would love to see more of it." —Conor Daly, who drives for Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, on the first time the IndyCar Series will share a weekend with NASCAR.
FROM THE (EXECUTIVE) EDITOR'S DESK Wes Raynal is taking the week off, no doubt to get ready and settle in to watch what will be a racing extravaganza the likes of which we haven't been treated to since—well, ever. Many of you likely are, too; it will prove to be an embarrassment of riches for the racing superfan, for sure. I'm certainly excited for the distraction, so thank you for bearing with us while we diverge from our typical Dispatch delivery to indulge in the moment.
FORMULA 1 After the DNS that was the Australian Grand Prix—whose cancellation in March just two days before its scheduled running falls in no small part to reigning F1 champion Lewis Hamilton's criticism of Formula One Group owner Liberty Media's motivations in persisting with the event—the race dominoes fell quickly afterward, first with Monaco bowing out, then France, with the rest of the scheduled stops either officially killing or postponing their events as COVID-19 spread like wildfire around the globe. When the FIA and Formula 1 regrouped, in lieu of the 22 races originally slated for 2020, the sanctioning body and series pieced together an eight-race, Europe-only schedule—significant because regulations require a minimum of eight races take place to be considered a championship—the first two of which take place over back-to-back weekends in Austria. (F1 is hoping to extend the season deeper into the calendar year and stretch it further afield; confirmation on that front has yet to come, but there are rumblings an announcement may come soon.)
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Still, after so much elapsed time since the show was put on hold, will the storylines anticipated in the offseason remain the same? It was naturally assumed five months ago we should expect a close battle between Mercedes and Red Bull, but Mercedes did deal with some engine failures in preseason testing (if you can remember back that far) and no one outside of the team's camp knows what measures have been taken to address the issue. "Our challenge is to make sure that quarter of a year of development can get off the drawing boards and onto the car as swiftly as possible," Mercedes technical director James Allison said. "We hope to have a chunk of that for the first race in Austria, and the season that follows will of course take as much of the development as fast as we can get it onto the car in turn." Ferrari, too, has reportedly made a number of significant changes to its car in the last month since team factories reopened. We'll likely start to learn how big a difference those changes will have made Sunday morning (U.S. time) as the Austrian Grand Prix finally kicks off the 70th anniversary of the Formula 1 World Championship.
INDYCAR/NASCAR On the IndyCar side of things, this season should have been all about Roger Penske. After purchasing the series and the historic IMS from the Hulman family—shepherds of the famed track since 1945 and of the open-wheel series since a petulant Tony George decided to take his ball and go home, creating the series in 1996—all eyes were on the 18-time Indy 500-winning owner of Team Penske to see what other changes might be coming down the pike for the series, as well as IMS. "I've got a big commitment here to take over certainly as the steward of this great organization and what's been done here in the past for so many decades," Penske said. Well, change came quickly, but not by the Captain's hand, most notably: The Indy 500 didn't run over Memorial Day weekend for the first time since 1946.
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Still, the series is committed to a 15-race schedule, maximizing efficiencies by hosting three IndyCar doubleheader weekends—and this weekend, one very special triple-header, with NASCAR's Cup and Xfinity series co-hosting the weekend at IMS. And we'll likely see more split weekends in the future. The folks in charge of beaming much of the American racing scene into your living room have promised as much, with the top dogs at NBC Sports calling the pairing of NASCAR and IndyCar "the future." It's something Penske himself has pursued for years. Team Penske fields teams in the NTT IndyCar Series and NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series, as well as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Of course, NASCAR itself resumed live racing on May 17 and is already 11 races into its season. And even with no fans in the grandstands—a limited number of spectators returned for the Pocono race only last weekend—there's been no dearth of off-track drama. The big news this weekend, though: Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson has tested positive for COVID-19 and will will miss Sunday's Brickyard 400. Johnson is expected to retire from full-time competition at the end of the season and has been eyeing a part-time ride in IndyCar, but his scheduled test with Chip Ganassi Racing on Wednesday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course is now likely on hold. Meanwhile, for the students of the sport, this season will make for prime watching as there may be more Hall of Fame candidates racing right now than at any other time in NASCAR history. It's a tight race right now among the top 16 in the standings, and with eight different drivers claiming at least one win, it's a pretty evenly matched field.
IMSA Weirdly, with just 5,000 people in the stands (only Florida residents were allowed to purchase tickets), this is likely the largest sporting event in Florida since March. But more importantly, history could be made Saturday as veteran driver Bill Auberlen goes for his 61st victory in sports cars. At 60 wins, Auberlen is presently tied with (retired?) sports car superstar Scott Pruett. Auberlen and his BMW are good at Daytona, and this could be one of his best shots to own the record outright. So without further ado, fluff up the couch cushions and gather the snacks. Let's go racing! Thanks for reading Autoweek and please stay safe.
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