Why won't Indy and F1 get along?

[Dyno247365]

Yesterday F1 had the Turkish Grand Prix, and today, no break at all and immediately after, IndyCar has the race at Infineon. What's that all about?

Why won't we see famous Indy drivers in F1? Vice versa?

[drdisque]

money, schedules, and driver preferences.

[TheStang00]

the F1 crowd tends to be completely full of themselves and they look down there nose at everyone else. ive even heard some F1 drivers play down the signifigance of the indy 500 by saying that the race isnt worthy of having them (schumacher- what an ass, even if he is good). but every once in a while you will see the drivers swap series, juan pablo montoya would be a perfect example. i always liked him and its good to see that he didnt get a huge head from going over there like most do, evidence being that hes going to nascar now. but for the most part, the above poster is correct, money, schedules, and driver preference.

[mike@af]

Originally Posted by TheStang00

...but every once in a while you will see the drivers swap series, juan pablo montoya would be a perfect example. i always liked him and its good to see that he didnt get a huge head...

He didnt get a huge head because he wasnt that good of a driver. Its hard to get an ego when you're the laughing stalk of F1.

[TheStang00]

Originally Posted by GTmike400

He didnt get a huge head because he wasnt that good of a driver. Its hard to get an ego when you're the laughing stalk of F1.

ok. just like a lot of F1 fans, you just say that because he left and went to nascar.

[mike@af]

Originally Posted by TheStang00

ok. just like a lot of F1 fans, you just say that because he left and went to nascar.

Thats a pretty ignorant comment to assume that I my opinion is based on JP moving from F1 to NASCAR. My opinion is purely based on his driving capability, or lack there of.

However, this is not a discussion on Montoya's driving or race career, rather a dicussion between F1 and Indy.

[Dyno247365]

Hey I got replies!!

Stang, F1 is faster then Indy, and even though I respect indycar, there's too many honda engines and they do act like they're better then F1 sometimes. Sure they have an average higherspeed at the indy 500 but the F1 cars are more expensive. I honestly will watch both. Damnit I really need better cable to get speedtv.

[TheStang00]

Originally Posted by Dyno247365

Hey I got replies!!

Stang, F1 is faster then Indy, and even though I respect indycar, there's too many honda engines and they do act like they're better then F1 sometimes. Sure they have an average higherspeed at the indy 500 but the F1 cars are more expensive. I honestly will watch both. Damnit I really need better cable to get speedtv.

well im well aware that F1 cars are faster. i dont think i ever questioned that, cause i know better. if you must know, they are all honda engines, and that is because chevy and toyota couldnt compete. and to say they act like they are better than F1 is absurd. its completely the other way around.

[SabreKhan]

I seriously doubt it's because Chevy and Toyota "couldn't compete." In fact, I think they've shown (in various other race series) that they can compete quite well. Indy is becoming a money pit. More fans show up for a Craftsman Truck series race than do for an IRL race. Open-wheel, massive-wing cars just weren't intended for oval racing. Downforce is for cornering. Plus, the open-wheel fans in America are still split between Champ Car and Indy. I, personally, prefer the Champ Car format, where at least there's a little bit of a chess-match going on (tires, boost, etc.). Which is not to say that I don't like Indy cars. I do. It's just not a crowd-pleaser, which means it's generally unprofitable, which means that the other engine manufacturers couldn't keep spending time and money on it. The Indy 500 is the last bastion of hope for open-wheel racing in the United States. The fact that most people nowadays think the Indy 500 is a NASCAR race is sad. IRL and Champ need to either duke it out and declare a winner or just bring the brotherhood back together.

Oh, and to answer the question: F1 is all about the car-builders. Indy is about 50/50 driver/builders. Plus, Indy is an oval series and F1 has no ovals. F1 cars corner at about 70g's or something ridiculous, Indy cars go fast in a straight line (oval). They're just inherently different series and inherently different cars. And yes, I know the same holds true for Champ/IRL, but they're not as dissimilar as IRL/F1.

[TheStang00]

Well i have been a fan of the irl for years now. The racing is actually far better than that of nascar people are just unaware of it and uneducated. Also the series is changing to meet fans demands because they realize that they are not going to be succeseful just racing ovals. They now have 2 street races and 3 permanant road courses (very excited to see mid-ohio added, on my birthday no less). it pleases me a lot because the road races that they do in the IRL have been very exciting imo, theres a lot more passing that F1. on the issue of chevy and toyota not being able to compete, they couldnt. the honda engines were making something like 30 or 40 more hp. Now im sure that chevy and toyota could have developed new engines that could compete but it probably is what you said, they didnt think it was worth the money. Like i said before, the oval racing these cars do is pretty awesome too, you will never see stock cars going side-by-side for 5 (maybe more) laps straight. Its not like downforce doesnt matter at all though. They dont need as much as road racing but they do have to have some or they wont go around the corners. They pull 4 g's around the corners on some of those ovals. considering most road cars cant do 1g, thats pretty impressive.

[SabreKhan]

I don't agree about the racing being better. Everything else in your post, I agree with. Side-by-side is what makes NASCAR so popular, though. I think you can make a good argument for IRL racing being *as good as* NASCAR, but not better. Ricky Craven (who?) vs. Kevin Harvick for ten straight laps and crossing the finish line with Craven's dented front air dam being the deciding piece of crumpled sheet metal in the photo finish; my wife and I were literally standing up in our living room screaming at the TV for the last four laps. And we don't root for either of those guys. I also think the road-course additions are a wonderful thing for IRL, and might bring them back from the brink of extinction. If IRL can make Champ Car irrelevant and can balance a good road course schedule with a good oval schedule (maybe run some road courses at the oval tracks -- Indy, Daytona, etc.), they have the ability to compete with NASCAR for the dollars. Especially since they still hold the crown jewel of American racing with the 500. Somehow, they've got to tap back into the American racing conscience. A spec engine and a nearly spec body are not the way to do that (ditto for NASCAR and the Car of Tomorrow). Right now, though, the fact that IRL can barely stock a full field for the Indy 500 is pretty sad.

[TheStang00]

^ i pretty much agree with your post. that finish was pretty amazing too. i to agree that i wish it wasnt a spec series, maybe if they do better with the road courses some companies will buy back in or something. apparently they did some testing at the daytona road course and it went really well. they arent going to race there in 2007 but id be willing to bet they will in '08. on the COT, i really dont like that thing, its ugly and the drivers hate it, and its a step back technologically and aerodynamically.

[SabreKhan]

I think the road courses are where IRL can really shine. Show the fans some wheel-to-wheel on the ovals, and some engineering and driver skill on the roads, and make Champ Car irrelevant.

[TheStang00]

i couldnt agree more. i think if they can succesfully do it then they will win a lot of fans back. because i think nascar is starting to piss people off, i know they are pissing me off and ive talked to a lot of people that feel the same way. now that mark martin is done for serious competition i wont pay nearly as much attention. so i think there is going to be a good opportunity to win fans back while nascar is driving away its base with dumb rules and decisions.