Indycar Nothing More To Gain But Everything To Lose

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Indycar

You thought NASCAR was as good as it can get Think again. Indycar is home to the fastest race car drivers and cars in the world. An Indycar can travel down the straightaway at a top speed of 232.33 mph. Bobby Unser, Indycar legend set the fastest lap ever turned at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as well as the fastest to speed ever recorded in an Indycar at nearly 242.19 mph. Indycar is much different from NASCAR in terms of speed, track and car. An Indycar can go around an oval track corner at 200 mph and a road course corner at 120 mph. The biggest difference is in the cars. Indycar is a form of open-wheel racing. The cars are much lighter and do not have as much down force. Down force is exactly as it sounds, it keeps th car on the ground. However that has been the source of a major discussion in recent years. A string of crashes earlier this year at Indy 500 practice and qualifying where two drivers were injured, one critically. Indycar has had the most deaths in recent years, and is nearly tied with Formula 1 for the most deaths ever in a racing series. Most notably, in 2011. Dan Wheldon, 2 time Indy 500 champ, including that year, and notable Indycar champion, was starting from the back of the field at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the final race of the year, he would win one million dollars if he won the race. However, on lap 11, Wheldon's car went over another car and flipped into the catch fence killing him instantly. This is not the most recent Indycar death. Justin Wilson, 7 time Indycar winner and respected driver, was making his way through a crash at Pocono raceway, when suddenly, debris from another crashed car hit Wilson on the head and knocked him unconscious. Wilson slid into the inside retaining wall and came to rest. This has stirred discussion about whether or not Indycar should race with open cockpit. Before addressing any one of these issues further, people must take into account the economic state of the sport.

The Market of The Sport

There is a bright future in the sport of Indycar because people and company's are willing to pour large amount of money into this industry. And with increasing competition, things are looking up. Indycar has been at a recent crossroads concerning the sports TV rights. Indycar decided to re-sign with ABC for special events such as the Indy 500, but also signed with NBCSN, an Oligopoly which is  one of the top firms in the TV industry. This is a good move by Indycar because the sport of hockey is becoming one of the most watched sports in the country. NBCSN is huge on hockey. Indycar bought this into consideration and decided that they would increase their advertising campaign. Thus, allowing more people to be aware of what is happening within the sport. There is also an increase in competition.

The Future of The Sport

      There has been a surge in the amount of full time seats available for the Verizon Indycar Series. The competition seems be getting better, and new drivers are starting their careers faster and better than ever before. Take this into consideration; in 2012 there were more drivers racing the season full time than ever before. There were a total of 25 full time seats, one being split between two drivers. This increase in full time drivers will attract new fans and more attention because with more cars on track, the more competition there will be and the more exciting it will be for the fans. However, people who don't follow the sport cannot name all the tracks that the circuit races on. But the one everyone knows is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Indy 500 is the largest sporting event in the world, in terms of spectators and TV viewers. The Indy 500 has become a huge source of revenue for the sport.