~Robin Miller
Q: Looking ahead at the NBC Sports Network listings it does not look like they will be showing qualifying this weekend. Is this just because it is an ABC race or will qualifying not be shown on TV this year? Will IndyCar.com be streaming the practice and qualifying sessions?
Ryan, Greenwood, IN
P.S. When all the rear wheel shrouds get knocked off in turn 1 will the cars be allowed to run without them since they are a safety feature?
RM: Yes, qualifying shows only for the 11 NBC races (plus Indianapolis) but never for ABC. Randy Bernard says he’s looking into streaming qualifying for the ABC races. As for the rear-wheel guards, it’s all one piece attached to the attenuator and rear wing post, so I’m told it will be like knocking off a nose – it will have to be replaced most likely but that can be done fairly quick.
Q: Marshall Pruett wrote a preview article and talked in more detail on the engines than any other article I’ve read so far. It sounds like in a utopian society the Chevy-powered cars will overtake exiting slow corners, but if they’re on a long straight the Honda cars will come back and retake the position under braking. As a fan of road racing I think we’re probably dreaming a little bit here, but do we have any idea what the prospects are of racing this season? Will we see a lot of follow the leader on the road and street courses or do you believe this parity will lead to some exciting racing this season? Another factor to the racing this season is obviously the natural understeer the DW12 seems to have. When you’re trying to make a pass under braking you really want the car to rotate and get into the corner from something other than the ideal racing line. The understeer has me worried that we’re going to see a bit of extra wheel to wheel contact early in the season as drivers understeer in the corner side by side more than they would have liked. I’ll set the over under on car contacts at St. Pete this week at 7. I’ll take the over. On the subject of follow the leader racing I’ve heard rumors that Mid-Ohio has been asked to re-design their track to enhance the racing. I’ve heard that they’re open to the idea, but I’ve not heard of any plans to actually make it happen. Any word on a facelift for one of the most popular dedicated road courses on the schedule?
Ryan in West Michigan
RM: Marshall’s story was detailed and quite interesting (just like his videos on the new car) and I hope it plays out the way he wrote it but nobody will know until we get a couple races under the belt. The old Dallara had massive understeer and drivers dealt with it so I think this car might be more forgiving, at least I hope so. Mid-Ohio and Sonoma were both told to make some changes to make their circuits racier but nothing has happened yet.
Q: Is there any chance IndyCar will do something at the early races to give the Lotus teams a chance to be a little more competitive, given that they've been able to do only a small fraction of the testing miles that Chevy/Honda teams have done due to their engine supply problems? Even ignoring the apparent difference in engines, they've got to be very far behind in developing the DW12 and figuring out what works and what doesn't. I was thinking IndyCar could give them an extra hour of practice on Friday to work on sorting things out. Even if they don't want to do that at St. Pete since the teams were all at Sebring, they really should get some extra time at Barber seeing that they've done no proper testing at all on traditional road courses, and the other teams have done a fair amount. It's not like the extra time is going to make them a threat to the leaders but at least it would give them a chance to not be way out in left field speed wise. It's not like the lack of testing is the fault of the teams either, IndyCar decided to hire this shaky outfit to supply engines late in the game and then setup a system where some teams essentially had no choice but to go with them. So since IndyCar created this rather large chasm engine-wise between the haves and have-nots, it would be a "fair" thing to do to help out the little guys in one way. Let's not forget that at one race last year IndyCar completely ignored the reality of what happened in the late stages of a race and pretended like some laps never happened, all in the name of "fairness." So let's do the right thing IndyCar.
Jim, Chicago
RM: I like your logic and it would be a nice gesture to give the Lotus teams some extra practice at Barber so perhaps they should petition IndyCar. The signed up expecting something that was at least close to the Chevy and Honda. If Lotus is terribly out-horsepowered after a few races I think IndyCar will look at giving them some help by Indianapolis.
Q: I pretty much agree with you on your comments on the coming season. I think after the St. Pete race we will have a solid view of things to come in the 2012 season. The one factor that I think is going to keep this season interesting is going to be will the new engines live through a hard fought race? We have seen turbocharging before. It keeps the game interesting when they first come on line. I think we, as David Hobbs say, are going to see some KABLAMOS! Nothing builds more interest to me in a race than where you see someone charging at the race end. You are sitting there wondering if his engine is going to hold together. Has not been a factor the last few years but from what I read it could be this year. What do you think? See you in St. Pete.
Bob "The Old Man" Lauman, Lawrenceville,Ga.
RM: Yes, I think the engines will be the game changer early on. Both Honda and GM suffered some setbacks during pre-season testing but that’s normal in engine development, always has been, just been absent for a long time in this series. Hard telling how many races Lloyd Ruby, Uncle Bobby, Mario and Michael lost to blown engines during their careers but most of today’s drivers have never had to worry about that.
Q: There has been so much focus on IndyCar preseason testing at Sebring that people have seemingly forgotten about the ovals that lie ahead. While I understand that much of the schedule is now comprised of road/street courses (and that, as a result, teams have placed much more focus on road/street course performance), I also seem to recall that there have been some serious concerns regarding the 2012 Dallara's performance on ovals. Is this still a concern and has there been any progress on this front? And, what does this mean for the month of May?
Jay Matheny, Mayfield, KY
RM: After some changes to wheelbase and suspension, the last couple tests on ovals went pretty well according to the drivers in them. Texas will be tested again in early May but nobody is going to know about Indianapolis until the track opens for practice. That’s intriguing or frightening, depending on your perspective.
Q: Just want to say I am really looking forward to the season and attending Long Beach and Fontana again, after an 8-year absence. With time I think the new cars can be fast and good looking. Now I only wish Riverside Raceway was still open! I appreciate you and Marshall Pruett building interest. BTW, what do you know about Chet Fillip? Know a guy that works for him and says he's a good guy.
John P., Glendora, Ca
RM: As I said on SPEED CENTER and WIND TUNNEL, the cars look much better at speed than they do sitting in the pits and they sound like an Indy car should. Chet was a super-modified grad who ran Indy in 1982 and 1983 and was still winning USAC Silver Crown pavement shows a few years ago. Yes, a very nice guy.
Q: I have a question about the new cars. Now that they have enclosed the rear wheels to prevent wheel to wheel contact, have they inadvertently given the drivers a new tool/weapon to use on the track? Now will we see deliberate contact or NASCAR-style “rubbing” in our league because the risk of it causing a crash has been reduced? I have got my Long Beach tickets and I am bringing 4 new race fans with me. See ya there!
Brant from San Jose
RM: Not sure they can be much more aggressive on a street course than they have been but it’s possible the cars can take a punch much better because the nose wings seem sturdier and the outer edge has been rounded off to avoid cutting tires. Could it serve as the Chrome Horn? Stay tuned.
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