Conor Daly’s Lilly-less Xfinity Mustang at Road America. Image by Kinrade/LAT
Q: Great article on Derek and Conor Daly. We all agree the word in question should never be said, by anyone. However this firing of Derek for something 35 years ago and dropped sponsorship of Conor is absolutely PC paranoia. It does, however, provide one less TV channel to watch, and also saved me a Saturday by not attending the L***y 250 Xfinity race at IMS.
Ralph, Indianapolis
RM: Thanks Ralph, but common sense dictates how wrong Channel 8 and L*&^%$ were, and I like your abbreviation.
Q: The impugnment of Derek for a naive comment made 35 years in the past is unconscionable. Atrocious. Totally frightening. Those responsible need to be exposed. Your courage in writing as you did is being accountable. Let’s hope the real culprits will be brought before the court of accountability and properly receive their comeuppance.
Lynn, VA
RM: Thanks Lynn, but it took no courage to write the truth and expose those clowns at Channel 8 and Eli Lilly.
Q: Conor has gotten shunned for absolutely no reason. His Dad’s unknowing slip of the tongue 35 years ago, which was innocently uttered once, is no reason to slit either the father’s or the son’s throats financially and professionally. This corporate treatment is abominable and utterly ridiculous.
Steve Koontz, Gas City, IN
RM: Lilly could still save face and simply sponsor Conor in another race, and send out a little press release admitting it may have been a little hasty in yanking its name at Road America.
Q: How long before IMS fires Donald Davidson for telling the story of Chuck Riley’s suggested name for the call-in show in 1971 – “Stymie the Limey”?
John, Plainfield, IN
RM: Great memory John, I was talking about that old radio show title today at lunch. I’d imagine IMS would give DD a warning (smile).
Q: I’ve been watching open-wheelers since early ‘80s. I remember multiple drivers dying at Indy, and being severely injured at ovals and road courses alike. That being said, with the lack of attendance with regard to ovals and open-wheelers, did we witness the end of ovals and IndyCars except for the 500? I can’t see any other track either signing a new contract, or even re-signing once the current contract ends.
Jerry Daniels
RM: No. Gateway had another nice crowd and Iowa is going back to Saturday night so that will help its attendance, and Texas and Pocono had more people than in previous years. They’re all back for 2019, and I hope Richmond could come into play by 2020.
Q: As an IndyCar fan since the early ‘80s, I have a hard time understanding the complaints about the races this year at Indy and Pocono. My first comment about this year’s 500 was that it reminded of the races back in what so many call the “peak” of IndyCar racing. The Pocono race was a prime example of that – one car running away from the lead, and lapping all but a handful of the other cars. Do they remember the 1989 500? Al Jr. crashed out on Lap 198 and still finished second because he and Emmo were so far out in front of everyone else.
Patrick Reardon
RM: Good points, Patrick. Rick Mears won the 1984 Indy 500 by two laps, and just glance through the 1970s and 1980s and see how few cars were on the lead lap at the end. We’ve been spoiled by the racing this past decade at IMS, but every race can’t be a photo finish, and it doesn’t have to be in order to be a good one.
Q: I swear, you just can’t make the new breed of IndyCar fans happy. “Ovals are too boring,” they scream. “Ovals are too exciting and dangerous,” they scream. “Bring back the CART days,” they scream. “Bring back pack racing,” they scream. The new breed fans are idiots, they wouldn’t know great racing from a loaf of bread – all you have to do is read the social media comments after the Wickens incident to know this is true. Rossi (who I’ll confess I’ve come to respect after rejecting his aloofness) and Newgarden are the new Mears, Unsers, Sullivans, et al of the series. They’ll dominate the series for years. Pocono’s race showed Rossi for the force he is. How can anyone call dominance boring? It’s what every racing driver strives for: winning and crushing their opponents whenever and wherever possible. Thoughts?
Jake, Pasadena, CA
RM: This is the 50th year I’ve covered IndyCar racing, and I’ve seen A.J., Mario, Uncle Bobby, Big Al, J.R., Gordy, Sneva, Mikey and Mears decimate fields on ovals, street and road courses, and never recall anyone complaining. It was accepted back then that somebody was going to hit the combination and kick everyone’s ass. When it didn’t happen, like the finish in 1982, we were thrilled beyond belief, and I stayed at the Speedway until midnight that night and watched the re-air because it was such a fantastic finish and such a rarity. Obviously, with spec cars and very even engines and everyone on the same tire, the racing today should be close and competitive, and it usually is, but it can still be a good show if somebody dominates and there’s a dogfight for third through sixth.
Q: With the obvious exception of the Indy 500 (and Pocono), it seems that the specific length of any given race is not of great interest to the fans (at least, not me as a lifelong fan). Frankly though, fuel mileage races leave me cold. Has IndyCar considered resetting the race lengths to try and encourage all-out racing instead of having much of the field cruising around trying to meet fuel numbers? Is that even possible, given the current possible engine fuel mileage ranges? Maybe they need to mandate a minimum number of stops for everyone?
Doug Viall
RM: Fuel mileage leaves all of us yawning but it’s the reality of today’s racing, and adding laps can help sometimes unless cautions fall a certain way and then it’s a whole new strategy. Champ Car tried mandatory pit stop windows, and that didn’t work either. I don’t know the answer, but I know I hate to hear “he’s saving fuel” on lap 3.
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