Q: As I watched the race at Gateway it seemed to me that yet another opportunity for passing was being ruined by tires that create so much debris that there’s only one groove to race in. Simultaneously, the grip falls off so quickly (relative to new) that passing is very difficult. While I understand the driving skill and engineering setup required in order to maintain “good” tires for a long run, as a fan, my opinion is that this current tire philosophy is ruining the racing. The strategy/skill while esoteric, isn’t entertaining. And it’s not just the ovals – marbles off line, especially in the braking zones on the street and road courses, have the same effect. Outbraking someone is impossible on the marbles. By the way, outbraking someone takes way more skill and is way more entertaining to me than the “push to pass” gimmick.

We’ve heard from the Firestone engineers earlier, but they’re just executing a philosophy handed them by IndyCar, so they build the tires that they do. If the philosophy from the top asked to greatly reduce/eliminate marbles I believe that Firestone could deliver. It would seem obvious that such a tire would have less grip but be more consistent through a stint, this could mean that cars could be driven more with the gas pedal, which also could be more entertaining (and they could add horsepower if necessary). Do you think this could work? If not, why not?

Doug Viall

RM: Here’s a response from Bridgestone’s chief engineer Cara Adams:

“Following conversations with teams, drivers and INDYCAR after last year’s Gateway race, we designed a new left-side tire that had a softer compound to provide more degradation and more grip over a stint, which would also provide the cars with more mechanical grip. As was the case this weekend, one of the engineering trade-offs is that oftentimes with softer compounds you’ll see a higher level of marbles. As we look to 2020, we’ll analyze the race data, collaborate with the series, teams and drivers, and combine that with testing of the technology evolution such as the aeroscreen to determine the best tire specification.”

Q: Does Ericsson have enough funding to end up with Carlin? How about Foyt or Coyne if seats open at either place? Speaking of Carlin, do you see a ride share with Kimball and Chilton? Nasr to McLaren Arrow seems to make sense now that Herta is off the table. Does McLaren have an IndyCar vet like Daly join Nasr, or would they place another McLaren contracted driver alongside? OEM: Was the switch to hybrid in part to take another shot at getting Porsche? How about all of the BMW rumors that were flying around on the internet earlier in the year. Might BMW bite with the hybrid engine?

Gordon from Dallas

RM: Marcus supposedly has $3 million in sponsorship so I think he could wind up at ECR, or Carlin, or Foyt, or even RLL. Charlie says he wants to run full-time in 2020, but if I’m Trevor Carlin I hire Daly full-time and let Max and Kimball split the other car like this year. No clue what McLaren has planned, but I’d look at Pato O’Ward, Ferrucci and Daly if I were Zak Brown. The hybrid was dangled to attract a third OEM ,but have no idea who it could be, or if it’s even close.

Ericsson has the skills to pay the bills. He also has some sponsors. Image by IndyCar

Q: Dixon’s mechanical failure at Gateway was for a leaking radiator; I haven’t heard of that before in IndyCar. Was that due to some debris from the racing surface, or a mechanical failure/leak in the radiator itself? What kind of telemetry data would indicate an impending gearbox/stack failure? I think that was on Rahal’s car at Gateway. Great call on that one!

Regarding a possible move to incorporate hybrid technology by IndyCar (please don’t call it KERS from Formula 1, which it wouldn’t be!). Would that be the same for all cars, similar to the turbos, provided by Borg-Warner today? Currently, each internal combustion engine (ICE) manufacturer in F1 has its own take on (and programming of) their hybrid systems. They aren’t all alike! On the racing side, thanks to RACER.com and RACER magazine for supporting us IndyCar fans, by you and Marshall, and your eloquent and always so politically correct hot poop (Not!)

Bill in CA (yep, I’m a GearHead)

RM: “A piece of a blown engine from the K&N Series was kicked up by a car Dixie was chasing and shot straight through the stainless steel mesh screen placed in front of the radiator, and cut a path straight through the radiator core. It will be a kinetic energy recovery system, so it’s KERS, like it or not, and Formula 1 wasn’t the first to use it. It’s going to be a spec system. Thanks for the kind comments.” – Marshall.

Q: The night before Pocono, I drove 4.5 hours from Phoenix to Perris, CA to watch a USAC CRA/Southwest sprint car race. Jake Swanson, after spinning on Lap 1, came all the way through the field to win the 30-lap race. The crowd was going crazy, as they should have because the 22 starters put on a good show. Money, and time, well spent. The next morning I drove home with the anticipation of getting to watch my true racing passion, IndyCar, at Pocono.

As with every race I attend or watch, I am always concerned with the start. My concern is because I am hoping some new fan may be tuning in to see what the buzz is about, and I don’t want to see something stupid happen to send the race into an immediate yellow or red flag situation. And it happened. Multiple drivers being overly aggressive, and all the pre-race excitement and anticipation is slammed to a halt. It makes me wonder if some of these drivers had grown up on dirt, without mirrors and spotters, would they be a little more respectful of the consequences? Do they even care that for the sport to thrive you have to put on a good show?

Rick Navratil, Phoenix, AZ

RM: You’ve got to have spotters on ovals nowadays because it’s almost impossible to see out of the cars, but no doubt mirrors have always added to blocking, which I detest. I remember back in the late ’70s that USAC allowed mirrors in the midget division when I was racing, and after about six races and all kinds of crashes and near fistfights, the mirrors were banned. The IndyCar drivers talked about having extra respect at a place like Pocono but they didn’t show it on that first lap, and it always makes the series look bad when 22 cars can’t complete one lap of a 500-mile race without hitting each other. But last Saturday night they beat and banged and blocked and tackled and put on a helluva show without taking each other out.

Q: Do you think Oriol Servia was ever considered at McLaren? He has the experience and technical background that might pair well with a young shoe.

Justin, Park City, Utah

RM: No, but if Zak Brown were to run an extra car at Indy then Servia would be an excellent choice to help set up the cars.

Q: What is the pecking order at Arrow McLaren SP? Who will run the team? Who has final say on who drives for them? It is very confusing.

Paul Fitzgerald, Indianapolis

RM: It’s between Zak Brown, Gil de Ferran, Sam Schmidt and Rick Peterson, but we don’t know what percentage of ownership McLaren has or what Arrow will demand in terms of drivers or whether Hinch will keep his seat. Lots of questions that we don’t have answers to – yet. But I’m thinking McLaren will have a lot of say about the drivers.