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Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers can be sent to mailbag@racer.com. We can’t guarantee that every letter will be published, but we’ll answer as many as we can. Publ…
Welcome to the RACER Mailbag where you can send questions to mailbag@racer.com. Not all letters may be published, but we’ll answer as many as we can. This week’s Mailbag is an overflow edition for questions we couldn’t fit in last week. Honda potentially withdrawing from IndyCar has raised concerns about the lack of return on investment and the struggle to attract a third engine supplier. The cost of fielding a two-car team in IMSA is about $20 million, but the full cost for a committed manufacturer is likely much higher. It is unclear how much Honda spends on supplying half the IndyCar grid, and there is little information about Chevy’s 2.4 engine. If Honda leaves in 2026, it is unknown if Chevy would be willing to supply engines for all cars. There have been rumors about Liberty being interested in purchasing the IndyCar Series, but there was a harsh rebuke when it was offered in 2023. The new IndyCar speedway wings are still set to debut in 2025, with testing expected to happen in 2024. Comparing TV ratings between NASCAR, IndyCar, and F1 based on U.S. data may not be meaningful as F1 has worldwide coverage on various networks.
