IndyCar News / Silly Season

2014 Team Chart

Penske - 2 - Juan Pablo Montoya
Penske - 3 - Hélio Castroneves
Penske - 12 - Will Power
Ganassi - 8 - Ryan Briscoe
Ganassi - 9 - Scott Dixon
Ganassi - 10 - Tony Kanaan
Ganassi - 83 - Charlie Kimball
KV - 11 - Sébastien Bourdais
KV - 17 - Sebastian Saavedra
Foyt - 14 - Takuma Sato
Rahal/Letterman - 15 - Graham Rahal
Coyne - 18 - Carlos Huertas (R)
Coyne - 19 - Justin Wilson
Carpenter - 20 - Ed Carpenter / Mike Conway
Andretti - 25 - Marco Andretti
Andretti - 27 - James Hinchcliffe
Andretti - 28 - Ryan Hunter Reay
Andretti - 34 - Carlos Munoz (R)
Schmitt - 7 - Mikhail Aleshin (R)
Schmitt - 77 - Simon Pagenaud
Fisher - 67 - Josef Newgarden
Herta/Agajanian - 98 - Jack Hawksworth (R)

Part Time Entries
Schmitt - 5 - Jacques Villeneuve
KV - 6 - Townsend Bell
KV - 33 - James Davison (R)
Rahal/Letterman - 16 - Oriol Servia
Carpenter - 21 - JR Hildebrand
Ganassi/Dreyer & Reinbold - 22 - Saga Karam (R)
Andretti - 26 - Kurt Busch (R) / Franck Montagny
Foyt - 41 - Martin Plowman

Possible Entries
Panther - 4 - TBA
Dreyer & Reinbold - 23 - James Jakes or Paul Tracy or ???
Coyne - 63 - Pippa Mann
??? - ?? - Stefan Wilson (R)

News So Far
- Juan Pablo Montoya has left NASCAR to drive the No. 2 for Team Penske
- Ganassi is switching to Chevrolet
- Andretti is switching to Honda
- Dario Franchitti is retiring from IndyCar due to injuries. His replacement in the No. 10 is Tony Kanaan while Ryan Briscoe is driving the forth Ganassi car, the No. 8
- James Jakes may be looking elsewhere in 2014, but he still could return to Rahal Letterman
- Carlos Muñoz is going full time.
- Tristan Vaultier has left Sam Schmitt Motorsports and is talking with a few teams.
- Dale Coyne Racing has tested with Francesco Dracone and Arie Luyendyk, Jr.
- Dragon Racing is scaling back its efforts, and is expected to field a part time car for Saavedra in a few races next year.
- Sébastien Bourdais is replacing Kanaan at KV Racing Technology.
- Simona de Silvestro may be switching teams.
- Jaime Algersuari, Narain Karthikayen, Karun Chandhok, Paul di Resta, and Sam Bird have all expressed interest in IndyCar.
- The British team Carlin Motorsports is considering entering the series as a full time participant. While this looks reasonably likely for 2015, it's unlikely to happen this year.
- United Fiber and Data is replacing GoDaddy as the primary sponsor of James Hinchcliffe
- Dreyer & Reinbold is expected to return.
- The National Guard sponsorship might be moving to Rahal Letterman.
- Herta/Agajanian is fielding a car for either Luca Fillippi or JR Hildebrand. They will run both if funding is available.
- Ed Carpenter and Mike Conway will split time in the No. 20.
- Herta/Agajanian will run Jack Hawksworth.
- Carlos Huertas will drive most of the season for Dale Coyne
- Oriol Servia will have a part time campaign for Rahal/Letterman, driving at Barber, Long Beach, and the two Indianapolis rounds
- Panther Racing has put its IndyCar program on hold for the time being.
- Alex Tagliani will drive for Sarah Fisher at Indy.


Schedule
1. Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
2. Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach
3. Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama
4. Grand Prix of Indianapolis
5. Indianapolis 500
6. Chevrolet/Cadillac Detroit Grand Prix, Round 1
7. Chevrolet/Cadillac Detroit Grand Prix, Round 2
8. Firestone 600 (Texas)
9. Shell/Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston, Round 1
10. Shell/Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston, Round 2
11. Pocono IndyCar 500 fueled by Sunoco
12. Iowa Corn Indy 300
13. Honda Indy Toronto, Round 1
14. Honda Indy Toronto, Round 2
15. Honda 200 (Mid-Ohio)
16. ABC Supply Company Wisconsin 250 (Milwaukee)
17. GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma
18. MAVTV IndyCar World Championships (California)


Tagliani is stepping out of the #98 and is replaced by Luca Fillipi for Mid Ohio and possibly by JR Hildebrand later in the year.

http://www.racer.com/big-changes-ahead-for-barracuda-racing-indycar-team/article/304820/





ALMS Champion Lucas Luhr will run a second car for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing at Sonoma and possibly a few more races later in the season. The car will be #97 and the sponsor is TBA.

http://www.racer.com/luhr-to-make-sonoma-indycar-debut-for-sfhr/article/304686/





The Dale Coyne #18 has featured Mike Conway, Ana Beatriz, and Pippa Mann earlier in 2013 but it will be Australian rookie James Davison driving the car at Mid Ohio

http://www.racer.com/davison-in-at-coyne-for-mid-ohio-indycar/article/304411/




The Series will run Twin Turbo engines next year

http://www.racer.com/indycar-mandates-twin-turbo-engines-for-2014/article/304602/

Luca really deserved a seat somewhere, and finally someone worth supporting

Luca is only testing the #98 car, he is not currently scheduled to run the race. He'll run the open test session at Mid-Ohio on Wednesday, and then the team will decide who drives the car. That's as far as they've gone right now.

Milan655 wrote:Luca really deserved a seat somewhere, and finally someone worth supporting

It was announced that he would drive for Rahal starting at Detroit last year, but when Detroit came around he wasn't on the entry list and nothing was said about him.

Good to see he might finally get his chance.

Lucas Luhr? Did no one learn from Yuji Ide or Milka Duno, that you don't you don't hire straight up sports car drivers for your open-wheel team?* D:





* Except Scott Pruitt

Look who's wanting a seat for Fontana:
http://www.motorracingnetwork.com/Race-Series/NASCAR-Sprint-Cup/News/Articles/2013/07/Kurt-Busch-Eyeing-IndyCar-Finale.aspx

The other Wilson will hop in the 18 at Baltimore:
http://motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com/2013/08/01/stefan-wilson-will-make-indycar-debut-at-baltimore/

I can see Kurt Busch racing for Dale Coyne at Fontana.

Wow. There's been a bunch of news coming out with IndyCar lately just from drivers alone. I'm getting more and more curious about what kind of schedule IndyCar will have for next year.

Gordon, Kanaan clashing over the other's series's crowd size:
http://motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com/2013/08/02/nascars-gordon-indycars-kanaan-disagree-over-crowd-sizes-between-series/

crl wrote:Gordon, Kanaan clashing over the other's series's crowd size:
http://motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com/2013/08/02/nascars-gordon-indycars-kanaan-disagree-over-crowd-sizes-between-series/

As a Jeff Gordon fan, he should honestly keep his mouth shut about it.

Also: http://www.indycar.com/News/2013/08/8-2-INDYCAR-updates-rules

Tires - If a car receives tire damage due to contact during a race, the two-lap requirement for that type of tire will be considered fulfilled (14.14.6.6.5).

I can easily see teams create a loophole with this rule in effect now. Other than that, I'm glad IndyCar decided to touch up the rules with Brian Barnhart subbing as Race Director at Toronto, and hopefully decide NOT TO HAVE THAT MORON BE ANY PART OF THIS SERIES AGAIN!

J.R. Hildebrand is closing in on a deal with Barracuda Racing

I heard about JR signing with Barracuda Racing

Silly Season Update

Penske: Allmendinger could go full time. Helio and Power are coming back
Panther: #4 is open and it appears that Servia and Briscoe are the two main contenders
HVM: Likely to retain Viso and stay partnered with Andretti
Dragon: No known changes
Ganassi: Team is looking to bring back the #38. Driver unknown but could be Hinch or Kanaan if they leave their teams, which is unlikely.
KV: Kanaan is a free agent but it seems likely that he will stay, unless Penske, Ganassi, or Andretti call.
Foyt: Sato is coming back. It appears that Chase Austin might make his 500 attempt in 2014 after it was called off in 2013.
Rahal: Graham is obviously back. Jakes has improved a lot and I don't see him going anywhere. The #17 may be making some more appearances with Conway or Jourdain. Scheckter has apparently been talking to this team but it doesn't seem to be going anywhere. The Indy Lights champ could use the scholarship money to land this ride.
Coyne: Wilson will almost certainly be back. The status of #18 is unknown
Carpenter: No known changes
Dreyer & Reinbold: Will run the 500 and could go back to full time if they can find the sponsorship.
Andretti: Hinchcliffe might leave but I do not think he will; GoDaddy wants him and they want Andretti, and Andretti has become the premier team of the new era. Munoz is a possible full time entrant.
Schmitt: Vaultier and Pagenaud sound like they are coming back. A third car for either Legge or one of their Lights drivers.
Fisher: Lucas Luhr seems set to join the team in a second car.
Herta/Agajanian: Tagliani is gone and will be replaced by Luca Fillippi and JR Hildebrand in a two car effort.

Alpineopossum wrote:Silly Season Update

Penske: Allmendinger could go full time. Helio probably will return. Power is coming back.
Panther: #4 is open and it appears that Servia and Briscoe are the two main contenders
HVM: Likely to retain Viso and stay partnered with Andretti
Dragon: No known changes
Ganassi: Team is looking to bring back the #38. Driver unknown but could be Hinch or Kanaan if they leave their teams, which is unlikely. Dixon is confirmed for next year.
KV: Kanaan is a free agent but it seems likely that he will stay, unless Penske, Ganassi, or Andretti call.
Foyt: Sato is coming back. It appears that Chase Austin might make his 500 attempt in 2014 after it was called off in 2013.
Rahal: Graham is signed for next year. Jakes has improved a lot and I don't see him going anywhere. The #17 may be making some more appearances with Conway or Jourdain. Scheckter has apparently been talking to this team but it doesn't seem to be going anywhere. The Indy Lights champ could use the scholarship money to land this ride.
Coyne: Wilson will almost certainly be back. The status of #18 is unknown
Carpenter: No known changes
Dreyer & Reinbold: Will run the 500 and could go back to full time if they can find the sponsorship.
Andretti: Hinchcliffe might leave but I do not think he will; GoDaddy wants him and they want Andretti, and Andretti has become the premier team of the new era. Munoz is a possible full time entrant.
Schmitt: Vautier and Pagenaud are coming back.
Fisher: Newgarden returns, and Lucas Luhr seems set to join the team in a second car.
Herta/Agajanian: Tagliani is gone and will be replaced by Luca Fillippi and JR Hildebrand in a two car effort.

Fixed.

DJ Squire to IndyCar in 2014?:
http://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/alguersuari-eyes-indycar-move-for-2014-439243/

Edit: Will Buxton has declared on Twitter that IndyCar should be where GP2 and WSR graduates go to. I'm not really thinking that.

Hoo, boy!

http://www.indycar.com/News/2013/09/9-3-Briscoe-to-drive-second-car-at-Indy-road-course-test

Think Briscoe needs to be careful around him, considering how reckless Rahal was at Baltimore.

BWardboy88 wrote:Think Briscoe needs to be careful around him, considering how reckless Rahal was at Baltimore.

I know its Rahal, but its a test session Barney

pennst24 wrote:

BWardboy88 wrote:Think Briscoe needs to be careful around him, considering how reckless Rahal was at Baltimore.

I know its Rahal, but its a test session Barney

You never know, a cock-up in a Testing Session could happen.

pennst24 wrote:

BWardboy88 wrote:Think Briscoe needs to be careful around him, considering how reckless Rahal was at Baltimore.

I know its Rahal, but its a test session Barney

After Baltimore I wouldn't put anything past Rahal.

Montoya with Penske in 2014

http://www.penskeracing.com/news/index.cfm?series=n&cid=51801

Interesting to say the least.

Somehow I don't see this ending well for Juan's reputation...

RetrogradeRenegade wrote:

pennst24 wrote:

BWardboy88 wrote:Think Briscoe needs to be careful around him, considering how reckless Rahal was at Baltimore.

I know its Rahal, but its a test session Barney

After Baltimore I wouldn't put anything past Rahal.

Pretty much this. I drafted up an email bitching about Rahal that I was going to send to Robin Miller's Mailbag, but I haven't sent it yet. I'm not sure if I will.

Cynon wrote:Somehow I don't see this ending well for Juan's reputation...

RetrogradeRenegade wrote:

pennst24 wrote:

BWardboy88 wrote:Think Briscoe needs to be careful around him, considering how reckless Rahal was at Baltimore.

I know its Rahal, but its a test session Barney

After Baltimore I wouldn't put anything past Rahal.

Pretty much this. I drafted up an email bitching about Rahal that I was going to send to Robin Miller's Mailbag, but I haven't sent it yet. I'm not sure if I will.

Wait till after Houston.

Milan655 wrote:Montoya with Penske in 2014

http://www.penskeracing.com/news/index.cfm?series=n&cid=51801

Montoya coming back to IndyCar AND defecting to Penske? OH BUDDAH

Not really suprised by Montoya going back to Indycar, but Penske? That's out of left field.

Spannerhead29 (Nelson) wrote:Not really suprised by Montoya going back to Indycar, but Penske? That's out of left field.

Same here. I thought he's end up at Coyne or maybe a 4th Ganassi car or something like that.

They really missed the opportunity to troll the racing community with that one.


"Montoya to Drive Penske Racing #2 Car in 2014"

It has been reported that Tony Kanaan has signed a contract to drive for Chip Ganassi Racing next year, according to FOX Sports. If it is true, no idea who is getting replaced or if will be a fourth car, or even a car outside of IndyCar.

IZOD will not renew its IndyCar sponsorship after this year.

If there is a sponsor at all I think it'll probably be Verizon Wireless.

With all this news it is that time of year again...Alpine's speculative lineups are back!
FULL TIME
Penske - 2 - Juan Pablo Montoya
Penske - 3 - Helio Castroneves
Penske - 12 - Will Power
Panther - 4 - Ryan Briscoe or Oriol Servia or Jaime Algersuari or ???
HVM/Andretti - 5 - EJ Viso
Dragon - 6 - Sebastian Saavedra or ???
Dragon - 7 - Sebastien Bourdais or ???
Ganassi - 9 - Scott Dixon
Ganassi - 10 - Dario Franchitti
Ganassi - 38 - Tony Kanaan
Ganassi - 83 - Charlie Kimball
KV - 11 - Jaime Algersuari or Narain Karthikayen or ???
KV - 78 - Simona de Silvestro
Foyt - 14 - Takuma Sato
Rahal/Letterman - 15 - Graham Rahal
Rahal/Letterman - 16 - James Jakes or ???
Rahal/Letterman - 17 - Jake Hawksworth or Mike Conway or Michel Jourdain or ???
Coyne - 18 - Mike Conway or James Davison or Stefan Wilson or ???
Coyne - 19 - Justin Wilson
Carpenter - 20 - Ed Carpenter
Andretti - 25 - Marco Andretti
Andretti - 26 - Carlos Munoz
Andretti - 27 - James Hinchcliffe or ???
Andretti - 28 - Ryan Hunter Reay
Schmitt/Hamilton - 55 - Tristan Vaultier
Schmitt/Hamilton - 77 - Simon Pagenaud
Fisher/Hartman - 67 - Josef Newgarden
Fisher/Hartman - 97 - Lucas Luhr or ???
Herta/Agajanian - 89 - JR Hildebrand
Herta/Agajanian - 98 - Luca Fillippi

PART TIME ENTRIES
Dreyer/Reinbold - 22 - Oriol Servia or ???
Andretti - 29 - Kurt Busch or ???
Foyt - 41 - Conor Daly or Chase Austin or ???
Panther - 60 - Townsend Bell or ???
Schmitt/Hamilton - 81 - Katherine Legge or Buddy Rice

Penske - All three cars set, Montoya is the new driver in the #2, and Allmendinger heads back to NASCAR for now.
Panther - Wide open but it appears that Ryan Briscoe and Oriol Servia are the leading candidates. Jaime Algersuari has been mooted for the #4 as well.
Dragon - Not sure if either Seb will be back
Ganassi - TK joins Dixon, Dario, and Kimball.
KV - #11 car is open. Jaime Algersuari and Narain Karthikayen are both interested in Indycar and its very possible that an Indy Lights driver could look at this seat. If James Jakes leaves Rahal Letterman this could be his new spot but Jakesy is doing well enough there that it wouldn't make much sense for him to leave. Rubens Barrichello could mount a comeback if funding is available.
Foyt - Takuma Sato is almost certainly back. There will be a second car at Indy and Chase Austin (who was going to run in this year) has a strong chance at the #41 for the 500.
Rahal/Letterman - Graham is staying. James Jakes has considered leaving but as I stated above I think it would be a bad move for him unless the team was a Penske, Ganassi, or Andretti and I don't see that happening. Jack Hawksworth tested with the team and he seems to be a leaving contender for the #17 car or the #16 if Jakes leaves.
Coyne - Justin Wilson is likely to stay. Mike Conway wants a full road course schedule for next year and Coyne might just look for an oval specialist like Townsend Bell, Tomas Scheckter, or Buddy Rice to partner him. Pippa Mann stands a strong chance at being the oval driver. I'm not sure where this leaves Ana Beatriz, Stefan Wilson, or James Davison though.
Carpenter - Maybe Special Ed will actually run the #21 this year at Indy.
Dreyer & Reinbold - They've confirmed that they will run Indy and could be back full time if funding comes along. Otherwise I see them running Indy and 2-3 more races.
Andretti - Viso, Andretti, and RHR are returning. Given that TK has all but taken the forth Ganassi car and Montoya is in the #2 it wouldn't make sense for James Hinchcliffe to lead. Carlos Munoz is widely believed to be going full time in IndyCar. Andretti could still field a car at Indy for Kurt Busch. If Busch passes, then Sage Karam could be in the mix.
Schmitt Hamilton - No changes are on the horizon but that doesn't mean they won't happen. A third car is possible, most likely for Hawksworth but he seems set with Rahal Letterman. There will definitely be an Indy-only car for either Katherine Legge or Buddy Rice or someone else.
Fisher Hartman - They are teaming with RW Motorsports to field a second car for Lucas Luhr. If they find funding it will happen. Muscle Milk might come over from Luhr's ALMS exploits and provide that funding.
Herta/Agajanian - One car is confirmed and a second one is very possible. If there is two cars the drivers will be JR Hildebrand and Luca Fillipi. It still isn't clear who will be the driver if only one full time car is entered.

Some updates on next year's schedule...

Apparently, there won't be that many changes from this year's schedule, other than Baltimore being taken off. But the Indy RC race is apparently gonna happen, and the organizers at St. Petersburg want to turn their race into a twinbill event. Hmmm...

But there might be some major changes coming in 2015. IndyCar is in talks to add Road America and Laguna Seca back onto the schedule, as well as an event at Circuit of the Americas (Oh, pleeze make this happen) and... a street course in Providence, Rhode Island? Yes, apparently, they have backing from the city and title sponsorship for a street course race in Providence beginning in 2015.

http://www.sbnation.com/indycar/2013/9/25/4771012/schedule-could-see-four-new-venues-in-2015-road-america

Street race in Providence? An hour from my house?

YES PLEASE.

RyanB06 wrote:Street race in Providence? An hour from my house?

YES PLEASE.

I want to see this as well, mainly because it's going to be the first major race in Rhode Island in a long time.

Official website for the GP of Indianapolis:

http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/grandprixofindianapolis/

And the press conference held within:

http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/grandprixofindianapolis/news/show/type/news/52376-grand-prix-of-indianapolis-media-conference/

My body is ready for May 2014.

Hmm...
http://www.racer.com/hinchcliffe-has-an-offer-for-2014and-its-not-from-andretti/article/314117/

Reports are that the IndyCar schedule will be more packed together. According to Hulman & Co. CEO Mark Miles, IndyCar officials are planning on ending the schedule on Labor Day weekend. This might be for the rumored "Global Challenge" which is rumored to take place in the offseason. Miles also said that the Thursday before the final race of the year at Auto Club Speedway will be the release date for the 2014 schedule.

As for Silly Season, it appears that Takuma Sato's job may not be so safe as expected. While Sato did win his first race, and the first for Foyt in quite a while, he has had nine DNFs in the 13 races since Indianapolis. Sato, who was the points leader at one point this season, is now 16th in points.

The 1995 CART season, remember, started on the first week of March and ended on September 10th, so this new schedule ... isn't exactly as new an idea as it sounds.

AJ Allmendinger will return for Fontana, and Alex Tagliani will sub for Dario.

Can't find source for this, but apparently Simona is going to Dale Coyne next year.

I'm ok with this.

Seabass to KV As well.

IndyCar's schedule has been announced. It will be eighteen races and will last five months exactly. The only new event is the road course race at Indianapolis to kick off the month of May.

March 30 St. Petersburg
April 13 Long Beach
April 26 Barber
May 10 Indianapolis Road Course
May 25 Indianapolis 500
May 31 Belle Isle #1
June 1 Belle Isle #2
June 7 Texas
June 28 Houston #1
June 29 Houston #2
July 6 Pocono
July 12 Iowa
July 19 Toronto #1
July 20 Toronto #2
August 3 Mid-Ohio
August 17 Milwaukee
August 24 Sonoma
August 30 Auto Club

Currently, Sao Paulo, Brazil is not on the schedule. It could be added to the season, most likely at the end. Otherwise, it will probably be back in 2015, when IndyCar plans to add some races to the schedule.

Oh, and am I the only one questioning the fact that IndyCar has decided that, even though it was 90 degrees in Houston in October, to move the race to the last weekend in June?

flyingturns89 wrote:Oh, and am I the only one questioning the fact that IndyCar has decided that, even though it was 90 degrees in Houston in October, to move the race to the last weekend in June?

Hm...that is an interesting change. As a matter of fact, it brings something else to mind...



For those unaware, that's the finish of the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix. Needless to say, there was no 1985 Dallas Grand Prix.

Two words regarding Houston: Night. Race. It was done in Champ Car at the same venue.

Cynon wrote:Two words regarding Houston: Night. Race. It was done in Champ Car at the same venue.

I think Robin Miller's been hinting that the Houston doubleheader will be at night next June.

Sparkz47 wrote:

flyingturns89 wrote:Oh, and am I the only one questioning the fact that IndyCar has decided that, even though it was 90 degrees in Houston in October, to move the race to the last weekend in June?

Hm...that is an interesting change. As a matter of fact, it brings something else to mind...



For those unaware, that's the finish of the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix. Needless to say, there was no 1985 Dallas Grand Prix.

Then again, Texas in the summer time. Sure Houston is humid as a sauna, but I figure 80 degrees and humid is better than 100 and humid

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/110700

Brazil will not have a place on the IndyCar Schedule for the 2014 Season.

BWardboy88 wrote:http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/110700

Brazil will not have a place on the IndyCar Schedule for the 2014 Season.

There's been some rumors that it'll come back but as the penultimate event.

Guess who's getting back together

http://hollywoodlife.com/2013/10/21/ashley-judd-dario-franchitti-reunion-car-crash/

Alpineopossum wrote:Guess who's getting back together

http://hollywoodlife.com/2013/10/21/ashley-judd-dario-franchitti-reunion-car-crash/

Dear Indycar news media,



In all honesty, I just won 25 bucks from my dad because I bet that they would be back together within 2 years!