On September 9, Tony George had a headache. It was bad enough that Sam Hornish Jr., IndyCar's three-time series champion and 2006 Indianapolis 500 winner, was planning to run several Nextel Cup races in the coming weeks to prepare for a possible, if not likely, jump to Penske Racing's NASCAR team. Now his newly-minted 2007 series champion and defending Indy winner - Dario Franchitti - was getting ready to make the same jump from Andretti Green Racing to Chip Ganassi's NASCAR crew. Something had to be done. Luckily, the phone call that would change the Indianapolis 500 was about to happen.
"TG - it's your old pal Robin Miller here. I just wanted to get your thoughts about Dario jumping ship to drive taxi cabs for the Chipster..."
...was how it started, a long conversation where Tony let Robin know he had had enough, and that it was time to do something about it. A week later, there was a press conference at Indianapoilis Motor Speedway, with the new IndyCar Director of Public Relations at the podium.
"Folks, thanks for coming out today. I know a lot of you in this room know me, but for those who don't, my name is Robin Miller, and I've been covering the Indianapolis 500 and open-wheel racing in America since before a lot of you folks were born. I'm totally sick that the last two champions of the greatest race in the world have decided to try their hand at NASCAR, and I'm also sick of this split between Champ Car and IndyCar. Now, I agree with my friend Tony George that the Indianapolis 500 is THE greatest event in motorsports, and it is about damn time that we get all of the best drivers in the world - as many as we can - Back to the Brickyard."
"Our Back to the Brickyard initiative is two-fold: purse and scheduling. Tony asked me how it could be that so many of our sport's greatest drivers were opting to drive tintops. Folks, we all know money talks, and this ain't twenty years ago. In 1989, Emerson Fittipaldi cleared a million large for winning the 500, and the total purse was over $5.7 million. Meanwhile, NASCAR was paying a pittance - $185k - to Darrell Waltrip for winning THEIR biggest race, and that year's total Daytona 500 purse was under $2 mil. Today, the race winners at Indy and Daytona are paid about the same, but their purse is over $8 million more than that of the Indy 500. Tony and I agree that's not getting it done."
Today, we proudly announce that the winner of the 2008 Indianapolis 500 will take home a check for $3.25 million, and the entire purse of the race will be $25 million, paying $450,000 for the 33rd-place finisher. We also announce that we are going too cap entries at five cars per team, lest Michael Andretti try to field eight cars so his entire family can come back in cars that will probably all break in the last ten laps or some such nonsense."
"Part Two of our Back to the Brickyard program will concern the schedule. You may notice all of the bulldozers and equipment around the outside of the Speedway. IMS is installing lights that will be ready for the '08 race. We won't actually use them in the race unless necessary, but they will be on so that qualifying and especially practice can take place at night."
"We also proudly announce that the 2008 Indianapolis 500 will take place Monday, May 26, beginning at 1:00 pm, eastern. Shifting the race to Monday should allow any driver that wants to go for the largest prize in American motorsports to do so. We will also have three days of pole qualifying, Sunday May 11, Saturday May 17, and Sunday May 18. Two of those days are not currently being used by certain other racing series, you might notice, but I assure you that is only a coincidence."
"To answer your biggest question, yes, we will be running spec Dallara-Hondas with Firestone tires for 2008. That is an issue that we will revisit following this year's race. We're not exactly taking it one thing at a time, but if we get a lot of teams saying they would bring cars if they could have different makes - something we would actually prefer, given Indy's history - we will absolutely address that. But for now, we are focusing on increasing the car count and the profile of the drivers here, to get back to the era when ALL of the best drivers strove for Brickyard glory. Good day, ladies and gentlemen (and you, Despain. *wink*)"
October 3 - At the press conference officially announcing Dario Franchitti as the new driver of his #40 Dodge Charger, Chip Ganassi indicates he is strongly looking into adding cars for Dario and Juan Pablo Montoya to his duo of Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon for the Indy 500. "We'll probably have a fifth car, too. Shouldn't be too hard to find a driver, I wouldn't think," says Chip.
November 10 - Roger Penske announces that despite struggles in qualifying for Nextel Cup races, Sam Hornish Jr. will race the entire 2008 Sprint Cup schedule for Penske Racing. The Captain also speculates "if Chip's bringing five cars to Indy, I'll most likely add cars myself. I'm pretty sure Sam would be up for it."
Feburary 17 - Following his first Daytona 500 win, Ryan Newman jokes that he'd like to thank Kurt Busch for pushing him to victory and that "Roger and I had a deal where if I won the 500 he'd put me in a car for Indy." Penske tells Newman he'll "look into that."
February 18 - Tony Stewart asks his guest, Daytona champ-Newman, if he thinks he can get Roger to put him into an IndyCar. Ryan tells Tony they were semi-seriously joking about it all night, and Tony declares "there ain't no way YOU are running the Indy 500 and I'm not."
February 20 - Despite failing to make the field for the Daytona 500, February is not an entirely lost month for former Formula One and Indianapolis 500 champion Jacques Villeneuve, as Chip Ganassi announces that Villeneuve will run his fifth and final car at Indianapolis, completing his stable of drivers that will, in fact, include Franchitti and Montoya, along with Dixon and Wheldon.
February 22 - Despite its best efforts to run a 2008 season, the Champ Car series closes shop. Immediately, IndyCar announces that all former Champ Car teams will receive additional technical support should they decide to run the IndyCar season. Only Gerry Forsythe's team declines, and ten Champ Car teams are added to the entry list for Indy.
February 24 - During a rain delay at the Auto Club 500, Roger Penske concedes that "if Chip's running five cars, I'm probably bringing five, too" and that he "wouldn't be opposed" to putting either of his stock car drivers into one or both of the seats he would need to fill.
February 27 - At the press conference announcing the National Guard's sponsorship of Panther Racing's single-car team, owner John Barnes states that they do not plan to run only one car at Indianapolis, but that no announcements would be made regarding other cars until late March, at the earliest.
March 1 - After Mark Martin drives his JR Motorsports Chevrolet to his first win as a Nationwide Series owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. casually mentions in the post-race press conference that he has seen the Delphi/National Guard IndyCar and that "it looks pretty cool along with my Cup car. You know, Daddy used to mention around Indy-time that he'd wished he tried the Indy 500 at least once."
March 3 - Team Red Bull announces Mike Skinner will be replacing the struggling A.J. Allmendinger in the #84 Toyota Camry. Red Bull GM Jay Frye declares "the team hasn't lost any faith in A.J. In fact, we're going to field a couple of cars at Indianapolis and he's going to be in the #84 for the Indy 500." No word on who the second driver could be.
March 27 - Andretti Green Racing announces they will field a fifth car with team co-owner Michael Andretti behind the wheel of the car #1, just as he was when he finished third.
April 7 - After a fourth-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway, Ryan Newman is announced as the driver of the Penske Racing #39 entry for the Indianapolis 500, where he will join Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe, and Sam Hornish Jr. as drivers, with a fifth driver to be determined. Kurt Busch denies he will drive the fifth car.
April 9 - At the Subway Fresh Fit 500 in Phoenix, Tony Stewart and A.J. Foyt announce Stewart will drive a Subway-sponsored #41 at the Indy 500, with Tony adding that he'll be exclusively eating Subway in attempt to be able to fit in the car better. Foyt adds that Stewart will join Darren Manning, who will drive the #14, and "probably at least one more guy you have heard of" for the race.
April 11 - The Indianapolis 500 entry list is released with fifty cars, including five each for Penske Racing (with one drivers TBA), Chip Ganassi Racing, and Andretti Green Racing. A.J. Foyt lists four entries (with two TBA), as does Panther Racing, who creates a stir with three TBA drivers - #48, #55, and #88. Newman/Haas/Lanigan adds a third car as TBA, with speculation that Paul Tracy will be behind the wheel.
April 14 - A.J. Foyt announces that Robby Gordon will drive his #31 car, and that he's "got a pretty hot driver in mind" for his fourth car, but is not ready to announce that driver.
April 20 - Kyle Busch wins the Nationwide Series Corona Mexico 200, his third straight series win. Fielding a question about winning in every kind of car, Kyle smiles and replies "not EVERY kind of car, not yet, anyway."
April 22 - A.J. Foyt announces Kyle Busch will drive his #32 car, completing his group of four drivers. Tony Stewart says "now Kyle will quit asking me about it, at last, and we'll see who is faster in May."
April 23 - Panther Racing announces their complete 2008 driver line-up, as joining Vitor Meira will be three well-known American drivers: former open-wheeler Casey Mears (nephew of four-time Indy champion Rick Mears), four-time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon, and the most popular driver in America, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Junior explains "the National Guard people brought it up kind of off-the-cuff, and I mentioned it to Jeff which was a big mistake, because Mr. Hendrick would let Jeff do just about anything he wants, and then Casey got wind of it while Jeff was pestering me, and eventually we all ended up here." Jimmie Johnson admits he is intrigued by the idea of joining his Hendrick teammates, but decided to let those guys give it a shot and see about next year because of what we are trying to accomplish in NASCAR with three straight championships."
April 26 - Dario Franchitti suffers a broken ankle in a crash during the Nationwide Series Aaron's 312 at Talladega. Franchitti ruefully allows that is is "extremely unlikely" that he will be able to run at Indianapolis, but perks up at the notion of several weeks out of the car with his lovely wife.
April 27 - Chip Ganassi insists he plans to go forward with five cars for Indy, despite Franchitti's injury.
April 28 - Penske Racing announces Paul Tracy will complete their five driver-lineup. PT admits he was close to signing with NHLR, but decided "to go with Roger in better equipment instead of that #### Bourdais used to drive".
April 29 - Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, spurned by Paul Tracy, turns to an unlikely source to fill their third car - Sprint Cup star Carl Edwards. Edwards says the whole thing was Doug Yates' idea, and as a tribute, NHLR officals say the plan to put the #28 on Edwards' car.
May 1 - Despite an apparent dearth of available drivers, Chip Ganassi announces that he had found a replacement driver for Dario Franchitti, and yes, he went to an old reliable source - ex-Formula One drivers. Ganassi rocks the racing world but installing seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher in the car. Schumacher admits he is "excited to drive in the most famous race in the world", but deflects a question about whether he can win the Rookie of the Year award with "I don't feel like a rookie being seven-time world champion, no?"
May 11 - Pole Day qualifying goes mostly as expected, with IndyCar's Big Three teams dominating the charts. Scott Dixon continues his strong performance for the month by taking the pole, fending off challenges from first his teammate Wheldon, then Sam Hornish Jr., who qualifies second to split the Ganassi drivers on row 1. The reverse occurs on row 2, where Ryan Briscoe and Helio Castroneves sit outside Juan Pablo Montoya's #42, who returns to Indy qualifying fifth. Motegi-winner Danica Patrick briefly holds the pole, then sits on her time to qualify seventh, with her AGR teammate Tony Kanaan eighth and Schumacher a satisfied ninth. Marco Andretti sits tenth, and Tony Stewart makes a late run to take the final spot in the top-eleven qualifiers.
May 17 - Day Two of qualifying sees Kyle Busch take the first attempt, post a speed that would have placed him third on the grid, and leaves the speedway via helicopter to fly to the Sprint All-Star Challenge in Charlotte. Jacques Villeneuve puts the #44 Ganassi-mobile inside row 5, joining Vitor Meira and Paul Tracy. Michael Andretti, Robby Gordon and Jeff Gordon in the #48 are solid in row 6. A.J. Allmendinger lands in the middle of row 7 with Hideki Mutoh inside and Ed Carpenter outside, and follows it up by qualifying for the Sprint All-Star Challenge by winning the Sprint Showdown qualifying race. Tomas Scheckter leads row 8, with the surprising Townsend Bell and Casey Mears joining him. Graham Rahal qualified 25th, Scott Speed 26th, and Darren Manning 27th to make up row 9, and Bruno Junqueira seemed to be safely in the field after qualifying 28th.
May 18 - A mix of IndyCar, Champ Car, and NASCAR veterans looked to lock their place in the field on Bump Day 2008. Sarah Fisher had her own car bumped from the grid by Ryan Newman, who would qualify 29th. Justin Wilson's strong qualifying run bumped fellow "transitional" driver, Champ Car alum Will Power out of the field and put him on the outside of row 10, and while they both admitted they would have been "kind of" embarrassed had they failed to qualify, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Carl Edwards both managed to find the tail end of the field, in 31th and 32nd. The final half-hour of qualifying was extremely action-packed, with a series of bumps that saw Fisher, Power, 1996 champion Buddy Lazier Davey Hamilton, and rookie Alex Lloyd in the field, then out with 2004 Indy 500 champion Buddy Rice bumping Hamilton on the day's final attempt to take the final spot on the grid.
May 26 - The 92nd Indianapolis 500 waas one of the most anticipated races in recent memory, with nine Formula One championships, seven Indianapolis 500 championships, five Daytona 500 championships, and six NASCAR championships among its competitors. The early start of the race was Kyle Busch, who had moved from twelfth qualifying spot to fourth in ten laps, then led 46 laps in the early going before cementing his place and the most hated driver in America, spinning out in turn 4 while lapping Dale Earnhardt Jr, a wreck that also collected Danica Patrick, third at the time, for her first Indy 500 DNF. Robby Gordon and both Red Bull cars were eliminated after Robby but A.J. Allmendinger on pit road, damaging both cars and collecting Allmendinger's teammate, Scott Speed, who was leaving his pit. Chip Ganassi's team saw mixed results, as the usually reliable Honda engine failed both Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon while his other three cars were strong all day. Michael Andretti's lap 183 crash - after gaining a ten-second lead his steering wheel fell off for no discernible reason, sending him into the SAFER barrier - brought the field together for one last restart with twelve laps remaining. As Michael Schumacher led the field to the restart, he spun the tires and allowed the Tonys, Kanaan and Stewart to pass. Sam Hornish and Helio Castroneves hounded Schumacher for third, but soon Juan Pablo Montoya was in the mix as well, passing Helio on the backstretch with eight laps remaining to take fifth. With three laps remaining, Kanaan and Stewart diced it up at the front, exchanging the lead through turns one and two, and again through three and four, with TK out front, while Helio's bold three-wide pass of Hornish and Montoya gave him a run the allowed him to sweep past Schmuacher for third. On the final lap, Kanaan and Stewart, both victims of repeated bad luck at Indy, locked wheels and both spun into the turn one wall, giving Helio Castroneves the 2008 Indianapolis 500 title, with Montoya second, followed by Schumacher, Hornish, Paul Tracy, and Jacques Villeneuve. Graham Rahal finished a surprising seventh, Marco Andretti finished eighth, with Vitor Meira ninth, just ahead of his teammate for a day, Jeff Gordon. Kanaan was scored tenth, with Stewart, trying to accomplish the unprecedented double after winning Sunday's Coca Cola 600, forced to watch Helio climb the fence instead of him.
Great story, JJ. So, were their just 38 cars entered for your Indy 500? Five cars were bumped on the final day. Just wondering how many entrants you had.
Would your race be so easy to make that a driver with no open wheel experience, such as Dale Jr, could make the race? Or, are the cars that easy to drive?
Good to see you're such a good writer, with an imagination, and not just the number cruncher some of us thought you were.
Great story, JJ. So, were their just 38 cars entered for your Indy 500? Five cars were bumped on the final day. Just wondering how many entrants you had.
Would your race be so easy to make that a driver with no open wheel experience, such as Dale Jr, could make the race? Or, are the cars that easy to drive?
I ended up with fifty cars total, and I ended up leaving the grid as is but inserting the added drivers. I ended up putting in every driver I added (because that wouldn't have been interesting) but I pretty much figured that all of the stock car guys would get in with top-flight equipment or close to it, compared to the transition teams whose drivers have very little experience on ovals. I'm sure if you gave guys like Edwards, Newman, and Junior a couple of weeks of practice and a good car the could be in the top-33 of this group, but I had all of those guys in the back of the grid, obviously.
What an imaginative fictional account of the 92nd Indy 500. Great story. Would be stunning beyond belief if even a fraction of those drivers from NASCAR ever decided to run the 500 the same year.
Somehow I think the race I will be seeing at the Speedway on Sunday will be a little less colorful that the one you have created. But still looking forward to a fun Sunday.
I'd rather the Nextel Cup champion be decided over the entire season, but I think if you are going to have a Chase for the Nextel Cup, you should break out the twelve guys and have them scored separately, so I'm tracking the points both ways.
I also strongly advocate a NCAA football playoff, so there will be some posts about that showing up here, although I have written this blog for over a year and haven't gone there yet.
I can be reached via e-mail or AIM at jayjaydean at gmail dot com.
