What rules should there be for late-race cautions?

The red flag in the closing stages of Saturday's INDYCAR race at Detroit created some debate on whether the sanctioning body should throw out the red flag to prevent a race from finishing under caution. This happened only a week after Formula One's Azerbaijan Grand Prix where similarly a red flag was thrown out to prevent the race finishing under caution.

On one hand, it's a fair argument to say that a caution doesn't warrant a red flag at any other stage in the race. On the other hand, many fans want to see the race finishing under green conditions.

NASCAR's solution to get an attempt at a green-flag finish is the overtime, i.e. green-white-checker, possibly going beyond the advertised race distance. One particular issue with this is some cars possibly running out of the fuel after the restart, which is why I don't think open-wheel racing should adopt this rule.

That being said, I'm still in favor of INDYCAR and F1 throwing out the red flag in order to get an attempt at a green-flag finish. But my issue with that practice is the lack of consistency. Sometimes you see a late-race red flag whereas sometimes in similar circumstances the race control just lets the race run out of laps behind the pace car.

What I'd like to see is a clear rule for late-race cautions bringing out the red flag. Of course, sometimes it's too late to throw out the red flag as you'll need a lap to bring the field into the pit road and another one to lead the field to the start-finish line for the restart. If it's an oval, I think you'd need at least two laps after the restart to justify the red flag. On a road or street course, I think one lap would be enough because of the longer lap times. Either way, the red flag should come with more than three laps (road or street courses) or four laps (ovals) remaining.

The other thing is how late in the race it should be to throw out the red flag under caution. Even a quick full-course yellow will likely take at least three laps, more likely four or five, and even more on a short oval. So basically you should red-flag a race if caution comes out with less than six or seven laps remaining, or maybe even ten laps on an oval.

Anyway, here's what I think what the rules for late-race cautions should look like:

If the race goes under caution with less than 7 laps (road or street course) or 10 laps (oval) remaining, it will be red-flagged and restarted (if the track can be cleared in a timely manner).

If the race goes under caution with less than 3 laps (road or street course) or 4 laps (oval) remaining, it will not be red-flagged (and likely finish under caution).

Of course, the argument for cautions earlier in the race not bringing out the red flag stands. However, you can take those earlier cautions into account in your strategy. Just like a finish under caution could bail out a driver low on fuel, an earlier caution may put him inside the fuel window. However, even those with more fuel can use those earlier cautions in their favor by needing shorter pit stops and shortening the remaining tire stints. On the other hand, a late-race caution may deny the final attack by the driver with more fuel and fresher tires. And besides that, finishing under caution when it's preventable is a bad look for the sport. There just needs to be transparent rules to make the policy consistent.

What made Detroit's late-race red flag even more controversial was an overheated ECU denying the race leader Will Power a chance to go for the win at the restart. However, the problem in that case was not the red flag but the rules preventing the mechanics from placing fans to cool down the leader's car while the field was still lining up on the pit road. While I think INDYCAR made the right decision to red-flag the race, the rules should be revised to prevent mechanical failures from the red flag procedure.

Overseas fans need access to INDYCAR's American coverage

The frustration of INDYCAR's international fan base about not being able to watch the Indianapolis 500 practice sessions (in official ways) has made me think about the future of INDYCAR's international broadcasting. In this text I will explain why I think an international streaming platform operated by INDYCAR's American broadcasting partner would be the best solution.

In the USA, a traditional TV-based broadcasting model is still very much a must for INDYCAR. Free-to-air coverage, like the Indy 500 and seven other races get, is still the best display window for the sport despite streaming platforms challenging the linear television.

However, INDYCAR is unlikely to get free-to-air coverage almost everywhere outside the States. It may get some occasional new viewers on the pay-per-view sports channels it is on, however the cost of those pay channels also prevents some fans from watching the series. Also, there are even countries where there are no (official) ways to watch INDYCAR. A (reasonably-priced) international streaming platform would enable reaching those fans INDYCAR has overseas.

It might not make sense for INDYCAR to set up their own international streaming platform, especially as they couldn't use it in America where their biggest following is. INDYCAR needs a mainstream broadcasting partner in the USA; they couldn't reach a similar audience there by only streaming the races.

The most sensible solution might be selling the international streaming rights together with the American rights. The American broadcaster would be mandated to offer an all-inclusive streaming package outside the USA. It shouldn't be too difficult for the American broadcaster to offer the international streaming. They are already producing the coverage and they already have the technology for a streaming platform. All they'd have to do is to monetize the international interest in INDYCAR.

I'd see this as an ideal solution for the international broadcasting of INDYCAR. This way fans from around the world could enjoy all the content the American broadcaster offers to the American fans. Given Indy car racing's overseas status as a niche sport, hardly any international broadcaster is going to put as much effort into their INDYCAR coverage as the American broadcaster does.

Of course, TV coverage can still help to reach new viewers who wouldn't subscribe to a streaming service. Also, local broadcasters can provide commentary in local languages as opposed to an international stream in English. Even if there was a streaming package, INDYCAR should still look for overseas TV partners. A streaming package doesn't necessarily rule out TV deals. As an example, the ATP Tour, where INDYCAR's CEO Mark Miles has a background, has its Tennis TV streaming package available globally. That still doesn't stop the ATP making local broadcasting deals with TV networks, many of which are also offering their own streaming services.

INDYCAR announces the 2019 schedule, COTA included

The schedule for the 2019 INDYCAR season has been released. The biggest changes from 2018 are Circuit of The Americas replacing ISM Raceway as the second round of the championship and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca replacing Sonoma Raceway as the season finale. Minor changes include the race at Barber Motorsports Park taking place two weeks earlier and Iowa Speedway's new date two weeks later in Saturday night.

First visit to COTA for INDYCAR

The decision not to continue INDYCAR racing at Phoenix left an opening in the schedule which is filled by Circuit of The Americas, the venue of Formula One's United States Grand Prix. The race in Austin became possible after Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth was no longer granted territorial exclusivity in the state of Texas.

The 3.4-mile track of COTA is arguably the most modern road course in the USA. The track has been well-received in F1 with a layout consisting of some flowing turns, long straights providing passing opportunities, and some elevation changes.

Being built to meet F1's safety standards, COTA has big paved runoffs, which will be different from the other INDYCAR road courses. When most other road courses in America have clear physical track limits, IMSA had trouble in policing the track limits in its races at COTA. Hopefully that will not cause too many problems in the INDYCAR race.

COTA doesn't have a great record in hosting other series than F1 and MotoGP. The track hosted both IMSA and the FIA WEC, originally as a doubleheader, then as separate events in 2017. Poor attendance led to both series leaving the venue for the 2018 season.

INDYCAR has struggled to draw a big crowd at many NASCAR venues, Phoenix which got replaced by COTA as an example. I think going to an F1 venue has the same risk; there is a bigger event than INDYCAR at COTA. However, Pocono Raceway has shown you can get a decent crowd for INDYCAR even at venues with bigger events. Hopefully COTA will do good job with promotion to get a good crowd for INDYCAR. At least it's a venue located next to a big city like Austin.

Laguna Seca replaces Sonoma

Following the announcement of WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca being included in the 2019 INDYCAR schedule, another Northern California venue Sonoma Raceway chose not to pursue an extension for its race which had been in the schedule every year since 2005. Like Sonoma until this year, Laguna Seca will host the championship finale.

Sonoma was often criticized for the difficulty of passing. Laguna Seca may not be much better even though it's one of the most famous road courses in America with a long Indy car history. Sonoma was a fine location for sponsors with wineries nearby the track, though the attendance for INDYCAR races was never great. At Sonoma, INDYCAR faced competition from NASCAR and NHRA. On the other hand, INDYCAR will arguably be the biggest racing event at Laguna Seca which also hosts IMSA and the World Superbike Championship.

Time will tell if INDYCAR draws a bigger crowd at Laguna Seca than it's drawn at Sonoma. Though the success of returning old events at venues like Gateway Motorsports Park and Portland International Raceway has shown INDYCAR tends to draw bigger crowds at non-NASCAR Cup Series venues.

Big gaps in the schedule

Even though the INDYCAR schedule is barely six months long, it's had some big gaps and in 2019 there will be even more big gaps.

With COTA added to late March and Barber taking the old Phoenix date, there will not be a four-week gap after the season opener of St. Petersburg like there was in recent years. However, there will be a four-week gap between Long Beach and the Indianapolis road course. I still think it's better this way; you get the season started with a streak of races, then you have a break before five consecutive weeks of racing or qualifying at Indy, Detroit, and Texas.

The change to Saturday night required Iowa Speedway's date to be pushed back by two weeks to avoid a conflict on TV with Saturday night NASCAR racing. With Road America and Toronto keeping their dates from 2018, there will be a three-week gap between those races.

As Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course keeps its date from 2018, it means there will be three consecutive weeks of racing with Toronto and Iowa in the previous weeks. INDYCAR and Mid-Ohio probably didn't want to push the race back by one week, even though there will still be a three-week gap between Mid-Ohio and the following race at Pocono.

The season will finish one week later in 2019 than it does in 2018. Portland keeps the Labor Day weekend date from 2018 and the following weekend is probably out of question for INDYCAR because of the Brickyard NASCAR weekend. With IMSA scheduled for Laguna Seca two weeks after the Portland INDYCAR race, INDYCAR needs to wait one more week for the season finale.

I hope INDYCAR can find additional races or rearrange the existing ones to fill some of those gaps in the future schedules. I assume Barber will return to its usual date when it doesn't fall into the Easter weekend, shortening the gap before Indianapolis. Then again, there would still be some space in the early season. If Mexico became an option again, it would logistically make sense to have it after Austin.

The breaks in early July and early August call for a new race. Richmond Raceway was apparently a strong candidate to be included in the 2019 schedule. With NASCAR races in April and September, either July or August would seem like a suitable INDYCAR date for Richmond. With only five oval races in the 17-race 2019 schedule, it would be good to see the number of ovals increased in the future.

The gap before Laguna Seca is the one I like the least. Three weeks between the last two races is a giant momentum killer. As an INDYCAR-IMSA doubleheader at Laguna Seca is probably out of question, just swapping the two series at the venue's schedule would seem like an obvious solution to shorten the gap after Portland. Another option would be adding a new race. With Chicagoland Speedway's NASCAR weekend moved to midsummer and Kentucky Speedway having lost its standalone Xfinity Series fall race, those two oval venues close to INDYCAR's Midwestern fanbase might have space in their schedule in early September.

As for potential future overseas races, it would be hard to fit any races in the northern hemisphere in the current schedule as you'd need at least one off-weekend to freight the cars overseas and another off-weekend to freight them back to America. Unless Barber kept its date from 2019 into the future seasons, you'd need to rearrange the schedule to open space for overseas races.

Where will Fernando Alonso race in 2019?

Fernando Alonso's announcement to leave Formula One after the current season has heated up the speculation about his plans for 2019. While he will finish the FIA World Endurance Championship season with Toyota Gazoo Racing in the first half of 2019, the dates of those races probably wouldn't prevent him from doing the full season in the Verizon IndyCar Series.

Alonso racing in the 103rd Running of the Indianapolis 500 next May feels like a no-brainer. He wants to complete the Triple Crown of Indianapolis 500, 24 Hours of Le Mans, and Monaco Grand Prix victories, and it's only the Indy 500 win he's missing. He already had an impressive debut at Indy in 2017 and getting a seat for the 500 next year shouldn't be a problem for him. There are surely teams that want to run him, and although Alonso has been one of the best-paid drivers in F1, money should only be a secondary consideration when he's aiming for such a special achievement.

Might Alonso join INDYCAR full-time?

But as Alonso is leaving F1 and has only three WEC races in 2019 in his Toyota contract, might he be joining the Verizon IndyCar Series full-time? I think this is where money may come into question.

Alonso's goal in INDYCAR is to win the Indy 500. His Indy debut showed he doesn't need to run races before Indy to be competitive in the 500. Of course, he could go for the series championship if he did the full INDYCAR season, though I'm not sure how high that is among his priorities. If a Verizon IndyCar Series championship was such a big goal for him, I might have imagined him leaving F1 for INDYCAR already after the last year when it already seemed like he isn't getting into winning machinery in F1.

If Alonso joins INDYCAR full-time, I don't think it will happen on the cheap. A two-time F1 World Champion surely knows his value. Probably every team in the INDYCAR paddock would like a driver of Alonso's caliber but which teams can afford him?

If Alonso does the full season, I think it will be in the possible McLaren entry in a partnership with an existing team. If McLaren enters INDYCAR, Alonso would surely be their first choice to drive their entry. In 2017, McLaren partnered with Andretti Autosport to run Alonso at Indy. However, Andretti already has contracts with three of their current four full-time drivers, Alexander Rossi, Ryan Hunter-Reay, and Zach Veach. Would Michael Andretti drop his son Marco from the team's lineup to make space for Alonso?

Another potential issue with a McLaren-Andretti partnership is the Honda engines. Honda already supplies engines to more cars than the other manufacturer, Chevrolet, does. That might prevent Andretti adding a fifth Honda-powered car to their lineup. Also, any team running Alonso might ask the engine manufacturer to foot Alonso's salary. Following McLaren's criticism of the poor performance of the Japanese manufacturer's F1 power units, Honda may not be willing to be associated with McLaren's INDYCAR program. Besides, Alonso is driving for Honda's arch rival Toyota in the WEC. It's not even obvious Toyota would let him race in a Honda-powered Indy car.

There are rumors about Harding Racing becoming Andretti's satellite team. That might be a solution if Honda engines would be a problem in a McLaren-Andretti partnership as Harding is using Chevy power. Harding has not set the world on fire in their first full Verizon IndyCar Series season, though maybe a partnership with Andretti and McLaren would strengthen their engineering department to give Alonso a car to contend for wins. After the miserable last few seasons in F1, Alonso surely wants to get into a winning car if he joins INDYCAR.

As for other teams in the Chevy camp, Ed Carpenter Racing has usually been strong at the 500. That might be an option, especially if Alonso and McLaren are doing only the 500, not the full season. Though, whether it's drivers or the team, ECR has not made the podium on road and street courses ever since Josef Newgarden left the team. ECR may not be the best team for Alonso and McLaren to aim for the series championship.

Team Penske might be team that could best afford running Alonso, even without a partnership with McLaren. Though Roger Penske all but ruled out running Tony Stewart in the 500 as they already have four cars for next year. That sounds like the team will retain Simon Pagenaud whose contract expires after the current season. Or might they already have a contract in place with Alonso?

That being said, I wouldn't even be sure about Penske willing to run McLaren's INDYCAR program. McLaren's plan is to start with an existing team, then switch to operating the team independently. Team Penske probably already has their hands full with their existing programs and have sponsors for their cars; why would Penske jump-start a potential future rival's INDYCAR program?

Of course, McLaren doesn't have endlessly time to finalize the INDYCAR program for 2019. Their lead program in F1 isn't delivering the expected results. Can McLaren in their current situation expand their racing activities to INDYCAR? If not, then I'm not sure we'll see Alonso racing full-time in INDYCAR.

Is WEC an option beyond current season?

If Alonso doesn't join INDYCAR full-time in 2019, he'll have quite an open schedule for the year. Even if he did the Indy 500, he'd only have four races in his schedule, all before July. Might a WEC contract extension with Toyota be a possibility?

Alonso joined Toyota's WEC program with the goal of winning the Le Mans as the second leg of the Triple Crown. He is also leading the WEC points standings with his No. 8 Toyota having beaten the No. 7 sister car in both two races this season. If he goes and wins the World Endurance Drivers' Championship, he will have achieved the two most important titles in the series.

With the Le Mans win now on his resume, winning the Indy 500 must be Alonso's big goal. But it doesn't rule out staying in the WEC. As long as it's fine for the WEC team, Alonso can do the 500 as a part-time entry and be competitive. If Toyota offered Alonso more money for a contract extension than any INDYCAR team can afford, I wouldn't be surprised to see him staying in the WEC and doing only the 500 in INDYCAR. Combining full INDYCAR and WEC seasons may not be possible because of possible date clashes, like Pocono and Silverstone this year. And even if it was, I'm not sure Alonso wants to commit to such a heavy schedule for another season.

The winter schedule of the WEC might still be problematic for Alonso. With the season finishing in June, there might be schedule clashes if he was to join another series with a calendar-year schedule. That wouldn't likely be a problem with INDYCAR next year, however. Though if Alonso is eyeing an F1 comeback, that might be problematic.

Might Alonso make an F1 comeback?

It feels like the lack of a competitive seat and the chase of the Indy 500 win were the reasons for Alonso to leave F1. At the age of 37, he's the second-oldest active F1 driver. However, one can't say he's too old for an F1 comeback. F1 is just an environment where drivers are brought in early and pushed out early. You can still stay or even return as long as you can show you're worthy of a seat.

Despite his decision to leave F1 after the current season, I wouldn't be too surprised if he jumped at the opportunity to make a comeback in a winning team. I think the fact that he stayed in F1 for another season after his Indy debut shows he still had ambitions in F1. The decision to leave F1 feels more like a realization he can't reach his ambitions in the current circumstances. If he could get back into a competitive car, I wouldn't be surprised to see him back in F1.

For sure, Alonso wants to win the Indy 500. But he's still got at least a decade to go for it. He can return to F1, and still return again to Indy in his hunt of the 500 win. Bobby Unser and Al Unser Sr. were 47 at the time of their last 500 wins, 1981 and 1987 respectively. Even in today's INDYCAR, drivers in their 40s can have success.

Are INDYCAR and WEC Alonso's only options?

When thinking about Fernando Alonso's options for 2019 beyond completing the WEC season with Toyota, running at the Indy 500 feels rather likely. A full Verizon IndyCar Series season is surely a possibility, and also staying in the WEC feels possible.

Beyond INDYCAR and the WEC, the only other option I might imagine for Alonso is Formula E with its increasing manufacturer involvement. Formula E may not take him towards the goal of winning the Indy 500, though maybe some manufacturer might like to spend some big money on attracting a star driver. With a winter schedule like the WEC, Alonso could join Formula E for a new season after he's finished the WEC season. However, unless the Formula E schedule was changed from the previous years, it might clash with the Indy 500 or at least the 500 practice and qualifications.

Personally, I hope Alonso joins INDYCAR full-time in a pursuit of not only the 500 win but also the series championship. That would send a message to other F1 drivers and fans that there's more to motorsports than just F1. INDYCAR has a product that should appeal to F1 fans; a familiar name should bring F1 fans watching INDYCAR. If Alonso did the full season, the fans that tune in to see him racing would see all sides of INDYCAR; not only the high-speed oval of Indianapolis but also the fast road courses like Road America, rough street courses like Detroit, and short ovals like the bullring of Iowa.

What direction should IMSA take with prototypes?

There are two questions around the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship's top class. For 2019 the question is if IMSA should split the Prototype class into separate DPi and LMP2 classes. For the 2020s the question is if IMSA should align its top class with the FIA World Endurance Championship.

Should IMSA split the prototype class?

The idea of splitting DPi and LMP2 cars into separate classes gained traction after the early season was dominated by the DPi cars. However, the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen saw Oreca LMP2 cars achieving a 1-2 win despite the Pro-Am driver lineups JDC-Miller Motorsports and CORE autosport were running.

Watkins Glen may be the track best-suited to LMP2 cars after its repave some years ago. On such a smooth surface, the DPi cars won't benefit so much from the custom-made shock absorbers as opposed to the spec shocks of the LMP2 machines. Besides, on a flowing layout like Watkins Glen, the DPi machines won't benefit as much from any torque advantage they may have.

The DPis may be superior cars and the Balance of Performance is restricting them a lot. However, the idea of the joint DPi-LMP2 Prototype class was to use the best LMP2 car as the benchmark for the BoP and the DPi manufacturers should know it. If an LMP2 car occasionally beats a DPi car, it shows the BoP has allowed the inferior LMP2 cars to be competitive. That's the purpose of the BoP, to put cars of different performance on the same line. I'm sure IMSA is doing their best to make the BoP fair but it's not easy to balance different cars. Sometimes the LMP2 cars have the advantage, like they did at Watkins Glen, though most of the times the DPi cars have been the fastest.

A major reason for the better results of the DPi teams is that they are running all-Pro lineups as opposed to the LMP2 teams running mostly Pro-Am lineups. Last year's only win for an LMP2 car was achieved by the VisitFlorida-sponsored Sprit of Daytona Racing with an all-Pro lineup. Besides, Team Penske had a strong performance at last year's Motul Petit Le Mans with an Oreca LMP2 car while running an all-Pro lineup.

In a way, splitting the Prototype class could make the WeatherTech Championship more attractive also to LMP2 teams. Instead of being also-rans behind the DPi cars, the LMP2 teams would be racing for a class win behind the DPi cars.

Even if there was a separate podium for the Pro-Am LMP2 cars, I still don't see why the best LMP2 car couldn't be used as the benchmark for the BoP of the DPi cars as DPi needs a BoP anyway. If there's an LMP2 team that wants to go for overall wins with an all-Pro lineup, why shouldn't they be able to do it. If a WEC or ELMS team wants to race at Daytona or Sebring, it's very difficult to get a DPi car whereas currently they can use their own LMP2 car. As all the DPi cars are derived from the LMP2 cars, I don't see why the inclusion of the Gibson-powered LMP2 cars would make the BoP process that much more difficult.

The biggest problem in balancing the DPi and LMP2 cars may be the development of the DPis as opposed to the homologated LMP2s. However, a simple solution would be to limit the DPi cars development. They all are already faster than the benchmark LMP2 car so you could just freeze the DPis' development. That way the BoP process would be less of guessing game after the winter break.

In short, I'm all for a greater recognition of the top Pro-Am LMP2 cars. But I still hope LMP2 is used as the benchmark for the BoP of the DPi cars, allowing the LMP2 race for overall wins.

Should IMSA align the top class with the FIA WEC

The ACO has released details of the new top-class prototypes of the FIA World Endurance Championship. Like the DPi cars, the new top-class prototypes in the WEC will feature manufacturer-specific styling cues, though instead of the "LMP-look", the new cars will be reminiscent of the manufacturers' road-going hypercars and will be hybrid-powered.

The new prototypes are set to make their debut in the 2020-21 WEC season. IMSA will continue with the DPi cars until the 2021 season, however it may align its top class with the WEC for the 2022 season.

A global top class would have certain benefits. For the first time in decades, the same cars could go for the overall wins at Daytona, Sebring, and Le Mans. Besides, a global top class could be more attractive to manufacturers; for example Ford chose to enter GTE instead of prototype racing because it allows racing in both the WEC and IMSA. On the other hand, some manufacturers might choose to compete only in one series, like Corvette does in IMSA, and Ferrari and Aston Martin in the WEC with their GTE cars, entering only the marquee races of the other series.

However, the cost of the WEC's new top class may keep IMSA from adopting the rules. While the budgets will go down significantly from the LMP1-hybrid budgets, the WEC's new class will still be more expensive than the DPi programs are.

I'd happily see a common top class for the WEC and IMSA. But it shouldn't come at the price of the product IMSA has now. Maybe IMSA could gain a new manufacturer or a few of them. Then again, some of the current DPi manufacturers might deem the new top class to be too expensive. If a global top class would mean less manufacturers than DPi currently has, then I hope IMSA will go its own way.

Privateers could be the biggest losers if IMSA adopts the global top class. Although the OEMs will have to sell the hybrid system at a given price to private constructors, a privateer program in the new top class will likely by more expensive than an LMP2 program or a customer DPi program like Tequila Patrón ESM's Nissan program currently is. Plus there is no guarantee the privateers will have an access to winning cars in the new top class like they currently have in IMSA's Prototype class.

I'm not convinced the WEC's new top class would further enhance the competition in IMSA. If anything, it could turn the Prototype class into a playground of factory teams, forcing privateers and some of the current DPi customer teams into other classes. If there is a less expensive way attract a good number of manufacturers and privateers, IMSA should choose it over a common top class with the WEC. Maybe LMP2 like currently, instead of LMP1 or whatever the WEC's top class will be called, is a better base for IMSA's Prototype class. Once the current LMP2 regulations expire in 2021, maybe IMSA should create a new DPi class around the new LMP2 rules.

NBC contract promises good things for INDYCAR

INDYCAR and NBC Sports Group have announced a three-year broadcasting contract, bringing the entire Verizon IndyCar Series to NBC's platforms. The new contract will end the split coverage between ABC and NBCSN, the first of which had covered the Indianapolis 500 ever since 1965.

Under the new contract, NBC will broadcast eight races, including the Indy 500, free-to-air as opposed to five under the previous contract with ABC. According to an AP article, NBC will also broadcast the 500 qualifications free-to-air, like ABC has done. The rest of the races will be broadcast on NBC Sports Network on cable, and all races will be live streamed to authenticated subscribers on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app.

In addition to the coverage on NBC and NBCSN, NBC Sports Gold will offer a streaming package including the practice and qualifying sessions not shown live on TV as well as the Indy Lights races and full-event replays.

NBC becoming the sole broadcaster of INDYCAR is positive for a number of reasons. First of all, it will end the confusing split between two broadcasters. For example, the upcoming schedule shown in ABC's telecast from the season opener in St. Petersburg excluded the upcoming three races shown on NBCSN and listed only the Month of May shown on ABC.

Secondly, NBC has done superior work with their cable broadcasts compared to ABC's broadcasts. NBC's commentators have done better job than their colleagues on ABC and as have also NBC's TV directors. Not only that but they have also reserved more time for the pre- and postrace coverage on NBCSN and have even televised some practice and qualifying sessions unlike ABC.

Most importantly, NBC seems more committed to covering INDYCAR than ABC and ESPN have been. I can't watch the American broadcasters here in Finland but as far as I know, ABC has done little to promote their INDYCAR coverage. For example, during the season-opening St. Petersburg weekend, I couldn't see any mention about INDYCAR on ABC or ESPN's Twitter accounts. On the other hand, NBC provided updates also from that race despite not broadcasting it.

NBCSN has grown the audience of its INDYCAR cable broadcasts by 78 percent since 2013. Meanwhile the growth of INDYCAR's free-to-air audience has stalled on ABC and the Indy 500 earned its lowest TV rating ever last year. It was time to move away from ABC.

I believe NBC can take the INDYCAR coverage to a new level. Not only their broadcasts have been superior to ABC's but they also appear to be more committed to covering the sport. ABC and ESPN have done little to cover the series besides fulfilling the broadcasting commitments as opposed to NBC whose motorsports department provides updates from the sport also between the races.

The increased number of races that will be shown free-to-air will increase the reach of the series and is also a promising sign of the state of INDYCAR. The Indy 500 will be a part of NBC's Championship Season alongside other sports' marquee events and should get the attention it deserves. NBC has already revived the Kentucky Derby's TV ratings after years of decline on ABC. The 500 is in a similar situation now, going from ABC to NBC.

As opposed to the previous six-year contract with ABC and ten-year contract with NBCSN (previously Versus), this new NBC contract is only three years. I think having a short contract now can be a good thing for INDYCAR as the media landscape is undergoing some big changes. Also, there are so many positive things around INDYCAR now that in three years the series can be in an even better position for the contract negotiations.

NBC Sports Gold complements coverage but doesn't replace cable yet

What is new in the new broadcasting contract is NBC's coverage from all practice and qualifying sessions on NBC Sports Gold. That will apparently be the end of the free streaming of those sessions on YouTube, though the wording of the announcement implies some of them may possibly be televised. The NBC Sports Gold package will also include full-event replays, which I hope won't be the end of race uploads on YouTube. That would be a step backwards, especially when also NASCAR uploads their races to YouTube.

This NBC Sports Gold package is probably NBC and INDYCAR dipping their toes into over-the-top offering, though mostly this is NBC offering the content that doesn't fit their TV channels' programming. This package still doesn't answer the demand to offer an alternative for cable subscription, like MotoGP does with the Videopass and now also F1 with the F1 TV OTT service.

Over-the-top services are challenging the traditional business model of sports broadcasters. People don't want to pay for cable channels if there is a less expensive way to watch exactly what they want to see. There are surely fans without a cable subscription who would subscribe to an all-inclusive INDYCAR OTT package. Then again, even a cable channel can be a great display window for INDYCAR to reach those people who wouldn't subscribe to the OTT package. Last year NBCSN reached 71 percent of American households, though the trend of cord cutting may bring that number down considerably in the near future.

The way I see the future of INDYCAR broadcasting, broadcast television will remain an effective media long into the future to reach and gain fans. It's important to have a high number of races shown free-to-air. Though the increasing rate of cord cutting will reduce the potential reach of the cable broadcasts. After this new contract will have expired in 2021, I hope INDYCAR will offer an all-inclusive OTT package to reach those fans without a cable subscription, instead of losing them to F1 and other series which have one.

For an OTT service, I think a platform like NBC Sports Gold would be better for INDYCAR than an own service. Using an existing platform wouldn't require investing in an own platform and the OTT package could be integrated in the broadcaster's INDYCAR offering. Being affiliated with a broadcaster has certain valuable benefits, like the coverage across the broadcaster's different platforms and cross-promotion in other programming.

Of course, it may be difficult to convince a broadcaster offering an OTT alternative for the cable subscription. The OTT offering for 2019 is still protecting the traditional business model where you need a cable subscription to see the races on NBCSN. However, that model may not have much life left; people will find something alternative to watch. Broadcasters are missing potential customers by not offering OTT packages specific to certain content. Starting to offer that kind of packages could be the traditional broadcasters' response to the new OTT services. Besides, in INDYCAR's case, an all-inclusive OTT package could also open new possibilities as that broadcaster's platform could also be used for the international streaming.

What will happen with international TV rights?

Just like the current national broadcasting contract with ABC and NBCSN expires at the end of this year, so does also the international broadcasting contract with ESPN International. ESPN International has shown INDYCAR on their local channels around the world or distributed the rights to third parties plus. ESPN Player has offered streaming of the races in Europe, Middle East, and Africa apart from certain regions with local broadcasters.

NBC Sports Gold offers some packages also for overseas viewers so that could be an international streaming platform if the American OTT package were expanded with race coverage. However, compared to ESPN, NBCUniversal doesn't have appropriate TV channels for INDYCAR outside the USA so it seems unlikely for the international broadcasting partner, unless they acquired those rights only for redistributing them and offering NBC Sports Gold for streaming.

Although ESPN and ABC won't broadcast INDYCAR in the USA after this year, ESPN International may still be a strong candidate for the international broadcasting partner. ESPN's numerous international channels show also sports they have no broadcasting rights in the USA.

However, I think there's lots of room for improvement in ESPN International's INDYCAR coverage. ESPN Player hasn't shown the pre- or postrace coverage of the NBCSN broadcasts, neither have they shown those practice or qualifying sessions that were on NBCSN and thus not in YouTube. Whatever broadcaster INDYCAR chooses as the international distributor, I hope they will be required to show all sessions of the race weekends, preferably including NBC's pre- and postrace coverage or offering their own.

I'm not sure selling the international broadcasting rights to a single distributor is ideal for INDYCAR. INDYCAR has no control over which channels the distributor will sell the regional rights to. A third party selling the TV rights isn't thinking about the growth of the sport the way INDYCAR is.

When I think about appropriate overseas broadcasters, BT Sport is doing great job in the UK. Their broadcasting rights obviously come from their affiliation with ESPN, though regardless of the international broadcasting partner, they would be a great broadcaster for INDYCAR also in the upcoming seasons. BT Sport isn't just broadcasting the world feed, instead they have British commentators on air when their American colleagues are on a commercial break. If anything, simulcasting the BT Sport broadcast would be ideal for any broadcaster with no commercial breaks.

When I think about Europe in general, I'd like to see Eurosport broadcasting INDYCAR like they did in the CART era. They already have series like Formula E, FIA WEC, WorldSBK, and WTCR, so INDYCAR could complement Eurosports motorsports offering. In addition to their two main channels, Eurosport Player allows additional streams for other live events. If the races were shown on the main channel, Eurosport Player's additional channels could stream the practice and qualifying sessions.

Besides, Eurosport's parent Discovery owns free-to-air channels across Europe which were used to fulfill the local free-to-air requirements of the Olympic coverage. Here in Finland, Discovery uses those channels also to show tennis' Grand Slam finals in addition to the full coverage on Eurosport, and I think they might do the same with the Indy 500. And while Eurosport is available across Europe, they have somewhat different programming in different countries, depending on the local TV rights. INDYCAR could sell the British TV rights to BT Sport while the rest of Europe could watch it on Eurosport.

Those are just some potential European broadcasters for INDYCAR. I think it would be better for the series to sell the TV rights directly to broadcasters, instead of selling them to a global distributor.

How the future INDYCAR schedule could look like and where to fit new races?

The Verizon IndyCar Series is currently having a break of almost four weeks between the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and the second race of the season, the Phoenix Grand Prix at ISM Raceway. The long break after the season has just started is unfortunate for the fans and many people would like to see a race added to late March to bridge that gap.

Before speculating on additions to the Verizon IndyCar Series schedule, let's have a look at how the current events might be placed in the upcoming schedules. I have included the next three years because of the moving public holiday dates. I have also made some changes to avoid clashes with some big TV events. I have included those other sports events and public holidays into the table. Announced and known dates are bolded.

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April has stable events. And Phoenix

The Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach and the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama are stable INDYCAR events in April and one can expect those races to return close to their current dates in the upcoming seasons. On the other hand, the two races since INDYCAR returned to ISM Raceway in Phoenix have not drawn a great crowd, creating uncertainty around the future of the event.

The usual date for Long Beach is one week after golf's Masters Tournament, and that is a very stable date given the event's importance for the Verizon IndyCar Series. However, last year the event was brought forward by a week because of Easter, with the race taking place opposite to the final round of the Masters.

A Sunday afternoon race opposite to the Masters doesn't really make sense; that is a TV slot INDYCAR should try to avoid. In 2019 Long Beach may again need to be brought forward to avoid the Easter weekend, though it would make more sense to bring it forward by two weeks into the Sunday of the NCAA Basketball Final Four. While the Final Four weekend is difficult for other sports on TV, women's championship game on Sunday doesn't draw such a big audience as the men's games on Saturday and Monday.

While a Sunday afternoon race makes little sense opposite to the Masters, that is a good weekend for a Saturday night race after the third round has finished at Augusta National. That is exactly what INDYCAR has this year with the Phoenix Grand Prix, and I think that should become the permanent date for the race in the upcoming seasons, back-to-back with Long Beach, another race in the West.

However, there are years when the Masters weekend is also the Easter weekend, like 2020. If the Phoenix date was brought forward by a week, it would be in the Final Four weekend. A Saturday night race opposite to the men's semifinals doesn't make sense. The race in the Final Four weekend should rather be a Sunday afternoon race opposite to the less-viewed women's championship game.

Depending on the year, Barber Motorsports Park usually hosts INDYCAR two or three weeks before the INDYCAR Grand Prix at the IMS road course. The date of NASCAR's spring weekend at Talladega very much dictates Barber's INDYCAR date because it makes no sense to have two races in the same weekend just over 30 miles apart from each other.

What could be the possible additions to the early season?

It would be difficult to fit races outside North America into the schedule after St. Petersburg, especially if INDYCAR returns to Phoenix also in the upcoming seasons. Those overseas races would probably take place before St. Pete, still leaving the gap between St. Pete and the following race.

There are not so many venues in North America for which March would be an ideal time to host INDYCAR. With INDYCAR at St. Pete and IMSA at Sebring, there may already be too much racing in Florida to add Homestead-Miami Speedway to the INDYCAR schedule. The same can be said about Southern California. With NASCAR at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana in mid-March and INDYCAR at Long Beach in early April, an INDYCAR return to Fontana in late March may be out of question. Teams have been testing at Sonoma Raceway during the winter, though a date change to March would make no sense for Sonoma when the temperature hardly reaches 70 °F and there's a greater risk of rain.

While some people would like to see the Verizon IndyCar Series visiting Circuit of The Americas which hosts Pirelli World Challenge two weeks after St. Pete, I don't think INDYCAR should go there and risk its relationship with Texas Motor Speedway, the longest-standing oval venue in the series apart from Indianapolis. I don't think venues with other big events, like COTA with Formula One and MotoGP, necessarily have much potential for INDYCAR. Besides, the track president Bobby Epstein has stated the MotoGP date in April limits the opportunities for INDYCAR in the spring.

Mexico City would seem like the potential new race to fill the late-March gap. While an international race, it would still allow a quick transportation of the equipment when the following race might be just a week later in the Western USA. The climate in Mexico City would allow a race at almost any part of the schedule, though late-March is where that race would be needed the most. With some uncertainty around the future of Phoenix, INDYCAR really needs to find a new race for that part of the season. Even if Mexico City was only a replacement for Phoenix, it would offer more flexibility as the NASCAR schedule wouldn't set any constraints.

June has a stable schedule

After the Indy 500 and the other events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway have taken the May, INDYCAR has a stable schedule for June. The Chevrolet Dual in Detroit is the first weekend after the 500, Texas Motor Speedway has its preferred date two weeks after the 500, and after a Father's Day break INDYCAR goes to Road America. The Father's Day break is well-needed as the teams have been racing (or qualifying for the 500) for five consecutive weeks. The break also allows the drivers to participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the Father's Day weekend with golf's U.S. Open might be a difficult one for TV ratings.

After the Verizon IndyCar Series' successful return to Road America, one can expect it to become a permanent fixture in the schedule. The long INDYCAR traditions and the improved attendance of last few years allow us to expect TMS returning also in the upcoming seasons. Detroit is the only question mark because of the local opposition for closing parts of the park in Belle Isle for the event. Though as long as the park is available for the street races, one can expect General Motors and Roger Penske to ensure Detroit hosts the first INDYCAR weekend after the 500.

INDYCAR needs to avoid NASCAR clashes on NBC from July

The full Verizon IndyCar Series is set to be broadcast on NBC's channels from 2019. Avoiding NASCAR's TV slots is important for INDYCAR, even more from July onwards when NBC starts broadcasting NASCAR's Monster Energy Cup and Xfinity Series.

Whenever NASCAR has a Cup race in Saturday night, that means INDYCAR can have a Sunday afternoon race with no competition from NASCAR. The weekend of NASCAR's Bristol night race has worked well for INDYCAR's Pocono race.

Last two years, Honda Indy Toronto was shown live on CNBC while a tape delayed broadcast was shown on NBCSN after the live coverage from a NASCAR race. This year Toronto won't clash with a NASCAR race since it's in the weekend of the Kentucky night race.

Iowa Speedway used to host a Saturday night race until its date was changed to NASCAR's Kentucky weekend, denying the Saturday night TV slot. This year Iowa is again a Sunday afternoon race as the Saturday night of the weekend has NASCAR's Coke Zero 400.

I think it would be sensible to tie Toronto's date to NASCAR's Kentucky weekend. That would give it a date with no competition from NASCAR. Iowa should be moved to the weekend after Toronto when NASCAR has afternoon races and Iowa could become a night race again.

The 2020 Olympics in Tokyo will have less effect on broadcasting than the 2016 Games in Rio. While the Rio Olympics took the afternoon and evening TV slots, the Tokyo Olympics will start in the prime time and continue into the night. Mid-Ohio's date would be during the Olympics, which should not be a problem for an afternoon race. Of course, NBC broadcasts the Olympics in the USA and may want to use all its resources for the Olympic coverage. Though that wouldn't be a problem if IMS Productions produce the coverage under the new broadcasting contract.

In 2019, NASCAR's Bristol night race will likely take place only one week before the Bojangles' Southern 500 in the Labor Day weekend, a weekend currently with no Cup Series race. That will likely force a date change for INDYCAR at Gateway Motorsports Park, unless it became a Sunday afternoon race. Assuming Gateway will be the weekend before Pocono in 2019, it might make sense to keep that calendar slot also for the upcoming seasons, to close the early-August gap in the schedule.

Sonoma is not a popular venue for the season finale. Although the wine region is great for corporate people, the track produces boring races and the attendance is not great. The great event at Gateway last year left some people wishing for Gateway to host the season finale. If Gateway, or any other current event became the new venue for the season finale, that might open a calendar slot in the summer unless Sonoma was moved from September.

What could be the additions to summer schedule?

The current summer schedule has space for one, maybe two new races. Public holidays are often difficult weekends to get people watching racing. Maybe the U.S. Independence Day weekend would be a great weekend for INDYCAR to have another Canadian race, back-to-back with Toronto. There have been rumors about a street race in Calgary; it would be far enough from Toronto to not affect the attendance. With the increasing Canadian participation in the the Verizon IndyCar Series, a second Canadian race would make sense.

As for American tracks I'd like to see in the schedule, I think Kentucky and Chicagoland would make sense. Both are close to INDYCAR's Midwestern fan base and more space has opened in both tracks' calendars with Chicagoland's NASCAR weekend moving from September to July and Kentucky losing its standalone Xfinity fall race. Both venues could host INDYCAR in August or September after their NASCAR races in July.

Might there be no Indy-Monaco clash in 2021?

The Indy 500 will have a relatively late date, May 30, in 2021. The last times the 500 has been that late were 2010 and 2004, both times not clashing with the Monaco Grand Prix but another F1 race.

In 2004 and 2010, the 24 Hours of Le Mans took place two weeks after the 500 instead of the usual three weeks. If the F1 schedule is made ensuring no clash with Le Mans, then there might be no F1 race in the Memorial Day weekend. The Monaco and Canadian GPs very much require a two-week gap plus that weekend between them has the Le Mans test day. If Le Mans retains its date from 2004 and 2010, the 500 might well be in a weekend with no F1 race unless F1 wants to create a date clash.

Even with no F1 race in the Memorial Day weekend, the Indy 500 would still be difficult for F1 drivers to participate. There won't likely be two consecutive weekends without an F1 race in May. An F1 driver participating in the 500 would need another driver qualifying the car for him, and the F1 race in Europe would limit the running in the practice. Ony those F1 drivers with recent INDYCAR experience might be willing to take on that challenge.

Should INDYCAR avoid Le Mans or Father's Day?

While the potential 2021 dates might prevent the usual Indy-Monaco clash, there is a risk of INDYCAR's Texas race clashing with the 24 Hours of Le Mans. On the other hand, the following week there is the Father's Day with the U.S. Open in golf.

It would be unfortunate if a conflicting event prevented INDYCAR drivers from racing at Le Mans. However, two weeks after the 500 is the preferred date for TMS.

Avoiding a clash with Le Mans would move Texas into the Father's Day weekend. The U.S. Open wouldn't really be a problem as Texas is a night race and would take place after the third round has finished. However, I think INDYCAR should retain its usual dates and avoid the Father's Day weekend, especially as later in June it might get overshadowed by the Stanley Cup and NBA Finals.

As unfortunate as a clash with Le Mans would be, more often than not the Father's Day allows drivers to participate in Le Mans. INDYCAR is not yet in a position where it could expect great attendance and TV ratings in unfavorable dates.