96 replies to this topic

[ClubmanGT]

Other than the Indy 500 the Sonoma race was the only one that I took the trouble to begin to watch. Then, in pre-race I learned this last race was double points. So I switched it off. What?

 

I'm not sure why you'd switch off a race because it was double points. 

[Peat]

F1 is inescapable due to it's exposure. Even as recently as 3 o 4 years ago, I would record/watch every session and wouldn't dream of missing a live race. Now, I'm lucky if i watch the race on fast-forward before bed on a Sunday. And it's not just down to Mercedes domination. (The height of my fandom was through the Schuey/Ferrari years) I keep telling myself I've simply grown out of it, but something is definatley missing (to me).

I make every effort to watch IndyCar races live (I'm paying a pretty penny for the privilege after all.....) and definitely take more pleasure out of watching them. The racing is zany and unpredictable. And it's all on at a time of day that makes it acceptable to drink booze.

 

[billm99uk]

When does 'zany and unpredictable' just become "just plain random" though?

 

I know people who watch enough motorsport to frequent this board like it, but in a more general audience tend to prefer a certain level of predictably. Current F1 is probably a little too much in that direction at the moment though!

[SenorSjon]

F1 is unfair due to all the restrictions

IndyCar is unfair due to the Vegas style race control. I have no clue whatsoever because there is no valid tactic. Just luck into the right SC-phase. Like I said before. A hamburger wrap blowing past the track is immensly dangerous and should get you a SC, yet it causes a pitstop where crews are close together, a pitbox is like a parking spot and about 20 of them come in at the same time. The resulting mayhem causes broken bones if you are lucky, but it is utter ridiculous vs the cause of the SC-phase in the first place.

[JHSingo]

When does 'zany and unpredictable' just become "just plain random" though?

 

I know people who watch enough motorsport to frequent this board like it, but in a more general audience tend to prefer a certain level of predictably. Current F1 is probably a little too much in that direction at the moment though!

 

I'm not disagreeing with you - but I don't understand why anyone would want predictability in any sport, let alone motorsport. What motivation is there to watch, if you've got a very good idea of what the result will be before hand? Last few years in F1, you know unless something bizarre happens, it'll be Mercedes 1-2 normally, with Ferrari/Williams/occasionally Red Bull contesting the final podium place. It's very 'noah's ark' at the moment.

 

I'll admit, the craziness in IndyCar can sometimes be a bit too much. Like NOLA, for instance. That was dreadful. As much as I like Hinch, I'd struggle to say he deserved to win that race. But thankfully those types of races aren't too common. But generally, I like that in IndyCar the smaller teams have just as good a chance to have a strong result as the likes of Ganassi or Penske.

Edited by JHSingo, 01 September 2015 - 13:48.

[Peat]

Sure, I used to get headaches and/or nosebleeds every time the cautions flew, turning the race on it's head. 

Nowadays though, I know to take notice of the guy in 15th pitting off-sequence and waiting for the fireworks. 

[SenorSjon]

Until he is screwed over by yet another pointless SC...

[SR388]

I love F1 and indycar. But F1 is my first love, plus Lewis Hamilton is my favorite sportsman in my lifetime.

[August]

Talking about how much predictability is good, I guess the big crowd likes having an established oligopoly, you know which few teams can win but you still have to see which one will win. You know those teams even if you're not into the sport. More unpredictability and there are less big names that would draw casual viewers. Then again, too much predictability and you don't have to watch the races, though with enough domination media can hype the records.

 

But once you are a big-time fan of the sport and not a casual viewer, you surely appreciate the unpredictability, at least if it's not by casino rules but because of a tight field. Surely some people think IndyCar's rules are too much casino but I'm fine with them. Surely cautions have cost wins in IndyCar but so have they also in F1 (though in a different way with its rules). The cautions are a game of probabilities. You can win a race banking on cautions but most of the time you lose more than you gain that way. I'm fine with that as the luck evens out over the course of the season. And a caution costing a win feels so IndyCar.

 

And more than anything, I think being semi-spec makes IndyCar so unpredictable. Sure, the technical competition is interesting in F1 but it creates the situation where you know in advance which teams can win. Smaller teams like CFH, RLL or SPM winning are like Jordan or Stewart winning in 90s F1.

[Afterburner]

F1 was my first love. It got me into racing. It was a story with a fascinating backdrop starring an unbelievable cast of characters, rich with metaphors. I will never forget the lessons I learned about hard work and dedication when I watched Schumacher and Ferrari annihilate the field throughout the early 2000s. I will never forget the importance of having passions that I learned from Senna. I will never forget the perseverance I learned from Vettel and Hamilton. F1 runs deep, no question.

 

But...

 

There's something about it lately that's just been soulless. Nothing new, in an interesting way, has come from Formula One since 2008, in my opinion. It's been the same scripts, just different actors and slightly different plot twists. 2009 was probably the first year I felt I didn't care anymore. There's been an ebb and flow since, but the fire that was there before has yet to return.

 

On the other side of the pond however, we have Indycar. Now I know that I've probably come across like a raving demented cartoon fangirl about this series sometimes, but let me tell you something: the one thing I feel Indycar has that F1 has lacked for a long time is proper soul. Indycar feels human in a way that F1 hasn't for a very long time. Watching it, I get the sense that everyone in the sport isn't there for money, or fame, or politics, or whatever--they're there because they want to race. And this shows--sometimes the driving standards are shoddy, sometimes the officiating is sub-par, and sometimes I wonder how they even ended up at some of the tracks--but it's easy to forgive it: while Indycar always feels like one big dysfunctional family get-together, F1 feels like a battlefield. Maybe in the modern era of F1, winning has become too important.

 

And the wheel-to-wheel action is second to none. If Indycar and F1 both went to Spa, and you gave me a paddock pass to both, there's absolutely no question which series I'd rather watch. The mere idea of Sato and Karam headed side-by-side into Eau Rouge is more exciting to me than most of F1's on-track battles in the past few years, because at that point it's not about aero-kits, engines, chassis, relative skill, or even the fact that they're dueling for 19th place--it's just a good old-fashioned game of 200 mi/h chicken between two drivers who don't understand the meaning of the phrase 'back out'. It's just fun to watch, because there's no way to predict how it's going to end--yes, I know it's Sato, but there's still no guarantee they'd crash--and I think that's the sort of thing most people mean when you hear them say they like how unpredictable Indycar is. I don't recall the last time I saw something like that in F1; maybe it's because the midfield is full of bland pay drivers/young-guns-of-the-week and the top guys are all too busy playing the long game to ever go at it like that. I don't know the answer, but I do know there's a problem.

 

Indycar, too, is more than full of personalities and life lessons. If Justin Wilson hasn't caused you to at least consider how often you've made sacrifices for someone else, you might want to read a little more about why Indycar has grieved so deeply over losing him.

 

So that's why this year, Indycar officially surpassed F1 as my favourite form of motorsport. I know what I'm getting when I tune into both, and I much prefer what I get out of Indycar. I don't watch it to see who wins, I watch it to see a bunch of guys/gals getting together to drive some cars, sometimes in circles, with the ultimate result of unstable, wild, off-the-chain, chaotropic fun. Ultimately, my interest in Indycar, for me, boils down to something Senna said years ago: 'It's pure driving, real racing... and that, that makes me happy.' Racing for the sake of racing--exactly the way it should be.

[OvDrone]

Dude, I couldn't have said it better. Thanks.

[jonpollak]

Wow....

[tormave]

I try to watch every F1 race and qualifying live. I have a 2nd screen with the F1 app on my iPad. Now that I live in the US, I've tried to get into Indycar, but it's just too random for my taste. I usually switch channels when there's an ad break, and end up unintentionally missing the 2nd half of the race, because there was a re-run of a movie I didn't really care about on some other channel. When I notice the race is over, I don't bother to check who won.

 

I also watch rally, rallycross, WEC and motogp, so it's not like I only like F1. NASCAR and Indycar only interest me when they're running a road course, and even then I just can't seem to get excited at all. Meh.

[greenman]

Yep, Afterburner sums up my thoughts too.

There is something distressing in tuning in for F1 races and getting a feeling that what is more important is not the race itself, but the glamour and the rich people in the background who pay for it. A lot of people cry about the series abandoning classic venues and leaving Europe, but my problem is more with the fact that none of the new venues actually bring anything "new". Whenever there is a new circuit announced it seems the focus is more on how modern and expensive and cool the facilities look like, rather than whether the track itself would maybe offer new challenges to drivers or be good for racing.

Soulless is a good word.

[OvDrone]

I tune in for F1 more for the political bickering than the actual racing.

[Risil]

I tune in for F1 more for the political bickering than the actual racing.

 

When I stop and think about it, this is a very true comment.

[OvDrone]

When I stop and think about it, this is a very true comment.

 

I am way more interested in the Red Bull / Renault feud, the presumed Lotus takeover, Michelin this Pirelli that, CVC's shoddy shenanigans and the hilarious saga of Honda's return than a tyre managed DRS pass for 8th place on the runoff of Parabolica.

 

Sad but true. It's like watching a Bloomberg Business report with the occasional proper racing.

 

But at the same time I can't fault the talents of Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso, Button, Ricciardo, the Hulk and more.

 

The cars, the tracks, those goddamn tyres? Pfffffffffff

 

Also, year by year, Martin Brundle's Sky Sports stuck up 'pinnacle of whatever' BS keeps grating me more and more. Hope he's getting paid well to say that without having a laugh.

[jonpollak]

If F1 is Bloomberg then IndyCar is the Keiser Report on RT

[OvDrone]

Ted Kravitz is our Wolf Blitzer.

[paulb]

AB's post would make a great t-shirt. It would be a bit much for a hat.

 

I tried to think of something to add, but failed. He makes all the important points in the right way.

[Volcano70]

Indycar would be my answer because they're in the states and more exposed than F1 over here....

[BlinkyMcSquinty]

When does 'zany and unpredictable' just become "just plain random" though?

 

I know people who watch enough motorsport to frequent this board like it, but in a more general audience tend to prefer a certain level of predictably. Current F1 is probably a little too much in that direction at the moment though!

 

For any one race Indycar is totally unpredictable, anyone can win, anyone can have massive failure. But if you look at the season's end standings, the top drivers and top teams still wind up at the top. So that's good enough for me, a fan who has accepted the wild-card side of Indycar.

 

And as Afterburner has stated, in Indycar they embrace the real root of racing, the love of the sport.

[cjm321190]

I Voted Equal. However:

 

F1: As a life long Williams fan i keep in touch with the results and technical F1 things between races. I record the Races on Sky+ but usually delete rather than watch. Unless the race was good. 

 

I think F1 is becoming to boring and fake almost to corporate, i dont mind domination but the politics about tarmac runoffs, engines tyres gets annoying after a while.

 

Indycar: I have watched every race. This is mainly because i travel for work i can view the races on youtube the day after and it does not matter which country i am in so i feel more connected. The racing is getting better every year and more old school F1. Mistakes by drivers are punished, drivers can be aggressive without silly penalties. I know i can use VPN to watch sky for example but it runs slow. Youtube does one thing well and that is streaming more efficiently.

 

So i used to be 80% F1 20% Champcar, 0% IRL. Now i am 50%/50% F1 to Indycar, dare i say it more 60% to indycar. 

 

 

[HeadFirst]

When does 'zany and unpredictable' just become "just plain random" though?

 

I know people who watch enough motorsport to frequent this board like it, but in a more general audience tend to prefer a certain level of predictably. Current F1 is probably a little too much in that direction at the moment though!

 

If I want zany and unpredictable, I take the kids to the mall.

[August]

I tune in for F1 more for the political bickering than the actual racing.

Sometimes the political and commercial side of sports interests me more than the actual sport. I almost care more about which city gets the Olympics than who will win there or which country has bribed the most for soccer World Cup. And F1 is there too whereas in IndyCar racing is my main interest.

Though nowadays I can't anymore care so much about F1's business side. I could as well follow stock exchange-listed companies and start trading their stock. If I did that successfully, maybe I could do Le Mans some day in the future as an amateur driver.

[Dmitriy_Guller]

Up until a couple of years ago, my answer would've been F1, but it has gotten antiseptic past the breaking point.  Every time I hear the engine being referred to as the "power unit", or a part of the engine being referred to as "MDKJ-GHIUE", I want to turn my TV off.

[Imperial]

I like Afterburner's post, a lot.

May I add that in F1 you don't get stand-up comedian brothers of champions tweeting '@Indycar - Stay out of this' while clearly being chastised by a series PR for swearing, criticising and generally completely taking the p!ss all while being a paid-for hospitality guest of said series.

THAT also is what makes Indycar what it is.

[FerrariV12]

In terms of my following (which I class as different to preference) it's about equal to be honest. Would have said F1 a few years back, especially before I had satellite TV and had a crap internet connection which meant watching IndyCar races was basically impossible.

 

I don't watch every IndyCar race live, but will always record and aim to catch up within a day or two, but I haven't watched every F1 race live for a number of years now either, initially I just started skipping Australia and Japan when Bernie messed with the times making them harder to stay up for, but even the ones on during the day I'll rarely watch in real time, I used to fit my life around F1, now it's the other way around.

 

In fact if anything I find the time zones make on average IndyCar easier for me to follow, on a Sunday evening I'm at home chilling out, Sunday morning/lunch time I'm in bed.

 

In terms of following news and stories, obviously F1 has more in terms of sheer volume, even in the specialist publications/channels, but in terms of percentage, I find F1 has a lot more "fluff" around it, whether it's the Strategy Group having a meeting to agree to have a meeting about a meeting, Paul Hembery moaning about one-stop races, the latest government-funded white elephant circuit, etc. Even stuff I have a firm opinion on myself, such as revenue distribution, gets a bit old and stale when it's the same circular argument going round and round and round in the media.

Edited by FerrariV12, 02 September 2015 - 14:02.

[August]

Even stuff I have a firm opinion on myself, such as revenue distribution, gets a bit old and stale when it's the same circular argument going round and round and round in the media.

True.

[Risil]

I like Afterburner's post, a lot.

May I add that in F1 you don't get stand-up comedian brothers of champions tweeting '@Indycar - Stay out of this' while clearly being chastised by a series PR for swearing, criticising and generally completely taking the p!ss all while being a paid-for hospitality guest of said series.

THAT also is what makes Indycar what it is.

 

I wonder what percentage of the things we think we like about Indycar are a direct cause of Will Power. If in 85 years time he's not named Driver of the Century I'll be pretty disappointed.

Edited by Risil, 02 September 2015 - 16:47.

[stewie]

I've watched more Indycar that I have F1 this year, and sleep well at night knowing that.

I want to watch racing, overtaking minus drs, the ability to see pretty much anyone win, variety, openness of drivers etc, and I ain't getting that from F1 at the mo.

[PokePoke]

 

I want to watch racing, overtaking minus drs, the ability to see pretty much anyone win, variety, openness of drivers etc

Pretty much.

 

Indycar is about racing, that's main feature this series. When Rahal/Newgarden/Kaanan/Dixon/Power/Helio/Hinch or Sato overtake someone on track you see everything - skills, mistakes, agression, determination and mostly courage. Indycars drivers in 800 hp DW12 with heavy aero package... and there's no power steering (so every movement of the wheel requires a lot of energy). Still Indycar produce many overtakes and great racing on narrow and winding tracks like Barber, Sonoma, Mid-Ohio, Toronto, St Pet. or even Belle Isle (watch Conway charge from second race in Detroit 2013). It's raw, wild old school racing without over-the-top engineering and pumping loads of money. Every driver has his own strategist and crew, so team orders are limited essentially to zero. It's everything what we want from F1...

 

In F1 DRS and cold engineering/strategy from  pit lane make every pass insignificant; like overtaking on track was a necessary evil; even celebration after race and integration with fans is kept to a minimum, as if it was something wrong and unnecessary . Like every meeting and gesture to fans ( who pay loads of money for tickets) were some kind of grace by "elite" F1, which like today's politicians, completely lost touch with reality. F1 is "boring", soo FIA with F1 teams create stupid  rules (like DRS). F1 is "boring" soo FIA/FOM and teams exert pressure to change configurations tracks (SIlverstone, Montmelo) and construction quirks likes Yas Marina, Sochi , Valencia, where " a recipe for action on the track " was to be long straights with slow entrances to them and outputs of them. And big tarmac run off.

 

The worst in all this is the fact that all this can be quickly remedied by sensible decisions, elimination stupid rules and, above all, a change in approach F1. We have a 2015 and not in 2000 - to be able to back to the fans and pretend that 's cool.

 

When I'm watching IndyCar, I remember why I fell in love racing as a little boy, decades ago. F1 still has this fire, but for some time firmly fades, because for many,  F1 become only machine for making money and pumping oversized ego shutting away from reality and cut off from roots and traditions of sport

[August]

When I'm watching IndyCar, I remember why I fell in love racing as a little boy, decades ago. F1 still has this fire, but for some time firmly fades, because for many, F1 become only machine for making money and pumping oversized ego shutting away from reality and cut off from roots and traditions of sport

When this season started at St. Pete, I had the feeling I used to have when F1 seasons started. IndyCar offers to me now what F1 used to do. Or a bit more, F1 has never had the thrill of oval racing (apart from 1950s Indy 500s). F1 feels incomplete compared to IndyCar.

[BlinkyMcSquinty]

A few years old, but still practiced. Notice the type of people walking around the grid, and the simple fact that they are fans interested in the cars. Fans, not celebrities.

 

[P123]

I've watched more Indycar that I have F1 this year, and sleep well at night knowing that.

I want to watch racing, overtaking minus drs, the ability to see pretty much anyone win, variety, openness of drivers etc, and I ain't getting that from F1 at the mo.

When did you get that from F1!?

Indycar is far from perfect. The ability to 'see anyone win' in current Indycar is largely down to it's duff pitlane rule when under full course yellow (less sporting than any DRS pass). It has though given us the two/ three finest races of the year so far, along with the most farcical.

[whitewaterMkII]

When did you get that from F1!?

Indycar is far from perfect. The ability to 'see anyone win' in current Indycar is largely down to it's duff pitlane rule when under full course yellow (less sporting than any DRS pass). It has though given us the two/ three finest races of the year so far, along with the most farcical.

I disagree, the potential for anyone to win is mostly because it's a spec series. And the series does allow for misses out of the gate, whereas F1 does not.

At the beginning of the season most were saying that Honda was lost at IndyCar, by the end of the season they were a major threat, even with the one car teams.

In F1, Honda was pronounced lost, and they still are months later. 

[Collombin]

F1 has never had the thrill of oval racing (apart from 1950s Indy 500s).

Being WDC events didn't make them F1 races - although in that era the Monza banking was used, and AVUS was kind of ovally. At one end anyway.

[August]

Talking about things you prefer in either series, I think IndyCar drivers and fans live less inside a bubble where only the 'own' series matters, and I like that.

You have IndyCar drivers driving at the endurance races of IMSA whereas Hulk doing Le Mans was a rare exception for an F1 driver. Besides Bourdais and De Silvestro will do the V8SC endurance races (a rare goid thing about the early IndyCar finish).

And also IndyCar fans seem more like general motorsports fans whereas F1 has more one-dimensional fans. Maybe it's just F1 providing more off-track drama, keeping you engaged with it even when there are no races. Or maybe it's just that for European fans, getting into IndyCar has required wider interest in motorsports. And maybe for American fans, if you aren't into NASCAR, you need something besides IndyCar for the weekends when IndyCar has no races.

[stewie]

When did you get that from F1!?

In the 80s and 90s it was at least possible to see the little teams have the odd good weekend from time to time and mix it with the big boys. When does that happen now?!

[Kucki]

I used to watch F1 religiously from 1988 til 2010. I rarely watch F1 anymore. From 1997 starting the decision makers of F1 slowly but surely step by step took every single aspect of the sport and made it worse. The cars are silent and ugly, the tracks are asphalt oceans and all look the same. Drivers have to cruise and save equipment, appears the most exciting thing that can happen is a driver pressing DRS and cruising by his opponent. All infront of empty stands and sad state of affair F1 has become.

 

IndyCar reminds me of alot of what was great about F1. The cars look and feel violant, strong and bullish, they drift sometimes, the dynamics and subtle movements of the car look fun to watch, the tracks are great, the racing looks pure / authentic. IndyCar is all about the drivers, the cars and the tracks. Oval tracks spice things up and add great variety.

 

If only IndyCar could expand to other nations, it could become the new premier racing series. Would love to see them in Suzuka or Monza. They would have fantastic races there.

Edited by Kucki, 03 September 2015 - 07:51.

[August]

If only IndyCar could expand to other nations, it could become the new premier racing series. Would love to see them in Suzuka or Monza. They would have fantastic races there.

 

IndyCar would have a long way to become the new premier racing series. Seeing the good attendance for WEC at Nürburgring, I believe IndyCar could do the same. Maybe IndyCar should consider coming to those tracks if F1 loses the German and Italian GPs. Germany would of course have the EuroSpeedway Lausitz but I still think a road course would attract European audience more (and Lausitzring doesn't have the SAFER Barriers). For Germany, I'd suggest Hockenheim now that Nürburgring has the WEC pus I think it has a better location with bigger cities nearby. Another thing is if IndyCar wants to take the risk of going overseas while the sponsors want races in the USA.

 

But if IndyCar had races in Europe and those were successful, it'd still be just the beginning. It'd take few years to grow media coverage in Europe, then a bit more time for that increased viewership to attract more sponsors and more manufacturers. Only then IndyCar teams could start paying enough to get some paid F1 drivers leaving to IndyCar. And that'd be maybe five years from when they came to Europe, if all things went well. The F1 management would be fools if they didn't react to IndyCar's growing popularity in Europe and didn't return to those tracks. No matter how popular IndyCar would become at a European track, most people would still choose F1 with reasonably priced tickets. Lowering F1's sanctioning fee to allow those tracks back might cost FOM but it would still make lots of money and ensure F1's leading position in car racing.

 

So, maybe it's better IndyCar concentrates on America. I think the road course events got good attendance there, partly because apart from the F1 race in Austin and some NASCAR road races, IndyCar is the biggest series in the USA racing on road courses. And I'm not advocating IndyCar to leave ovals, I believe it has future on ovals, NASCAR can't bring the thrill of IndyCar racing on ovals. Besides North America, I think IndyCar should go overseas only to places with guaranteed interest. Brazil might be one place (if somebody could promote the race), Colombia has many IndyCar drivers (Is Colombian economy big enough to make sense racing there?), and maybe Australia with Power and Briscoe, could as well visit NZ then because of Dixon.That would be a less risky way to grow the series and get a bigger foothold before going to the traditional markets of F1.

[P123]

In the 80s and 90s it was at least possible to see the little teams have the odd good weekend from time to time and mix it with the big boys. When does that happen now?!

A long time ago then! But we still knew who would win. The underdog used to have their day due to the greater unreliability of the cars back then, but it was still a rarity that the likes of Minardi would score a point. We don't have the unreliability these days, or true underdogs either, apart from Manor. All teams who have scored points so far this year in F1 have a best finish of 5th or better.

[JHSingo]

An interesting article on motorsport.com, comparing the fan experience of IndyCar, compared to F1.

 

http://www.motorspor...-fan-experience

 

  Perhaps the biggest difference was the level of access to the action afforded to the fans at Sonoma, where, for a mere $25 supplement, anybody could obtain a pass for the paddock area and pitlane, allowing fans to get up close and personal with their heroes and their machinery.

 

It was a major breath of fresh air compared to the hermetically-sealed bubble in which F1 teams and drivers operate during a race weekend and from which all but the super-wealthy and well-connected are excluded.

 

Perhaps this is part of the problem with F1. It's too much a business, rather than a sport. It's too cold. It has forgotten the human side of the sport. It has for too long forgotten your average Johnny Punter in favour of Mr and Mrs VIP.

 

I agree with a lot of what Afterburner has said. For me, and I've said this before, I get the sense that IndyCar now is what F1 was back in the 60s and 70s. There's a real sense of camaraderie among the drivers, and a much more relaxed environment, plus fans get great access.

[August]

I agree with a lot of what Afterburner has said. For me, and I've said this before, I get the sense that IndyCar now is what F1 was back in the 60s and 70s. There's a real sense of camaraderie among the drivers, and a much more relaxed environment, plus fans get great access.

 

When I was looking for info about the MRTI scholarships, I came across with this:

 

2014.promazdachampionship.com/docs/default-source/marketing/mazda-road-to-indy-overview.pdf?sfvrsn=2

 

 

“I am just so, so pleased that I made this decision to come over and race in the States and go through the Mazda Road to Indy. “In the last two years I just earned so much valuable experience that it's just been absolutely incredible and priceless. Looking at Europe and all the other countries, even when I was racing in Australia, everything is very closed in. The drivers don't really talk to each other. For whatever reason, IndyCar and the whole ladder series and all the guys in IndyCar are all so open and are just really, really helpful. It doesn't matter what team you're with, they'll come and talk to you. All the IndyCar drivers, I have at least met once or twice. I've said hello. It's great for networking and making friends and I've just had an absolute blast. I don't think there's a better spot at the moment to further my career.” – Matthew Brabham, 2013 Pro Mazda Champion/2012 USF2000 Champion and MRTI Scholarship Recipient

[Watkins74]

For all the grief the powers that be at Indycar received about their condensed schedule it really increased my viewership and interest. It seemed like there was action almost every weekend and I got used to watching. Last year I never knew when the races were on and I ended up missing half of them.

 

The race gaps in F1 are so huge I have to try to remember what even happened in the last race.

Edited by Watkins74, 03 September 2015 - 21:30.

[ronsingapore]

Formula One is my first love; plus I see it as more international and globalized; although i feel sick given the progress of technology and the standards of racing in F1 recently. For me, I find F1 more relatable.

 

Unfortunately, F1 ticket prices are horrendous for me; I am speaking as a member of the younger crowd of millennial with stagnant wages. Catching it on subscription TV is a financial no for me too.

 

Indycar is great, great racing, but the exposure outside the US is simply less; nevertheless, motorsports fans in my country (7 out of 10 whom don't even drive) still have heard of it, though F1 is more well-known. it is a pity, because IndyCar races can be viewed at home on Youtube at convenience, in HD, while trying to find a complete F1 race at home in HD is a lot more difficult. 

[maximilian]

Love them both, and love Formula E, too.  F1 can sometimes be very annoying in a bunch of different ways.  I am almost never annoyed with IndyCar or Formula E, though.