The spoils go to the big teams, or whatever. Although the IndyCar Series has long featured close and intense racing, the end-of-year results consistently give preference to the same old favorites.
In the last 12 years, Chip Ganassi Racing has won the top open-wheel championship in North America seven times; Team Penske has won it five times during that time. When Ryan Hunter-Reayat led Andretti Global (then known as Andretti Autosport) to victory in 2012, it was the last time a team other than those two dominant forces had taken home the title. Furthermore, aside from the Champ Car period, which was dominated by Newman/Haas from 2004 to 2007, the last championship won by a team other than Andretti, Ganassi, or Penske was in 2002, more than 20 years ago, thanks to the now-defunct Panther Racing.
It goes without saying that the same dominant teams' ongoing competition for victories and titles is largely due to their superior drivers, staff, and resources. But the amount of testing they receive in comparison to the smaller teams is another factor that matters.
Gavin Ward, Team Principal for Arrow McLaren, which is regarded as the other of the "Big Four" along with rivals Andretti, Ganassi, and Penske because of its extensive resource base, offered his opinions on the state of testing in IndyCar at the moment.
"It is absurd," Ward said to Motorsport. "IndyCar, which bills itself as a fantastic competitive series, needs to examine its own competitiveness. We can hold competitive races, but you can't deny that, aside from Penske and Ganassi, just three teams have won championships in the past 20 years. Who receives favorability throughout that time, each time a tire test is conducted or a new aero package is introduced? the winning teams.
And in the early stages of the hybrid unit, that was undoubtedly the case. The current 2.2-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 engine was largely relied upon by Penske and Ganassi's respective manufacturers, Honda and Chevrolet, when it was first combined with hybrid power in August 2023. In October 2023, Andretti and Arrow McLaren took their turns. The four teams, which included 13 drivers, traveled 15,256 miles in the first three months.
The remaining teams, which included Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Meyer Shank Racing, Dale Coyne Racing, Ed Carpenter Racing, Juncos Hollinger Racing, and AJ Foyt Racing, did not get their first on-track experience with the hybrid until late March 2024. Over the course of two days of running, they covered almost 2,000 miles.
According to Ward, "we're in the middle because we were able to do some testing that other teams weren't able to do, but we wasn't able to do nearly as much as Penske and Ganassi were able to do."
Penske and Ganassi were given the opportunity to complete laps at Milwaukee in October 2023 as part of the advantages that also extended to tire testing. When there was a series-wide hybrid test back in June, Ward says it was crucial because it allowed the teams to come back with data to support configurations.
"Even this year, Penske and Ganassi had the opportunity to test at Milwaukee last October, so they arrived at the Open Test having completed a seven-post session, constructed the track, and adjusted the dampers. As a result, they are one test ahead of everyone else," Ward stated.
According to the regulations, they are only permitted to perform one tire test burn. We travel to Nashville. Andretti and Arrow McLaren travel to Nashville. When I return to Nashville after having a tire failure (with Pato O'Ward), who will they invite? Ganassi and Penske. Where is our advantage, then? What happened to equalization? Nothing about it makes sense. Bring Coyne along. Carpenter is invited. For crying out loud, invite Rahal.
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In the meantime, we had the benefit of conducting some testing with the hybrid system last year. Where did we test, do you know? We don't race at Sebring and Homestead. In addition to those, do you know where Penske and Ganassi tested? Barber, Road America, Gateway. Testing equality is a concern for IndyCar. And I have previously told them that.
Chip Ganassi Racing's Director of Performance, Chris Simmons, offered his own arguments against depending too much on the smaller teams, particularly when it comes to tire testing.
Simmons told Motorsport.com, "To be honest, what we see with this is those teams show up to do a tire test and not push the tires as hard as there could be reliability problems."
"I believe you want the teams that are testing the tires to the limit because if they aren't in the load range that was anticipated for the tires, you'll show up at a race weekend and have issues with everything from the tire-spec to the aero-spec."
Simmons emphasized that the testing is "very limited as it is" and pointed out that it contributes to the difficulties that rookie drivers often face in IndyCar.
Simmons stated, "It might be a way for the rookies to have a chance of catching up." There aren't enough tires for us to operate. Being on pace as a rookie, whether as a driver or as a member of the team, is extremely challenging. The teams with the means to do those tire testing and the drivers to push the vehicles are most likely the ones who ought to determine the appropriate specification compound. … I understand that everyone will always be upset if they are not given the opportunity to take the test. Everyone is constantly accusing others, believing they have the upper hand. The most crucial element, in my opinion, is that we ultimately have the appropriate tire and aero specifications so that we can perform to the best of our abilities and let the teams to compete for it.
