IndyCar: Carpenter looks for second straight oval win; also visits NYC for media - MotorSportsTalk

Only Team Penske (three wins) has more wins thus far in the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series season than does Ed Carpenter Racing (two), achieved by two different drivers. Mike Conway won at Long Beach and Ed Carpenter won in Texas.

And if the eponymous team owner of the No. 20 Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet wins this weekend in Pocono (Sunday, noon ET, NBCSN), ECR will be tied with one of IndyCar’s most successful operations overall for the most wins this season.

It would also give Carpenter his second 500-mile race win, having also conquered the 500-mile season finale at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. in 2012.

“I think we actually had a good chance at both races on the ovals this year,” Carpenter said heading into the weekend. “We were in position to challenge Ryan (Hunter-Reay) at Indy but the incident on lap 175 cost us that possibility. Now, I really want to go after that Pocono win.

“I really love racing at Pocono,” he added; he finished ninth at Pocono in 2013. “It is so unique and challenging. I’m not sure there is another corner in our IndyCar Series like turn one at Pocono. It’s flat out on the throttle and very tricky. Just like the track’s nickname applies.”

Carpenter could play spoiler to the rest of the full-season drivers. With this being a double points race, a win offers 100 points with second 80 (instead of 50 and 40, respectively). It could provide a swing in the championship.

Carpenter was also in New York City Thursday for a series of media, including on CNBC’s Squawk Street and NBCSN’s SportsDash. Clips will follow later in the day.

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”