Detroit canceled; Texas to open; new races at Iowa, Laguna Seca and Indy

By Apr 6, 2020, 1:30 PM EDT
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The NTT IndyCar series has adjusted its 2020 schedule again, canceling the May 30-31 doubleheader grand prix at Detroit and adding doubleheader events later in the season at Iowa Speedway and Weather Tech Laguna Seca Raceway.

There also will be a third weekend added at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The season now would begin June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway and feature 15 races, up from the 14 announced in the previous schedule revision March 26.

Iowa Speedway would hold races July 17-18, and Laguna Seca will play host to races Sept. 19-20.

The additional race will be held Saturday, Oct. 3 at the IMS road course.

Because of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) shutdown, the 104th Indianapolis 500 already was postponed two weeks ago to Aug. 23.

The GMR IndyCar Grand Prix also had been moved May to July as a doubleheader with the Xfinity Series on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course as the first IndyCar-NASCAR doubleheader in history (that could feature Jimmie Johnson in multiple series).

IndyCar also had announced the season finale would be at St. Petersburg on a date to be determined for the rescheduled season opener (likely in mid-October).

The revised schedule released Monday by IndyCar still shows the race as TBD.

Per IndyCar, here’s the revised 2020 schedule:

June 6: Texas Motor Speedway

June 21: Road America

June 27: Richmond Raceway

July 4: Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course

July 12: Streets of Toronto

July 17-18: Iowa Speedway

Aug. 9: Mid-Ohio

Aug. 23: Indianapolis 500

Aug. 30: Gateway

Sept. 13: Portland International Raceway

Sept. 19: Laguna Seca

Sept. 20: Laguna Seca

Oct. 3: IMS road course

TBA: Streets of St. Petersburg

The cancellation of the Detroit GP also means the IMSA and Trans Am series races slated for the same weekend have been canceled.

“We’re under lockdown, we can’t do anything,” IndyCar owner Roger Penske told the Associated Press about the situation in Detroit, where construction had yet to begin on the Belle Isle street course because of the pandemic.

Here’s the release from IndyCar:

Doubleheaders at Iowa, Laguna Seca,
Third Event at IMS Highlight Updated INDYCAR Calendar

INDIANAPOLIS (April 6, 2020) – The NTT INDYCAR SERIES announced several calendar updates today following the cancellation of the Detroit Grand Prix due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Two previously scheduled events will become doubleheaders along with the addition of a third weekend of racing at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

With these additions, there are 15 races on the 2020 INDYCAR calendar, an increase of one event from the 14 races announced on March 26.

“We’re committed to bringing fans as much on-track action as possible,” Penske Entertainment Corp. President and CEO Mark Miles said. “Our updated schedule features additional racing at fan-favorite venues and adds to the total number of events on our calendar. The COVID-19 situation continues to be dynamic and challenging for everyone, so we have developed contingency plans which will allow us to respond to changing conditions. Our goal is to preserve as much racing competition as possible while prioritizing the health and safety of our participants and spectators.”

INDYCAR’s established events at Iowa Speedway and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca will become doubleheaders. The Iowa 300 event weekend will add a race on Friday, July 17 along with the previously scheduled race on Saturday, July 18. The Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey event weekend will now feature a race on Saturday, Sept. 19 in addition to the previously scheduled race on Sunday, Sept. 20.

Race fans also will be treated to a third INDYCAR event at the Racing Capital of the World, with the INDYCAR Harvest GP on the IMS road course taking place Saturday, Oct. 3. This event is in addition to the GMR Grand Prix, already scheduled for Saturday, July 4, and the 104th Running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, Aug. 23.

“Like our fans, we’re disappointed we won’t be racing in Detroit this year,” Miles said. “However, we’re excited to return to Belle Isle in 2021 and know we’ll put on a great show for everyone when we do. We also appreciate the flexibility and support of our event promoters at Iowa Speedway and Laguna Seca, who have enthusiastically embraced the opportunity to host double-headers.”

An updated listing of green flag times and an NBC Sports broadcast schedule will be announced in the near future.

Winner Josef Newgarden earns $3.666 million from a record Indy 500 purse of $17 million

By May 29, 2023, 6:01 PM EDT
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INDIANAPOLIS — The first Indy 500 victory for Josef Newgarden also was the richest in race history from a record 2023 purse of just more than $17 million.

The two-time NTT IndyCar Series champion, who continued his celebration Monday morning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earned $3.666 million for winning the 107th running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

The purse and winner’s share both are the largest in the history of the Indianapolis 500.

It’s the second consecutive year that the Indy 500 purse set a record after the 2022 Indy 500 became the first to crack the $16 million mark (nearly doubling the 2021 purse that offered a purse of $8,854,565 after a crowd limited to 135,000 because of the COVID-19 pandemic).

The average payout for IndyCar drivers was $500,600 (exceeding last year’s average of $485,000).

Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske, whose team also fields Newgarden’s No. 2 Dallara-Chevrolet, had made raising purses a priority since buying the track in 2020. But Penske but was unable to post big money purses until the race returned to full capacity grandstands last year.

The largest Indy 500 purse before this year was $14.4 million for the 2008 Indy 500 won by Scott Dixon (whose share was $2,988,065). Ericsson’s haul made him the second Indy 500 winner to top $3 million (2009 winner Helio Castroneves won $3,048,005.

Runner-up Marcus Ericsson won $1.043 million after falling short by 0.0974 seconds in the fourth-closest finish in Indy 500 history.

The 107th Indy 500 drew a crowd of at least 330,000 that was the largest since the sellout for the 100th running in 2016, and the second-largest in more than two decades, according to track officials.

“This is the greatest race in the world, and it was an especially monumental Month of May featuring packed grandstands and intense on-track action,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said in a release. “Now, we have the best end card possible for the 107th Running of the Indianapolis 500: a record-breaking purse for the history books.”

Benjamin Pedersen was named the Indy 500 rookie of the year, earning a $50,000 bonus.

The race’s purse is determined through contingency and special awards from IMS and IndyCar. The awards were presented Monday night in the annual Indy 500 Victory Celebration at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis.

The payouts for the 107th Indy 500:

1. Josef Newgarden, $3,666,000
2. Marcus Ericsson, $1,043,000
3. Santino Ferrucci, $481,800
4. Alex Palou, $801,500
5. Alexander Rossi, $574,000
6. Scott Dixon, $582,000
7. Takuma Sato, $217,300
8. Conor Daly, $512,000
9. Colton Herta, $506,500
10. Rinus VeeKay, $556,500
11. Ryan Hunter‐Reay, $145,500
12. Callum Ilott, $495,500
13. Devlin DeFrancesco, $482,000
14. Scott McLaughlin, $485,000
15. Helio Castroneves, $481,500
16. Tony Kanaan, $105,000
17. Marco Andretti, $102,000
18. Jack Harvey, $472,000
19. Christian Lundgaard, $467,500
20. Ed Carpenter, $102,000
21. Benjamin Pedersen (R), $215,300
22. Graham Rahal, $565,500*
23. Will Power, $488,000
24. Pato O’Ward, $516,500
25. Simon Pagenaud, $465,500
26. Agustín Canapino (R), $156,300
27. Felix Rosenqvist, $278,300
28. Kyle Kirkwood, $465,500
29. David Malukas, $462,000
30. Romain Grosjean, $462,000
31. Sting Ray Robb (R), $463,000
32. RC Enerson (R), $103,000
33.  Katherine Legge, $102,000

*–Broken down between two teams, $460,000 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, $105,500 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports