Since Indy Lights Owner & CEO Dan Andersen took over the struggling series 19 months ago, he has grown it "from 12 races to 16; doubled the field size with a goal of 25 cars by next year; and inked critical sponsorships," according to Anthony Schoettle of the INDIANAPOLIS BUSINESS JOURNAL. Indy Lights in '13 was "reduced to four full-time teams fielding eight car-and-drivers," and IndyCar was "desperately seeking" someone to revive its feeder series. IndyCar officials gave "various reasons for the feeder series' failures, starting with more pressing problems at the flagship." Things with Indy Lights "got so bad," Hulman & Co. CEO Mark Miles "contemplated folding it." Since taking over, Andersen has signed Mazda as an "engine supplier and Cooper Tires as a presenting sponsor." But his "boldest -- and it turns out smartest -- move also was his most controversial." Shortly after taking over, he "announced he was taking bids from manufacturers to build a new car." IndyCar and Indy Lights camps "groaned when it was revealed that annual team budgets would likely escalate" 20% or more -- to more than $1M -- due "largely to the new chassis." But Just Marketing Int'l Founder & CEO Zak Brown said that the move "caused the opposite reaction of what some had feared." He said that instead of "chasing off cash-starved teams, it piqued the interest of team owners and drivers ... especially overseas." The new chassis "got a big boost last year when some of IndyCar’s top drivers -- including Scott Dixon and [Josef] Newgarden, who tested it -- raved about its performance." There is "even talk of some IndyCar stars racing alongside upstarts at select races on the Indy Lights schedule this year" (INDIANAPOLIS BUSINESS JOURNAL, 1/19 issue).
WAITING ON THE FINISHED PRODUCT: In Indianapolis, Curt Cavin reports the new IndyCar bodywork kits designed by Chevrolet and Honda for their respective teams this season "have been finalized and submitted for review, but fans must wait to see the finished products." IndyCar President of Operations & Competition Derrick Walker said that it is "up to the manufacturers to decide when to showcase their work." The bodywork kits "include the wings, side pods and other parts that make up the skin of the core Dallara-built chassis." IndyCar allowed Chevrolet and Honda the "freedom to give their cars their own identity, hopefully to create more brand competition in the sport" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 1/20).
