Q: So, how will sports car racing survive? There must have been 300 or 400 people at Daytona last weekend in the stands. My pals and I used to take a motor home down to Road Atlanta when the Camel GT was running strong to see if anyone could beat the Nissan's and Geoff Brabham and later the Toyota's and JMF II (and that's not to mention all the SCCA support races and other pro events). I remember watching a young and chubby Michael Andretti driving a 962 and was standing in shock when Chip Robinson had the worst wreck I have ever seen in person. Maybe it wasn't standing room only but there was always a crowd in the stands and the infield was usually pretty packed. Heck, there were crowds for the Walter Mitty were in the thousands! The cars are so much better now and the racing is tight, what gives with such a lack of interest? They are selling reserved seat total access weekend tickets for the Grand-Am at COTA for 59.00 and 30.00 for parking, how can you get a better deal than that?

Tom in Waco (Team Margarita)

RM: They always claimed several thousand are in the infield but I don’t ever remember seeing anybody in the grandstands at Daytona for the 24 hours. I think the combined series of 2014 could be a big threat to IndyCar if properly pulled off and not too many teams or manufacturers are chased off. GRAND-AM has no spectators but ALMS has a nice following so there is potential.

Q: I understand needing to look for a job with his HRT Formula 1 team closing shop, but is there a team out there serious about hiring Narain Karthikeyan? What kind of sponsorship money does he have to bring to the table? Glad to see Beaux Barfield continuing in the midst of the management chaos. He and Phillips sticking around at least makes me feel good about what's going on race weekends ... can't wait for St Pete! Watched Baltimore on my DVR last weekend and am excited for 2013!

Gordon Martinez

RM: I’m sure if he has $5 million he could talk to Michael Andretti or Chip Ganassi about their fourth car, but so far it’s just talk.

Q: I recently watched a video of the 1967 Rex Mays 300 at Riverside. I was amazed to see AJ's team pull McCluskey out of the race (from the lead!) to put AJ in the car so that he could get enough points to win the championship. That got me to thinking about last year's final race. Can you imagine the uproar if The Captain pulled Briscoe or Castroneves out of the lead or even the lead lap to give their car to Will? Forgetting sponsors, seats, egos, etc., would the current rules have allowed for a switch like that? I know at Indy it’s the car that qualifies, not the driver. (I also laughed when I saw McCluskey pull out a cigarette in during his interview, IN THE PITS!)

Derek in Nampa ID

RM: It was much crazier in 1968 at Riverside in the final race as Mario Andretti jumped into three different cars trying to beat Bobby Unser for the title. Back then, Goodyear and Firestone pumped so much money into drivers and teams they would order driver changes in certain situations. Nowadays, these drivers couldn’t (or wouldn’t) hop into a strange car and roar back into competition because either they wouldn’t fit in the seat, they wouldn’t feel comfortable in somebody else’s car or it would take too long to make a switch. That was a different era and breed back then.

Q: Now that the window for a fourth car at Ganassi is closing, do you expect the No. 83 team to join the Target cars as a more central part of that organization? And how much of a difference do you think there has been in the past between the two sides of CGR?

Aaron

RM: I think they’ll remain housed separately but Dario claims all the information between teams was shared last season. I think 2012 was much better than 2011 in that regard but it’s just a guess.
Q: What about Bryan Clauson in this year’s Indy 500? Has that Mazda Road to Indy money dried up, or is there a chance we’ll see him back this year? I’d like to see him get another shot against more than 33 entrants. Also, with the Mike Conway one-off for Long Beach, who is Bobby Rahal considering in that car at Indy or other venues this year?
Zachary H.

RM: I asked Bryan at the Chili Bowl how things were looking for Indy and he wasn’t real optimistic because the USAC/IndyCar money isn’t enough (and I think it’s been reduced) so he needs to find some outside help. Conway wants to run more than Long Beach so he’s the lead candidate but I’m sure Robert will find another shoe at Indy (maybe Briscoe if he’s still rideless).

Q: I was really glad to see Barfield working on new rules. Mostly good stuff but I think we should look back at some of the old rules. I think most would make for better racing. Here are a few ideas of mine I'd like to see happen. Fuel: Carry the same amount for safely but let them use all they want. Let them decide how many pit stops they want to make. Five, 10 or 20, it should be up to them. Tires: If you qualify on blacks that is what you run the entire race with except for rain. Same with the reds, It should be their choice. I don't think old Rufus, Uncle Bobby, or A.J. really like much of the new stuff. I think they liked the run what you brung-type racing. Some of the backyard built cars gave us some of the best racing. Sam Hanks 1957 winner is a prime example. What’s the scoop on the new guys at Indy? Are they really just insiders and bean counters or are they going to really produce? What is your take?

Don Betsworth, Torrance, CA

RM: Not sure you could ask for better racing than we saw in 2012 and the reds and blacks make qualifying and the race interesting because of the strategies of when to use them. Can’t comment on the new guys because I only talked to them once at a press conference. But you should know my take: there was absolutely no reason to get rid of Randy Bernard.