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IndyCar
MILLER: Brickyard Blues Pt. 1
The Indy 500 is again the Big Show while the Brickyard 400 is in a serious state of apathy.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is looking for ways to improve its attendance during the Brickyard 400 weekend. (Photo: LAT)
There was a time, not too long ago, when Indianapolis belonged to NASCAR. During the middle of the summer the merchandise vendors were wall-to-wall on 16th Street, ticket scalpers stood toe-to-toe on Georgetown Road and campers swarmed the Coke Lot off 21st Street in what always had been the rights of passage each May for the Indianapolis 500.
From 1996 to 2005, the Brickyard 400 ruled at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In what would have been unthinkable during Tony Hulman’s lifetime, the stock car race dwarfed the Indianapolis 500 in star power, ticket demand, national media coverage and prestige.
More than 25,000 people descended on the RCA Dome to get a picture or a glimpse of their favorite Ford driver during a fan appreciation night.
Tony Stewart’s annual autograph signing at a local J.D. Byriders drew a larger crowd than most practice days during May.
Between the split of open-wheel racing in ’96 when Tony George started the Indy Racing League to compete with Championship Auto Racing Teams and NASCAR’s meteoric rise across the country, the Brickyard 400 became the most popular event at the Speedway.
Much to the dismay of the hardcore Indy 500 fan.
“I was a purist. I was very much against stock cars at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway when they first tested there,’’ admitted Stewart, who tried conquering Indianapolis in an open-wheel car before moving full-time to NASCAR where he captured the Brickyard in 2005 and 2007.
“I was against it because I didn’t think anything but the Indy 500 belonged at the Speedway. Of course as time went on you realize you have this great facility and are able to bring in other major forms of racing and it was a pretty cool idea. And the Brickyard 400 became a huge deal.’’
But, during the past few years, the landscape has changed. Or maybe returned to normalcy is a better description.
The Indianapolis 500 is again the Big Show in town while the Brickyard 400 has slumped into a serious state of apathy.
Last year’s stock car race had the worst crowd since it debuted in 1994 as it was estimated that only half of the 250,000 permanent seats were occupied. This year ticket brokers aren’t interested, hotel rooms are plentiful this weekend and, in many ways, it’s become just another race on the Sprint Cup’s 36-date schedule.
IMS and NASCAR officials are now doing everything possible to resuscitate Brickyard weekend. They’ve added a GRAND-AM sports car race on Friday, moved the Nationwide series to Saturday afternoon at the Speedway and brought in Crown Royal to sponsor the Brickyard 400.
“NASCAR loves coming to Indianapolis, it’s one of their favorite destinations on the schedule,’’ said IMS president and CEO Jeff Belskus. “And we love having them here. It’s a good event for us.’’
Fair enough, but it used to be a great event so what exactly happened?
ONE BRICK AT A TIME
Hulman had always resisted the idea of any other races being held at his Speedway. “Indy is like the circus, we come to town once a year,’’ used to say the man who rescued IMS in 1945.
Despite advances by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and ex-NASCAR employee John Cooper when he was president of the Speedway in the early ‘80s, Hulman and right-hand man Joe Cloutier rejected the idea of running stock cars on the hallowed ground of open-wheel racing.
But when Tony George took the reins of the Speedway in 1989, NASCAR was gaining momentum with national television and major companies interested in sponsoring the old moonshine circuit.
George’s failed attempt to buy CART in 1991 resulted in some bad blood with the car owners and that turned out to be the genesis of the IRL, as well as bringing NASCAR to IMS.
The late Dave Cassidy, the godfather to George who worked for five decades in many capacities at the Speedway before his death in 2001, revealed that TG vowed to show CART who was boss by bringing in NASCAR.
And while the old schoolers of Indy deemed the move as blasphemy, it would turn out to be one of the few good business decisions by George during his reign. The Indy 500 had always been one of the toughest tickets to get and now it had company a few months later with the Brickyard 400, which quickly sold out for its debut.
The fact that transplanted Hoosier Jeff Gordon captured the inaugural Brickyard 400 on Aug. 6, 1994 only added to the allure.
After George guaranteed 25 of the 33 starting spots for IRL regulars prior to the ’96 Indy 500, CART staged a competing 500-miler at Michigan, and almost overnight “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’’ had become more spectacle than race.
While Andretti, Unser, Fittipaldi, Rahal and Tracy were in Michigan, no-names like Racin’ Gardner, Brad Murphy, Paul Durant and Fermin Velez took their place at Indianapolis.
From 1996 to 2005, the Brickyard 400 ruled at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In what would have been unthinkable during Tony Hulman’s lifetime, the stock car race dwarfed the Indianapolis 500 in star power, ticket demand, national media coverage and prestige.
More than 25,000 people descended on the RCA Dome to get a picture or a glimpse of their favorite Ford driver during a fan appreciation night.
Tony Stewart’s annual autograph signing at a local J.D. Byriders drew a larger crowd than most practice days during May.
Between the split of open-wheel racing in ’96 when Tony George started the Indy Racing League to compete with Championship Auto Racing Teams and NASCAR’s meteoric rise across the country, the Brickyard 400 became the most popular event at the Speedway.
Much to the dismay of the hardcore Indy 500 fan.
“I was a purist. I was very much against stock cars at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway when they first tested there,’’ admitted Stewart, who tried conquering Indianapolis in an open-wheel car before moving full-time to NASCAR where he captured the Brickyard in 2005 and 2007.
“I was against it because I didn’t think anything but the Indy 500 belonged at the Speedway. Of course as time went on you realize you have this great facility and are able to bring in other major forms of racing and it was a pretty cool idea. And the Brickyard 400 became a huge deal.’’
But, during the past few years, the landscape has changed. Or maybe returned to normalcy is a better description.
The Indianapolis 500 is again the Big Show in town while the Brickyard 400 has slumped into a serious state of apathy.
Last year’s stock car race had the worst crowd since it debuted in 1994 as it was estimated that only half of the 250,000 permanent seats were occupied. This year ticket brokers aren’t interested, hotel rooms are plentiful this weekend and, in many ways, it’s become just another race on the Sprint Cup’s 36-date schedule.
IMS and NASCAR officials are now doing everything possible to resuscitate Brickyard weekend. They’ve added a GRAND-AM sports car race on Friday, moved the Nationwide series to Saturday afternoon at the Speedway and brought in Crown Royal to sponsor the Brickyard 400.
“NASCAR loves coming to Indianapolis, it’s one of their favorite destinations on the schedule,’’ said IMS president and CEO Jeff Belskus. “And we love having them here. It’s a good event for us.’’
Fair enough, but it used to be a great event so what exactly happened?
ONE BRICK AT A TIME
Hulman had always resisted the idea of any other races being held at his Speedway. “Indy is like the circus, we come to town once a year,’’ used to say the man who rescued IMS in 1945.
Despite advances by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and ex-NASCAR employee John Cooper when he was president of the Speedway in the early ‘80s, Hulman and right-hand man Joe Cloutier rejected the idea of running stock cars on the hallowed ground of open-wheel racing.
But when Tony George took the reins of the Speedway in 1989, NASCAR was gaining momentum with national television and major companies interested in sponsoring the old moonshine circuit.
George’s failed attempt to buy CART in 1991 resulted in some bad blood with the car owners and that turned out to be the genesis of the IRL, as well as bringing NASCAR to IMS.
The late Dave Cassidy, the godfather to George who worked for five decades in many capacities at the Speedway before his death in 2001, revealed that TG vowed to show CART who was boss by bringing in NASCAR.
And while the old schoolers of Indy deemed the move as blasphemy, it would turn out to be one of the few good business decisions by George during his reign. The Indy 500 had always been one of the toughest tickets to get and now it had company a few months later with the Brickyard 400, which quickly sold out for its debut.
The fact that transplanted Hoosier Jeff Gordon captured the inaugural Brickyard 400 on Aug. 6, 1994 only added to the allure.
After George guaranteed 25 of the 33 starting spots for IRL regulars prior to the ’96 Indy 500, CART staged a competing 500-miler at Michigan, and almost overnight “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’’ had become more spectacle than race.
While Andretti, Unser, Fittipaldi, Rahal and Tracy were in Michigan, no-names like Racin’ Gardner, Brad Murphy, Paul Durant and Fermin Velez took their place at Indianapolis.
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