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The Bitter Feud and Split That Nearly Killed Indy Car For Good
And why NASCAR remains more popular to this very day
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, it seemed as though Indy Car racing was going to take over the racing world. The early 90s saw Indy Car racing on a pleasing mixture of road courses, street races, and ovals. The series had races in countries like Canada, Brazil and Australia. In 1995, many people envisioned Indy Car transforming into the glitzy and competitive sport that F1 eventually did. But that never happened. Instead of being vaulted to national and international prominence, Indy Car faded into the background. Instead of overtaking F1, Indy Car fell behind their redneck cousins, NASCAR, in popularity.
Today, Indy Car is barely alive compared to where it once was. It is nearly impossible for casual fans to find a televised race. NASCAR dominates the American market with three televised races per weekend, while F1 dominates the international market. In fact, you are more likely to find an F1 race being aired at 3 AM than find an Indy Race airing at 3 PM. So what happened? How did Indy Car tumble from prominence to near obscurity? Why is Indy Car struggling to find a market in today’s auto-racing world? The answer to those questions is tied to a baffling feud and a massive split that nearly destroyed the sport entirely.
