Alonso to compete in Indianapolis 500

[Brandon Wright]

I don't know about a yearly salary, but Rossi got $2.5 million for winning Indy last year.

Not really though, so much of that is chopped up between the team and the Leader's Circle that the driver gets a tiny fraction of that. I heard it mentioned recently that one of the drivers (forget which one) who was in the 500 last year only walked away with $1,500. The amounts they advertise at the winner's banquet are not even close to what the actual driver gets. I don't think Conor Daly got paid at all last year and most of the drivers probably don't even make $1 million a year. Thanks to the Leader's Circle system the payouts for IndyCar are kinda screwy. According to this the top drivers might make $1.5 million a year, the rest of the drivers are lucky to make six figures. So basically you'd have to be in IndyCar for 30-40 years to make what Alonso earns in one season of F1.

 

[Scottt]

Monaco i just hope for rain. With rain it could become a thrilling race. With the new owners i can imagine they'd even allow racing in rainy conditions, and not only in "one more lap and the racing line is fit for slicks"-conditions..
I guess if it'd rain, Alonso will want to bite himself in the a*s

Speaking of which, why does F1 even bother with full wets anymore? By the time it's wet enough where you need them; F1 red flags a race. And if it's driving, nearly everyone goes with Inters anticipating it drying out.

In the last 5 years, I don't know if more than 5 race laps per team have been done on full wets.

 

[Celestiale]

Speaking of which, why does F1 even bother with full wets anymore? By the time it's wet enough where you need them; F1 red flags a race. And if it's driving, nearly everyone goes with Inters anticipating it drying out.

In the last 5 years, I don't know if more than 5 race laps per team have been done on full wets.

Jep. The one aspects that annoyed <snip> me so often the last years. Made me almost as mad as watching Barcelona (the football club). I hope so much with the new owners it will change.

 

[Christian Moreau]

Me when I read the news...

Fernando needs this and I'm sure he's going to love it as soon as he gets up to speed with the car.

 

[Winkhaus]

I demand the return of Alonso in Ferrari!!!

 

[Reik Major]

Fingers crossed he doesn't kill himself there. I mean speeds are much higher than he's used to plus fighting closely at this speed all the time. Sure, he's one of the best but he has no oval experiences at all. So no matter if it's a talented young driver or a world class driver, racing this event without any experience doesn't sound right to me but dangerous.

It also sounds disrespectful to all those, who worked there way up hard whilst others get to participate just because of there name.

 

[LeSunTzu]

You could have said the same for Hulkenberg at Le Mans. No experience in multi-class, no experience in endurance, no experience in a closed LMP with limited visibility; so a real danger on the track and taking a much coveted seat from seasoned drivers ^^

Alonso is a high-level pro and he will be in a high-level team. He won't be more dangerous than anyone else.

 

[James Cook]

Who can blame him? Too good a driver to be making up the numbers in an uncompetitive F1 car.

 

[Eric Rowland]

Mario used to go back and forth on the Concorde in the 70s to compete in both races. Zak is trying to do anything he can to keep Freddie in a McLaren. Michael A must be grinning from ear to ear and hats off to Stefan Wilson, he must have gotten a wad of cash and some promises from Honda for next year.
Oh, and...Fernando wants to know what it's like to go 200 mph with a Honda engine!

 

[Rob]

Wow, I really did not expect that news!
For me the question is now: Who replaces him during the Monaco weekend?

I have been saying this for years. F1 will slowly lose the great ones (stuck in crap machines) to IndyCar, which is on a serious upswing. Drivers want to race, not manage a spaceship. While F1 is "the pinnacle" of motor racing, it's far from the pinnacle of driving. Kimi maybe next. Sainz then, if they don't wise up about how good he is (he was the ONLY one to make the call for slicks in China), and don't be shocked to hear Vettel either.

My respect for Alonso has been rising because he speaks his mind, gets more out of a car than 99% of all drivers, and is the best looking man on earth (according to my wife). I suspect this is possible because of Liberty, after McLaren. This will be tremendous for IndyCar, as world attention from oval-haters may convert a few. And it will be great for F1 because it will send a message -- drivers need to be more of the focus.

And so the F1 exit strategy begins. Pretty cool news though for Alonso and IndyCar fans. Lets hope the GP2 engine runs well on ovals.

He's running the McLaren? Should be good in the corners, but 683 passes vs. being passed 21 times is going to be tough to manage. Seriously though, this is incredibly good for motorsport in general. Cross-pollination among various motorsport is badly needed (like the DTM and RallyCross do), and Andretti is the bridge (Rossi, his Dad, Mansell, Formula E). I agree completely Bram...don't be shocked to see Vettel, Sainz (if they don't wake up to his talent), and Hamilton (who loves it here) to be next.

Big difference, of course, is that these Indy 500 cars are not the same configuration they use for road racing, except the engine, and even that is tuned far differently for Indy. They are very very different. Heavier, lower, faster top end, taller gears, and virtually no downforce. The Indy 500 is not the best place to judge simply a driver alone, but someone of Alonso's character has already proven the rest. I'm so happy I want to kiss the man. And I have given my wife a "free pass" is she ever meets him.

How much is an Indycar driver earning these days?

If you look into it, you will find that they average about the same as F1 drivers, and the gap from rich to poor is much less. They stick with and value drivers in IndyCar, sometimes to their detriment. Not as many T-Shirt sales as old man Max has generated, but the racing is far far closer. The top four at Long Beach were separated by 1/10th of a second.

 

[Eric Rowland]

and gets more out of a car than 99% of all drivers

Remember when Fred was in a Minardi?......

 

[Boby Kim]

Great stuff. Cant wait for the Indy 500 next year

 

[William Wester]

Great stuff. Cant wait for the Indy 500 next year

Not long to wait... only a couple of weeks!

 

[Boby Kim]

Not long to wait... only a couple of weeks!

Thanks...im not the sharpest tool in the shed

 

[Akra]

It also sounds disrespectful to all those, who worked there way up hard whilst others get to participate just because of there name.

I think a double F1 champion counts as having worked your way up. When you've won 2 world titles, you can basically do whatever you want, frankly.

 

[Reik Major]

I think a double F1 champion counts as having worked your way up. When you've won 2 world titles, you can basically do whatever you want, frankly.

In general I agree (for example F1 drivers racing rallies or so). But in this case I mean working up your way in terms of learning oval racing and gaining experiences over a longer time period. It's just such a different kind of racing. It could happen you're wheel to wheel in the pack for a long time during the race. So a tiny little wrong decision could end in a disaster.

Considering his frustrating time with Honda I'm afraid he could be more than just motivated. And taking more risks in an overtake in F1 is not the same as in a high speed oval race I suppose.

 

[Reik Major]

Btw, even though I don't like Alonso much, I'm looking at it with interest. Let's hope he can show them what a F1 driver is able to.

Just wanted to mention my worries about this project.

 

[Brandon Wright]

It also sounds disrespectful to all those, who worked there way up hard whilst others get to participate just because of there name.

I'd argue the opposite, Alonso and McLaren running in the Indy 500 is going to turn the whole world's attention to this race and this series and that will likely be a good thing for everyone involved. Apparently #Indy500 was trending on Twitter over the last 24 hours and most of my Twitter was full of banter and stories about it this morning. It's fantastic exposure, the series desperately needs more teams and there are a lot of great drivers sitting on the sidelines without a ride so hopefully this increased exposure and attention could result in more people wanting to get involved and could create some seats for those drivers searching for a ride. McLaren have hinted that they might be open to doing a full season as a works team which could create at least one or two more seats, so rather than disrespecting the hard working drivers it could be creating opportunities for them that otherwise may not have materialized. I also imagine a lot more sponsors are suddenly going to be interested in being involved with this race due to the worldwide attention it's now going to get, and lord knows IndyCar desperately needs more/new sponsors.

Of course that's all hypothetical for now, but it's a fair guess that the majority of the motorsports world will be tuning into the Indy 500 this year and hopefully that will result in some positive things for the series. Let's just hope ALO gets through it without any injuries......and without crying "AARRGGHH....IndyLights engine!!" over the radio.

 

[Reik Major]

From this point of view you nailed it mate.

 

[Rob]

Btw, even though I don't like Alonso much, I'm looking at it with interest. Let's hope he can show them what a F1 driver is able to.

Just wanted to mention my worries about this project.

There was this guy named Nigel Mansell....

It's fantastic exposure, the series desperately needs more teams

Not at Indy they don't. 33 cars for 200 years is not bad. Teams and drivers come from all over the world adn new teams are allowed in. It's an "open" series, unlike F1, which was in a serious tailspin, but recovering slowly with their massive grid of 20.

I also imagine a lot more sponsors are suddenly going to be interested in being involved with this race due to the worldwide attention it's now going to get, and lord knows IndyCar desperately needs more/new sponsors.

IndyCar is on the upswing and gaining ratings and fans, not F1. Arguably, on a micro level, this is better for F1 and Alonso. Indy is, after all, 30 years older than F1. Ask any driver on the grid what race they respect the most, and the Indy 500 will come up. On a macro level, F1 is worldwide and massively bigger in scope, but it's also a very very narrow skill set that is needed. This is what motivated Alonso. Nay, all great drivers -- winning in different series'. It used to be like that all the time until Bernie and the FIA turned F1 into an oligarchy that intentionally conflicted with other major series'. IndyCar was, at the same time, in a feud that was idiotic. All of racing suffered. Now, Indy is unified and getting bigger than NASCAR here, and F1 is making incredibly good decisions with fresh management. Fernando says it best. He is so eloquent and accurate about the why and how. If Fernando has a great time and finishes high at Indy, say goodbye to your ex-Champ. Read between the lines on that last question....