Oilpressure

Being a Nashville resident, you can imagine how excited we are to have the NTT IndyCar Series descend into our hometown. Those that live in the Indianapolis area know what a luxury it is to spend a day at the track, and then go home to sleep in your own bed. That luxury is one of my favorite parts to this weekend.

Last night, there was a special media event that Susan and I attended. Most of you realize that I write many of these posts ahead of time. This was written on Wednesday night, so I’ll have information on it later this morning when we get to the track. What is expected to be announced is that the Music City Grand Prix will serve as the IndyCar season-finale in 2024. I am also assuming they will be unveiling the new circuit that will be necessary, since construction of a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans will be underway at this time next year. By the ti e you read this, you’ll know what the announcement was.

Many in the IndyCar community of media and fans already despise this track, so maybe a new layout will be a blessing. I will concede that it is a little goofy – especially the part that goes around a glorified triangle across the river. Racing purists are especially offended by the circuit. It didn’t help that Marshall Pruett of Racer.com called it a s**tshow after the first running two years ago. That tag seemed to stick.

Maybe the new circuit will be better for racing, but the local and casual fans seem to like it. The shots of race cars going over the bridge crossing the Cumberland River, is already a trademark shot. I am hopeful that the same bridge will be part of the new layout. All I know is that the NTT IndyCar Series is in my hometown, about five miles from my office – so I’m a happy man this weekend.

I would like for someone to explain one thing to me. The first two years of this event, they used a logo that I liked. It was the shape of a guitar pick (Music City), and had the skyline silhouette inside the pic. I thought it was unique and was symbolic of the city and the event.

For reasons unknown to me, they changed the logo to something very plain and generic that looks as if it could have been a tenth-grade design project. There is no imagination to this new logo whatsoever. Why the change? Change is Bad!

Josef Newgarden is the sentimental favorite going into this event, since he is the hometown hero, but he has fared that well in this race. He was fortunate to end up with a tenth-place finish in 2021, after being mid-pack for most of the weekend. Last year he finished sixth,having a better weekend than the year before. His teammate Scott McLaughlin was much stronger through the weekend, however – and I look for McLaughlin to be strong again this weekend.

Chip Ganassi Racing is about the only team that seems to have the 2.17 mile street course around Nissan Stadium figured out. They have won both races and really seem to know how to attack this course.

This race will be on Big NBC on Sunday for an early start – 11:30 am green-flag local time (CDT). Practice One will get underway this afternoon at 4:00 pm EDT on Peacock. Practice Two will take place Saturday at 11:40 am EDT on Peacock, followed by Qualifying on Peacock at 2:45 pm EDT on Peacock. With such an early start on Sunday, the final practice will run from 6:25 to 6:55 pm EDT Saturday evening on Peacock. Coverage for Sunday’s race will start at Noon EDT on Big NBC, with the green flag flying at 12:30 pm EDT.

The weather may or may not be a factor. It poured locally all day on Thursday. There is a chance for a thunderstorm on Friday morning, but should be gone by Friday’s practice session. There is a slight chance for a shower on Saturday and Sunday afternoon, but most think we should be OK for those two days.

Who do I predict to win? I think it will be another Ganassi car, but not Scott Dixon or Marcus Ericsson. I’m really going out on a limb here, by saying that Alex Palou will win on the streets of Nashville and pad his already enormous lead in the championship. We’ll see.

Susan and I plan to arrive at the track early to mid-morning. I will have a post up here after we arrive, to include the announcement event and pit-stop competition on Lower Broadway last night. As usual, we will be posting from the track throughout the weekend. You may also follow us on Twitter (or is it now X?). Follow me at @Oilpressureblog or Susan at @MrsOilpressure for photos and videos. Please check back later this morning.

George Phillips

This entry was posted on August 4, 2023 at 4:04 am and is filed under IndyCar. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.