Quality Over Quantity: The Harsh Future Facing IndyCar’s Midfield
Ed Carpenter Racing was the first to go public in its search for funding. This must have been tough, but it allowed them to get ahead of a narrative that is easy to tell with hindsight.
Investors are pattern-recognition machines. Seeing three “please fund us” headlines in less than a year would reframe the issue as systemic fragility in IndyCar’s midfield.
Who would want to invest in that?
From Game to Operating System: Why the Cosworth–iRacing Partnership Could Redefine Motorsport by 2030
On August 28, 2025, iRacing announced a landmark partnership with Cosworth, the legendary engineering firm producing everything from engines to steering wheels to, pertinently for this announcement, software.
At first glance, this might sound like a “nice upgrade” for sim racers who want to feel a little closer to the action: Cosworth’s Pi Toolbox, highly regarded in professional race telemetry, will be made available to all iRacing users.
Cosworth is no stranger to the sim racing space, having already released consumer versions of some of their highly recognizable, real-life steering wheels.
But this news is far bigger than just new features for a PC sim.
Who Cares If the F1 Movie Is Inaccurate? It’s “Drive To Survive” At 18,000 RPM.
F1 is absolutely fantastic, in fact I’m rewatching it as I’m putting this article together.
Yes, you’ll spot the cracks if you’re a die-hard fan: Brands Hatch pretending to be somewhere else, the APXGP car actually a dressed-up F2 chassis (the steering wheel gives it away), and a 1990s driver improbably getting another shot at the grid.
Who cares?
Accuracy isn’t the point.
The Vaucher Analytics State of Motorsport 2025: IndyCar
Every motorsport season tells two stories.
There’s the one played out on the track: the wins, losses, and moments fans will remember for years.
And then there’s the one that unfolds behind the scenes, where commercial deals, political maneuvering, and long-term strategy shape the sport’s future.
The very fact that this article can be written in mid-August, with two races still left to run, is itself part of IndyCar’s problem: the season comes and goes in a flash, followed by a six-month void that leaves little space for new stories to develop or late-comers to find their way in.
That’s only the tip of the iceberg, but nevertheless the 2025 IndyCar season delivered plenty of on-track action, in keeping with what it’s known for as the place where open-wheel finesse mixes with just a hint of NASCAR chaos.
But the off-track story is where the series’ long-term fate will be decided.