Arrow SPM is aiming to join series elite
NTT new title sponsor, NBCSN new TV partner as season opener arrives
After a busy offseason, 24 cars are in Florida this weekend for the NTT IndyCar Series’ season-opening race on the streets of St. Petersburg.
There are plenty of storylines to talk about, so let’s just dive right in.
❚ I think some IndyCar fans have a lot to learn. If the last race you tuned in for was the 2018 finale at Sonoma, well, you have some catching up to do. Here’s a short list of what you’ll need need to know ahead of Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg:
❚ Technology services giant NTT replaced Verizon as the title sponsor of the series.
❚ You’ll be watching the race on NBCSN as NBC kicks off its first season as the exclusive broadcasting partner of IndyCar. IndyCar practices on Friday and Saturday can be viewed only by subscribing to NBC Sports’ streaming service, NBC Sports Gold. Saturday’s qualifying will be broadcast on NBCSN.
❚ A year after four new teams joined the series — Carlin Motorsports, Juncos Racing, Harding Steinbrenner Racing and Meyer Shank Racing — DragonSpeed will make its debut with Ben Hanley behind the wheel of the No. 81 Chevrolet. Meanwhile, highly regarded Swedish newcomers Marcus Ericsson (No. 7, Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports) and Felix Rosenqvist (No. 10, Chip Ganassi Racing) also make their debuts.
❚ Fellow rookie Colton Herta will take the track in an Indy car for just the second time as part of HSR, while Dale Coyne Racing rookie Santino Ferrucci returns after a four-race stint with the team late last year.
❚ After not being retained at Chip Ganassi Racing, Ed Jones joined Ed Carpenter Racing in a partnership with Scuderia Corsa on a part-time schedule. He’ll be piloting the ECR No. 20 Chevrolet.
Got all of that?
❚ I think Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports might have something special up its sleeve. One of the best things IndyCar has going for it is its weekend-to-weekend parity. Ten, 12, maybe even as many 15 drivers enter a given race weekend with a chance to win. That, no doubt, makes for an exciting season.
However, come the end of the year, we know which drivers are going to be there fighting for the championship. It’s going to be the aces at Team Penske, Chip Ganassi and Andretti Autosport. No driver from a team outside one of those Big Three has cracked the top five in the championship standings since 2016 (Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing). In the past five years, only Rahal (fourth, 2014; fifth 2016) and then-SPM driver Simon Pagenaud (fifth, 2014) have managed to breach the top five.
However, I think Arrow SPM has an opportunity to change all of that. At times last year, it seemed its drivers were on the verge of something special. For a little more than half a season, James Hinchcliffe and Robert Wickens did more than just nip at the heels of IndyCar’s big dogs, they ran with ’em.
Before his terrifying crash at Pocono, Wickens had racked up four podiums and was sixth in the championship, less than 30 points behind Power for fourth. Meanwhile, behind a strong start and his win at Iowa, Hinchcliffe managed a top-10 championship finish despite missing out on double points at Indianapolis. SPM was on the brink of breaking through. However, it didn’t go into the offseason simply hoping its fortunes would flip on their own. The team found a way to get better.
In a move team owner Sam Schmidt classified as the “fulfillment of a lifelong dream,” longtime partner Arrow stepped up its involvement and became the team’s title sponsor.
“Arrow has given us the resources to win the Indy 500 and a championship in the IndyCar Series,” Schmidt said. “This puts a lot more pressure on the team. We’ve been the underdog for the better part of the past seven years. There have been flashes of brilliance: the two poles at Indy, the seven race wins. We overachieved with Pagenaud, who was fifth in the points. But now we have no excuses. We should be competing with the Big 3 week in and week out.”
Is that just wishful thinking? Maybe. Perhaps Arrow’s increased support will be enough to give Hinchcliffe and his new teammate, former Formula One driver Marcus Ericsson, enough resources to close the gap.
Although the race on the streets at St. Petersburg won’t be enough for us to know what 2019 holds for Arrow SPM, a strong start there could put it on the path to as Hinchcliffe says, “turning IndyCar’s Big Three into a Big Four.”
❚ I think reigning series champion Scott Dixon gets his first career win on the streets of St. Petersburg. Dixon is an astounding 0-for-14 at St. Pete. For someone as accomplished as the fivetime series champion, it seems strange that none of his 44 victories have come at a place Indy cars have visited so often. Alas, it’s true. But I think the drought ends Sunday. For one, he’s been oh-so close, finishing in the top six eight times, including four podiums. He also was masterful on street circuits last year, winning at Detroit and Toronto. Finally, he might have a teammate who could push him harder than he’s been pushed in years. While it’s too early to call rookie Rosenqvist a title contender, reports from his comrades say that’s just what he’ll be, and that will make Dixon even more dangerous.
“I don’t think if Felix wins races, it will be much of surprise to anyone,” 2018 championship runner-up Alexander Rossi said. “I’ve known him for a long time, and he’s fast in everything he gets in. He’s talented like that, so it’ll be no surprise if he was on it straight away.
“And yeah, that’ll probably make Scott even better, which is great,” he added sarcastically. “That’s just fantastic for all of us.”