In a bid to discourage fuel-mileage racing, INDYCAR has announced tweaks to the race length at four of their 19 events on the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule.
Affected by the changes are the season opener at St. Petersburg, Florida (+10 laps, now 110 laps), the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach (-5 laps, now 80 laps), the Milwaukee IndyFest (+25 laps, now 250 laps), and the round at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (+5 laps, now 90 laps).
"Changing the distances at these races will hopefully eliminate the strategy of saving fuel from the drop of the green flag," said series race director Beaux Barfield in a statement. "That will enable our teams and drivers to race hard for the full distance and improve the event's entertainment value for the fans."
The series also released its 2013 television schedule, which will see NBCSN carry the first four races leading into ABC's customary broadcast of the Indianapolis 500 on May 26. From there, ABC will have six of the next seven races, including its first-ever prime-time IndyCar broadcast at Texas Motor Speedway. NBCSN will then return at the Toronto doubleheader to show the final eight races of 2013.
Here's how it looks, so start putting it all in your planners:
2013 IZOD INDYCAR SERIES RACE TELEVISION SCHEDULE
|
Date |
Venue |
Circuit |
Distance |
Broadcast Time* |
Network |
|
March 24 |
Streets of St. Petersburg |
1.8-mile street |
110 laps |
Noon |
NBCSN |
|
April 7 |
Barber Motorsports Park |
2.38-mile road |
90 laps |
1:30 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
April 21 |
Streets of Long Beach |
1.96-mile street |
80 laps |
4 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
May 5 |
Streets of Sao Paulo |
2.53-mile street |
75 laps |
11 a.m. |
NBCSN |
|
May 26 |
Indianapolis Motor Speedway |
2.5-mile oval |
200 laps |
11 a.m. |
ABC |
|
June 1 |
Streets of Belle Isle (Race 1) |
2.34-mile street |
70 laps |
3:30 p.m. |
ABC |
|
June 2 |
Streets of Belle Isle (Race 2) |
2.34-mile street |
70 laps |
3:30 p.m. |
ABC |
|
June 8 |
Texas Motor Speedway |
1.5-mile oval |
228 laps |
8:30 p.m. |
ABC |
|
June 15 |
Milwaukee Mile |
1-mile oval |
250 laps |
4 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
June 23 |
Iowa Speedway |
.875-mile oval |
250 laps |
2:30 p.m. |
ABC |
|
July 7 |
Pocono Raceway |
2.5-mile oval |
160 laps |
Noon |
ABC |
|
July 13 |
Streets of Toronto (Race 1) |
1.75-mile street |
85 laps |
3 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
July 14 |
Streets of Toronto (Race 2) |
1.75-mile street |
85 laps |
3 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
Aug. 4 |
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course |
2.25-mile road |
90 laps |
3 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
Aug. 25 |
Raceway at Sonoma |
2.38-mile road |
85 laps |
4 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
Sept. 1 |
Streets of Baltimore |
2.04-mile street |
75 laps |
2 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
Oct. 5 |
Reliant Park (Race 1) |
1.7-mile street |
90 laps |
3 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
Oct. 6 |
Reliant Park (Race 2) |
1.7-mile street |
90 laps |
1 p.m. |
NBCSN |
|
Oct. 19 |
Auto Club Speedway |
2-mile oval |
250 laps |
8 p.m. |
NBCSN |
