ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — For the first time in many years, the NTT IndyCar Series will start its season one week after NASCAR’s biggest race of the year — the Daytona 500.
In IndyCar’s case, the two races are connected by Interstate 4 that begins in Daytona Beach, Fla., and ends in downtown Tampa. Hop on I-275 from Tampa, across the bay and it’s over to St. Petersburg, which resumes its traditional role as the opening race of the IndyCar Series season.
What has allowed this spin on a Florida Speedweek is IndyCar’s decision to move up the start of the season to the final weekend of February, instead of the second weekend in March. The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg began as a Champ Car Series race in 2003. It wasn’t held in 2004 and joined what is now the NTT IndyCar Series in 2005.
Since that time, this race has become IndyCar’s version of Spring Break as many of its teams shed the ice and snow of Indianapolis for the warm sunshine of Florida’s Gulf Coast.
It has been warmly embraced by the local community and the city government, making it one of the most popular racing weekends on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule.
Sunday’s race begins at noon Eastern Time on NBC without any racing competition in that time slot.
“It’s good,” said Team Penske driver and two-time Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg winner Will Power. “I think now that NASCAR and IndyCar have collaborated a little bit with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course race, there’s a little bit of crossover there with the fans.
“Hopefully, that brings more viewers and more spectators to the track. It’s good for motorsports as a whole. The more popular motorsport becomes, the better it is for all of us, not matter the series.
“We’re hoping to see a full crowd there, full capacity. It’s been a couple years. I think it’ll be a great weekend.”
One of Power’s former teammates is Helio Castroneves, who returns to the streets of St. Petersburg for the first time since 2017. Castroneves drives for Meyer-Shank Racing and scored his fourth Indy 500 win last May.
“Having Roger Penske in charge of IndyCar helps,” Castroneves said. “Everybody respects Roger. And now no question the series, it does help a lot with other series, NASCAR and IndyCar, as Will alluded to, being collaborative with dates, and I do feel it’s going to be a crossover with the fans.
“The Daytona 500 happened Sunday and now we’re right getting ready for the opening of the season.
“It’s different fans, but it’s still pretty competitive racing, right? Everybody loves the competition. Everybody loves the drivers. It’s just different styles, but at the end of the day still very similar crowd.”
It was March 13, 2020, when IndyCar, Green-Savoree Promotions and the mayor of St. Petersburg pulled the plug the event at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The St. Petersburg race ended up concluding the season.
Back then, only the die-hard race fans knew about a rookie driver named Alex Palou and Jimmie Johnson was still a NASCAR Cup Series driver.
Today, Palou is the defending IndyCar Series champion and Johnson is beginning his second season as an NTT IndyCar Series driver.
“I would say it’s only gotten more competitive in competitive in IndyCar,” Power said. “Obviously, Palou is a champion. No one knew who he was in 2020 and Jimmie Johnson is now running full time in IndyCar, even doing the ovals.
“Yeah, things changed very quickly.
“But as far as the competition and the teams, it’s pretty similar. Everyone has had this car for quite a while, and they’ve developed it to the nth degree. That’s why you’re seeing these ridiculously close qualifying sessions and a different winner every week and different pole sitter every week.
“It’s making a very interesting series.”
Back in 2020, Castroneves was a full-time IMSA driver for Acura Team Penske who had never won a series championship. He became IMSA champion at the end of that season, won the Rolex 24 at Daytona and his fourth Indianapolis 500 in 2021 and won another Rolex 24 at Daytona last month.
He is back as a full-time IndyCar Series driver in 2022, along with another former Team Penske driver and Indy 500 winner Simon Pagenaud as his teammate.
“I’ll echo what Will is saying, it’s exactly the competition,” Castroneves said. “For me it’ll be interesting to see. I’ve been only six races last year, but I’ve been following IndyCar all this time.
“There was very little developing in the car except the aeroscreen that was probably a couple of years ago that it was introduced. So, all these little details.
“You see shuffling people, mechanics and engineers that they can share information, whether they are in one team or another, which it creates even more of a challenge to everyone becoming more competitive, and that’s why, as Will mentioned, it’s so competitive. Hundredths of seconds decide who’s going to be on pole.”
Keyword: St. Petersburg GP Kicks Off IndyCar Slate