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WATKINS GLEN - Combined television ratings on ABC and ESPN are up 26 percent. Attendance has risen 17 percent. Merchandise sales are up 50 percent to 100 percent from race to race, and Internet traffic is up triple digits.
And in rookie Danica Patrick, the Indy Racing League's IndyCar Series now has its poster driver, a recognizable name, a celebrity who's transcended the sport and become identifiable to race fans and non-race fans alike.
By all accounts, it's been a huge season for the series, which made its first stop at Watkins Glen International this past weekend. Now, with one race left on the 2005 schedule, the question is: Where does IndyCar go from here?
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Ken Ungar, the vice president of business affairs for the Indy Racing League, points to attendance and television ratings as two big positives the series would like to see continue growing.
"We're going to be doing more grass-roots fan building next year," Ungar said. "We had our first official fan club this year and already there are about 16,000 members. And you'll see an expansion of that next year, and a lot of other things that will expose Americans to the sport of IndyCar racing."
And in rookie Danica Patrick, the Indy Racing League's IndyCar Series now has its poster driver, a recognizable name, a celebrity who's transcended the sport and become identifiable to race fans and non-race fans alike.
By all accounts, it's been a huge season for the series, which made its first stop at Watkins Glen International this past weekend. Now, with one race left on the 2005 schedule, the question is: Where does IndyCar go from here?
...
Ken Ungar, the vice president of business affairs for the Indy Racing League, points to attendance and television ratings as two big positives the series would like to see continue growing.
"We're going to be doing more grass-roots fan building next year," Ungar said. "We had our first official fan club this year and already there are about 16,000 members. And you'll see an expansion of that next year, and a lot of other things that will expose Americans to the sport of IndyCar racing."
Attendance at Texas was up 8,000 to 102,000 - although the Speedway did spend an extra $100,000 specifically to advertise Patrick's appearance.
Since Indy, ticket sales at each stop on the circuit have been up - although, admittedly, IRL attendance is still sparse by NASCAR standards.
TV ratings for the Bombardier Learjet 500 in Texas, aired on ESPN two weeks after Indy, set an IRL record on the cable network - another dubious distinction since the new record was a modest 1.0 rating (880,000 households).
But it's a start in a league that has lost two-thirds of its race teams and 20 percent of its cars since 2002, and is currently losing engine makers faster than Formula One is losing fans.
TV ratings for the Bombardier Learjet 500 in Texas, aired on ESPN two weeks after Indy, set an IRL record on the cable network - another dubious distinction since the new record was a modest 1.0 rating (880,000 households).
But it's a start in a league that has lost two-thirds of its race teams and 20 percent of its cars since 2002, and is currently losing engine makers faster than Formula One is losing fans.
Reach the fastest growing fan base in motorsports.* To learn more about the ultimate fan experience contact us at 317.492.8547.
©2005 Indy Racing League, LLC. All Rights Reserved. *2000 - 2004 ESPN Sports Poll
©2005 Indy Racing League, LLC. All Rights Reserved. *2000 - 2004 ESPN Sports Poll
Finally, we remain encouraged by the growth of the IRL IndyCar Series. For 2006, we will promote six of the series' 14 events, and while it is still relatively new, we believe there is a long-term opportunity for growth in this open wheel series.
The IRL's centerpiece is the Indianapolis 500. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway provides no attendance figures but uses the average of all media estimates, which last year came to 400,000. For its 15 races in 2002, the IRL said it averaged 67,782 spectators -- 44,053 excluding the Indy 500.
Q. Steve, how is this first event shaping up as far as attendance goes?
STEVE PAGE: We are on target to -- we're on a pace to hit all of the attendance targets we set for ourselves this year in terms of sponsors. Suite clients, hospitality clients, we are actually exceeding some of the targets that we have set. We're very pleased with the way the race is shaping up.
Q. Specifically, which ones are you exceeding? What were those targets?
STEVE PAGE: Well, I'm not going to get into any specific numbers. We are going to have more sponsor hospitality here than we had originally projected. We have totally sold out all of our hospitality suites. Our attendance is tracking right where we hoped it would be.
STEVE PAGE: We are on target to -- we're on a pace to hit all of the attendance targets we set for ourselves this year in terms of sponsors. Suite clients, hospitality clients, we are actually exceeding some of the targets that we have set. We're very pleased with the way the race is shaping up.
Q. Specifically, which ones are you exceeding? What were those targets?
STEVE PAGE: Well, I'm not going to get into any specific numbers. We are going to have more sponsor hospitality here than we had originally projected. We have totally sold out all of our hospitality suites. Our attendance is tracking right where we hoped it would be.
... the Kansas IRL weekend and the Pepsi 400 weekend at Daytona also contributed to the increase
I do however think most of whatever we wish the series could be or do is enhanced by growing the fan base - whether that's more teams, more driver opportunity, less gloom, or more sponsor support. I would encourage any who wish to see successful IndyCar racing to keep up your enthusiasm. It's good for the sport
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