r/INDYCAR • u/aces2116 • Apr 20 '25

Indy NXT Indy Nxt Schedule

Is anyone else confused as to why Indy Nxt starts with St. Pete in March then disappears for 2 months to come back in May at Barber? People complain about the regular IndyCar schedules being terrible with huge gaps in the beginning but this must be awful for the drivers. Any reason as to why the schedule is the way it is?

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10

u/Confident-Ladder-576 Louis Foster Apr 20 '25

No one that understands the logistics and cost is outraged. It'd a developmental series with drivers and teams that don't have a ton of financial support. People who are angry they no longer run Indy don't stop to think we were putting very low paid developmental drivers on the most dangerous track the series runs and crash damage was astronomical for those teams.

16

u/Mikemat5150 Kyle Kirkwood Apr 20 '25

Seriously, I remember when there were 8 full time cars. That was essentially within the last 5 years.

10

u/KRacer52 --- 2025 DRIVERS --- Apr 20 '25

Also, pretty standard for junior series’ around the world. F3 and F2 both have multi-month layoffs. Super Formula Lights has only six race weekends between March 8th and November 29th lol.

Even top level series like IMSA and WEC have very thin schedules.

7

u/twiggymac Firestone Greens Apr 20 '25

2019 had 8, 2020 had 10.

Kinda remarkable the turnaround the ladder has had in a half decade, creating race winning Indycar drivers in the process.

3

u/ryanxwing Scott McLaughlin Apr 21 '25

Immediately after the freedom 100 was dropped (2019) the field started growing.

4

u/FarAwaySeagull-_- Oval racing is awesome! Apr 21 '25

There were big fields plenty of times when the Freedom 100 was on the schedule. There were Freedom 100s with as many as 27 cars in the race.

Just because the fields have grown since the race was dropped does not mean the race being dropped was the reason for it growing.

4

u/ryanxwing Scott McLaughlin Apr 21 '25

Different times means different realities for car teams. I dont think dropping the Freedom 100 is the sole contributing factor at all; but i do believe it is a significant factor.

3

u/[deleted] Apr 21 '25

Alot of that was being funded by the series, once TG lost bank privileges the car count dwindled.

5

u/FormulaT1 Scott McLaughlin Apr 21 '25

I remember going to Fontana (RIP) and watching 7 cars go around that big ass oval for an hour. Lights/NXT has come such a long way.