American IndyCar Championship unveils calendar for 2024 season, will now end on the streets of Nashville

The late summer and autumn months are normally the time when the race rosters of various motorsport series are published for the upcoming season. Already in July, Formula 1 published its own calendar with a record 24 events. Across the Atlantic, the most prestigious American Formula One championship, IndyCar, regularly sticks to a modest 17 races. There will be no change in that number next year either. However, the series has one surprise in store for its fans, and that is an unscored exhibition race.

If you are a motorsports fan who is interested in what’s happening on the American scene, keep your eyes peeled. The most prestigious formula car championship there, IndyCar, on Monday boasted a brand new calendar for next season.

Although it again includes 17 races as it has for the past few seasons, not counting the years affected by the coronavirus pandemic, there are some major changes and new features.

The championship will kick off, as has become tradition, at the city track in St. Petersburg, Florida, on March 10. The very next race presents an interesting refresher for the upcoming edition, an exhibition race at the Thermal Club in California. Although the drivers will not receive any championship points for their exploits, the winner of the event will take home one million dollars.

Next up are races at Long Beach and Barber Motorsports Park, after which it will be time for the highlight of the season – the 108th running of the famous Indianapolis 500. It will get a taste of the race on the inner circuit where Formula One cars raced between 2000 and 2007.

After racing on the streets of Detroit and at the famous Road America, the drivers will show up in Laguna Seca, California. The race at this circuit has been moved from the very end of the season to the middle of the calendar this time.

The 2024 edition of the IndyCar Series will enter its second half with a race at Mid-Ohio, followed by a doubleheader at the Iowa oval. Four races over three consecutive weekends will conclude the drivers’ duel at Toronto’s City Circuit.

Fans of ovals will be delighted with the last five races, three of which will take place on ovals. First will be Gateway on August 17 and twice two weekends later at the Milwaukee Mile, which was last on the IndyCar calendar in 2015. However, that big return has taken a toll on another oval, namely the one in Texas. The Gateway and Milwaukee Mile events will be separated by a race on Portland’s short natural circuit.

The 2024 IndyCar season finale will take place on September 15 instead of at Laguna Seca on the streets of Nashville, Tennessee. Such an early end to the championship causes the start of the NFL, the American football league that enjoys the most popularity in the U.S., which takes away viewership from other sports, including IndyCar.

This year’s edition was dominated by Álex Palou, for the first time in fifteen years with one race to spare, mainly due to fantastic consistency. The Spaniard finished no worse than eighth in any of the 17 races.

Source: IndyCar