Latest / The Indycar Dad Podcast / INDYCAR News in 5 Minutes - April 12, 2026 - Ep. 21
Transcript
- Indycar Dad Podcast: Hey IndyCar family, I'm IndyCarDad, your host for the IndyCar News in 5 minutes. I read and watch everything IndyCar from the past week and then I try to summarize it all in 5 minutes flat. So let's do updates for ⁓ April 12th, 2026. The big news is things are looking bad for Prema. A European source is saying that they will not make the Indy 500. I remember when they were going to make it to St. Pete, but then not St. Pete. Then they were definitely going to be at Long Beach, but then not Long Beach. And then they were definitely going to be at the 500. Well, now we got nothing. So bad news for Prema. It also looks like Colton Hurto will not be making the Indy 500. He's going to have a conflict with F2 because of all the disruption in the Middle East. They had to move some of the F2 races and they moved one to the Montreal Grand Prix weekend, which is the same weekend as the Indy 500. This week, Andretti announced that they will not field the fourth car if Colton isn't going to be there. So they're just going to focus on their three main cars. So that would put us at 32 cars, which is one less than a full field and nobody really wants it less than full field. But don't fear, we'll be saved by Larry Foite. Foyt's gonna run a third car. Foyt still has that technical partnership with Penske. Roger Penske wants a full field. Larry Foyt's gonna field the car and Chevy's gonna provide the engine. Probably one of the engines they thought Premo was gonna release. The driver hasn't been announced yet, but a lot of talk around Catherine Legg. Cat has the talent, she has the sponsors, and she has the experience. So that's pretty strong. Although this week there was press release. out of Voigtkamp saying that Toby Sowery was now their reserve driver, but I still think Catherine Legg would probably be in the car, because she's a big enough name and she'll get enough publicity to fund the whole operation. So it's getting pretty close and we're looking like we'll have a 33 car field. No more, no less. That means no bumping. Now I know a lot of you're thinking, ⁓ there's going to be no bump day. And trust me, we all enjoyed the drama behind what they were recently calling the last row shootout. But in the distant past, Sunday was a lot about bumping, but they have changed it. Now there's a fast 12 and a fast six on Sunday as well. So that adds a lot more drama to the second day of qualifying. So I think we'll still have a great, enjoyable weekend, but we just won't have that bumping drama, which I did enjoy. So in little news, IMS announced that the open test, which is coming up on April 28th and 29th, which is a Tuesday and a Wednesday, That open test is going to be broadcast on YouTube free so that means you can watch it at work So that's pretty cool I think everybody wants to see the testing and I know this can be my first year attending it So I as a influencer I have like a special pass so I can attend the open test and I'm very excited about that I'm in personal Indycar dad news. I completed my first driver interview this week one of the goals of this that this account is not just to have five-minute IndyCar news, which I think is useful to everybody, but also to do long-form interviews with drivers, just to sit down and chat about a lot of subjects so that fans can get to know their drivers in a more thorough way. Now, I know I can't just leap in and start interviewing IndyCar drivers because I'm not very good at this. So I started with some IndyNext drivers and our first interview was Jordan Missig, who's currently in eighth place in the IndyNext series. Jordan did a great interview. He was fantastic on camera and through the podcast. I didn't do that great, but I'm gonna get better because I'm watching myself and noting all my mistakes and trying not to make them again. So look for more driver interviews. They go up on this podcast and they also go on YouTube as well. And then I put little clips on my social media. Let's see what else going on. Pato and Palo were in the seat this week. They were doing some Firestone tire testing down at Nashville. Now know they don't really get to test as a team, but drivers that do these tire tests tend to do well in those races. So look for Pato and Plo to be strong in Nashville. Of course they were going to be strong in Nashville anyway, but ⁓ Chip Ganassi Racing have released their yearly series of trading cards where the proceeds go to charity. So you can get those at chipganassiracing.com. And I always buy a few packs. They go to a good cause. I think this year it's supporting schools and kids' education. And finally, in a little news, Will Powers Dad, a man who fathered not just a professional break dancer and a professional comedian, but a championship race car driver, Will Powers Dad wrestled a gunman in a police chase in Toowoomba, Australia. So Will Powers Dad just went up another notch on the legend scale. our winners and losers this week, winners, Floyd and Abel Motorsports really, because they're going to make the 500. With a 33 car field they can show up and be in the 500 so that's great for both of those teams And will powers dad just for being totally awesome losers unfortunately Prema is the loser I need to stop ending on losers. I don't like to end on a negative note anyway folks This is the IndyCar news in five minutes. I'm IndyCar dad you can find me on podcast networks and on social media as at IndyCar news I tend to post maybe about three times a week with just silly little posts or excerpts from the interviews I do with the drivers So thanks for watching, have a great day, and month of May is almost here.