Engines are another area that benefit from the controls that the league has put in place.  All of the motors are manufactured by Infiniti and then built out to specific tolerances by the Menard's engine shop in Indianapolis.  Interestingly enough, the engines are all owned by the IPS, not by Infiniti or by individual teams.  This allows for the league to not only guarantee that they are provided for a reasonable cost, but also that they are all nearly identical in performance.  The race teams then lease the engines from the IRL and pay only for any rebuilds they need along the way.  If a team is unhappy with their engine, they can swap it for a new one (within reason) at no additional cost.  Efforts are also being made to extend engine life, which in turn could lead to a potential reduction in the lease price. Because the engines are such an important part of the series, more details on the Infiniti engine program will be covered in a future edition of The Tech Pad.

One of the least recognized, but most effective ways that the league reduces cost is by trying hard to make operations simple and cost effective.  Roger Bailey relates that he and his team have reconfigured many parts of IPS operations in order to reduce the cost of participation to the individual teams, "Our goal is to make the series financially attractive enough so that teams can run things as a profitable business, not as a hobby."

The ways in which the league lowers operational cost are subtle, but effective:  "The IndyCars tested at Infineon earlier this year," Meyer relates, "It was a very expensive trip.  So, we got in touch with the IMS (Indianapolis Motor Speedway) and asked if we could test on the road course there (instead of traveling to California).  They said sure.  Doing that probably saved each team $20,000 in travel and transport."  To an Infiniti Pro team that is typically operating on an annual budget of less than one million dollars, a $20,000 savings is a big thing. 

Contingency awards and subsidies are also given by the league and some of the major series vendors to help reduce costs.  For example, every team receives 55 gallons of fuel at the beginning of every event and sponsors are trying to help by sponsoring pole awards and contingency prizes.  However, as Roger Bailey points out, "There are lots of intangibles that can't be controlled.  Gas is at $2.25 per gallon.  Travel costs much more.  You often can't find a hotel room for less that $75 within a reasonable distance of a racetrack on a race weekend."  This seems to imply that the league needs to work even harder on the factors that are controllable -- and hopefully the team owners are beginning to see the results.

Many leagues pay lip service to the term "cost control." But, after a discussion with Bailey and Meyer it became clear that the IPS really lives it.  The context of the interview was the technical aspects of the IPS and how the league built the formula to breed competitive racing. But throughout the course of the discussion, the subject kept returning to what the league does to control costs.  In an open-wheel racing world of multi-million dollar engine leases and chassis that can cost more than a five bedroom house, it was refreshing to hear two people (Bailey and Meyer) so committed to saving money for the teams in their series.

Obviously, getting cars into the IPS is an important goal.  However, in modern racing, it needs to be cost effective for teams to compete.  Meyer points out, "The price of the tires or chassis in this series has not increased since the first race four years ago.  That's incredible."  And Bailey adds, "We offer the best value and performance for your dollar anywhere in racing today."

After hearing all of the details, we believe that he may just be right.

Stay tuned for the next article in this series which will cover how the rules in the Pro Series directly contribute to close, competitive racing on the track.