The 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500 faces a multitude of challenges. Ticket prices have gotten so ridiculously high that they have now priced out their core fan base, and the tourists. Television ratings have sagged so badly that the race will now have to make a change in broadcast rights holders.
In 2017, the Indy 500 saw a 13% drop in ratings, and that made for the worst number in 31 years. America is quickly losing interest in the IndyCar series race which traditionally provides the unofficial opening of summer, and with it, typically some nice wholesome thoughts. A truly compelling storyline is needed now more than ever- enter Helio Castrovenes
Castroneves could become just the fourth man to ever conquer the Greatest Spectacle in Racing four times; joining Rick Mears, Al Unser Jr. and A.J. Foyt.
It makes for a bigger and much more interesting story than Danica Patrick running her final race before she retires from the sport entirely. Of course, a Danica win would be huge too, as no woman has ever won at Indy, and Patrick has never won a race of any sort in North America.
The Anna Kournikova of Auto Racing is a tremendous long shot at best, but Helio Castroneves has more than a puncher’s chance. He’s currently being backed with the fourth best odds of anyone in the field at +1000.
Pole Sitter Scott Dixon is the favorite, followed by Will Power and Fernando Alonso. Win for Castroneves would be huge, as the rest of America is falling asleep on the event that is synonymous with Nap Town.
Helio Castroneves appeared on CLTV Sports Feed at WGN Studios in Chicago yesterday to discuss his taking aim at history. You can watch a snippet of the interview below, and the entire segment at this link.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune company’s blogging community Chicago Now.
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