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1,100 Miles for $20 Million?

On Thursday, May 13, Bruton Smith, owner of Charlotte Motor Speedway, prematurely announced a deal with IndyCar CEO, Randy Bernard, that a double header win of the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, which are held on the same day, would pay a $20 million bonus. Smith announced the proposed deal in an interview with SPEED’s Wendy Venturini.

The announcement came as a surprise to those at IndyCar for two reasons: It was supposed to be announced at a joint news conference later in the month and, more importantly, the deal has yet to be finalized and ok’d by Mari Hulman George, Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner.

The deal was proposed by Bernard, who had been in negotiations with Smith.

I’m not sure what Smith’s intentions are by announcing the potential deal before it was finalized, and just how it will evolve remains to be seen, but Smith is too smart and racing savvy to just let something slip out. He knew exactly what he was doing when announced the potential deal on his own.

For the plan to come together, The Indianapolis 500 starting time would need to be moved up to 11:00 a.m., where it was for many years, from the currently scheduled time of 1:00 p.m. (eastern time.) The Coca-Cola 600 is scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m. (eastern time.)

The double header would be a boon to IndyCar as fans of NASCAR would be exposed to the close competition and excitement of the series.
When the “500” was started at the earlier time, drivers Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon and John Andretti drove both events, so it is logistically possible. It is a grueling 1,100 miles of track time plus travel time

It sure would be a lot of fun to watch guys like Stewart, Kasey Kane and the Busch brothers do the double and maybe, just maybe, it would give Stewart a chance to finally win the Indy 500. It will be interesting to see how, and if, the deal comes together.

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