By Andrew Cutler
June 13 2010

I've been a bit busy as of late, so I haven't been keeping this site up to date with all of the latest developements as they have happened. Here then is my attempt to play 'catch up' and bring everyone back up to speed (pun intended) on whats been happening in the world of IndyCar.

2012 Enigne Specs Set:

The engine half of the 2012 spec change has been decided upon. The Indy Racing League will allow manufacturers to bring turbo-charged, ethanol-fueled powerplants of up to six cylinders  and 2.4 cubic liters, with a horsepower output between 550 and 700, to the IndyCar Series. This 'all inclusive' spec will hopefully draw a wider array of manufacturers to the series than a more restrictive one would.

The big issue that the IRL will have to face, of course, is how to walk the line between alllowing variations and maintaining a reasonably level playing field. “We will continue to evaluate rules that will keep a level playing field across the board with the various engines that could enter our sport,” said Brian Barnhart, president of competition and racing operations. “For example, we could see a V-6 competing against an Inline 4 at all IZOD IndyCar Series events in the future. We will require reference engines as a benchmark in performance while looking at sonic air restrictors, fuel flow restrictions and more as key criteria for competition.”

Baltimore Gets A Race:

There will be another street race on the IndyCar schedule starting in 2011. The city of Baltimore will play host to an event that winds through 2.4 miles along city streets, passing by the harbor and Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Oriols baseball team. The contract with the IRL is said to be for five years. There is no word yet on whether or not any of the current IndyCar venues are losing their spot of the schedule to make room for this race.

Musical Seats At D&RR Continues:

After the injuries which he sustained at Indy side-lined Mike Conway for the rest of the year, Dreyer & Rheinbold Racing put Tomas Scheckter into the #24 car for last weekend's Texas race: Next Sunday at Iowa, it will be Graham Rahal's turn. This will mark the third team this year that Rahal will have driven for. There is no word yet on whether his deal with D&RR will last past this one race.