Our Indycar Split series concludes by looking at how the CART/IRL war finally came to an end after more than a decade of fighting.

But before we get to that, we have to talk about one of the biggest fights that took place during the split: the battle over who really won the 2002 Indy 500.

Glenn Freeman, Edd Straw and Indy Split book author John Oreovicz dig back in great detail over what happened between Penske IRL driver Helio Castroneves and Team Green CART driver Paul Tracy, who were battling for the lead on the penultimate lap of the race when the yellow flags came out for a crash.

We also look into CART's decline and ultimate collapse, as its teams and engine manufacturers started switching full-time to the IRL.

And finally we revisit the story of how the two sides finally came together, as well as asking if there really was a winner once the war was over and Indycar racing was reunited again in 2008. 

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We're delighted to bring you episode 2 of our special three-part series on the infamous story of how Indycar racing was torn apart in the mid-90s.

This episode deals with CART's US 500 nightmare as it attempted to go head-to-head with the first 'IRL' Indy 500 in 1996. Glenn Freeman, Edd Straw and John Oreovicz then look back on CART's strength in the late-1990s, and the IRL's struggles to become established. Then at the turn of the century, Chip Ganassi Racing became the first big hitter from CART to go back to Indianapolis, starting a gradual shift of more teams crossing the divide each May, which eventually led to the first big full-time defection to the IRL.

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We're delighted to bring you the first episode of a special three-part series focusing on how Indycar racing was torn apart in the mid-90s, shortly after Nigel Mansell had helped make the North American series so popular that Bernie Ecclestone saw it as a threat to F1.

In episode one, Glenn Freeman, Edd Straw and 'Indy Split' book author John Oreovicz head back to early-1994 and the moment Indianapolis Motor Speedway boss Tony George announced he would be forming his own competitor to the CART Indycar series.

We look at what drove George to make his bombshell announcement, and how the world of Indy racing reacted and evolved in the two years before the Indy Racing League hit the track for its first race.

There's also discussion around the silly move the CART teams made that helped the IRL get up and running, and how both sides of the war fired major shots at each other with their plans for the weekend of the 1996 Indianapolis 500.

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It’s the champions edition of The Race IndyCar Podcast, as we speak to this year’s overall and rookie title winners, plus the victor in the Indy NXT support series.

Alex Palou returns to discuss Will Power leaving Team Penske (the interview was done before Power’s Andretti switch was confirmed), his most likely future contenders, how he intends to repeat his near-perfect season and what his focuses are to improve on next year.

Louis Foster - IndyCar’s rookie of the year - joins to discuss the breathtaking drama which helped him to his title in the dying minutes at Nashville, his incredible qualifying performances and why there’s positivity over the future at Rahal Letterman Lanigan.

And finally, Dennis Hauger of Andretti appears to discuss his monstrous title-winning Indy NXT season, and what’s next for him in the future.

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The IndyCar silly season dominates this episode of The Race IndyCar podcast.

Jack Benyon is joined by Josh Suttill to discuss the bombshell news that Will Power is leaving Penske and Colton Herta will become a Cadillac Formula 1 test driver next year, likely twinning that role with a switch to Formula 2. What do these moves mean for the individuals concerned and the rest of the IndyCar grid?

There's also plenty of chat about the Nashville season finale, which saw Josef Newgarden return to winning ways.

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After a dramatic finish to the Milwaukee IndyCar race last weekend, the person responsible for that drama, Christian Rasmussen, joins the pod exclusively to talk about becoming IndyCar’s newest race winner.

The Ed Carpenter driver walks through how he went from sixth to first with outrageous overtakes in the final stint, why he tried so hard to overtake lapped cars in the closing laps, and the reason his car had so much oversteer which he dealt with incredibly.

He also discusses the bigger picture of being given the faith of his eponymous team owner who stepped back from his own IndyCar seat for Rasmussen late last year, how new investment in the team is helping now and promising a lot for the future and of course, he addresses the people who say he’s too aggressive in on-track combat.

Host Jack Benyon also picks out more of the key storylines from the penultimate race, ahead of Nashville’s finale.

If you have questions or suggestions for the podcast, you can email us, [email protected]. We can feature voicenotes on the show, too.

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Alex Palou is the man of the moment in the IndyCar Series after winning his fourth title and his third in a row last weekend. And he’s on this week’s show just for you.

Palou picks his favourite stat from the year and his Ganassi career so far, picks some of the reasons he feels this success has been possible, discusses Chip Ganassi taking a chance on him and sticking with him through tough times, and the crew behind him that has made this possible.

There’s also special insight into his relationship with Dario Franchitti and how the Ganassi driver advisor has raised Palou’s game, plus a look at Palou’s driving style and what he’s learned from Scott Dixon.

IndyCar radio commentator Ryan Myrehn joins Jack Benyon for the rest of the show, to break down the rest of the weekend’s action in Portland, including some humorous Will Power swearing after his win, Christian Rasmussen and Conor Daly’s crazy crash, and more on Pato O’Ward after an electrical issue for him handed Palou the title last weekend.

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McLaren's Tony Kanaan joins this week’s episode of The Race IndyCar Podcast after his team bagged a record 11th podium of the season at Laguna Seca, having just announced a massive investment prior to the event.

Kanaan discusses Christian Lundgaard’s assimilation into the team this year, Pato O’Ward’s maturation, a mega new factory for 2026 which was announced last week, and having a picture of Alex Palou “on his fridge” as he and his team try to topple the Ganassi driver’s dominance.

Elsewhere there’s more from the Laguna Seca race including an absurd incident involving Marcus Ericsson and another big achievement by new team Prema Racing.

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It’s a bumper episode of The Race IndyCar Podcast this week with a typically bonkers street race in Toronto to assess.

The Race’s Josh Suttill plays guest host with Jack Benyon this week, as Benyon outlines how the way Pato O’Ward won this race was symptomatic of his development as a driver, and how he has changed this year. 

Alex Palou’s 'terrible' 12th place finish is explained, Suttill outlines another Penske pummelling, and the slightly unusual look of the podium is examined, with two under the radar drivers getting their best results of the year...

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Alex Palou making a mistake is big news in the IndyCar Series, especially when it costs him a win, and that’s a huge talking point on this episode of The Race IndyCar Podcast.

JR Hildebrand is back to discuss why this incident won’t matter for Palou, and also triggers a fascinating debate on what Palou’s form means for Scott Dixon’s career in light of his Mid-Ohio win.

Hildebrand and The Race’s Jack Benyon also discuss Penske’s woeful form and its interesting decision to spurn outside help and promote from within to replace the senior leadership team it fired after the Indy 500 debacle.

After hooning up Pikes Peak in a 1998 Hot Wheels NASCAR, Hildebrand provides an update from that event. And the hosting duo confirm that Hildebrand is scaling back his appearances on the pod for other opportunities, but he will be back!

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