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Indy 500 Close To Sellout
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Mark Miles guarantees there will be 33 cars in the 100th Indianapolis 500, and he's also predicting the race will be sold out for the first time in 20 years.
"We've got a very good chance of selling every seat and you might be surprised how soon it happens," said Miles, the president and CEO of Hulman & Company, which oversees the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Verizon IndyCar series. "All of the suites are already sold out and we're looking at building 12 temporary ones to accommodate the demand. And we're already way ahead of total ticket sales a year ago."
While IMS never releases crowd figures, the last full house was in 1995 prior to the Indy Racing League/Championship Auto Racing Teams split. That's when scalpers got three to five times face value and the Speedway sported in excess of 275,000 permanent seats. That number was cut back to 257,325 by 2004, according to The Indianapolis Star, and following another reduction in 2012, now stands at roughly 235,000.
There have been noticeable gaps in the grandstands since '96 and many ticket brokers quit buying seats because they couldn't get rid of them. But that's not the case this year.
"It's really good, the best it's been since the Split," said Mike Peduto, who started Circle City Tickets in the early 1980s. "It was soft last year but it seems like everyone wants to go this year to the 100th. It's going to be neat to see it full again."
Miles claims the Snake Pit in Turn 3 topped 20,000 people last year and has even more demand this year, but with all the parking and other entertainment in the infield, there's not a lot room for fans other than the spectator mounds.
"That's going to put a premium on general admission tickets so we've got to figure out a way to manage the demands since we've got less room for GAs than we used to," continued Miles. "But it's a good problem to have."
As for making sure the traditional 11 rows of three remains intact, Miles said: "We've very confident it's going to happen and we'll make sure it does."
IMS has helped out with engines, aero kits and money the past few Mays and right now there are 29 confirmed driver/car combinations.
Veteran Townsend Bell is certain he's going to have a ride, he's just not sure who with at the moment, and 2015 Rookie of the Year Gabby Chaves is close to having enough funding but still needs $100,000, while '96 Indy winner Buddy Lazier was at the Phoenix test and is returning with his own team.
Beth Paretta and Katherine Legge of Grace Autosport have been embraced by Chevrolet and Honda and are trying to work out a co-op deal with an established team. Simona de Silvestro and Oriol Servia are also hoping to land something by May, as is Tristan Vautier and Carlos Huertas.
The available seats appear to be Michael Andretti's fifth car, SPM's third car and KVSH's third car. Right now Honda powers 15 cars and Chevy 14 and each manufacturer has agreed to provide 18 if needed.
"We've got a very good chance of selling every seat and you might be surprised how soon it happens," said Miles, the president and CEO of Hulman & Company, which oversees the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Verizon IndyCar series. "All of the suites are already sold out and we're looking at building 12 temporary ones to accommodate the demand. And we're already way ahead of total ticket sales a year ago."
While IMS never releases crowd figures, the last full house was in 1995 prior to the Indy Racing League/Championship Auto Racing Teams split. That's when scalpers got three to five times face value and the Speedway sported in excess of 275,000 permanent seats. That number was cut back to 257,325 by 2004, according to The Indianapolis Star, and following another reduction in 2012, now stands at roughly 235,000.
There have been noticeable gaps in the grandstands since '96 and many ticket brokers quit buying seats because they couldn't get rid of them. But that's not the case this year.
"It's really good, the best it's been since the Split," said Mike Peduto, who started Circle City Tickets in the early 1980s. "It was soft last year but it seems like everyone wants to go this year to the 100th. It's going to be neat to see it full again."
Miles claims the Snake Pit in Turn 3 topped 20,000 people last year and has even more demand this year, but with all the parking and other entertainment in the infield, there's not a lot room for fans other than the spectator mounds.
"That's going to put a premium on general admission tickets so we've got to figure out a way to manage the demands since we've got less room for GAs than we used to," continued Miles. "But it's a good problem to have."
As for making sure the traditional 11 rows of three remains intact, Miles said: "We've very confident it's going to happen and we'll make sure it does."
IMS has helped out with engines, aero kits and money the past few Mays and right now there are 29 confirmed driver/car combinations.
Veteran Townsend Bell is certain he's going to have a ride, he's just not sure who with at the moment, and 2015 Rookie of the Year Gabby Chaves is close to having enough funding but still needs $100,000, while '96 Indy winner Buddy Lazier was at the Phoenix test and is returning with his own team.
Beth Paretta and Katherine Legge of Grace Autosport have been embraced by Chevrolet and Honda and are trying to work out a co-op deal with an established team. Simona de Silvestro and Oriol Servia are also hoping to land something by May, as is Tristan Vautier and Carlos Huertas.
The available seats appear to be Michael Andretti's fifth car, SPM's third car and KVSH's third car. Right now Honda powers 15 cars and Chevy 14 and each manufacturer has agreed to provide 18 if needed.
