Team Penske president Tim Cindric says that the Indy 500’s noon start is a major negative for NASCAR drivers who wish to attempt the Indy 500/Coke 600 ‘double’ on Memorial Day Weekend. Cindric believes one obvious way to regularly encourage more fans through the gate for the race, and to boost TV viewership, is to encourage drivers to compete in both the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, N.C.. He says the idea last attempted by Kurt Busch in 2014 could become more widespread were the Indy 500 to move from 12 noon back to its once-traditional 11a.m. start time. He commented: ‘The Indy 500’s heritage was about getting the best drivers in the world racing there, whatever their specialized form of racing. So I’m in favor of anything that can add to the race’s legacy, and someone doing the Indy 500/Coke 600 IndyCar/NASCAR double is an intriguing thing.’(Motorsport)
