The deal that brought together America's two open-wheel series under the IRL Series banner made a difference - in a good way.
Statistics released this week by the IRL show gains were made with the merger of IndyCar and the Champ Car World Series and not just on the track.
- At-track merchandise sales were up 25 percent compared to 2007, according to Main Gate, the league's merchandising agent.
- Average viewership was 1.55 million, up from 1.4 million in 2007.
``It was better than expected,'' said Terry Angstadt, president of the IRL's commercial division, in a telephone interview. ``I really felt like we would have certain levels of increases and success.
``I always qualify things, though. I think we know where we are. I'm not suggesting everything's perfect by any stretch of the imagination. In terms of attendance, TV ratings and merchandise sales, all kind of our key metrics, I was more pleased that things were better than I anticipated.''
The on-track competition was better, too.
After each series struggled for years to get 18 cars on the grid, this year's IndyCar Series averaged 26 cars at each race.
``I think the biggest positive, and the one that's most visible to fans, is car count,'' Angstadt said. ``That is what I think is where we heard the biggest reaction. And it drives across a number of things for business when you have more cars out there, you have more drivers, you have higher attendance, you have more sponsors, you have more people following your races.''
A record-tying nine drivers won races, including 19-year-old Graham Rahal and his Newman/Haas/Lanigan teammate Justin Wilson. And 13 drivers recorded top-three podium finishes as Chip Ganassi Racing driver Scott Dixon edged out Team Penske's Helio Castroneves for the championship.
The teams that made the move from Champ Car to IndyCar began the season way behind the holdover teams, forced to build and race unfamiliar cars at new venues.
``I think they really exceeded everyone's expectations,'' Angstadt said. ``I think next year it will be a notch up.''
Another area for improvement will be finding a title sponsor for the IndyCar Series.
Angstadt said the IRL is close to signing a ``very big company'' to be the series' presenting sponsor.
``We're just pleased with the progress we've made, but we still recognize we've certainly got a lot of hard work to do,'' he said. ``I think, in another year or two of the unified series, we'll be even more proud of where we are.''
