Why does IndyCar race on high-speed ovals?

Given the low attendance, high risk, and history of failed oval track events, anyone who says IndyCar should add more ovals to their calendar clearly have their head up where the sun doesn't shine

OPINION PIECE: We understand that IndyCar has a legacy of staging races on Superspeedways like Indy, Michigan, Fontana, Pocono, Las Vegas, Charlotte, Chicagoland, etc. But all have a long history of death and destruction for IndyCar.

IndyCar is a death trap on superspeedways. It’s a miracle that nobody was seriously injured in that lap 1 incident last Sunday at Pocono – unlike last year, when Robert Wickens was left paralyzed after a bad wreck at Pocono.

Anybody who seriously goes, “It’s not Pocono’s fault, those wrecks could have happened anywhere" needs to look in the mirror when they say it. If that’s the case, why does Las Vegas Motor Speedway not host an IndyCar race anymore? “Oh, just one person died" sounds better than, “Oh, just one person died and another one was paralyzed a couple of years afterward."

And as obviously dangerous IndyCar is on high speed ovals, it is obvious road courses are far safer for IndyCars. If IndyCar wants a race in the northeast why not return to Watkins Glen International and promote the race correctly for once?

When the red flag was finally lifted after cleanup to the fence on Sunday at Pocono, fans in attendance and watching at home were treated to one of the most forgettable IndyCar oval races in a long time – few passes because of the inferior IndyCar aero package. When rain came and the race was called early, everyone was happy to go home early with no one killed or injured – prayers answered.

It’s understandable that Indianapolis Motor Speedway cannot go away from the series despite being somewhat similar to Pocono. However, the Indy 500 race is arguably the biggest race in the world every year regardless of series, the most attended event in America every year ,and it has had over 100 years of history attached to it. What’s more is that Indy has proven itself to be safer than Pocono — not by much, granted, but at least nobody’s career has ended on its grounds in quite some time now.

It’s obvious that at this point, Indy should be the only high-speed oval that IndyCar visits. The IndyCar schedule should be composed the Indy 500, World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, Iowa Speedway, and 14 or 15 road and street courses. The reality is that most ovals in the United States are ill-suited for IndyCar, and while IndyCar brass want more ovals in general, it’s not worth as big a risk as high speed ovals bring to the table.