IndyCar State of the Union tonight

The first race kicks off in St. Petersburg, Florida in just 40 days, then on May 27th, the 101st Indianapolis 500 will take place at IMS, but before all this happening Monday is the annual State of IndyCar.

There is heightened interest this year following the tragedy in Las Vegas last season that killed driver Dan Wheldon.

The meeting at the Hilbert Circle Theatre in downtown Indianapolis will address the direction IndyCar is heading, discuss the new engines, the chassis designed to make the sport safer, the new scaled down rule book from new race director, Beaux Barfield and about some of the exciting things happening this year– including 4 races that will take the series out of the U.S. to Canada, Brazil and China.

Izod IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard says he's excited about the new season and the challenges ahead.

"How do we work together to make changes in our sport that aren`t about competition, but about entertainment and making everyone a part of it.

My job is to make sure that we`re looking at not just this year, but 3-4-5 years down the road."

Fans in Indy are invited to attend the State of INDYCAR Presentation & 2011 Awards Recognition at Hilbert Circle Theatre.

Doors will open to the public shortly before 5:30 p.m. Seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

The presentation will be streamed online and translated in up to 50 languages.