Max Chilton believes that IndyCar is a better motorsport series to watch as a fan than Formula 1 thanks to the closeness of the field.
Recent IndyCar seasons have seen multiple drivers in the title race at the final round of the year while Max Verstappen had the 2022 crown wrapped up well before Abu Dhabi.
The Dutchman should be the champion again in 2023 although Alex Palou could clinch the IndyCar title before Laguna Seca the way he is going this season.
Chilton, a former racer in both categories, enjoys both but would side with the American series when it comes to excitement and entertainment.
“Formula 1 has always been the pinnacle of motorsport and it will always be that way,” Chilton told talkSPORT.
“But you’ve fans in motorsport who will prefer World RallyCross, MotoGP or NASCAR, for example. For me the next best series is IndyCar, and when I say next best, in many ways, I think it’s better because the racing is so pure.
“I did it for six years and it’s all the same cars, two different engine manufacturers, so it’s far less predictable than Formula 1, there’s plenty more overtakes, and very rarely will a driver win one weekend and then the next.”
Record breaker
Chilton spoke to talkSPORT while at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and he was again a star of the show in the extraordinary McMurty Speirling. In 2022, Chilton set a new hill climb record at Goodwood, surpassing the Volkswagen ID R in the hands of Romain Dumas.
Along with Chilton at the festival was a selection of classic F1 cars and some stars both past and present of the sport. Sebastian Vettel notably drove Nigel Mansell’s 1992 title-winning Williams and Ayrton Senna’s 1993 McLaren on synthetic fuel to the delight of the sold-out crowd.
Mick Schumacher, Oscar Piastri, Mika Hakkinen and Esteban Gutierrez were among other F1 figures to drive the famous hill while Lando Norris‘ appearance was thwarted by high winds, cancelling Saturday’s action.
