Along the Lines with Robin Miller

Robin Miller, a reporter and analyst for the Speed Channel and its Web site, speedtv.com, was for years the primary motorsports reporter for The Indianapolis Star. We chatted with him about the winding down of the IRL season.

Q: Looks like Dan Wheldon’s got the championship wrapped up, eh?

A: Yeah, it’s over. The guy is a good race driver. He’s aggressive when he has to be, and he’s smart 95 percent of the time. That’s his combination. He’s very much under control in a series that almost dictates you be incredibly aggressive. You have to temper your aggression with some grey matter, and he does it. He’s cocky, but there’s nothing wrong with being cocky if you can back it up, and he can.

Q: What grade would you give Danica Patrick for her year?

A: A solid B. I’ve never seen anyone have to answer as many stupid questions on a daily basis as she does, and be hounded constantly by the press. What everybody forgets is she’s a rookie, and she was supposed to be in the Champ Car, not the IRL. She had to completely change her career path, and I think she’s done a hell of a job. If anybody watched last week’s race in Chicago and doesn’t think this kid has talent and has guts, they’re wrong. She ran a hell of a race. The Indianapolis 500 was not her best race. She got lucky there. In Milwaukee, she ran in the top six all day. She’s a real race driver. She has that focus. She’s handled everything they’ve thrown at her with grace and maturity.

Q: What about the hillbilly racing? Have you been following Tony Stewart’s year?

A: I hate myself because I actually watched the last few NASCAR races, because I wanted to see Jeff Gordon make the Chase. I wanted to take a cyanide pill because I actually cared. Stewart can be a petulant little kid, but, my God, he’s a joy to watch in a race car. He’s the Parnelli Jones of this generation. He can drive anything and drive it well. All this stuff about anger management ... the guy’s a race car driver, for Christ’s sake. He isn’t one of the country’s leaders. Racing is a volatile environment. People get mad at each other and scream and give each other the finger and want to run each other off the racetrack. That’s the way it’s always going to be.

Q: Do you ever see a day where Indy Car racing equals or exceeds the popularity of NASCAR?

A: Not in my lifetime. I don’t see how it can. As long as it stays fragmented, it’s screwed. There’s no way they can have two series with the TV ratings sucking for both of them. Maybe if they went to a common engine and common chassis, it might be a start of restoring the credibility and the fervor of Indianapolis. All the drama has been taken out of Indianapolis. Now it’s a one-day event. They’ve just completely ruined what made Indianapolis so compelling.