Welcome to the Robin Miller Mailbag as presented by Honda Racing / HPD. You can follow the Santa Clarita, California-based company at: hpd.honda.com and on social media at @HondaRacing_HPD and https://www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD.
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Q: I wanted to get your thoughts on a theory I have about Marco Andretti. He seems to be a pincushion for a lot of Mailbaggers who like to poke fun at his lackluster results. I'm not a Marco apologist; some of the criticism is deserved, some of it not so much. His grandfather is arguably one of the best racecar drivers in history, while his dad was arguably one of the best AOWR drivers of his generation – always worth the price of admission.
Marco doesn't have the skill, ambition or determination his gramps and pops had, but the last time I checked, neither do any other current IndyCar drivers – with maybe the exception of Dixon. He is perceived by some as arrogant, but I think that's mistaken for his not-so-warm personality (just like his dad), immaturity and lack of patience.
In 2006 he came within one straightaway from winning the Indy 500. In 2008, 2010 and 2014 he finished third, was fourth in 2013 and sixth in 2015. In an F1 test in 2007 his lap times were a second slower than Alonso and Button on the same day. In 2008, none of his teammates could match his lap times at the 12 Hours of Sebring. I don't know what any of this means other than these results don't reflect (in my opinion) a driver who's slow or bad. He's always fast on ovals, rarely wrecks the car, but seems to struggle on road and street courses.
Let's face it, he'll never be as good as Mario and Michael. That in itself is enough pressure. I suppose you could say that it's easier for Marco to become a bit complacent when things aren't going so well, being that his dad is unlikely to dump him. Most drivers are out the door when they don't perform, especially when they don't bring money and sponsors. Having a third-generation driver with the name Andretti is good for the IndyCar series, and I wish there were more with names like Andretti, Unser, Mears, Johncock, Rutherford, etc.
Has Marco underachieved so far in his racing career? Probably, but IndyCar has a lot of competition with a lot of great drivers. He will continue to have his work cut out for him if he wants to succeed in the future and win races. I believe Marco has two problems and one of them is not his right foot, but the mechanism that controls his right foot, which is located up between his ears. His other problem is his last name. If he can find a way to put aside these prolonged issues, I think he has as good a chance as anybody to win the Indy 500. Isn't that what it's all about in IndyCar – winning the 500?
Steve Sporer, Chicago
RM: Obviously, carrying that last name has made it possible for him to stay in the sport, but also added an immense amount of pressure to perform. Michael managed to handle the expectations with great results (as did Al Unser Jr.), and who knows what would have happened if Marco wins that first Indy 500 back in 2006. As you pointed out, he's always been quick and could easily be a multi-time winner at IMS but, for whatever reason, he's struggled on road and street courses in an IndyCar. Part of it has to be mental, or confidence (or lack of), but last year was a good example in that he started out practicing at or near the top but couldn't repeat it for qualifying – he never made one Fast Six. Yes, two wins in 12 years could be classified as major underachievement, but he's still only 30 years old so it's not like he's out of time to turn things around. It's at the point where nobody expects anything, and that's sad for him and IndyCar. I pick him to win Indy almost every year and maybe someday he'll break the Andretti curse, which would go a long way in improving his résumé.
Q: Every year, there is some pronouncement from Marco Andretti about how next year something will magically make his luck change. Is the car number switch really going to make a difference in 2018? He's already had Herta in his ear for 2017 and the results were not radically better. I think not. What say you?
David, Waxhaw, NC
RM: As I stated in the letter above, Marco began 2017 so much stronger with Bryan in his ear and in his head on the pit box but, despite the good practice times, the results just weren't there. But I do think Herta is his best shot at finding a groove.