Parity rules Verizon IndyCar series in 2014

Everyone is fairly equal in IndyCar, which is what you would expect for a spec series

Craig Rust grew up as an open-wheel racing fan in Pennsylvania. His feelings for the sport haven’t wavered now that he’s the president at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

He grew up watching Mario Andretti, the Unsers, Tom Sneva and the rest, and he thinks today’s fields are just as deep.

“I think we’re getting back to that," Rust said. “It’s not just Dario (Franchitti) and Scott (Dixon) and Helio (Castroneves). That’s a good thing."

When it comes to the Verizon IndyCar Series, parity rules.

• Through 14 races, there have been nine different winners.

• As manufacturers go, Chevrolet owns eight wins and Honda has six.

• Ten drivers own pole positions in 2014.

• An incredible 22 drivers have posted at least one top five finish this season.

“You still have Will Power and Ryan Hunter-Reay and Scott Dixon who seem to be the best in class, but I don’t think the rest of the field sits back and goes, ‘We can’t beat these guys.’ They come to the track week-in and week-out and say, ‘There’s no reason why we can’t win a race this weekend.’"

That bore out at last year’s Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio. It’s doubtful many had Charlie Kimball in the pool, but he’s the guy who earned his first IndyCar win last August in Lexington.

“The (James) Hinchcliffes of the world and the (Simon) Pagenauds and even Ed (Carpenter) and Kimball, these aren’t flukes," Rust said.

Rivalries and feuds could be budding. Teammates Castroneves and Power are fighting each other for a first career championship. Hunter-Reay and Hinchcliffe had words following an incident in Long Beach.

“There’s good rivalries. Guys legitimately don’t like each other, which I think is awesome," Rust said as the promoter in him came out. “I think that’s important. I think they all respect each other, but there’s some legitimate rivalries going on right now and that’s important in our sport."

Hunter-Reay winning this year’s Indianapolis 500 was a popular development, so much so that he won a second ESPY earlier this month. The return of Juan Pablo Montoya has helped goose the sport as well.

“There was more interest and fanfare with the Indy 500 this year. That typically is your water mark for how the season will go," Rust said. “The crowd looked bigger than it has in recent years, and I think that speaks to the series and the drivers.

“Is it perfect? By no means, but I’m excited coming into this year."

Getting Verizon on board as the title sponsor to the series was a coup. Reorganizing the Road to Indy program – with all the rungs before this weekend at Mid-Ohio – helps as well.

“We feel good with where we are right now," Rust said of ticket sales for the Indy weekend. Rob McCurdyCentralOhio.com