MP 294: The Week In IndyCar, April 17, with Bretzman & Bourdais

How much does Long Beach winner Alexander Rossi remind Andretti Autosport technical director Eric Bretzman of his former driver, four-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon?

“Shocking similarity,” he said during his co-hosting visit to Marshall Pruett's 'Week In IndyCar' podcast. “I see Alex developing into nearly the same guy on track. It’s crazy how they, in a lot of cases, say the same thing [and] are looking for the same things a lot of time.”

Bretzman adds further insight during his one-hour visit fielding listener questions on what he’d change if given the keys to the technical regulations and how and increase in engine power will require immediate development of a new brake package to deal with the extra speed. And as Fernando Alonso’s race engineer during the Spaniard’s unforgettable run at the Indy 500 in 2017, Bretzman shares a closing tale about the two-time Formula 1 world champion’s amazing car control while drafting that is simply insane.

Four-time Champ Car champion Sebastien Bourdais closes the episode with a half-hour visit where he and Pruett resume their 'Hamburger and French Fry' show discussing the Frenchman’s crazy pass of Scott Dixon and Matheus Leist into Turn 1, the penalty he received as a result of crossing over the pit exit lane, his pointed comments and the heat he’s caught for calling some drivers ’idiots’ and whether he cares.

“If you don’t want to be called an idiot, don’t behave like an idiot,” the Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan driver said. “It’s not acceptable, and I don’t mind saying it. If they don’t want to hear it, they don’t have to read it. Honestly, I don’t care. We can all agree to disagree.”

Bourdais continues the thread on Ed Carpenter Racing rookie Jordan King and the dive bomb passing attempt on James Hinchcliffe into the hairpin that spun the Frenchman’s car which, as you might suspect, remains a hot topic between the two drivers.

Closing the show, listen in to Bourdais’ fan Q&A on everything from what he plans to do after he hangs up his helmet to whether the new 2018 IndyCar bodywork makes the current chassis perform in ways that are similar to the 2007 Panoz DP01 Champ Car.

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