system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5:What is the difference between Indy Car and Formula One racing?

Ever since the Indy 500, Ive started catching some racing on the weekends and to me, the cars look pretty much the same.

Thank you!
gpt
I would say that there are a couple of main differences.  First, F1 teams build their own car from scratch, every single year.  They manufacture the bodywork and many of the components in-house by themselves.  Therefore, while they look similar, different teams have radically different cars and approaches.  Indy car, on the other hand, features cars that are built to pretty much the same spec, with the engines being different, along with setup changes.

In addition, while Indy cars have a higher top speed due to their engines, F1 cars are able to take a corner at a much higher speed due to the emphasis that F1 places on aerodynamics and downforce.  If an Indy car and an F1 car were to race at a road course, the F1 car would likely beat the Indy car by quite a large margin due to its cornering ability.  However, since F1 cars are not designed to race on ovals, while Indy cars are, an oval track would show the advantage that Indy cars have in power.