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Andretti, Pedrosa compete in IndyCar vs Moto GP race

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Motor Speedway ran a little experiment Thursday evening. A very loud experiment.

An IndyCar against a Moto GP racing bike.

IMS organized the exhibition to promote this weekend’s Moto GP event.

Call it Marco vs. Moto.

Marco Andretti versus Dani Pedrosa.

Andretti entered the competition assuming he had an advantage over Pedrosa.

“It’s unfair to the bikes because they don’t have all the aero help that we do,” he told 24-Hour News 8. “So, we’re able to roll a lot more speed in the corners and our top end is pretty good but the bike’s mid-range is impressive.”

The Indycar weighs 1,575 pounds but generates 700 horsepower.

The motorcycle weighs about 350 pounds with more than 240 horses.

Both machines can achieve speeds near or above 220 miles an hour.

In Thursday’s challenge, after the 16 turn course, the finish was declared “inconclusive.”

This will be the eighth MotoGP in Indianapolis.

Earlier in the day, Doug Boles, president of IMS, called it “a completely different vibe than the other races we have and we really, really enjoy it.”

He also said it is, traditionally, “the last big weekend of the year at the Speedway for us.”

That does not mean life slows down at the track. Boles said, starting Monday, his team will start working on Project 100 – preparing the Speedway for the 100th running of the Indy 500.