Though it lacked for drama, the Indy 500 again was a picture of pit strategy and maneuvering that often is missing in NASCAR. Donald Miralle/Getty Images

So which do you prefer, the raw speed of IndyCar or the beatin' and bangin' of NASCAR? Let's compare the two racing series in four different categories.

1. Quality of Racing

After spending a good chunk of the last three weeks in Indianapolis and watching the open-wheel cars fly around the track, the nod here goes to IndyCar. By and large, there's more passing in Indy races and more strategy involved, such as short-pitting and pitting out of sequence to try to steal the race in a game of fuel mileage. The Indy 500 was something of a yawner -- no one had the speed to catch Scott Dixon, who led more than half of the laps -- but it was certainly more compelling than the Coca Cola 600, which took more than four hours to complete. (Is there anyone out there, by the way, who can say they actually watched every mile of that marathon?) There have been some exciting finishes this season on the Sprint Cup circuit -- the finals laps at Bristol and Richmond were particularly riveting -- but overall I think IndyCar puts on a better show.

2. Quality of Drivers

Considering that virtually every driver in the United States wants to be in NASCAR, the edge clearly goes to NASCAR. Last offseason alone Dario Franchitti, the '07 IndyCar season champion, and Sam Hornish Jr., the '06 season champ, defected to the Sprint Cup series. And last week Danica Patrick, Helio Castroneves and Dan Wheldon all said that they would seriously consider making the jump to NASCAR at some point. So who will the next big-name Indy driver to leave the open-wheel ranks for a ride in a stock car? The guess here is Danica. She briefly flirted with Roush Fenway Racing in '06 before signing with IndyCar's Andretti Green Racing, and Roush could desperately use some star power in his lineup of drivers. Patrick has never raced stock cars, but that little fact will be overlooked for one reason: she's pure marketing gold. Like every driver, Patrick will go where the money is when her contract is up, and no series in the States is as flush with cash as the Sprint Cup.

3. Depth of Competition

On any given Sunday there are usually 10 to 12 cars that have a legitimate chance of winning on the Sprint Cup circuit. In IndyCar that number drops to five or six, yet there is hope for the series: with the recent merger of the Indy Racing League and Champ Car, the number will increase as the former Champ teams get up to speed. Right now, though, NASCAR is a deeper series. There are four teams in the Sprint Cup that are top level: Joe Gibbs Racing, Hendrick Motor Sports, Roush Fenway Racing, and Richard Childress Racing. In IndyCar three teams dominate: Andretti Green Racing, Target Chip Ganassi, and Penske Racing. Roger Penske, who owns teams in both series, told me last week that IndyCar needs to add seven or eight teams in order to increase the quality of competition, and it's hard to disagree with that sentiment.

4. Colorful Personalities

This is a push, because there are plenty of interesting personal stories in each series this season. In NASCAR there's Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his quest to win his first championship seven years after his father died, there's Jimmie Johnson and his attempt to become the first driver in 30 years to win three straight championships, and there's the always colorful Kyle Busch dominating the series right now and trying to capture his first title in his fourth season on the circuit.

But there are just as many intriguing storylines in IndyCar, what with Danica, Dancing with the Stars winner Helio Castroneves, and the up-and-coming Graham Rahal, who earlier this season became the youngest driver (19 years old) to win an Indy race. IndyCar needs to do a better job of promoting its drivers to the motor sports masses, but the compelling storylines are certainly there.

So which series, overall, has the edge? NASCAR. But IndyCar is coming on -- fast. After all, for the first time in 13 years, open-wheel racing in the United States is finally unified and moving in the right direction. Now IndyCar just has to make sure that it doesn't lose any more of its drivers -- especially Danica -- to NASCAR.