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IndyCar's 2016 slate will start earlier, end later

INDIANAPOLIS -- IndyCar will run a 16-race schedule next season and spread them out over more weeks to extend the 2016 season into mid-September.

The official announcement came Tuesday.

While much of the schedule looks familiar -- drivers again will open the season at St. Petersburg and finish at Sonoma -- the timing is different. The season opener will be March 13, 16 days earlier than 2015, while the season finale will be run Sept. 18, nearly three weeks later than last season.

There are some new stops, too. The second race of the season is in Phoenix on April 2, and drivers will race in Boston on Sept.