Notable players for the Racers include Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Pat Stapleton, Dave Keon, Michel Dion and Kim Clackson.

[1] At the time of the Racers' founding, the only other major league competitor was the Indiana Pacers of the similarly-upstart American Basketball Association (ABA).

Both the NBA and the NHL believed Indianapolis was far too small to support teams in both sports in the long term, and were reluctant to risk the embarrassment of placing a failed franchise there.

Nevertheless, to the surprise of many sports fans and pundits of the time the Pacers were ultimately included in the merger, so that starting in 1976, the WHA would have to compete with the established NBA in Indiana.

[2] The move did not improve the team's desperate financial situation, and just eight games into the 1978–79 season Skalbania liquidated his greatest asset to his old friend and former (and future) business partner, Peter Pocklington, owner of the Edmonton Oilers.

[citation needed] Mark Messier also began his career with the Racers in the 1978–79 season, playing five games but failing to register a point before finishing his tryout contract.