The start of the ABC Supply Co. Wisconsin 250 Verizon IndyCar Series race at the Milwaukee Mile. [Russ Lake Photo]
Look for an announcement, possibly as soon as the next few weeks, regarding the move of the Verizon IndyCar Series to Elkhart Lake’s Road America for a race that would probably be run on the last weekend of June, 2016. The race would be held in conjunction with either the Pirelli World Challenge production-based sports car races or the NASCAR Xfinity weekend.
A source knowledgeable with the situation, who asked not to be named, has told Racing Nation that the proposed IndyCar event has a major sponsor lined-up, but the track will likely wait until IndyCar is ready to unveil its 2016 race schedule before confirming the event at the four-mile Wisconsin circuit known as “America’s National Park of Speed”. A Mazda Road to Indy series race (or races) for that weekend was also mentioned.
With the report of the possible addition of Road America to next year’s Verizon series calendar, there is growing speculation regarding the future of IndyCar at the historic Milwaukee Mile, and oval track racing for Indy cars in general… Stay tuned.
ABC Supply Co. Wisconsin 250 Notes:
• Kevin Healy, Managing Director of Andretti Sports Marketing Wisconsin, had some good things to say about the Mile and held out hope for the future of the Milwaukee event: “I haven’t really seen any numbers yet for the crowd. The good weather certainly helped and there were a lot of people throughout the infield during the whole race. It was a good crowd; about the same as last year,” Healy said. “Everybody wants the event to come back and we’re all working on it; trying how best to do it. There’s so much history here. We really enjoy it. There’s great racing and all the drivers love to come out. This place is so unique. You look at where Indy cars run and you look at the Milwaukee Mile and it’s an oval, but it’s an entirely different test of driver’s skill.” And a final note on a potential event at Road America. “It’d be great. We always felt there’s a historic spot for both the Milwaukee Mile and Road America. To be able to run here and there would be fantastic.” Again, stay tuned.
• IndyCar race winner Sebastien Bourdais mentioned in his post-race press conference that the Mile is one of his favorite tracks and hopes it isn’t taken off the schedule. “It is truly a special oval. The track suits our style of racing and proves that you don’t need banking to have a good race. There is a lot of energy to keep this event. We might end up with two races in Wisconsin, but we never should have left Road America.”
• Josef Newgarden’s pole-winning run was the first of his IndyCar career after 62 races. “We’ve been fast since we unloaded the car so it’s been good so far. We’ve had more success on road and street courses, so to get a pole on an oval is a feather in our cap and a great reward for our hard work.”
• Helio Castroneves, fifth in the points chase, was not permitted to attempt a qualification run because his Team Penske crew didn’t have his car in the qualification line area within 15 minutes of the start of the session for those in the second half of the draw. Castroneves, who was 14th in order, was relegated to start at the rear of the field for the ABC 250.
• IndyCar vice-president of competition and race director Brian Barnhart drove a replica of Parnelli Jones’ 1963 Indianapolis 500-winning Watson Offy roadster known as “Ol’ Calhoun” around the flat Milwaukee Mile Saturday. The car, owned by Barnhart’s retired family physician Dr. Robert Dicks, was at the Mile as part of the Millers at Milwaukee vintage Indy car exhibition.
• Juan Pablo Montoya, current IndyCar point’s leader, commenting on the Milwaukee Mile and the reason you won’t see pack racing here: “I think you will still have a separation of the good cars and bad cars because handling is always an issue. It would be more of an issue here than Fontana, for sure. I never run here wide open around this joint,”
• Fourth-place finisher Juan Pablo Montoya received a drive-through penalty for a pit speeding violation on lap 100 as did Tristan Vautier for blocking on lap 222.
• Of the 12 Honda engines in the race, only two finished in the top-10: Graham Rahal was third and Marco Andretti finished eighth. Rahal’s finish was his fifth podium in the past nine races while Andretti is the only series driver to complete all 1,557 laps this season.
• The win was Bourdais’ fifth win on an oval and second at the Milwaukee Mile. He also was victorious here in 2006.
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