After being away from The Milwaukee Mile for nearly a decade, nobody was quite sure how good the racing product would be IndyCar returned to the track this past weekend.
Most of the opinions expressed by drivers ahead of the races contained at least some concern that passing could be difficult and the end result might be single file running similar to Iowa earlier in the year.
But once the green flags flew, those concerns were quickly dashed. There were multiple racing lines that were available throughout the weekend, and the two races produced 667 and 763 on track passes respectively.
The relatively flat banking and wide track area produced side by side racing at all points in the races, and fans received a healthy dose of entertainment for their admission price.
Drivers related similar thoughts to the fans that watched on, saying it was one of the most fun racing weekend they had experienced in some time.
“It was so cool,” said Scott McLaughlin after the second race. “Like being in Supercars again. You’re just banging doors. This place is nice because you haven’t got much banking. It’s like a big road course. It was fun.
“Yeah, the track was really fun to drive. Slick in places, but once you sort of got your head around it, it was really, really cool. Super fun, man. Super fun.
“The test day was hard, difficult to pass and whatnot, no deg. This weekend was really good. I probably would say it was better than we all thought.”
The quality of racing on ovals can heavily depend on IndyCar’s aero and tire packages, with the series often tweaking parameters between each visit to particular track in order to try to get the best racing possible.
A majority of drivers had a test in Milwaukee earlier in the season, and the early indications were not good.
But the changes to the package made before the actual race weekend, combined with the decision by the series to have an alternate line practice session and to sweep the rubber marbles off the track throughout the race, helped immensely.
“Yeah, it was a lot of fun,” related Colton Herta. “It was tough to get the balance right. I think that’s why you saw so many passes.
“A lot of different lanes opened up, just like yesterday. Traffic was tough to get around, so it gave opportunities if you were passing for position for the guy in front of you or behind you. The restarts were a lot of fun also.
“When you had the turbulent air, it really upset the cars. It was tough to choose the right line through the corners and not get hurt by that. It was a lot of fun to race in for both the races.”
There were also concerns that there would be a lot of empty seats in the grandstands, especially considering the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and ARCA Menard’s Series competed on the track the weekend before IndyCar.
Fans nearly filled the stands on the main straight, however, and estimates put the weekend attendance totals at nearly 40,000.
With full stands, happy race fans, good racing, and multiple storylines around the championship battle, it is hard to call IndyCar’s return to The Milwaukee Mile anything but a success.
“Yeah, it was pretty good,” echoed Will Power. “There was a lot of passing, back and forth. I thought the crowd was really good, too. Sounded awesome once you got out of the car, the cheer of the crowd.
“I think it was a very successful return. A lot of fun in the race.”
The Milwaukee Mile ROX Flat Ovals Rule