The drivers left their mark at the Milwaukee Mile Speedway by having two different race winners the weekend of Aug. 30 through Sept. 1.
The Hy-Vee Milwaukee race weekend is not like any other IndyCar race weekend. This certain weekend is divided into only one practice session and two qualifications. The two qualifications are used to set the starting grid for race one and race two. Practice takes place as it would on any other weekend, on Friday.
Friday’s practice session was led by Nashville native Josef Newgarden who managed to put in a total of 81 laps with a top speed of 158.872 mph. In second place was Scott Dixon with a top speed of 158.080 mph. Lastly, to finish in the top three spots was Patricio (Pato) O’Ward with a top speed of 157.750 mph.
The first qualification held on Saturday would decide the starting grid for the first race, which was held later that day. During the qualification session, Scott McLaughlin topped the charts with an average speed of 162.341 mph and a time of 00:22.5082. Practice session leader Newgarden came in second with an average speed of 161.640 mph and a time of 00:22.6058. Finally, in a surprising turn of events and after a rough start to the season, David Malukas qualified in third place with an average speed of 161.426 mph and a time of 00:22.6358.
Courtesy of Foytracing.com
The qualification for the second race took place after and it was no surprise that Newgarden and McLaughlin were still amongst the top two. However, they had switched positions with Newgarden in first with an average speed of 160.983 mph and a total time of 00:22.6980. Meanwhile, McLaughlin was in second with an average speed of 160.912 mph and a time of 00:22.7080. While Malukas unfortunately did not make it to the top three, it was Marcus Armstrong who took his third place spot for the second qualification with an average speed of 160.203 mph and a time of 00:22.8085.
The first race took place on Saturday evening and right away it was a clean start for McLaughlin.. The race remained steady until lap 83 when a caution flag was brought out due to Katherine Legge spinning out. After that, McLaughlin remained the leader until lap 118 when O’Ward overtook him. With only three laps to go, the race came to a brief pause when Josef Newgarden and Marcus Ericsson collided. However, the incident did not prevent O’Ward from becoming the winner of the first race.
Courtesy of Joe Skibinski/IndyCar
The second race was off to a rough start for not only Alex Palou, as he had some trouble during the pace laps, but Newgarden as well, as he collided with Marcus Armstrong during the 5th lap and was out. Caution flags were brought out again when Malukas had to retire due to mechanical issues on lap 63. With Alexander Rossi leading the race, it seemed as though McLaughlin would lose the chance at victory. However, a 4.8 second pitstop allowed McLaughlin to become the leader once again and claim victory in the second race of the weekend.
Courtesy of Joe Skibinski/IndyCar
With the IndyCar season coming to an end in Nashville on Sept. 15, drivers and teams are revving up their engines for the final race to see who will be the IndyCar champion this season.
Edited by Madison Roost
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