Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin showcased his skills at the Milwaukee Mile, where the competition was fierce and the stakes high.
Championship Insights
In a thrilling display of speed, champion-elect Alex Palou secured his sixth pole position of the season, further solidifying his dominance in the IndyCar series with Chip Ganassi Racing. Palou clocked an impressive two-lap average of 162.971 mph on the mile-long oval. He will share the front row with AJ Foyt Racing’s David Malukas, while McLaren’s Pato O’Ward starts third next to McLaughlin. Scott Dixon, initially set to start fifth, faced a nine-place grid penalty due to an unapproved engine change, pushing him down to 14th and promoting Will Power into the top five.
McLaughlin’s Optimism
“A very solid run for the Sonsio Chevy,” McLaughlin remarked, expressing confidence in his starting position. “That should give us a good starting position tomorrow, one that we can win from for sure. Tyre degradation is going to be so critical tomorrow, like it was last year. I’ve really enjoyed this track and I think we have a shot to get to Victory Lane again tomorrow.”
Palou’s Dominance
Palou’s achievement of pole position marked a significant milestone, as he continues to lead the championship race ahead of O’Ward. “I knew I had a good car,” said Palou. “I just wanted to get everything out of it, so I just fired as much speed as I think it could handle and a little bit more, and it sticks. It feels amazing to get a pole here.”
Qualifying Challenges
The qualifying session was not without its challenges, featuring two notable incidents. The first involved Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist, who unfortunately backed his car into the wall at Turn 4. Meanwhile, Andretti Global’s Colton Herta managed to avoid a collision with the wall after spinning out. Herta explained, “It’s unfortunate. We weren’t super confident after practice, so we took a little bit of a swing at it, but it looks like we were loose right from the beginning. As soon as we touched that lower patch, the car just went. My teammate Marcus had a better line than me in practice, so I went on his line there for qualifying, since we’re on very similar cars, but unfortunately, the car just didn’t like that patch. It’s frustrating to have a weekend like this. Luckily, the setup that we’ll go to for the race is very different than qualifying, so we can find what we need to tonight to move up tomorrow. I’m glad that we’re back here at The Milwaukee Mile, but this place is really difficult as well.”
Upcoming Race Details
The Milwaukee Mile 250 is set to begin on Monday, August 25, at 4 AM AEST, with live coverage exclusively on Stan Sport.
Results: IndyCar Series Snap-On Milwaukee Mile 250, Milwaukee Mile
| Pos | Num | Driver | Team | Lap 1 | Lap 2 | Total Time | Speed (mph) |
|—–|—–|———————|—————————|———-|———-|————|————–|
| 1 | 10 | Alex Palou | Chip Ganassi Racing | 22.3764 | 22.4658 | 44.8422 | 162.971 |
| 2 | 4 | David Malukas | A.J. Foyt Enterprises | 22.4835 | 22.5565 | 45.04 | 162.256 |
| 3 | 5 | Pato O’Ward | Arrow McLaren | 22.4791 | 22.6103 | 45.0894 | 162.078 |
| 4 | 3 | Scott McLaughlin | Team Penske | 22.5315 | 22.647 | 45.1785 | 161.758 |
| 5 | 9 | Scott Dixon | Chip Ganassi Racing | 22.6638 | 22.7414 | 45.4052 | 160.951 |
| 6 | 12 | Will Power | Team Penske | 22.6515 | 22.7909 | 45.4424 | 160.819 |
| 7 | 27 | Kyle Kirkwood | Andretti Global | 22.7738 | 22.8007 | 45.5745 | 160.353 |
| 8 | 2 | Josef Newgarden | Team Penske | 22.8144 | 22.7665 | 45.5809 | 160.330 |
| 9 | 76 | Conor Daly | Juncos Hollinger Racing | 22.7686 | 22.8547 | 45.6233 | 160.181 |
| 10 | 21 | Christian Rasmussen | Ed Carpenter Racing | 22.7865 | 22.8433 | 45.6298 | 160.158 |
| 11 | 15 | Graham Rahal | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | 22.7541 | 22.9224 | 45.6765 | 159.995 |
| 12 | 18 | Rinus VeeKay | Dale Coyne Racing | 22.8802 | 22.9341 | 45.8143 | 159.514 |
| 13 | 20 | Alexander Rossi | Ed Carpenter Racing | 22.8437 | 23.0095 | 45.8532 | 159.378 |
| 14 | 28 | Marcus Ericsson | Andretti Global | 22.8931 | 23.0441 | 45.9372 | 159.087 |
| 15 | 30 | Devlin DeFrancesco | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | 22.9239 | 23.0247 | 45.9486 | 159.047 |
| 16 | 66 | Marcus Armstrong | Meyer Shank Racing | 23.0905 | 22.8667 | 45.9572 | 159.018 |
| 17 | 7 | Christian Lundgaard | Arrow McLaren | 22.9783 | 23.0415 | 46.0198 | 158.801 |
| 18 | 6 | Nolan Siegel | Arrow McLaren | 23.0977 | 23.0589 | 46.1566 | 158.331 |
| 19 | 77 | Sting Ray Robb | Juncos Hollinger Racing | 23.0701 | 23.1383 | 46.2084 | 158.153 |
| 20 | 8 | Kyffin Simpson | Chip Ganassi Racing | 23.1083 | 23.1064 | 46.2147 | 158.132 |
| 21 | 83 | Robert Shwartzman | PREMA Racing | 23.0986 | 23.1515 | 46.2501 | 158.010 |
| 22 | 45 | Louis Foster | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | 23.1319 | 23.2595 | 46.3914 | 157.529 |
| 23 | 14 | Santino Ferrucci | A.J. Foyt Enterprises | 23.1712 | 23.4175 | 46.5887 | 156.862 |
| 24 | 50 | Jacob Abel | Dale Coyne Racing | 23.4022 | 23.2649 | 46.6671 | 156.599 |
| 25 | 90 | Callum Ilott | PREMA Racing | 23.3016 | 23.4069 | 46.7085 | 156.460 |
| 26 | 26 | Colton Herta | Andretti Global | 37.5888 | 27.2462 | 1:04.8350 | 112.717 |
| 27 | 60 | Felix Rosenqvist | Meyer Shank Racing | No Time | | | |
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