IndyCar tried, but the track did not get dry in time. Today’s race will run to its conclusion Sunday morning at 8 am Central time on FS1.
Race 2 will start at its scheduled time, 12:30 Central time on FOX.
Today has been exhausting, with all the false hope of restarting followed by disappointment. It’s a shame, because there was quite a good race going on and it was about to get even better. There is some intriguing strategy that I hope continues to play out.
Pato O’Ward leads after 91 laps.
Thanks for following along today. see you in the morning.
Scott McLaughlin won the pole for Race 1 at Milwaukee and Alex Palou willstart on the point in tomorrow’s race. For race 1 McLaughlin, second place Palou, and third place David Malukas will serve nine place grid penalties.
Qualifying started under overcast skies, but as the session went on skies got a bit brighter although never sunny.
Pato O’Ward and Josef Newgarden will star on the front row in today’s 250 mile race.
Dennis Hauger held the pole for a long time. He finished seventh and he will start fourth.
In Sunday’s race. Palou will start on pole alongside O’Ward. Newgarden will start third and Mick Schumacher fourth. Like Hauger for race 1, Schumacher hung onto the pole for race 2 for quite a bit of time.
The speed differentials for both contests is huge. The leaders should encounter slower traffic very quickly.
Kyle Kirkwood, second in the standings, qualified 22nd and 24th, the slowest of the Andretti cars. It might be difficult for him to prevent Palou from clinching t5he title today.
I will post the official starting lineup when it is available..
IndyCar qualifies for toda’s race at 10 am Central time on FS1.
The Snap-On Makers and Fixers 250 green flag us at 1:50 pm Central on FOX. The race title just barely meets the requirement that the race distance is longer than the race title.
After Friday’s collision with Kyle Koirkwood, Christian Rasmussen will go to a backup car today . I have no idea why they were were running so close together in PRACTICE.
I could under4stand teammates doing some drafting work, but two cars from different teams racing each other like that before qualifying is a head scratcher. I think Kirkwood is a bit more at fault. It appeared he didn’t turn in.
Screen grab just before contact.
This weekend’s schedule does not make sense to me. If the series wanted a three-day program, Friday has to be more than single practice late on Friday afternoon. A late morning practice followed by midafternoon qualifying makes more sense.
I’ll be back after qualifying with the results and the official starting lineup. Five cars as of now will drop nine spots.
Josef Newgarden led the only practice for tge Milwaukee double header this afternoon.
The session was stopped twice for crashes, the first early one by Nolan Siegel in turn 2, and later when Christian Rasmussen and Kyle Kirkwood collided in turn 3.
Next up is qualifying tomorrow at 11 am Central time.
The trip to the Milwaukee Mile was very smooth as traffic wa slight through Chicago.
The big story concerns an erroneous announcement from Baranquilla, Colombia, confirming an IndyCar race in that cit5y in 2028. IndyCar issued the following statement refuting confirmation.:
It is always good policy to wait until IndyCar announces a race and its date before believing it will be on the schedule. With rumors of a race in Brazil for 2027, I am skeptical that two South American races will be on the calendar.
IndyCar practice isn’t until 5 pm Central time this evening. The timing is puzzling since both races will finish well before that hour. I’m not sure what teams can learn at that hour that will help them for the race or qualifying.
Photo-My favorite Milwaukee moment, the start of the August, 1965, race.
As you read this, I am on my way to Milwaukee
The schedule: Times are Central. On Sunday there is a 15-minute warm up for IndyCar. before the IndyNXT race. It is not televised
IndyCar rides a huge wave of momentum into Milwaukee for the final two oval races of 2026. After last Sunday’s race In D. C., which attracted 3.282,000 viewers, the series hopes to continue to raise awareness. This weekend is test of how many repeat new viewers watch at least one of the races.
The Milwaukee Mile was a long time IndyCar staple, and it is a shame that the series had it off the schedule for a few years. I am happy that it has returned, and on Thursday title sponsor Snap-On signed a five-year renewal with IndyCar. The only thing better would be to return this event to its proper place on the weekend following the Indianapolis 500.
Both races are 250 laps. I have always thought that on a doubleheader weekend the races should be different distances, with the longer race on the first day. Saturday’s race should 275 laps and Sunday’s race could run 250 laps. We have 75 laps left over from Nashville to play with.
A Lot on the Line
Despite Paqlou’s commanding lead in the points, many drivers are still fighting for positions, jobs for 2027, and to earn their teams a paycheck of more than $1 million.
Milwaukee is likely Chevrolet’s last chance to grab another win before the end of the season. The Detroit based power plant has won only five times this year, two of their victories are on oval, both by Josef Newgarden. I think Chevy will win once this weekend.
Alex Palou could clinch his fifth IndyCar title Saturday should Kyle Kirkwood falter. Palou leads Kirkwood by 91 points after Kirkwood’s win in Washington last Sunday. I do not expect Palou to have another bad day.
Kirkwood has solidified his hold on second place. he leads Christian Lundgaard by 19 points. David Malukas has fallen to 51 points in arrears, nearly a full race, behind the Andretti driver.
At the other end of the standings, Christian Rasmussen and Caio Collet are tied for the final spot in the Leaders’ Circle. Mick Schumacher is only 10 points behind.
Dennis Hauger leads the rookie standings by 24 points over Collet. I think he is safe, but things happen on ovals.
Puzzling Things
Things I still wonder about that have not happened this year:
David Malukas still hasn’t won a race. His performances have seemed to have fallen off a bit since his crash in Nashville. Perhaps getting back on an oval is just what he needs.
Why has Marcus Armstrong faded since his near win at Road America/? Armstrong is another driver I thought might see the top step of the podium at some point in 2026. After strong showings at the 500 and Road America, the New Zealander has been plagued by engine issues and other problems. A doubleheader could be a tonic for him also.
Odd statistic- Andretti Global and Arrow McLaren have combined to win as many races -6- as Alex Palou has this season.
Kirkwood’s crash at Markham cost him at least 20 points. After how the race played out in D.C., we could have been looking at a possible title challenge over the final three races.
Picking winners– Picking a winner for a single race is tough, but picking two on t5he same weekend? In no particular order the race winners will be Will Power and Scott McLaughlin.
The Pit Window by Mike Silver 