West Allis, WI – Will Power at the Open Test for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES at the Milwuakee Mile at the Wisconsin State Fair Park. (Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo)

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio

INDYCAR will launch its long-awaited Hybrid Era at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course next month with a trio of familiar names squarely atop the speed chart during testing.  

Scott McLaughlin – Milwaukee Mile Open Test – Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo

Two days after sweeping the podium at Road America, Team Penske’s Will Power, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin emerged as the three fastest drivers, respectively, in an NTT IndyCar Series Open Test at The Milwaukee Mile.

INDYCAR, Chevrolet and Honda have collaborated to develop the series’ first-of-its-kind hybrid unit. Both manufacturer’s 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged V-6 engines initially were paired and tested with hybrid power on Aug. 16, 2023 at Sebring International Raceway in Florida. In seven months, a total of 23,518 miles successfully were completed among 28 drivers heading into Tuesday’s session in West Allis, Wis.

Hybrid power is scheduled to make is competition debut Friday-Sunday, July 5-7, at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course at The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid. The race will be broadcast live on NBC, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network beginning at 1:30 p.m. (EDT) on July 7.

A two-time series champion, Power paced the test with a hot lap of 161.521 mph around the historic 1-mile oval in the No. 12 Chevrolet. Two-time/reigning Indianapolis 500 winner Newgarden followed at 160.759 mph in the No. 2 Chevrolet, with McLaughlin third at 160.639 mph in the No. 3 Chevrolet.

Milwaukee Mile Open Test – Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo

All 20 cars participating in the day-long test were equipped with the new hybrid unit. Two series teams _ Juncos Hollinger Racing (Chevrolet) and Chip Ganassi Racing (Honda) _ were excused due to driver conflicts associated with this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans sports car classic in France.

Tuesday’s two sessions were designed for teams to work strictly on car set-up and perfecting operation of the hybrid power unit.

“You can feel it,” said Power, who won the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America presented by AMR last Sunday in Elkhart Lake, Wis. “It’s probably going to assist in a passing situation if you have a run on somebody. I think it will be situational. I think there is an optimal way to use it in a qualifying sim. You’ll work out the best time to use it.

“You’re probably only going to get one shot at it because you aren’t lifting that much to regen (regenerate the unit). Since I tested it here in the fall, the system is reliable.”

The hybrid units will be in-play during INDYCAR’s return to the famed-and-flat 1-mile oval for the first time since 2015 during the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 doubleheader Aug. 31-Sept. 1. A native of Australia, Power is one of two active series drivers with a win at Milwaukee. Power prevailed in 2014, while six-time series champion Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing won in 2009.

Will Power meets the press – Milwaukee Mile Open Test – Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo

“It hasn’t changed much,” Power said. “I think those (pavement) patches don’t seem to have much grip though in the middle of the corners, which is really good for passing. It’s the same track. It feels exactly like it did. I did really well here. It was one of my favorite ovals. I had been looking forward to coming here.”

Newgarden rebounded from a disappointing finish on the Streets of Detroit to finish second to Power on Road America’s daunting, 4.104-mile/14-turn natural-terrain layout. Native New Zealander McLaughlin completed Team Penske’s first podium sweep in a series event since 2017.

“For me it (the test) was a pretty seamless day. It seemed like an easygoing day for most people,” said Newgarden, who recently signed a long-term contract extension with team-owner Roger Penske. “The system, certainly from the last time I ran it, it operates pretty seamlessly. Just not having a lot of hiccups with it. We’ve definitely had a lot of miles on it now. It seems to work really well. Pretty robust.

“I think it’s impossible to say we’re not going to have any issues. It’s like any new part, if there’s a new part, there’s always going to be some risk of something still needing to be developed. Up to this point, I think we’ve seen the system is fairly robust. It’s ready to drive, I think, in a race condition. Yeah, I’m excited to see this new chapter for the rest of the year.”

Colton Herta – Milwaukee Mile Open Test – Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo

Colton Herta was fourth and best-in-class among the Honda-powered testers at 160.137 mph in the No. 26 car fielded by Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian.

Pato O’Ward completed the top-five at 159.993 mph in his No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. “I would like to see what we, as a series, can really extract out of it, because where we are now, the difference isn’t big enough,” said O’Ward, a native of Mexico with family ties to San Antonio. “I think it’s a work in progress. The more we can use what this hybrid system can bring to the series, I think the better it’s going to be.

“Right now we’re all working within certain limits. I think it will be different on road and street-courses compared to ovals. You can definitely feel it.”

David Malukas was eighth at 159.293 mph in his debut with Meyer Shank Racing in the No. 66 Honda. Malukas missed the first seven races of the season _ and lost his ride with Arrow McLaren _ due to a wrist injury suffered in a preseason mountain biking accident. The native Chicagoan will make his racing debut with MSR at Mid-Ohio.

David Malukas – Milwaukee Mile Open Test – Photo by Chris Jones | IMS Photo

Previous on-track testing of the hybrid package was conducted at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala.; Homestead-Miami Speedway’s Road-Course; Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IMS Road-Course; The Milwaukee Mile; Road America; Sebring International and World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Ill., to effectively mirror the various disciplines of the schedule.

“This was another important milestone for the INDYCAR hybrid power unit,” INDYCAR President Jay Frye said. “Chevrolet and Honda checked a lot of boxes today, and none of it could happen without the continued partnership and support of our drivers and teams. The INDYCAR-specific hybrid power unit will bring a new and exciting element to the NTT IndyCar Series with additional energy and overtake options. The anticipation grows, and we cannot wait to see the Hybrid Era begin at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in a few weeks.”

INDYCAR’s hybrid power unit expands the series’ effort to deliver the most competitive motorsport on the planet. HPU features additional overtake (push-to-pass) options, giving each driver more choices and control to theoretically enhance on-track competition.

The innovative hybrid system is made up of the low-voltage (48V) Motor Generator Unit (MGU) and Energy Storage System (ESS) _ consisting of 20 ultracapacitors _ both of which fit inside the bellhousing located between the Chevy and Honda internal combustion engine and gearbox. During regeneration, acting on the clutch shaft, the MGU builds power to be stored in the ESS. The additional horsepower is deployed through the same motor generator on driver demand.

For competition, options for “automatic regen” via braking or throttle position and “manual regen” via selected steering wheel paddles and buttons will be available. Deployment of stored energy will only be available manually through a latching button, similar to the existing push-to-pass system.

While available to use in addition to the traditional INDYCAR push-to-pass system on road and street circuits, the two systems will come wrapped with different rules. Push-to-pass will still have a restriction on amount of time per use and total time used over the course of a race. Rules for the hybrid power unit will limit the amount of energy deployed per lap _ based upon track length. Used in combination on road and street circuits, the added boost will provide an additional 120 horsepower for a total of 800-plus HP for the first time in two decades. Additional horsepower is expected in the coming years as hybrid unit development evolves.

Newgarden noted hybrid technology will add to the on-the-fly “menu” at the disposal of every driver and team strategist. “You have push-to-pass. You have the hybrid unit. You have all the map options. You have roll bars, weight jackers. I think that’s about it,” Newgarden deadpanned. “Then your gear-selects, obviously. That’s not going anywhere.

“There’s plenty of options in there. I don’t think we need to add any more. We have enough going on. You could add more. I don’t know that you would need to at this point. There’s definitely enough adjustability to drive the car. Yeah, this will add to it. It’s just another strategic thing that everyone will learn how to manage.”

Safety elements include the low voltage system and the ability for drivers to restart the car by themselves if they spin and stall the engine on-track _ avoiding the need for the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team to be deployed and creating more green-flag action in races.

“The introduction of hybrid technology provides an opportunity to integrate electrification technologies into the NTT IndyCar Series,” General Motors Executive Director, Motorsports Competition Eric Warren said. “During the development of any new technology, extensive analysis and testing are done to identify as many issues as possible. We support INDYCAR’s decisions throughout this process to study testing data carefully and make sure that when the hybrid technology is integrated, the operation and performance are exactly what is expected.

“This approach has given INDYCAR and the engine manufacturers the opportunity to ensure the high level of competition continues uninterrupted.”

David Salters, president of Honda Racing Corporation USA, said INDYCAR’s hybrid system is a perfect technical match for its various street vehicles.

“Hybrid technology is playing an ever-increasing role in both our racing programs and the production vehicles created by Honda and Acura,” Salters said. “More than a quarter of Honda’s total sales in 2023 _ nearly 300,000 vehicles _ were Honda CR-V and Accord Hybrids. Introducing electrification to INDYCAR at Mid-Ohio further aligns our racing efforts with Honda’s passenger car production as we operate multiple manufacturing and R&D facilities in Central Ohio, employing more than 13,000 associates there.

“This is exciting new technology and, like all things new, has presented challenges to us at HRC as we have stepped in with our competitors to help INDYCAR make the hybrid system compact enough, powerful enough, light enough and reliable enough to work within the highly-restricted confines of an INDYCAR chassis.

“We are proud of our associates’ work to develop the supercapacitor pack and control software for the system. We look forward to hybrid tech adding another dimension to the great racing spectacle and entertaining our great Honda and INDYCAR racing fans.”

Light rain delayed the test for 36 minutes late in the afternoon while teams were in the race simulation portion of the schedule, when the field was divided into two groups. The 20 drivers combined to turn 3,563 incident-free laps on the day. That’s equal to 178 laps per driver, more than half of the 250-lap distance of each of the races over Labor Day weekend.

Next NTT IndyCar Series event is the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on Sunday, June 23, at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Northern California. Live coverage will start at 6 p.m. (EDT) on the USA Network, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

NTT IndyCar point standings _ 1, Will Power, Team Penske, 236; 2, Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, 231; 3, Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, 225; 4, Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren, 184; 5, Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, 179; 6, Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, 179; 7, Colton Herta, Andretti Global, 176; 8, Josef Newgarden, Team Penske, 169; 9, Alexander Rossi, Arrow McLaren, 162; 10, Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, 157;

11, Christian Lundgaard, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 141; 12, Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Racing, 132; 13, Marcus Ericsson, Andretti Global, 130; 14, Marcus Armstrong, Chip Ganassi Racing, 121; 15, Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 121; 16, Romain Grosjean, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 112; 17, Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing, 109; 18, Linus Lundqvist, Chip Ganassi Racing, 100; 19, Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, 81; 20, Pietro Fittipaldi, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 81;

21, Theo Pourchaire, Arrow McLaren, 75; 22, Augustin Canapino, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 74; 23, Sting Ray Robb, A.J. Foyt Racing, 68; 24, Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, 65; 25, Jack Harvey, Dale Coyne Racing, 65; 26, Tom Blomqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, 46; 27, Callum Ilott, Arrow McLaren, 39; 28, Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing, 26; 29, Luca Ghiotto, Dale Coyne Racing, 22; 30, Conor Daly, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing-Cusick Motorsports, 21;

31, Kyle Larson, Hendrickcars.com Arrow McLaren, 21; 32, Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 19; 33, Nolan Siegel, Dale Coyne Racing, 17; 34, Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing, 14; 35, Tristan Vautier, Dale Coyne Racing, 12; 36, Colin Braun, Dale Coyne Racing, 10; 37, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing-Cusick Motorsports, 6; 38, Marco Andretti, Andretti Herta with Marco & Curb Agajanian, 5; 39, Katherine Legge, Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing, 5.