Pato O’Ward – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Joe Skibinski

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio

Pato O’Ward and his Arrow McLaren crew emerged from a three-race, summertime swoon Saturday afternoon with a victory in Race 1 of the Hyvee Milwaukee 250s in West Allis, Wis.

Checkered Flag for Pato O’Ward – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Jones

O’Ward scored his third NTT IndyCar Series victory of the season on The Milwaukee Mile’s historic 1.015-mile oval, finishing 1.8215-seconds in front of championship contender Will Power of Team Penske.

O’Ward’s seventh career victory and 25th-career podium finish put a definitive end to a frustrating stretch that had seen him finish 17^th on the Streets of Toronto on July 21; second-to-last 26^th on the World Wide Technology Raceway oval in Madison, Ill., on Aug. 18 and 15^th one week ago on Portland International Raceway’s natural terrain road-course in Oregon. Those results effectively eliminated Pato from championship contention.

Pato O’Ward – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Joe Skibinski

“Yeah, I mean, it’s all about what are we missing, right?” said O’Ward, a 25-year-old native of Mexico with family ties to San Antonio. “We’re not going to get it right all the time. But specifically this year has been really, really tough just to feel like I have something to fight with. I feel like I’ve had it in numerous races along the year, but there’s been some where it’s just been really, really tough in a lot of different angles, I would say.

“It was nice to bounce back like this after a solid qualifying effort (sixth), then really putting it together in the race. Great pit stops, great strategy. It all definitely came together for us.”

Pato O’Ward – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Jones

Live coverage of the second 250-lap/253.75-mile race will start at 2:30 p.m. (EDT) today on USA Network, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

This afternoon’s green flag can’t fall quickly enough for a rejuvenated O’Ward. “We had a really tough weekend in Portland, and this is a great way to bounce back,” said O’Ward, driver of the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. “We have another opportunity. The car was fantastic. It was getting a little gnarly there at the end, but glad I could bring it home for the boys. They were fantastic on pit stops. Strategy was amazing.”

Conor Daly – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Jones

Series journeyman Conor Daly finished third after a stirring drive in the No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet _ the Indiana native’s highest result since a career-best second in June 2016 at Belle Isle in Detroit. Daly officially recorded 51 on-track passes, most of any driver in a race this season, using every available racing line on the flat oval.

“The last podium I was on had Juan Pablo Montoya and Sebastien Bourdais,” Daly, 32, joked during his post-race presser. “I changed my era of INDYCAR drivers.

Conor Daly – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Joe Skibinski

“Yeah, kind of crazy. I mean, I honestly didn’t know how good we were. The first lap I decided to just go where there was open space. Turns out that worked. Then, yeah, we just kept going. It was kind of slowly working our way forward.

“It’s going to be a struggle (today) for us, too. Obviously, we want to win and we want to compete at the front and this team gave me the opportunity to do that. Yes, I’m thankful to be here and be back up where I dreamed of being my whole life, really.”

Santino Ferrucci continued his late-season surge by placing fourth in the No. 14 Phoenix Investors Chevrolet fielded by A.J. Foyt Racing of Waller, Texas.

Santino Ferrucci – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by James Black

“Honestly, I can’t thank this team enough,” said Ferrucci, a resident of Dallas. “We knew we had a good car. We didn’t get it right qualifying (19^th), definitely had it right especially in the middle of that race. Man, we were moving around.

“Hats-off to Daly. Obviously, we probably aren’t each other’s favorites, but credit is due. Good to see him on the podium and he drove a hell of a race. I felt like there were a couple of us out there on restarts driving all over the place. Honestly, it was dirt racing style. We were sliders into (Turn) 3. I just really trusted the right rear. I knew I could throw it down into Turn 3 flat-out, turn it in and set it and the thing would not just slide out from under me or push up into the car above me. Hats-off to our engineering crew again. Just killing it. Can’t wait for (today’s race).”

Santino Ferrucci – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by James Black

Championship leader Alex Palou completed the top-five in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Palou’s lead over championship runnerup Power _ which stood at 54 points entering this race _ was trimmed to a manageable 43 points.

Palou, the two-time/reigning series champ from Spain, will secure his third title in four years if he wins and leads the most laps this afternoon in Milwaukee. Otherwise, the title chase will proceed to the season-ending Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on Sunday, Sept. 15, at Nashville Superspeedway.

The top-five finishers Saturday represented different teams, just the second time that has occurred this season. The other occasion was at the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in Florida in March, an event won by O’Ward.

Will Power, Pato O’Ward and Conor Daly – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Joe Skibinski

Saturday’s event featured a variety of pit strategies and plenty of action on the lead lap and in lapped traffic as the series returned to the famed oval for the first time since 2015. There were a season-high 667 on-track passes and 326 passes for position _ most on record at The Milwaukee Mile.

Various “undercut” and “overcut” ploys were tested by teams during early stops in hopes that perhaps either fresh Firestone Firehawk tires, racing in less traffic or an opportune caution could deliver a win.

Instead, O’Ward clearly won on pace after starting sixth in the 27-car field. He took the lead for good under caution on Lap 195 when Power made his final pit stop. O’Ward’s last stop came on Lap 186, handing the lead to Power.

Colton Herta – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Owens

Two laps later, the last of three caution periods was triggered when the front left wheel dislodged from Colton Herta’s No. 26 Gainbridge Honda of Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian. The wheel was not tightened properly during his pit stop on Lap 185.

Power and a group of three other leading cars made their last stops under that caution, and O’Ward cycled to the front, where he would stay. O’Ward led a race-high 133 laps.

After his final stop under that caution, Power cycled into third place behind O’Ward and Ferrucci. Power eventually passed Ferrucci for second, with Daly passing Ferrucci for third on Lap 224.

Pato O’Ward – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Jones

A thicket of lapped traffic slowed O’Ward and Power pounced to within 0.3-seconds on Lap 236. But Power never was able to make a passing attempt for the lead, and O’Ward threaded a needle in 150-mph traffic to pull away from Power over the closing laps.

“It was getting wiggly,” O’Ward said of his car’s handling under pressure from Power. “It was reminding me a little bit of like qualifying, just getting a bit on the nose (loose handling). The car was changing a lot from the start of the race to the end of the race.”

Will Power – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Joe Skibinski

Power, the winner last Sunday at PIR, said he was experiencing similar conditions behind the wheel of his No. 12 Verizon Business Team Penske Chevrolet.

“The car was all over the place with adjustments as you go through the run,” said Power, a native of Australia and two-time series champion. “Man, it changed so much over a run and then from run-to-run. Very difficult to know what to do. I can’t tell you how much I moved my tools around all night. Very difficult to know what you need here. I think the tire deg is so big that you start with one balance, you finish with the complete other side of that.

Will Power – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Jones

“But it was good. It was cool racing with Pato at the end there trying to catch him. Like, he was just laying big darkies out every time out of the corner. I’m like, ‘He’s loose.’ I was a bit loose, but I had a bit of both.

“I’m stoked to get on the podium. One more (place) was what we needed, but Pato was super-good and strong and he got through that traffic really well. Alex was super-consistent, so it’s hard to drop that points gap, but we’re doing everything we need to at the moment. We’ll keep digging.”

Palou rebounded from the 12th starting position to score his 13th top-five finish in 15 races this season. He was in trouble early, mired in mid-pack, and just missed a two-car accident on Lap 147 that eliminated Indianapolis 500 winners Josef Newgarden in the No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet and Marcus Ericsson in the No. 28 Delaware Life Honda of Andretti Global from the race.

Alex Palou – Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 – Photo by Chris Jones

Palou methodically found a way to drive into the top-five despite falling a lap down in seventh when the final caution flew during his out-lap after his final stop. Palou and a handful of drivers got the wave-around during that final caution, returning him to the lead lap.

“A little bit unlucky with that yellow,” Palou said. “We were a bit aggressive to try and get the lead. Not the luckiest of days, but a top-five. The car was amazing. I’m happy that we got a good solid day. Hopefully, we can be a step above everybody (this afternoon).”

Results Saturday of the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s Race 1 NTT IndyCar Series event on the 1.015-mile The Milwaukee Mile, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):

1. (6) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   2. (5) Will Power, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   3. (25) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   4. (19) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   5. (12) Alex Palou, Honda, 250, Running
   6. (4) Linus Lundqvist, Honda, 250, Running
   7. (3) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   8. (1) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   9. (26) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 250, Running
   10. (17) Scott Dixon, Honda, 250, Running
   11. (23) Christian Rasmussen, Chevrolet, 250, Running
   12. (15) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 250, Running
   13. (8) Felix Rosenqvist, Honda, 250, Running
   14. (13) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 249, Running
   15. (2) David Malukas, Honda, 249, Running
   16. (14) Jack Harvey, Honda, 249, Running
   17. (24) Nolan Siegel, Chevrolet, 249, Running
   18. (27) Pietro Fittipaldi, Honda, 248, Running
   19. (18) Katherine Legge, Honda, 248, Running
   20. (21) Graham Rahal, Honda, 248, Running
   21. (16) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, 247, Running
   22. (10) Colton Herta, Honda, 246, Running
   23. (20) Sting Ray Robb, Chevrolet, 244, Running
   24. (9) Romain Grosjean, Chevrolet, 243, Running
   25. (22) Kyffin Simpson, Honda, 238, Running
   26. (11) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 146, Contact
   27. (7) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 146, Contact

Race Statistics
Winner’s average speed: 123.758 mph
Time of race: 2:03:01.3451
Margin of victory: 1.8215-seconds
Cautions: 3 for 38 laps
Lead changes: 7 among 5 drivers

Lap Leaders
McLaughlin, Scott 1 – 48
Lundqvist, Linus 49 – 67
O’Ward, Pato 68 – 77
Herta, Colton 78 – 86
McLaughlin, Scott 87 – 118
O’Ward, Pato 119 – 185
Power, Will 186 – 194
O’Ward, Pato 195 – 250

NTT IndyCar Series point standings _ 1, Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, 514; 2, Will Power, Team Penske, 471; 3, Colton Herta, Andretti Global, 426; 4, Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, 422; 5, Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren, 413; 6, Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, 403; 7, Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, 360; 8, Josef Newgarden, Team Penske, 358; 9, Alexander Rossi, Arrow McLaren, 321; 10, Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Racing, 306;

11, Christian Lundgaard, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 283; 12, Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, 282; 13, Marcus Armstrong, Chip Ganassi Racing, 267; 14, Marcus Ericsson, Andretti Global, 262; 15, Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing, 256; 16, Linus Lundqvist, Chip Ganassi Racing, 245; 17, Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 237; 18, Romain Grosjean, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 224; 19, Pietro Fittipaldi, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 168; 20, Sting Ray Robb, A.J. Foyt Racing, 163;

21, Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, 157; 22, Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren, 137; 23, Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, 133; 24, David Malukas, Meyer Shank Racing, 117; 25, Jack Harvey, Dale Coyne Racing, 110; 26, Augustin Canapino, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 109; 27, Theo Pourchaire, Arrow McLaren, 91; 28, Conor Daly, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 86; 29, Tom Blomqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, 46; 30, Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing, 45;

31, Toby Sowery, Dale Coyne Racing, 45; 32, Katherine Legge, Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing, 40; 33, Callum Ilott, Arrow McLaren, 39; 34, Luca Ghiotto, Dale Coyne Racing, 27; 35, Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing, 26; 36, Kyle Larson, Hendrickcars.com Arrow McLaren, 21; 37, Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 19; 38, Tristan Vautier, Dale Coyne Racing, 12; 39, Juri Vips, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 11; 40, Colin Braun, Dale Coyne Racing, 10;

41, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing-Cusick Motorsports, 6; 42, Hunter McElrea, Dale Coyne Racing, 6; 43, Marco Andretti, Andretti Herta with Marco & Curb Agajanian, 5.

Starting lineup for Sunday’s Race 2 of the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s NTT IndyCar Series event on the 1.015-mile The Milwaukee Mile, with qualifying position, car number in parentheses, driver, engine, and speed:

1. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 160.983
   2. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 160.912
   3. (11) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, 160.203
   4. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 159.939
   5. (8) Linus Lundqvist, Honda, 159.886
   6. (7) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 159.022
   7. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 158.500
   8. (60) Felix Rosenqvist, Honda, 158.500
   9. (66) David Malukas, Honda, 158.455
   10. (10) Alex Palou, Honda, 158.070
   11. (6) Nolan Siegel, Chevrolet, 158.029
   12. (14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 157.706
   13. (18) Jack Harvey, Honda, 157.675
   14. (77) Romain Grosjean, Chevrolet, 157.423
   15. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 156.992
   16. (28) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 156.917
   17. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 156.850
   18. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, 156.594
   19. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 156.413
   20. (78) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 156.100
   21. (41) Sting Ray Robb, Chevrolet, 155.993
   22. (51) Katherine Legge, Honda, 155.735
   23. (20) Christian Rasmussen, Chevrolet, 154.978
   24. (4) Kyffin Simpson, Honda, 154.681
   25. (45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 153.240
   26. (15) Graham Rahal, Honda, 152.218
   27. (30) Pietro Fittipaldi, Honda, 147.762