IndyCar Test Wrap-up from Iowa Speedway with Alex Palou, Colton Herta, Ed Carpenter, Ryan Hunter-Reay Graham Rahal, and Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend President Michael Montri

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Speakers: Bruce Martin, Alex Palou, Colton Herta, Ed Carpenter, Ryan Hunter-Rea, Graham Rahal & Michael Montri

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Bruce Martin:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcasts. I'm your host, Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT IndyCar Series.

Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans an insider’s view of the exciting world of the NTT IndyCar Series in a fast paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport.

I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as nbcsports.com, si.com, ESPN Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Autoweek, and Speed Sport.

So, let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy.

Welcome to this week's edition on Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee. We are proud and honored to bring Hy-Vee to the show as the presenting sponsor of Pit Pass Indy.

We will continue to cover the entire NTT IndyCar Series community and our new partners at Hy-Vee will help us tell those stories.

Hy-Vee is proud to be the sponsor of the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway as IndyCar returns to the fastest short track on the planet July 21 to 23, 2023.

It promises to be the biggest weekend of the summer with two races on the 0.875 mile Iowa Speedway Oval, and four of the biggest names in entertainment performing before and after each race.

American Idol winner and multimedia superstar, Carrie Underwood will kick off the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend with a performance prior to Saturday's NTT IndyCar Series Race, the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 presented by Instacart on Saturday July 22nd.

Country music icon and six time Grammy Award nominee, Kenny Chesney will perform following Saturday's Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend, NTT IndyCar Series Race.

The action continues the following day with another full IndyCar Series Race, the Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade.

Three time Grammy Award winner and country music power group, Zac Brown Band will perform prior to the race on Sunday July 23rd.

British singer songwriter and global chart topping artist, Ed Sheeran will wrap up Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend with a performance following Sunday's IndyCar Race on July 23rd.

For tickets, fans can visit hy-veeindycarweekend.com or call the ticket office at (641) 417-6007, Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern time.

Although the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway promises to be the highlight of the summer, race over to your local Hy-Vee throughout the year. Hy-Vee, where there's a helpful smile in every aisle.

Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee was at Iowa Speedway where eight different IndyCar Series teams and 20 different drivers tested at the 0.875-mile short oval on Wednesday, June 21st.

This weekend it's off to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on July 2nd.

Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing takes a 74 point lead in the championship race over his teammate, Marcus Ericsson as the serious heads to Mid-Ohio.

Palou was one of the 20 drivers that tested at Iowa Speedway on June 21 as he prepares for the big weekend on July 22nd and 23rd. He was fourth fastest during the June 21st test with a lap at 172.236 miles per hour in the No. 10 Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing.

I caught up with the hottest driver in the NTT IndyCar Series for this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee, where there's a helpful smile in every aisle.

The fact there's 20 cars here for a test kind of shows how important this race weekend is. So, from your standpoint with a 74 point lead, there'll be a couple of races between now and Iowa, but it's got to show how important this is that all four of the Ganassis are here.

Alex Palou:

Yeah, yeah, it's huge. And for everybody, it's a big weekend with a double race. We didn't really perform as we wanted last year, so it's good for us to have a full day here with four cars.

And also, 15 other cars on track because that makes you able to compare to everybody else and not feel that you're better than you are.

Bruce Martin:

It's one thing to have a doubleheader, it's another thing to have a doubleheader in what might be the hottest race weekend of the year. So, when you combine the two, is it really a battle of survival of the fittest?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, honestly, it's tough for everybody. For the teams, for the mechanics, the engineers. But also, for the drivers, it's a bumpy truck, it's a fast track. You don't really have much time to rest and it's crazy hot. So, yeah, we'll try and hydrate as much as possible ahead of the weekend.

Bruce Martin:

Iowa remind you of anywhere in Spain?

Alex Palou:

Honestly, how it looks. It looks really close to my hometown because I'm living in like the middle of nowhere as well, like 30 minutes away from Barcelona. And it looks really similar with the corn. Like we have a lot of corn around my house and stuff, so yeah.

Bruce Martin:

They do grow corn in Spain.

Alex Palou:

Oh yeah, we do.

Bruce Martin:

As a native to North America.

Alex Palou:

No, no, we do, we do a lot.

Bruce Martin:

Okay. So, the fact that here it is the heartland, do you have an appreciation for what this type of track means to the grassroots space?

Alex Palou:

Oh yeah. I mean, I think it's great. We always try and deliver a really good show here and especially this track gives something back to the fans that give us so much.

But yeah, I think it's a great event. I wish it was just like 20 degrees a bit colder just to help ourselves. But yeah, we'll try and have a good result.

Bruce Martin:

And the fact you're on such a good roll, you got to keep it up in Mid-Ohio, then you're have to do it at Toronto, then you get a chance to show-

Alex Palou:

Yeah, yeah. I mean, as you said, we still have those two races which is, both are tough. A tight and short road course and then Toronto that it's always a crazy street course. So, yeah, we'll try and keep on a roll heading into Iowa.

Bruce Martin:

And last one from me. Does the patchwork of tires seem curious that you're using here? It's like five different sets of-

Alex Palou:

Yeah, that doesn't help. The only good thing is that it's the same for everybody. At least that's what we know. But yeah, it's not ideal.

I mean, we tested this morning with Indy 500 tires. Now, we're with the old tires from last year. And the last set is going to be the precious last set of the 23 tires. And you don't know if the car is going to go one direction or the other, it's going to stay.

So, it's tough. I wish it was the 23 tires, but it is what it is.

Bruce Martin:

So, save the golden set for the last.

Alex Palou:

For the last and then it starts raining or something. We’ll see.

Bruce Martin:

Colton Herta of Andretti Autosport was the fastest driver in the all day test session as he turned the most laps in the test with 292 in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda.

Herta's fastest unofficial speed was 175.008 miles per hour around the 0.875 miles short oval. That was over two miles per hour faster than the second fastest three time Iowa Speedway winner, Ryan Hunter-Reay.

Here's what Herta had to say about his test.

Fastest of the day, it doesn't really matter because it's a test, but it's got to be something you got to good about. What did you learn today?

Colton Herta:

The car is good. I was happy with how everything went. We got through the program and yeah, we started off with a pretty good car and we just kept making it better. So, I'm happy with the end result and we should have some good stuff to go off of when we come back here.

Bruce Martin:

This afternoon is so much hotter than this morning. That's got to give you a little bit of a idea what it'll be like in the heat.

Colton Herta:

Yeah, for sure. It changed the balance, obviously, but we'll know what happens now.

Bruce Martin:

With 20 cars on the track, Firestone brought three different sets of tires. Each team got one set of the tires from this year's 107th Indianapolis 500, three sets of the Iowa tires from 2022, and one set of the 2023 Iowa tires.

Herta was among several drivers that would've preferred to have had the 2023 Iowa tire for the entire test.

Colton Herta:

Yeah, it's terrible. It really throws us off when we put one set on and then the balance completely shifts on another set. So, it's not ideal for us.

Bruce Martin:

But how did the 2023s feel?

Colton Herta:

Similar to 2022. I wouldn't expect anything too different.

Bruce Martin:

Okay, thank you.

Bruce Martin:

Ed Carpenter was back in the cockpit of the No. 33 Chevrolet. The owner driver at Ed Carpenter Racing competes on the ovals on the schedule and the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend will be his third and fourth races of the season.

Carpenter was 14th fastest with a fast lap of 169.827 miles per hour. Ryan Hunter-Reay was also, at the test for ECR and was the second fastest at 173.004 miles per hour in the No. 20 Chevrolet.

I caught up with both drivers after the test.

The test, how it went. I know it was probably challenging with three different sets of tires, but you had some good speed. How did it go for you?

Ed Carpenter:

Yeah. I mean, I thought it was a productive day. I mean, we tested here last year and it was kind of the same sort of thing. We ran a Speedway tire and an Iowa tire. So, I guess it wasn't the first time we'd done that, so we had some reference, but I thought it was productive.

I was glad that it was sunny and hot just because it could be warmer than this, but I don't think track temp will be all that much different. So, I think we got a pretty representative day to run that'll be beneficial for when we come back.

So, still some things we need to fully improve on. But at the same time, I do think we've found a couple things that are going to help us relative to last year.

So, the big question is Joseph. And Joseph's not here, Pato is not here, and they've been the quickest guys around this joint, so we'll see what they have when they come back.

Bruce Martin:

What do you think the race would be like?

Ed Carpenter:

It'll be the same as last year.

Bruce Martin:

Tire deck.

Ed Carpenter:

Tire deck. Yeah, both lanes. You need speed early, but at the same time, you can make a lot of ground the last 20 laps of a stent if your car hangs on. But yeah, I thought this was probably one of the most exciting races last year, both of them. And I think that'll be the case again this year.

Bruce Martin:

And how's the new guy working out?

Ed Carpenter:

It's going okay. Still getting to know each other a little bit, but no, it's been good. It's been good having Ryan on board and he's got a lot of experience at different teams and it's fun and interesting to learn about some of that.

And also, for him just to see what we've been doing, how we've been doing it, and hopefully, we all get better here. But yeah, all things considered, I thought today was a pretty good day.

Bruce Martin:

And for you, you were up toward the pointy end of the stick speed wise. And even though it's a test, but still good.

Ryan Hunter-Reay:

Yeah. Hadn't been here in three years and it was a productive day. We made the car better throughout the entire day, even when it got hotter. We know our weaknesses and we know where we need to improve. So, I got a good feel for the track.

It just seems every year we've come back to Iowa, it kind of races a little bit slower, a little bit slower, more and more tire day. But it doesn't mean it can't be a fun race. When it gets to be that difficult, it becomes fun.

Bruce Martin:

And because you've done so well here. You said to me last week, you used to be really good here back in the Andretti days. But I mean, you know how to get around this place and it's a matter that your experience level can really help catch up to the front.

Ryan Hunter-Reay:

Yeah, it's one of my favorite racetracks, always has been. And I love it when we get into a big group and start mixing it up, especially when you have a car that's somewhat predictable.

And that's what we're trying to do, is just get a predictable car out of me, with no surprises and we should have a good day from there. But yeah, the car's got speed in it. It's got a good race space.

Bruce Martin:

And finally, listening to you on the radio last week, it seems like you have a lot of confidence in your ability, even though it's a new team, to kind of tell them what they need to do and what you need to do to improve the whole product.

Ryan Hunter-Reay:

Yeah, it's been great working with them. Like I said, Road America was a test session for us. This is another test. And I already see some good areas that we're progressing on. And like I said, this is big picture stuff. This isn't a fix next week.

Bruce Martin:

Well, because the big picture, you feel like you're here for this duration.

Ryan Hunter-Reay:

It's kind of what I feel like I want to do and we'll see where we go. I love working with this team and it's a great opportunity to head in the right direction.

Bruce Martin:

Okay. Thank you.

Ryan Hunter-Reay:

Thanks, Bruce. See you, man.

Bruce Martin:

See ya.

Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing believes the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend is very important as he tells me in this interview for Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee.

Graham Rahal:

Yes, there is a lot of cars here, that's for sure. I was surprised. Yesterday when we flew here, I was talking to the boys and I said, “Oh, how many cars are here? Like six, seven?” And they were like, “20.” And I was like, “Wait, how do 20 cars have test days left?” That was my first thought.

Here we are and it's really good for us because you got Ganassi here, you got Andretti here, you've got Carpenter here. You've got guys who have been very fast here, so they're good judges to know where we're at.

Bruce Martin:

How important is it for you and your team because of that logo right there?

Graham Rahal:

I don't think I have to tell you how important this race is. There's a reason we test here and not Road America.

Both of them been valuable, but Hy-Vee, they are everything to this sport right now. They're everything to our team, to this race. I hope to everybody that's an Iowa Speedway fan, they understand just how much Hy-Vee puts into this.

I'll go out and say it. I do not think this track would exist any longer if it were not for Hy-Vee. And so, I know we've got good ticket sales and everything so far, but I strongly, strongly advise and urge anybody that's around here, to come out and support this event because it's a huge, huge deal.

And for our team, it's clearly super important to do well here. Very, very important. But I mean, the one thing we had dinner with Randy, and Erin, and Jeremy, and Donna, Matt, Anna, everybody from Hy-Vee last night. And when they do something, they flat out they do it right, period.

And we were talking last night, I mean, with the concerts, with the ax that they have on top of a doubleheader race weekend, if you went to any of those concerts, you're probably going to be paying the price of what this ticket is for all weekend.

And how do you get that many more people in this place is by bringing in all this temporary seating. And so, you look at what's in turn one, and two, three, and four, but also, now, what's going on in the infield. I mean, it's spectacular. I mean, it's spectacular.

We've not seen anything like this out outside of the Indy 500. And so, it's special to be a part of it. And as our team being the main Hy-Vee team and everything, this is a really big one for us.

Bruce Martin:

Has this become the biggest IndyCar race of the summer?

Graham Rahal:

I think from a fan perspective, you look at the demand, I had a few of my technicians in my performance facility, and Indy called me the other day begging me to help him get camping because it was already sold out forever ago. And RV parking was sold out and they were just trying to find a way to get in here.

So, I think there's no doubt about it, it's becoming the one of the summer to go to. Let's just hope it's not 120 degrees for the fans and they can enjoy it a little more. But I mean, it's spectacular.

I mean, you guys all see it, everybody. You all know it. Every driver here knows it. Aside the Indy 500, this is a huge one.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee. Michael Montri is the president of the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway and IndyCar vice president of promoter relations.

Montri was also, president of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix, the first weekend in June before his team headed to Iowa to begin preparations for IndyCar's doubleheader weekend at Iowa in July.

Montri tells me the details of staging the biggest race of the summer on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule in this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee is Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend president and vice president promoter relations at IndyCar, Michael Montri.

Michael, it's a testing day at Iowa Speedway. On June 21st, you had 20 cars here with eight different teams.

Firestone didn’t expect that many teams when they set up for the test. So, they had to do a quick patchwork of getting different tire brands together and all that. But I think what that proves is how important the upcoming Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa is going to be for the NTT IndyCar Series.

Michael Montri:

No doubt. I mean, I think first of all, what Hy-Vee is investing here in structures is amazing. Even a month out now, you can see a lot of the temporary suite structures going up and it just gets everybody in the mood. It's exciting.

But it's an important weekend. It's a doubleheader weekend. It's a double points weekend and there aren't any more of those on the calendar. Even the Indy 500 was a single points weekend this year.

So, this is the only double points weekend on the calendar. It's two races and certainly important for all the teams to get it right.

Bruce Martin:

In a lot of ways, I believe with the entertainment package you have here for the spectators, the ticket value that goes with the four huge names in entertainment, along with two full races on Saturday and on Sunday, that this has the makings of being the biggest IndyCar race weekend of the summer.

Michael Montri:

There's no doubt. I mean, if you just look at the performers that are going to be here, included with your race ticket, it's not an additional charge at all.

You get Carrie Underwood, you get Kenny Chesney, that's Saturday. Sunday you get Zac Brown Band and you get Ed Sheeran. Those are all headline performers across their tours this summer.

We're thrilled to have them, with the support of Hy-Vee, of course. And it's going to be a great show, both days. It's just going to be amazing.

Bruce Martin:

But of course the main attraction both days is the NTT IndyCar Series with full races on both. They're both sponsored by Hy-Vee. And when you see the amount of points, it's like one of the drivers said earlier today, minimum of a 100 points are available in one weekend, makes it a very pivotable weekend to determine who wins the IndyCar Series Championship.

Michael Montri:

Yeah, no doubt. And we're getting really to the point in the season where you got to make your move. And it's a good weekend to do it here with double points, like you said.

With the number of races that are going to be remaining here when they get here, it's really the start of the final push of the season toward the finale. So, it's going to be exciting. It's very important weekend.

Bruce Martin:

Although this is the second straight Hy-Vee IndyCar race week at Iowa Speedway, for you, it's the third time that you've run a race at Iowa Speedway.

We go back to the 2020 season when Penske Entertainment rented out Iowa Speedway to be able to put on a race in front of limited spectators because at that time, the COVID pandemic had created big time crowd limitations. That was a bit of a challenge.

How important was that race to be able to pull off to guarantee that IndyCar would be able to have a full season in 2020?

Michael Montri:

Yeah, it was huge. I was just joking with somebody the other day. Merrill Cain and I were out here running that thing that year and totally different mentality than we have going into the 2023 event. I mean, we wanted a limited number of people here. We wanted to space people out.

And of course, going into this weekend, we're trying to cram as many people here as we can, building additional grandstands and additional suites. And we're going to fill the place up, so it'll be great.

But for 2020, it was a huge win for us here. The state of Iowa welcomed us with open in arms. We couldn't race in a lot of other markets, as you're aware. Our race in Detroit, we couldn't race on the temporary street circuit in Detroit.

But we were able to come here, get two races in that year, two very entertaining races. It all worked out really well.

And we went through that year, we learned a lot of things. A lot of fortitude about how to put events on and how to make them work in a challenging environment.

We were scanning everybody that walked in this place actually, while they were still in their cars, taking their temperatures. I mean, just all the stuff everyone was doing during COVID to make it work.

So, really proud of the entire team that helped us put that on. And Iowa, of course the state and the speedway here, great hosts and a great help to making that happen.

Bruce Martin:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe in 2020, you were limited to 7,000 fans per each of the two races.

Michael Montri:

It was based on a distance between spectators or groups. And really what it came down to was it was about a fifth of the grandstand, so it was about 5,000 people.

Bruce Martin:

And then by comparison, how many people do you expect to host here in July when the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend is held?

Michael Montri:

Yeah, we want to fill the place of the brim. So, not only are we going to have the full grandstands, we have additional grandstands that we built. And then Hy-Vee, of course, built all the additional suite structures. So, we'll have 50,000 people here a day, most likely.

Bruce Martin:

And when you compare that to what you had to do in 2020, I mean, that's a remarkable difference. But it also, shows the appetite that Iowa sports fans have to see a big event come to their estate. And how much pride do you feel the people of Iowa have for this race event?

Michael Montri:

They've always been so welcoming to our series here. Indy cars race so well on this circuit. They are now unfortunately, down to one race a year other than IndyCar with the ARCA Series coming.

So, they really welcome us. Indy cars has run so well here. We've been great partners with the Speedway here, Tyler Clement and Pat Warren, and everybody from NASCAR that helps us out during this weekend. It's a very, very welcoming environment.

There aren't, as I think everyone knows, any real professional sports teams in Iowa. So, you have all the college teams and then you have the big events, and we're one of those big events.

And we're proud to be one of those events and proud to be here in Iowa. And the advantage there is when you bring the big show to town a lot of people come out.

There'll be, we can't quite announce them yet, but a lot of local celebrities that will be out at this one in a couple weeks here. And we'll have a lot of fun, that's for sure.

Bruce Martin:

Now, there was no IndyCar race at Iowa Speedway in 2021, because there was no promoter to do the event.

However, the behind the scenes working that was going on between the Iowa governor, and Hy-Vee, and Roger Penske to bring Iowa Speedway back, how vital of a year was 2021 when you announced that deal, I believe it was in August of 2021 that the big Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend concept?

Michael Montri:

Well, 2020 was the start of that really. I mean, we ran here in 2020 and one of the Rahal Letterman Lanigan sponsors did business with Hy-Vee. So, they had Hy-Vee on the car here in 2020, and that was the start of it.

So, they ran here in 2020, loved the sport loved the speedway. And then when we didn't come back in 2021, wasn't on the schedule, they took notice and they talked to the governor and governor was in support of bringing IndyCar back to Iowa. Hy-Vee wanted IndyCar back in Iowa.

And of course Hy-Vee has jumped in in a big way. Of course, they're a title sponsor, as you know, on Christian Lundgaard’s car with Rahal Letterman Lanigan. They, of course, support this event and really make it happen.

So, that 2020 event that you mentioned was kind of the start of Hy-Vee's involvement in the sport. So, it was a crucial, crucial event for the series from that respect. I mean, Hy-Vee has been such a great supporter of the series since 2020. It's been amazing.

Bruce Martin:

Not only does Hy-Vee invest monetarily, but they also, invest with their senior leadership. You see a lot of Hy-Vee upper management people that are out at Iowa Speedway to help run and conduct the event. And how valuable is that to be able to have them as an asset?

Michael Montri:

It's huge. I mean, they have a ton of local workforce that can come out and help. Volunteers, all of their corporate partners and retail partners that they sell their brands in Hy-Vee stores come out and support the event.

It's been really a great relationship. The upper management of Hy-Vee has been so supportive.

And I can tell you that from the jump with Hy-Vee, it was really interesting and noticeable how alike Penske Corporation and Hy-Vee are. We've worked well together. They've been great partners. And look, we wouldn't be here without Hy-Vee.

Bruce Martin:

And the driving force between the Hy-Vee relationship is the former CEO of Hy-Vee, Randy Edeker, he's now, a chairman at Hy-Vee.

How important is it to be able to have his vision and foresight and frankly, the work ethic that he provides to be able to make this thing happen?

Michael Montri:

Well, there's no doubt Randy really is the lead force internally at Hy-Vee and motivates his team to make it all happen and really motivates all of us to make it all happen.

But it was his vision for sure, to make this place look like it did last year with the temporary suites in turn one, temporary suites in turn four. A lot of those temporary suites for Hy-Vee's own employees and the rest of them for the Hy-Vee, their main partners on the retail side.

So, it's been his vision all along to make this place what it looks like for race weekend. And I can tell you for 2023, it's going to look even better than it did in 2022. It's just amazing what Randy and his entire team does across the entire company.

And then again, their vision as well, and Randy's to bring the level of talent to this weekend. It's really a weekend that is unmatched on any other part of the calendar on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule.

Bruce Martin:

What has the demand been for tickets for the second Hy-Vee IndyCar race when you can compare to the first?

Michael Montri:

They've been great. And I'll tell you that we're up year over year in both revenue and in number of tickets sold for each day so far. We have tickets available still, so make sure you get yours. But they're going fast and again, we're ahead of last year at this time, so going really well.

Now, what's really cool about it is you get a whole lot of new fans out. Some people come for just the concerts, some people come for just the race, but those who come for each of those unique perspectives enjoy the other part of the weekend.

And for us to gather new fans, and new people, new eyeballs to the IndyCar Series is a huge positive.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Here's the rest of my exclusive interview with Michael Montri, the president of the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa.

A couple of weeks ago, you were running the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix on a new race course in Downtown Detroit. Had its own challenges being able to let the city continue to operate with the streets being open, while also, taking over part of the city streets to have a race course.

So, you only had how much time off between when you closed the books on that race and got ready to come out here in Iowa? How much time did you have to take a breath and collect your thoughts?

Michael Montri:

Not much. We've been working on this one though. I mean, it's with the time on the calendar being so close, it's six weeks or so after Detroit. We've been preparing for this for a while.

And Ann Fishgrund is the general manager here. She does a great job, and she's been working with her team on this for a long time. We bring some folks over from my team in Detroit to help as well. We're all here this week, just getting going here.

But the planning has started a long time, so I don't know if I can say that we can compartmentalize them exactly like that. They kind of all blend together and they overlap.

We certainly put it into high gear here though, but not much time. We got out of Detroit, went to Road America, came here on Monday after Road America, and here we are.

Bruce Martin:

Are any of the assets used for both events, such as the temporary suites?

Michael Montri:

Yeah, no, that's a great question. Actually, the same structure that is in Iowa here in turn one, those doubledecker suite structures, we used that structure in Detroit behind pit lane. So, 500 feet of that was in Detroit just a couple weeks ago.

They certainly have more infrastructure here. Randy and his Hy-Vee team have committed to building more suites here than we have in Detroit. But yeah, those ones that are in turn one here are the same ones that we had in Detroit.

Bruce Martin:

I remember doing an interview with Randy Edeker last year, and he said one of the things that attracted him about the NTT IndyCar Series as they race in a lot of the markets that Hy-Vee stores are located, or in markets where Hy-Vee is expanding to.

Do you foresee the day maybe when Hy-Vee might want to increase its involvement across the IndyCar Series?

Michael Montri:

Well, they really do a good job already in advertising, really in all of our race markets. So, I know for the season opener in St. Petersburg, for instance, they bought ad spots on local Tampa Bay television down there to advertise their national brands. So, they do have some national brands that they advertise in every market that we go to.

They do the Win A Corvette promotion that they're doing in every market that we go to. They buy on our national broadcasts across all the markets, obviously, that NBC broadcasts the entire country.

So, they have leaned in nationally already. Now, they are not in certain markets. Detroit's a good example. They're not in Detroit, but they still sponsored us there. They had a great signage location in Detroit.

So, well, will they lean in further? I don't know. But they already lean in to a large degree in even markets where they don't have presence.

Bruce Martin:

I think one of the things we learned last year, from seeing how Hy-Vee did business with Iowa Speedway and with IndyCar, was they created a blueprint that other sponsors in the series might want to follow in order to get the return on investment for the activation of their sponsorship dollars.

And how valuable do you think that is, maybe impressing some current sponsors in the series to step up their game a bit?

Michael Montri:

There's no doubt. I mean, I think both the sponsors and promoters. What Hy-Vee has allowed us to do here and made possible is to step up these events to a level that we hadn't really seen before.

And I can tell you from my position with IndyCar as promoter relations, that all of the promoters took a look at what we did here last year and said, “Oh wow, time to step up my promotion game.”

So, we've had a lot of new activation across the entire schedule as a result of this race here last year, and we will continue to see that happen.

Nashville's a pretty good example of that. They came in ‘21 online, they started out with some concerts as well, had some great concerts.

But I know for a fact that they stepped up their game a little bit more once they saw what we were doing here in Iowa. And I think that's true of a lot of the other events. They all do a great job, by the way. I mean, we have some really good promoter partners that do a great job in their own markets.

But I think it was a really kind of a call to all of our sponsors and promoters that, “Hey, this is what's possible out there.”

Bruce Martin:

So, you're heavily involved with IndyCar, you're heavily involved with the Penske Corporation, you are the president of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix, the president of the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa.

Last Sunday, before going to Road America, Roger Penske paid a visit to The Milwaukee Mile, appeared at a driver's meeting for one of the stock car races that they were having there, and spoke about how IndyCar does have interest in going to The Milwaukee Mile one day should certain safety requirements and improvements to the facility be met.

Looking at the big picture, what you're already doing, what you're involved in, would it have to be a separate promoter that would be involved with that, or could you see it being brought in as part of the Penske Entertainment group of races that you already are promoting?

Michael Montri:

Well, I think we're a little ways away from making any determination, number one, whether we're going to go back there. And then number two, if we decide to go back there, what that might look like from a promoter standpoint.

Certainly, anything is on the table. I was with Roger that day, we visited, the place looked great. It's got a great grandstand set up there. There's some work they need to do as Roger mentioned, publicly. They're working on it and we'll see what it brings.

For us, it's an oval, we like ovals. Our cars have always run there, and the history of our series at The Milwaukee Mile is strong. So, again, quite a ways to go there before we determine whether we're going to go back. And then the next step would be determine how we do it.

Bruce Martin:

And also, wouldn't there be a spacing problem in terms of, you don't want all of your events in the Midwest that are in very close proximity to be scheduled on top of each other. You wouldn't want it to be the week before Road America, and you probably wouldn't want it very close to the Iowa race.

So, is that also, part of the consideration since you are in involved in helping put the schedule together?

Michael Montri:

Yeah, the schedule is a jigsaw puzzle. And there are challenges that we have based on TV windows. We have a great television partner at NBC and we get, as you know, a majority of our events on broadcast TV.

But a lot of times, those TV broadcast windows are determined by NBC and we have to fill that slot. So, sometimes we don't have as much say on those windows as you would if you had your choice on whatever day or whatever time.

So, we don't have complete control over that, but we would certainly want the schedule to make sense if we were ever to determine that we would go back there. But that's true of any of our races in any part of the schedule.

We need to make sure that our promoters are successful and we want to make sure that we help them do that through what I would call smart scheduling.

And look, the other thing I would say is it's no secret that we have a lot of races in the Midwest. We started our world capital of racing is in Indianapolis. So, we have a very strong following in the Midwest.

But we're actively looking at other markets and it's no secret that we need to get to other markets where we currently don't run. So, all of those things are on the table and we'll balance them out and see where it shakes.

Bruce Martin:

Could we expect to see a change in the 2024 schedule?

Michael Montri:

Well, I can tell you there's a giant hole in the 2024 schedule because of the Olympics. So, that alone will predicate some changes in the 2024 schedule. We're going to have to shovel some things around.

Again, going back to the broadcast schedule. And quite frankly, we have to look at all of the motorsports not just the IndyCar schedule, but the NASCAR schedule. I mean, we share weekend with them currently in the Brickyard.

And what I mentioned before about smart scheduling, and you want to give the promoter the best opportunity to be successful. That also, carries over if they happen to have a NASCAR and an IndyCar race at the same track, just maybe not even on the same weekend.

So, you don't want to do a back-to-back NASCAR, IndyCar weekend at the same track. So, there's a lot of different factors that figure into that.

But yeah, 2024 is going to look different just for the simple fact that we have a large break in the schedule during the Olympics.

Bruce Martin:

But when you look back at the success that you've been able to create here and the potential that exists here at Iowa Speedway, just how exciting of a future does this event have?

Michael Montri:

We were just talking to Hy-Vee last week about what next year might look like and what the future might look like. And all signs point to a long-term future here for this race and continuing kind of the tradition that we started with Hy-Vee last year and continuing to grow it.

I mean, it was a great event last year. I think it's going to be a better one this year and we'll continue to make it better and better.

Bruce Martin:

Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend president, Michael Montri. Good luck with this year's Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway. And thank you for joining us today, on Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee, where there's a helpful smile in every aisle.

Michael Montri:

Thanks, Bruce, appreciate it.

[Music Playing]

Bruce Martin:

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee.

We want to thank our guests, IndyCar Series Championship winner Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, Ed Carpenter and Ryan Hunter-Reay of Ed Carpenter Racing, Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway president, Michael Montri for joining us on today's podcast.

Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests helped make Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee, your path to victory lane for all things IndyCar.

And because of our guest and listeners, Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee is proud to be the winner of the best podcast by the National Motorsports Press Association.

And for all your shopping needs, be sure to visit your local Hy-Vee, where there's a helpful smile in every aisle.

For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at Twitter @BruceMartin (one word, uppercase B, uppercase M) _500.

This has been a production of Evergreen Podcasts. A special thanks to our production team. Executive producers are Brigid Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcasts.com.

Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.