Recapping the return to The Milwaukee Mile with Penske Corporation President Bud Denker

ROGER:

This is Roger Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indie, sponsored by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcast. 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 and insiders 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, Auto Week and Speed Sport. So let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy. Welcome to this bonus edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental as we continue our fourth season of giving IndyCar fans a behind-the-scenes look at the NTT IndyCar Series and the drivers and teams that compete in the Indianapolis 500. On Labor Day weekend, IndyCar returned to the Milwaukee Mile for the first time since 2015. It was the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s with Pato Award of Errol McLaren winning his third IndyCar Series race of the season on Saturday night, August 31st, followed by Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske getting his third win of 2024 on Sunday, September 1st. An impressive crowd attended the two races at the Milwaukee Mile, along with thousands outside that attended a free fan zone, with the bars and restaurants at the Wisconsin State Fair Park open for this event, giving it a festival-like atmosphere. In this special edition of Pit Pass Indy, we break down the successful weekend with Penske Corporation President Bud Denker. His staff assisted Wisconsin State Fair Chair John Yingling and Wisconsin State Fair Executive Director and CEO Sherry Black, who served as the promoters of the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s. Here is my exclusive interview with Bud Denker, president of the Penske Corporation for Pit Pass Indy. Joining us now is Penske Corporation president Bud Denker, who had plenty of reasons to smile about leaving Milwaukee after this past weekend's Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250 IndyCar race. It turned out to be absolutely fantastic racing on the track. And the crowd was really good. It was better than some of us probably expected. It was better than what I expected. I will admit sometimes my expectations may not be on target, but it was great to see the enthusiasm and the participation from the fans for IndyCar's first race since 2015. So now that you've had a chance to look over the numbers, how successful of a weekend was it?

BUD:

Well, thanks, Bruce. And yeah, there were a lot of naysayers and critics about us returning to the mile. after nine years of dormancy at the place and um first of all required a lot of improvements and I gotta thank the state of Wisconsin and governor and Wisconsin Department of Transportation for partnering with us to get the place looking like it's brand new and yeah it took a lot of work from our IndyCar guys and our teams to get it looking new but when people arrived they couldn't believe it first of all the facility itself but then versus you said, how many fans were really going to show up for another Midwest race? We've already got a race in Rhode America, of course, in Indy and Detroit and Iowa and St. Louis and one more Midwest race. And I think those are very good questions. And I had some doubts myself in terms of how successful it might be because of the oversaturation, but I had never expected the crowds to be like they were, uh, far beyond my expectations, probably our team's expectations as well. And I think it was because of the authenticity of the fan in that marketplace.

None:

The real IndyCar fan in that marketplace really came to light.

BUD:

They were wearing, you know, retro Rick Mears shirts. I saw a Gordon Johncock shirt, a Gurney shirt, as well as the new vintages, obviously. And it showed me that we really struck gold here coming back to the mile after being gone nine years.

BRUCE:

And that was the other thing is a lot of people didn't really know what to expect. And I think you were quoted after Sunday's race of saying you had walked in there Saturday morning with a great deal of trepidation. This was one event where a lot of people entering it didn't really have an idea how well it was going to succeed.

BUD:

No, it didn't, because the ticket sales were so late in coming. I mean, the last two weeks of the event, we just saw this amazing spike And the other unknown was the fairgrounds are so unique because you have this Mardi Gras type situation behind the grandstands, all these vendors and all these stores and all these bars that are used for the state fair. And half of them opened up and that was all free. So we didn't know the number of people who would come for that. get a ticket to go inside. That overwhelmed us. We had to take some of the banners off some of the seats we had to make room for those people that wanted to come in. So there were a lot of surprises. As you said, a lot of smiles from myself and my team. come Saturday afternoon, when we started seeing these people filing in. And remember, this is a Labor Day weekend. So there's a lot going on that weekend that a lot of questions were made about coming back there. But I tell you, from a fan perspective, it was great to be there. Enthusiasm was a word that you used, Bruce. And that's a word I saw many of the drivers use, was the passion, the turnout. And then we can talk about, obviously, the on-track action, can't we?

BRUCE:

Oh yeah, it was some spectacular racing. And if anything, since the Iowa race, which was really the first short oval experience with the hybrid assist, the extra 100 pounds of weight that dramatically impacts the way a car races around a short oval, I think we've seen at Gateway, at Worldwide Technology Raceway at Gateway, and also at Milwaukee, the teams have figured that out with some of the best racing that we've seen on short almost, if not this season, but in several seasons.

BUD:

Well, I got to give a round of applause to, to IndyCar, Jay Fry and his team for getting the package right. And then Firestone for having the right tire there as well. Remember we tested there just a couple of months ago and the driver said, this is going to be a parade. but hats off to Firestone for adjusting the tire and for Jay Fry and his team for adjusting the downforce package to make this a really exciting race and it was so exciting that on Saturday there were over 650 passes which was a record for the Speedway and then on Sunday there were 760 passes another record so your head was on a spiral moving around all the time with all the action going on. And of course, a lot of drama as well, obviously for championship, but. Great to see Pato win on Saturday, the fan favorite, of course, and Scotty McLaughlin, of course, on Sunday. But beyond that, the racing was something that people are really going to be excited about coming back next year. And I told Michael Montry and Jamie Kuhl of my Grand Prix team in Detroit, who put the event on, along with Sherry Black, the CEO of Wisconsin State Fairgrounds, and of course, our partner Hy-Vee, which we can't thank enough, You know, next year is going to be a real easy way to sell that place out because we're not on Labor Day. We have one race, one big weekend, and look out for an amazing event.

BRUCE:

The thing about Sunday's race was the weather was perfect. And the race started off with an OMG moment when all of a sudden on the second pace lap, you look up and there's the championship leader stalled on the inside of turn four, unable to get his car started. All of a sudden it looked like this whole championship race was going to be turned upside down.

BUD:

No doubt. Um, I think I think below went behind the wall and was down what 20 laps before he came back out.

BRUCE:

He was down 28 laps when he came back out. And at that point it was just whoever dropped out ahead of him would be the only positions that he could gain really. And the points as they run on the timing and scoring monitor at one point it had willpower as the championship leader, wiping out the entire 54 point deficit or 53 point deficit. And then he was leading by, well, actually went into that race 43 points back. He was up by three, but then there was the second OMG moment when will power spins out on a restart on lap one 31.

BUD:

Yeah. If you couldn't, if you couldn't be interested in that race and be watching and excited, you'd have a pulse. It was a race that had so many ebbs and flows, right? You know, pull out a situation. I'm sure willpower was probably grinning in his tennis and his helmet at that time. But then look what happens later on in a restart for him. And he spends out So just so much going on. And then between those times, the drama of the championship, you had this incredible racing and a lot of action going on. And, and some, also some other people falling out as well that allowed, you know, Alex to pick up probably eight or nine extra points because of the other cars dropping out. So, Hey, it was just an incredible event. The weather was perfect. We're already talking about next year. What support series do we bring there to fill the calendar up on Saturday and Sunday? The race will be on Sunday. It's a one in 250 lap race. So once again, we've already talked about that box. Of course, we'll be telecasting it by then too. So it'll be the second to the last race of the year with Nashville being on Labor Day weekend. All the trepidation is behind us. And now all we gotta do is build on the success of this year's event.

BRUCE:

Do you think the Milwaukee market is a lot of fans who wait until race day before they decide what they're going to do? And a lot of that may have to do with the weather in Milwaukee sometimes can be pretty unpredictable.

BUD:

Well, I think there's two factors. I think you're absolutely right. People do now, no matter if you're in Milwaukee or wherever you are, except for the Indy 500, people wait and they wait and they wait. to see what their plans are, what the weather is going to be. But the other thing about, remember, this weekend was it was Labor Day. And people had maybe plans, maybe not plans. Maybe they canceled their plans. So I think all those ingredients were in play here to why it was such a late-arriving person getting their tickets. But I also would say the strategy that Sherry Black and the Wisconsin State Fair Park Board had about having that area be free to the public allowed people to come down and sample the event outside the track. And then when they heard that noise, they all were intrigued to go inside. So that was an interesting strategy that I think played well into having those grandstands packed. And hey, like I say, we are very satisfied. We have now rebuilt the mile. to the lore that it was years ago when the Gurneys and all the youngsters, Andretti and Parnelli Jones and Jim Clark, so many legends have won that race. And now Pato and Scott have their names for that book.

BRUCE:

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

WILL:

This is Will Power of Team Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Here is the second part of my exclusive interview with Penske Corporation President Bud Denker for Pit Pass Indy. Bobby Rahal, a team owner who, when he was a driver race at the Milwaukee Mile, he used to be sponsored by Miller, Miller Brewing, which is based in Milwaukee. He sent me a text earlier that said we can build something there. And when you start hearing some positivity coming out of the IndyCar paddock, that has to be something that is a welcome sign because there's been a lot of discussion that's gone on in the IndyCar paddock back and forth this season, not all of it positive, but coming out of Milwaukee, it seemed that everybody was like, wow, that was really good.

BUD:

It was. And you go back and you, you got to think the folks that made it possible, you know, they really do. It didn't just happen. that it looked that good. And I was filled up with fans. It was because of Michael Montrey and Jamie Kuhl and our Detroit Grand Prix team and the state park that worked together. We worked on this thing for two years, Bruce, when we first announced this and how are we going to make it successful? How are we going to make it look good? How about all those walls and the fence brand new. It looked such like a brand new old track. And it's not coincidental. We had that success because of the hard work of this great team of mine that I'm so happy for. And now, like I say, we're going to build on it. And the other thing about it, you mentioned Bobby sent you a text. I had more texts from drivers than I ever get about thanking me for having a great event. That usually doesn't happen, to your point. There's always some way to look at something wrong. But this one, they didn't see that. I mean, what driver would not want to race in that racetrack? Talk to Santino Ferruccia. How many passes does he have on Sunday? Over 60? Amazing.

BRUCE:

Do you have any numbers that you can share on both Saturday and Sunday's races?

BUD:

Well, the numbers we'll be getting are forthcoming because we use a cell service that allows us to geofence that area. And Bruce, I'll have those numbers for you. Sorry, I don't have it for your podcast today, but I'll have those numbers for you in the next 48 hours and I'll relay back to you to update your listeners. OK?

BRUCE:

But from what you have seen, what would you say the crowds were for Saturday and Sunday if you were going to place a conservative estimate or just a conservative estimate of what you think the crowd was?

BUD:

I think that we were hoping, you know, to get 15,000 people a day. Well, that was in the bank already on Saturday morning. So I'm going to say we probably got closer to more than 20,000 people a day, which puts us over 50,000 people for the weekend because we had over 10,000 in the area also on Friday. So, hey, if we can get 50,000 for our first event after that many years away, It's interesting, I saw a picture someone sent to me of what the racetrack looked like with fans in 2015, and a side-by-side comparison to what it looked like in 2024. It doesn't look like you're even in the same place. So, hey, very interesting about putting a race on. We didn't have a lot of huge entertainment, as you know. So in that market, what do you need? You need a great race, you need great excitement. authenticity and that authentic fan came back and wanted to see it and they did.

BRUCE:

Do you also think that the Milwaukee fan has been through will they be back, will they not be back, will they be back, will they not be back so long that in a lot of ways you have to sell them that yeah we're interested in making this long term?

BUD:

I think that's part of it and we've told people we're going to be there at least for the next three years that's where our contract is with the state fair park. So they can look forward to that. The other thing about it too is, I think people like that tradition of the track. And how many people did you meet from Indianapolis area in Indiana area in Chicago, met a lot of people that were camping that were from Indiana. So I think folks that had that true Indy car tradition came north and enjoyed it. And maybe they remember the days when it always was after the Indy 500, right? Well, may not be that same date anymore, but it's the same track and we provided more exciting racing than they've probably seen in decades there.

BRUCE:

There are still some fans that wish it was the weekend after the Indianapolis 500. I keep telling them it's not quite as easy as it sounds. For one thing, you've got another big event up the road in Detroit, the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix. That takes an awful lot of time to put on to get the city streets turned into a IndyCar street course. So in your words, how do you describe to the fans why the schedule is set up the way it is?

BUD:

Well, each market is so unique. They really are. And in Detroit, It is that week because of one primary reason. We have it the week after the Indy because kids are still in school in Michigan at that time. If we had it a week later when they're out of school, people vacate the city. They go up north. They go to their lake houses. They go away. What's that problem? The problem is the sponsors, the corporate sponsors, would not be able to fill up their chalets with their customers because their customers are gone because their kids are out of school. It's unique when you talk to people about that.

None:

That is the reason primarily.

BUD:

Remember, we had the Detroit race on Labor Day the first two years. And we could not get people there because the corporate sponsors were dissatisfied because the kids were all up north with their parents. So it's that week, and it has to be that week because of how unique our event is with our corporate partners. And the Milwaukee race, as we saw, is a heck of a draw Labor Day. And I think it'd be an even better draw next year, a week before Labor Day.

BRUCE:

So many of these Ovals were coming at the end of the year to build you a championship crescendo. May not quite be as tight a points race as it could have been going to the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix at Nashville Super Speedway on September 15th, but it still is more of a battle now than it was when the week began. And how important is that to you from the series standpoint?

BUD:

Well, it's very important from many aspects. Number one, you said it's a series. We want to see a battle to the end. And, yeah, Alex has had an amazing year and Chip Ganassi racing an amazing year with their consistency and where they are. And, you know, they are, they are obviously worthy champions and they were last year, of course, too. So, but now that we have a race going international, our final, all eyes are going to be on it to see who can take it out. And you saw what happened to Alex. Who knows what kind of gremlin could happen to his car or Will's car or somebody else's car. You don't know until you show up in that race next Sunday. So it's going to be an exciting weekend. My hat's off to Scott for a shut up. He has got that place almost sold out at the Nashville mile down there. And that's all by the way, with a Titans football game on the same day. So Scott has done an amazing job to fulfill his obligation to make that an amazing event. We're going to have a pit stop competition and downstown downtown on Broadway street. Brantley Gilbert is going to launch his new album debut on Broadway Street that night on Friday night. Scott's got Dautry in concert before the race. Raleigh Green performing after the race. He has got a full lineup there of entertainment beyond just simply racing there to fulfill the calendar. So thank you, Scott. Thank you, Big Machine, for what you've done to make our finale very exciting.

BRUCE:

Not only that, but Scott Borchetta was actively involved in the IndyCar paddock and on pit lane before the race and during the weekend, talking to a lot of people. He even texted me a copy of the banners, the advertising banners and billboards that he's going to put up this week to promote the championship battle between Alex Polo and Will Power. A man who knows how to sell records is showing his expertise now and showing how to sell a race.

BUD:

Yeah, he really hits. I saw the banner. It's like, you think it's a UFC fight, right? Power versus below. It's pretty cool.

None:

And he's a, he's a promoter, man.

BUD:

He is promoter extraordinaire. He's promoted a lot of his acts over the years, decades. He knows how to do it. And he's also very well connected to the Nashville and the Tennessee scene. So we couldn't have a better partner down there and Scott and his team. And, and we are excited to get there. It's going to be an exciting oval race member. We haven't been there in a long time, Bruce. Maybe you know better than I do how long it's been since we've been racing on that track. So not many drivers have been racing there. And like you, like we had in Milwaukee, only five drivers in that grid, meaning 22 other drivers have never raced there before. I bet the same thing is true at Nashville.

BRUCE:

There's only three drivers that have ever driven at Nashville that are still in IndyCar. Scott Dixon, Will Power, and Graham Rahal. For everybody else, it's going to be a new experience.

BUD:

But that is a fast, fast track as well as we all know.

BRUCE:

Yes. And finally, how was Roger Penske's? How did he feel after the race weekend was over? Because I know it was probably a little bit. He was in Austin WEC race. It was a fairly. Tumultuous week in many ways in IndyCar because of the NASCAR schedule came out. There may have been some places some people would have liked to see an IndyCar be at, but IndyCar has got to create its own schedule, make its own plan. How did Mr. Penske react once the race weekend was over?

BUD:

Yeah, well remember this is Roger's idea to go back there. I met with the governor Evers a couple years ago and to get the funding we needed to get the thing properly prepared safety wise and the governor Roger have been great partners and then the state forbear the state board. Obviously it was a good partner as well. So Roger was there Friday. It was there Saturday. Got to see a great race. Got to see qualifying, of course, as well. Really excited. I mean, I don't know how many times he's called myself and Michael and Jamie to say thank you. And of course we say thank you back to him. So, so he was at the WEC race in Austin on Sunday, but right there front and center on, on Friday, Saturday. And yeah, we have things that we're looking at regarding the schedule for the future. Don't rule out some exciting news that we have coming up as well too, Bruce.

BRUCE:

I would definitely say that a lot of us, myself included, and a lot of other people in the paddock probably left Milwaukee a lot more upbeat than when they arrived. So just want to say congratulations for having a great return to the Milwaukee Mile. Good luck at that championship race at Nashville Super Speedway. And thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy. Thanks, Bruce.

BUD:

I appreciate you having me on. And you're right, thumbs up for for Milwaukee, and now we gotta get thumbs up again for Nashville. All the best.

BRUCE:

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

SCOTT:

Hi, I'm Scott McLaughlin, driver of the number three team Penske Chevy, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. And now it's off to the 1.33 mile Nashville Super Speedway for the final race of the season that will decide the 2024 NTT IndyCar Series Championship. It's the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on September 15th. Alex Polow of Chip Ganassi Racing takes a 33 point lead over Will Power of Team Penske and a 50 point lead over Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske. Those are the only three drivers that have a shot at the title with one race remaining. Maximum points in each IndyCar race are 54, so the math favors below. And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy. We want to thank our guest, Penske Corporation President Bud Denker, for joining us on today's podcast. Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help make Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental, your path to victory lane in IndyCar. On the highways, the raceways and every pit stop in between, Penske Truck Rental keeps you moving forward. Gain ground with Penske. For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at X, previously known as Twitter, at BruceMartin, one word, uppercase B, uppercase M, underscore 500. This has been a production of Evergreen Podcast. A special thanks to our production team, executive producers are Bridget Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcast.com. Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.