CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Snap-on Milwaukee Mile 250
1.015-mile Milwaukee Mile short oval
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Race Report
August 24
WEST ALLIS, Wisconsin – Christian Rasmussen, the driver of the No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Splenda Stevia Chevrolet, got his maiden NTT INDYCAR SERIES win on the iconic Milwaukee Mile, leading a dominant Team Chevy performance with Chevrolet-powered cars taking seven of the top eight spots in the exciting race.
Despite the Bowtie-branded dominance, the 250-lap Snap-on Milwaukee Mile 250 was anything but straightforward for the 25-year-old Danish driver. A penalty for speeding on pit road during a Lap 103 pit stop saw the sophomore driver drop from the top ten to 16th. The champion of the three INDYCAR feeder series methodically moved forward and was in seventh place when the caution came out on Lap 209 for a light sprinkle. His Ed Carpenter Racing strategist, Brent “Woody” Harvey, made the call to pit for four fresh Firestone Firehawk race tires, returning to the track in the same spot, behind three drivers that didn’t pit and three who also took on fresh rubber.
Rassmussen, who, along with Scott Dixon, led all drivers with 48 passes, made four passes in the first five laps under green to move into the final podium spot. Three laps later, he dispatched of 2024 Milwaukee Mile winner Scott McLaughlin, taking only five laps to catch and pass championship leader Álex Palou, who led 199 laps and looked to be cruising to his ninth win of the year.
McLaughlin, in the No. 3 Sonsio Vehicle Protection Team Penske Chevrolet, came home third, with Rasmussen’s teammate Alexander Rossi in the No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Java House Chevrolet, Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, Christian Lundgaard in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, Josef Newgarden in the No. 2 Snap-On Team Penske Chevrolet and David Malukas in the No. 4 A.J. Foyt Racing Clarience Technologies Chevrolet, also finishing in the top eight.
“Congratulations to Christian Rasmussen on an exciting maiden NTT INDYCAR SERIES win”, said Andrew Schutter, GM Motorsports INDYCAR Program Manager. “Winning on the iconic Milwaukee Mile with one of our original partners, Ed Carpenter Racing, is satisfying for our entire group of hardworking teammates. Team Chevy’s strong finish today included seven of the top eight drivers. We’ve won four of the last six races and hope to end the season with one more trip to victory lane next weekend at Nashville Superspeedway.”
Of note for Team Chevy
Rasmussen’s win is the fourth of the season for Team Chevy and the manufacturer’s 126th win since the introduction of the twin-turbo 2.2L V6 engine formula in 2012.
The win is the ninth for Ed Carpenter Racing as a member of Team Chevy, with the last win coming on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in 2021.
Rasmussen has scored the third most points in the first five oval events of the year after finishing sixth (Indianapolis), third (Gateway), sixth (Iowa #1), eighth (Iowa #2) and first (Milwaukee).
McLaughlin’s third-place finish matches his best finish of the year at Barber Motorsports Park, and is his second on the 1.015-mile Milwaukee Mile short oval.
O’Ward’s fourth-place finish is his tenth top ten of the season and guarantees a second-place championship finish, a best for the Mexican driver and team best for Arrow McLaren.
Rossi collected his second straight fifth-place finish, the first double top five for Ed Carpenter Racing since a one-two finish in Toronto by Josef Newgarden and Luca Filippi, when the team was known as Carpenter Fisher Hartman Racing.
Lundgaard’s oval resume continues to improve with a third top-seven finish, allowing the Arrow McLaren driver to move within seven points of Scott Dixon for third in the championship.
After starting on the outside of the front row and leading for 25 laps early, Malukas lost a lap after an equipment failure during his second pit stop, dropping him to 19th. Setting the quickest lap of the race at 157.531mph helped him recover to finish on the lead lap in eighth place.
Robert Shwartzman in the No. 83 PREMA Racing Chevrolet had another solid oval outing, finishing only a lap down in 18th, but will need a little better outing at Nashville Superspeedway to catch Louis Foster, who he now trails by eight points in the battle for Rookie of the Year.
The final NTT INDYCAR SERIES race of the season takes place at the 1.33-mile Nashville Superspeedway tri-oval next weekend. The Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix will air on FOX at 2 pm (ET).
Snap-on Milwaukee Mile 250 results:
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:
Christian Rasmussen, No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Splenda Stevia Chevrolet won:
“It feels amazing. You know, I think it’s just a testament on where this team is going. There’s so much work that’s going into this, all of this year with, with rebuilding ECR as a great race team. I think this is a great way to, to end the season. .We have one more, but, I mean, hopefully, we can do the same.
” I thought that was the exact, right choice to come in and get tires. I even said it on the radio before. It was kind of through code but, but that was kind of what I meant.
So it was the right choice. We even talked about it before the race that if there’s a late caution, we need to go on new tires because it’s such such an advantage. So, yeah. Good day at the office!”
“Our ovals have been pretty good this year! So if it doesn’t last, I don’t know! Today was amazing. We were talking about, before the race that if there’s a late caution, then we want to go on new tires because it’s just such an advantage. So there was more people that did it than I thought there would at the last stint, but it was definitely the right choice. I mean, we had a huge we were so good on new tires even compared to other cars on new tires. So, wow, that’s, that’s a good day.”
Ed Carpenter, team owner Ed Carpenter Racing:
“Christian, I mean, he’s, he’s the best there is right now in in short ovals. He’s shown it all season long. So, really, that late yellow played to played to his hand, and he did a amazing job taking advantage of his new tires. His new tires and Chevy Power, feels so good. It’s been a while since we’ve won a race. So happy to be here and really a great team weekend. Alex in P4, a team effort! Christian. Christian didn’t start practice one great, but the whole group worked together well to to get things on track, so a big, big team effort.”
Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Sonsio Vechicle Protection Team Penske Chevrolet finished 3rd:
“ I knew he’s coming on new tires. It was on what, 30 or 40 laps older, but helava job by him. And I heard he put on a really good show. I was trying to watch the big screen, to be honest. So it was actually very interesting race. We didn’t quite have the car today in the SONSIO Vehicle Protection Chevy, but, we had a hell of a lot of fans out here today, and that that’s a great thing for INDYCAR and a lot of momentum right now.
“Great to get a podium and, you know, we’re here for wins, but the podium is awesome. I’m so proud to be back here. We’re having a really good end to the year. That’s exactly what we need for next year.”
Alexander Rossi, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Java House Chevrolet finished 4th:
“I wasn’t able to be as efficient, as Christian through the traffic on the restart there, but we still jumped the the McLaren cars, so just an amazing day for Ed Carpenter Racing. And, to have to Christian get his first career win is a moment he’ll never forget. He’s been amazing on the ovals this year. Huge credit to the whole organization. It’s been a long time, that they’ve been without a race win. So, it’s pretty cool to be a part of it.”
Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished 5th:
“Fifth today here in Milwaukee but the highlight of the day was that we secured second place in the championship. We’re locked in, and it’s the best championship result we’ve ever had up to date for myself and the team. I can’t wait for Nashville next week. We’re going to try to leave with a win, and we were quite close to that last year.”
Christian Lundgaard, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished 6th:
“Very good race here in Milwaukee. I was really excited coming into this weekend. Last year I didn’t have a particularly fun experience, so it’s great leaving this weekend with pretty much by far the best oval race I’ve raced. The team did a great job, and it gives us momentum to carry into Nashville to see if we clinch third in the championship. That’s the ultimate goal, so we’ve got to crack on. Right now, we’re just proud of what we did this weekend.”
Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Snap-On Team Penske Chevrolet finished 7th:
“Just an unfortunate situation there at the end with a very difficult decision on whether to pit. We made the Snap-on Chevy much better throughout the day. The car really came to life after the second pit stop to where I could run the bottom like I wanted. Made up a ton of track position during that stint. Then rain drops out of nowhere. If we pit there, we likely come out in the back half of the top 10. That’s a lot of track position to make back up over a short stint. Congrats to Christian though. He was able to make it work.”
David Malukas, No. 4 A.J. Foyt Racing Clarience Technologies Chevrolet finished 8th:
“Well, I’m not going to lie. We needed a few more yellows after our pit incident, and maybe we actually could have been fighting for the win again. The car was just so fast. The guys built an incredible car underneath me. I mean, it was just me and Palou really out there when I think of pace wise.
“We were just on another level – just a big shout out to all these guys. And, obviously, James (Schnabel), not going to be here for the race, but he did an incredible job getting the setup where it needed to be before he had to go for baby duties. (First child for James and Mariel). But overall, a lot to be proud of. Right? It’s been another weekend of almost, but, you know, we keep building.
“This team, we’re going to keep striving. We have one more chance to do it. We’re all going to put our 110% effort right at the end, and, we’re going to get something. We’re going to get a sticker. We’re going to get a podium. We’re going to get something. I know it.”
Conor Daly, No. 76 Juncos Holliger Racing Chevrolet finished 13th:
“We wrapped up Milwaukee here. Obviously, a really fun start. Got a lot of positions at the start. But, yeah, just a lot to look at for us as a team. Some difficult, cycles in and out of the other pits. And you know what? Some of that’s, we are just going to figure a few things out. And there were a lot of weird things that were going on, with the car that just good to analyze. So, I appreciate what the team has done for me. It was definitely a disappointment for us. We obviously were aiming high here, but, you know, appreciate everyone’s work to, to get us to this point. We’ve got one more to hopefully finish it off strong.”
Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing Phoenix Investors Chevrolet finished 14th:
“Very up and down day. Race car was really quick. Just, you know, kind of unlucky with some of the cautions and, we ended up going a lap down, ended up making it back up, almost going a lap down again, making it back up. So, yeah, bit of a bit of a yo-yo. So all-in-all, happy to complete all 250 laps, you know, and have a good
“Awesome pit stops. I mean, the fact that we made up spots and every stop was pretty cool. So, passed a bunch of people and, yeah, guys did a great job.”
Robert Shwartzman, No. 83 PREMA Racing Chevrolet finished 18th:
“We did what we could here in Milwaukee. We got affected twice by the yellow flags coming out. I tried to squeeze everything out of what I could with the car; I think balance-wise we managed to put it in a decent window, we just didn’t have enough grip. We just lacked a bit of pace, but we did nice overtaking, some nice restarts and had some nice battles. Overall, the guys did good, consistent pitstops. My target was also to get some points in the Rookie of the Year battle. Unfortunately, because of the last yellow, I didn’t manage to have the opportunity to battle with Louis Foster but we still have one more race to go in Nashville. We are close in points, so we’ll have to do our best there and see how it plays out.”
Sting Ray Robb, No. 77 Juncos Holliger Racing Chevrolet finished 23rd:
“Two-day show in Milwaukee has wrapped up. Qualifying went pretty well. I actually think that we were okay. Room to improve, but practice two got my hopes up. I knew we had a great race car coming to the race today. Unfortunately, I made the team work a lot harder for it. Yesterday, final laps, putting it in the wall. Team got back together in no time, went out for the race start today and fought first half of the race really, really hard. But tough day. Overall, I think the result is just not not what we were looking for. And, I think that we have a lot to learn.
“Congratulations, Team Chevy. Christian Rasmussen, we were teammates back in 2022. Cool to see you get your first win here in INDYCAR. Hopefully, I’m not too far We’re on to Nashville. Last race of the year. I’m hoping we’ve got a great car there. I know this team has worked hard all season long. If you give us a great package, then I know it’ll be good for Nashville.”
Callum Ilott, No, 90 PREMA Racing Chevrolet finished 25th:
“We got put to the back by Race Control at the start due to a miscalculation with the GPS, which wasn’t an ideal start to our
NTT INDYCAR SERIES News Conference
Sunday, August 24, 2025
Christian Rasmussen
Ed Carpenter
Press Conference
THE MODERATOR: We are joined with the champion driver, Christian Rasmussen. First career win. For ECR, Ed Carpenter, first win since Rinus VeeKay on the IMS road course in 2021.
Christian, long time coming. Congratulations.
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: Thank you. Yeah, amazing. Great job by the team this weekend. We started pretty rough, like we were really struggling in practice one. Got it turned around for qualifying. Qualified better than I thought we would, to be honest, which was really good.
The race went our way. We did what we do best on ovals: running whatever line the car in front is not (smiling). Again, we were amazing in traffic, which that’s what made the main difference today again I think. Then with a good call there at the end going onto the new tires, having something to fight with.
Yeah, pretty cool getting my first win here. Good Sunday.
THE MODERATOR: You’re part of the 302 drivers to win a race in INDYCAR. This is pretty cool, right? How big is this for you, your career, trajectory in INDYCAR?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: Yeah, it’s going the right direction. I think massive step up from last year. Even through this year, we’re just getting better and better.
It’s also not only a testament to my improvement, I think it’s also where this team is going. There’s so much talk about our team with Heartland Food Group, Splenda and Java House coming in, giving us some opportunities we haven’t really had before.
It’s good to have that opportunity. It’s really what you do with it. I think that’s starting to show. It makes me very excited to see where this team’s going in the future, next year, yeah, to see what we can do.
THE MODERATOR: Ed, congratulations. This team is on the rise right now. Definitely some momentum with this team.
ED CARPENTER: Yeah, definitely. I think we’ve been feeling it build all season. We haven’t been as consistent as we want to be at times. A lot of weekends Christian will have a good day, Alex will have a bad day, or vice versa. So today especially, really this weekend, was the best group effort we’ve had all year.
Like Christian mentioned, a little bit of a rough start for him in practice one. The plan for the whole team kind of came together as the weekend went on. To me it was a really big group effort with kind of how we unloaded relative to where we were last year, what we want to do try coming here. It really worked out well.
You got to keep pushing. I think the championship was over with Alex the previous race. For us, there was a lot left to prove. Today is great, but we still have one left to go. We hope to do this again.
THE MODERATOR: Pretty special for Direct Supply, too?
ED CARPENTER: Yeah, obviously Direct Supply has been with the team all the way from the beginning. Having great support all year long, but especially here and Road America. First race win for them here. It was great to have Bob, Jenny, their whole crew here.
THE MODERATOR: Open it up for questions.
Q. Christian, five seconds of rain created the opportunity for you to come down pit lane, put on fresh rubber. At that point did you really think that you got them right where you wanted them?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: Yeah. We talked about this before the race, knowing if there’s going to be a late yellow, we set kind of the margin if you can have a 20-lap advantage on the other cars, that’s going to make a big difference. That’s what we did. We went to the new tires.
I’ve been very comfortable on especially the new tires even passing other cars. We were doing that pretty well early in the stints. Yeah, I was feeling good. Where did we restart?
ED CARPENTER: Fifth and seventh.
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: It was cool.
Q. Ed, Scott McLaughlin and Alex Palou both said what they really like about what you’ve done in racing is you always have a commitment to young drivers. You helped develop Josef Newgarden, Rinus VeeKay, now Christian.
ED CARPENTER: Just need to keep Christian home will be the key moving forward.
Q. Your commitment to young talent, to see them become great INDYCAR drivers, how satisfying is that?
ED CARPENTER: I mean, winning is fun. Christian impressed us a ton before he ever got in one of our cars, the way he finished off the INDY NXT championship that he won. The back half of that season, it was a tight battle, but he really took control of it at the end. That level of intensity, dedication and improvement that he showed from his two years in that championship is really what stood out to me.
Then we put him in a car at Barber against Oliver Askew. A bit of a showdown. He rose to that challenge, as well. When you put a car in front of him, especially when he’s got a tire advantage, it’s a scary thing.
People talk about they don’t like everything he does. We haven’t asked him to change one thing. He’s attacking and being aggressive, not settling for anything. That’s the mentality we want to have as a team.
Really proud of the effort and he way he finished today.
Q. When you get to second place, you see Alex in front of you, how difficult is it to remember you have time to get to him, not just try to rush through immediately?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: I’ve been racing for (indiscernible). I know you don’t put it all in one lap. Yeah, just seeing the gap get smaller and smaller, I kind of kept doing my thing.
I didn’t really now he know how it was going go to whenever I got up to him. The tire deg was obviously huge here this weekend. I knew I had a tire advantage on him, but kind of once the peak of your tire goes off, it gets you down into a level where it can be kind of tough to overtake. I didn’t know how it was going to go.
I knew I was going to go for it (smiling), try to get my first win. (Indiscernible) but got it done into turn one. From there, it’s still not won at that point. There was still more laps to go. We all know how well he saves his tires. You don’t know how that tire advantage might go away or whatever.
I wanted a couple of cars in between us to feel like I was safe, so that’s what I did. Once I had a two-car gap in between us, I thought that we can calm down here and just ride it to the finish.
Q. Through your time on the Road to Indy, you had post-race festivities, USF-2000… What was it like experiencing that in INDYCAR?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: I missed it. I kept thinking about the first year (indiscernible). Felt like we had a good opportunity to do that in St. Louis. The race was just too short for us. Getting my first win for the team in a long time, as well, being the driver to do that is a privilege.
Q. Ed, with Christian winning today and Alex finishing fifth, how much does this validate the investment put into the team?
ED CARPENTER: Yeah, I mean, obviously it validates that. You want to win for your partners, no doubt. But for me, it validates that and the dedication that people are putting in to improve in this season.
So finishing the season, we’re also working on next year, what you need to do to take bigger steps in the off-season, while at the same time executing.
Really proud of the whole group and the energy that’s going into getting us back to this point. Now we just got to keep fighting to not have such a gap between wins.
Q. I think Homestead ’99 was the last time I saw a driver on an oval turn right as much as you did today. It was Juan Montoya doing that.
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: That was a handful.
Q. You’re out there playing at a level that a lot of drivers couldn’t hold on to what you held on to.
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: Yeah, it was interesting. We started (indiscernible), took a little bit of wing out. Tried to do stuff, use my tools. Then I feel like I would pick up a little bit too much understeer in the mid corner. The steering input from the mid corner would make it snap on exit.
Just got to a point where it was always going to snap on exit. I don’t know (indiscernible). I don’t think I was the only one. I think there was a lot of cars struggling (indiscernible).
Q. Your new teammate Alexander Rossi came rushing to you to congratulate. You credit Alex in the short time you’ve been together as being a positive influence on you and your development and growth. Tell us about his influence on you.
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: Yeah, 100%. I think not only for me, but for the whole team, Alex has been a massive, massive help.
I think for me, having like a real veteran driver that has been around, he’s been with all the top teams, obviously has been around INDYCAR, top level of open-wheel for a very long time. Kind of seeing up close how he operates is quite different from what I’ve been used to coming through the ranks and whatnot.
Having him as kind of a mentor, also trusting whenever he says something to me that it’s the right thing. You also don’t always have that.
I think me and Alex both on the racetrack and off the racetrack, we get along super well. Kind of similar personalities in a way. We keep a little bit to ourselves. I don’t know. I really enjoy the relationship. Yeah, we’ll continue to grow together I think.
Q. Ed, you’ve been here for a number of Milwaukee races. Speak about the crowd turnout today, the cheers for you and your donuts in the front straight.
ED CARPENTER: I was on Alex’s radio calling his race, obviously watching Christian as well. I could hear the cheer when he passed Alex like under green even before the donuts.
Yeah, we’d returned to this track a couple times since I’ve been doing this. But it seems like it’s finally working. The combination and the growth and the strength of here and also Road America, we’ve got a strong fan base here. We need to keep building on it.
I’m super proud of the crowd today. I’d love to see when we come back next year that we don’t have to have the sponsor covers on the stands coming down into turn one. Want to keep pushing that and getting it better and better. It’s a great racetrack, a ton of history. The past two years it’s been a great show. So I’m happy is working.
Q. (Question about popularity in Denmark. )
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: I doubt it (smiling). I doubt it. I don’t know.
(Indiscernible) Copenhagen. Biggest following is in the U.S. I’ve been in the U.S. for a long time (indiscernible). Success has been stateside. It’s understandable that I don’t have a big (indiscernible). I don’t know, it doesn’t bother me.
Q. Are you surprised if people will give you a welcome?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: (Indiscernible).
Q. Ed, you mentioned your last success at ’21. How difficult is it you to keep the motivation up with a long waiting time?
ED CARPENTER: That part’s not hard. It gets frustrating at times when you’re not performing the way you want to, me personally as a driver or as team owner.
The motivation to get back here has never wavered. I try to appreciate this as much as I can as a team. This sport, especially in this era right now, the dominance we’re seeing out of one driver and one team, that’s what makes this one the most special to me, watching Christian beat the best in the business right now. When you can go head-to-head and beat Alex, makes it’s that much sweeter.
Like I said earlier, the expectation is to win races, to be fighting for a championship. A lot more work to do to be where we ultimately want to be at.
Q. Ed, if we roll the clock back a year, you made the decision to step out of seat to allow Christian to race. How gratifying is it to see that pay off? Christian, how rewarding is it to give this to Ed one year on?
ED CARPENTER: I mean, I think I was surprised as other people that I made the decision when I did. I just felt like it was the right thing to do, the best thing for the team, needed to give him an opportunity to continue to grow.
Even though it took him from that point to win a race, I think I felt even more convicted in the decision (indiscernible) the job that he did, getting the car in a tough situation. Had an accident in practice here. Didn’t qualify great. I was confident with the decision back then. This obviously reaffirms that.
Q. Christian, to reward Ed with a win?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: Yeah, it’s great. I’ve had a lot of success on the ovals, also INDY NXT, the smaller categories.
Yeah, first of all getting the opportunity to do it in the last year, like Ed said, it was a tough situation coming in. It was one of the few cars that hadn’t tested here, one of the few drivers that hadn’t tested here. It was a tough situation.
But we had three good races towards the end of the year. It was good for me just to have something to kind of go into the off-season with, see what did we do well, what did we not do so well, just so we have something to work on.
It’s paid off (indiscernible). We’ve had a really good run. Hopefully we can continue that into Nashville.
Q. Christian, certainly we saw the aggressiveness today. Ed joked about not every trying to (indiscernible) you back at all. How would you describe yourself as a race car driver, but also your personality?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: I think my… I don’t know. I’m aggressive on track. I feel like I learned a lot of lessons last year of how people drive in the series. I’ve kind of taken that and kind of replicated that.
I think I’m on the aggressive side, but I also don’t think I’m (indiscernible). Feel like we had last year to kind of tone that or kind of get it into the right spot. I feel like we’re doing really well with it this year.
We’ve finished every race this year. (Indiscernible) that I did. We had an engine failure, which was unfortunate, we had a fuel issue. Other than that, we finished every race.
(Indiscernible) I don’t really care.
Q. Do you have full confidence in every move that you made at the end or were there any moves that you made that you thought was going to work, but it might not?
CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN: I have full confidence. It was no different. I think the most interesting one, like I said earlier in this press conference, I think the one with Alex at the very end, most of your tire advantage has gone away. I didn’t know how it was going to go, if I had enough to get past him.
I knew I would have enough to run the top. But if I would have enough grip to actually get past him, I didn’t know. Obviously we did. But I was confident in what I was doing, nothing (indiscernible).
Q. Ed, Christian wasn’t the only one on fresh tires. What was he able to do, what does he do, that allowed him to win this race that others couldn’t do or didn’t do?
ED CARPENTER: I think he showed on ovals especially, but everywhere really all year, he’s pretty relentless when he’s feeling it and is confident in the car. So I think he wanted it more today than anyone else. That’s what it looked like to me.
Scott McLaughlin
Press Conference
THE MODERATOR: Currently joined by the third-place finishing driver, Scott McLaughlin, last year’s winner here, back on the podium.
THE MODERATOR: Scott, another podium here at the Milwaukee Mile. Your thoughts on coming home third today?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, a second-place that turned into a third-place car. We didn’t quite have the speed for Alex. Right behind him, I felt okay, could keep his pace. Once we had traffic, he was a little stronger than I was in getting through.
I mean, that was probably Alex’s race. (Indiscernible) let that happen. Massive congrats to Christian. As Alex said, he’s been super quick on ovals, super brave. He’s doing an awesome job with that car.
He has a great teammate in Alex. Yeah, just cool to see someone get their first race win. I know how that feels. Alex knows how that feels. It’s a special moment.
Yeah, proud for my team. Nice to get some momentum back. A couple of top 10s, now a podium. Not exactly what we want, but it’s a start.
THE MODERATOR: We’ll open it up for questions.
Q. Go through the decision not to pit when the rain hit.
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: It’s tough when you’re at the front. Classic sort of NASCAR as well, you have, like, the bottom eight, sorry, everyone eighth back pit, they’ve got new tires. It’s a tough decision for anyone to give up that track position. Ultimately that’s what we both did. For me, it was a net loss of one. Same as Alex.
It’s just how the cards fell. I mean, we both probably finish first and second today, but it’s the gods, the INDYCAR gods, so…
Q. Scott, the reason for the last caution, there was some very light drops on the camera lens. Did you feel it on the track?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Saw it on my windshield. I called it. That’s a bad situation for anyone on an oval, very dangerous. Regardless if it was going to be good or bad for myself, whatever, you just want it to be safe for everyone. There’s a lot of people talking about it, so…
Q. YOU have raced against Christian. A very fast, aggressive young driver. What are your thoughts on what it’s like racing with him?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: That’s how he races. You got to respect it. I think he’s very fast. He’s very brave. He makes some really nice split-second decisions.
As we’ve seen, it’s bit him in the backside a couple of times as well. He’s learning. He’s getting better. I don’t know. I’ve said for a long time, he’s going to win a race at some point. He’s been really strong. He’s not scared of taking the chance.
Q. Even though he’s not that old, Ed Carpenter is a bit of an old warrior. He brought in a partner, looks like ECR has elevated its game to a high level. To see Ed Carpenter win a race again, that’s got to be a pretty good day?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, (indiscernible) last time they won, were in Victory Lane (indiscernible).
I think one thing that’s really cool about Ed, we both appreciate this, is his want to give people a shot. He gave Christian a shot. He’s being rewarded. I think Christian is being rewarded, too. That’s a lot to do with his confidence in the talent, his confidence in wanting to make the series bigger and brighter in the future.
Q. Certainly the last 30 laps were pretty nuts. Maybe overall this race, not quite as much activity as last year. Was that year of experience for guys? Was it Alex being Alex? What was the difference year one to two?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I don’t know. I think as everyone gets an understanding of the race car, they get better, and the field gets closer, the way the races play out sometimes. Last year we had two different strategies going on. Basically half the fields with Rasmussen’s, being able to pass on newer tires.
I don’t know. I thought it was a fun race. To be honest, I thought it was a fun race. It’s just the field’s very competitive.
Q. Big crowd today. We were hoping it was going to be strong. Reactions of what it looked like, the turnout here.
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I think Wisconsin is always massive supporters of the sport, as we see at Road America.
For me, personally I had a bunch of my family here, in the stands, hanging out. Not far from the city. The fairgrounds at the back (indiscernible).
Massive credit goes out to Wisconsin State Field Park. I think this is their first time doing it, which it’s pretty cool. I think Roger and Penske did it last year. I was really happy to have a big crowd today seeing them in the grandstands. It was awesome.
THE MODERATOR: Wisconsin State Fair Park took over.
Q. When you saw how many drivers came down to get fresh tires, do you feel like you were a sitting duck? Did you feel somebody on fresh tires is going to end up winning the race? It looked spectacular watching Christian do what he did. Did you think it was going to take a spectacular run to beat you once you saw how fresh tires were working?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Personally, I agree. My whole objective was to put as many cars as I could between me and the 5 car. I got between eight on the restart, which was all I could do at that point. I was kind of stuck behind the 83. Until Christian came, he was the only person.
Really it’s full credit to him because he really made that happen. The strategy was the strategy. I think anyone else driving that car… He had the confidence to rip around the corner, rip around the outside of people, do his stuff. Yeah, full credit goes to him.
THE MODERATOR: Congratulations on another podium. See you in a couple days at Nashville Superspeedway.
Chevrolet wins at the Milwaukee Mile: 12
2025 – Christian Rasmussen – Ed Carpenter Racing
2024 Race #2 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske
2024 Race #1 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren
2015 – Sebastien Bourdais – KV Racing Technology
2014 – Will Power – Team Penske
2013 – Ryan Hunter-Reay – Andretti Global
2012 – Ryan Hunter-Reay – Andretti Global
1991 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing
1990 – Al Unser Jr. – Galles Racing
1989 – Rick Mears – Team Penske
1988 – Rick Mears – Team Penske
1981 Race #1 – Mike Mosley – All-American Racers
Chevrolet poles at the Milwaukee Mile: 9
2024 Race #2 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske
2024 Race #1 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske
2015 – Josef Newgarden – Ed Carpenter Racing
2014 – Will Power – Team Penske
2013 – Marco Andretti – Andretti Global
1992 – Bob Rahal – Rahal Hogan Racing
1991 – Rick Mears – Team Penske
1990 – Rick Mears – Team Penske
1989 – Rick Mears – Team Penske
Chevrolet podiums at the Milwaukee Mile: 34
Chevrolet podiums at the Milwaukee Mile by driver: Emerson Fittipaldi (3), Rick Mears (3), Will Power (3), Michael Andretti (2), Helio Castroneves (2), Ryan Hunter-Reay (2), Tony Kanaan (2), Scott McLaughlin (2), John Andretti (1), Mario Andretti (1), Sebastien Bourdais (1), Scott Brayton (1) Conor Daly (1), James Hinchcliffe (1), Juan Montoya (1), Mike Mosley (1), Pato O’Ward (1), Bob Rahal (1), Christian Rasmussen (1), Eddie Sachs (1), Tomas Scheckter (1), Danny Sullivan (1), Al Unser Jr. (1)
Chevrolet podiums at the Milwaukee Mile by team: Team Penske (14), Andretti Global (3), Newman Haas Racing (3), Arrow McLaren (2), KV Racing Technology (2), All-American Racers (1), Chip Ganassi Racing (1), Dick Simon Racing (1), Galles Racing (1), Hall-VDS Racing (1), Juncos Hollinger Racing (1), Panther Racing (1), Patrick Racing (1), Rahal Hogan Racing (1), and Walter Meskowski (1).
Chevrolet laps led at the Milwaukee Mile: 2266
Chevrolet laps led at the Milwaukee Mile by driver: Michael Andretti (229), Scott McLaughlin (165), Al Unser Jr. (156), Ryan Hunter-Reay (149), Pato O’Ward (133), Sebastien Bourdais (118), Josef Newgarden (113), Mario Andretti (93), Emerson Fittipaldi (69), Marco Andretti (61), Paul Tracy (55), Helio Castroneves (50), Alexander Rossi (46), Mike Mosley (45), Don Davis (39), EJ Viso (37), David Malukas (25), Bob Rahal (20), Christian Rasmussen (16), Tony Kanaan (17), Santino Ferrucci (6), Scott Dixon (5), Scott Goodyear (4), Juan Montoya (4), Ed Carpenter (3), Danny Sullivan (2), Gary Bettenhausen (1), Mike Groff (1), James Hinchcliffe (1)
Chevrolet laps led at the Milwaukee Mile by team: Team Penske (965), Newman Haas Racing (322), Andretti Global (221), Arrow McLaren (179), KV Racing Technology (145), Ed Carpenter Racing (128), Galles Racing (74), Patrick Racing (69), All-American Racers (45), Racing Associates (39), A.J. Foyt Racing (31), Chip Ganassi Racing (22), Rahal Hogan Racing (21), Walker Racing (4), Grant King Racers (1)
Manufacturer History at the Milwaukee Mile
Wins (with competition):
49- Offenhauser (1976 #1, 1975 #2, 1974 #2, 1974 #1, 1973 #2, 1973 #1, 1972 #2, 1972 #1, 1971 #2, 1969 #1, 1968 #2, 1968 #1, 1965 # 3, 1964 #1, 1963 #1, 1962 #2, 1962 #1, 1961 #2, 1961 #1, 1961 #2, 1961 #1, 1960 #2, 1960 #1, 959 #2, 1959 #1, 1958 #2, 1958 #1, 1957 #2, 1957 #1, 1956 #2, 1956 #1, 1955 #2, !955 #1, 1954 #2, 1954 #1, 1953 #2, 1953 #2, 1952 #2, 1952 #1, 1951 #2, 1951 #1, 1950 #2, 1950 #1, 1949 #2, 1949 #1, 1948 #3, 1948 #2, 1948 #1, 1947 #3, 1939)
17 – Cosworth (1987, 1986, 1985, 1984, 1983, 1982 #2, 1982 #1, 1981 #2, 1980 #2, 1980 #1, 1979 #2, 1979 #1, 1978 #2, 1978 #1, 1978 #2, 1978 #1, 1977 #2, 1977 #1, 1976 #2)
17 – Ford (2001, 1996, 1995, 1993, 1992, 1971 #1, 1970 #2, 1970 #1, 1969 #2, 1967 #2, 1967 #1, 1966 #2, 1966 #1, 1965 #2, 1965 #1, 1963 #2)
12 – Chevrolet (2025, 2024 #2, 2024 #1, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 1991, 1990, 1989, 1988, 1981 #1)
4 – Honda (2004 IRL, 2002, 1999, 1998)
2 – Toyota (2005 IRL)
2 – Winfield (1946, 1941)
1 – Foyt (1975 #1)
1 – Ilmor (1994)
1 – Lencki (1947 #2)
1 – Mercedes (1997)
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