Drivers Back Milwaukee’s Five-Year Extension

Kyle Kirkwood did not hold back when the subject came up in Friday’s media availability at the Milwaukee Mile. The oldest operating racetrack in the world had just secured its place on the NTT IndyCar Series calendar well into the next decade, and the driver second in the championship ranked the venue above the sport’s crown jewel for sheer history.

Wisconsin State Fair Park CEO Shari Black announced at a media luncheon Thursday that the Milwaukee Mile has secured a five-year extension with INDYCAR. Separately, Snap-on Incorporated confirmed the same day that it will continue as title sponsor of the Snap-on INDYCAR Weekend at the Milwaukee Mile for multiple years, and that it has renewed its multiyear agreement to remain the Official Tools & Equipment Partner of both INDYCAR and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The oval at Wisconsin State Fair Park opened in 1903 and staged its first Indy car race on Aug. 27, 1939. It has hosted 116 Indy car events since, and Saturday and Sunday will make it 117 and 118. For a track that returned to the schedule in 2024 after an eight-season absence, a long-term commitment carries weight.

“Bringing INDYCAR racing back to the legendary Milwaukee Mile in 2024 was a win for Wisconsin and a win for race fans everywhere,” said Black. “We’re extremely grateful for Snap-on’s continued support and its long-term commitment to this event. We look forward to working together to deliver the fastest racing on earth at the world’s most historic track.”

Kirkwood had never turned a lap here before the series came back, and the reputation preceded the reality.

“This is one that we would want to see extended,” he said. “This is one of the most historic races on the calendar, or it is the most historic race on the calendar, even more so than the 500 with the history around this place.”

“Ever since we’ve come back three years ago, I think it was, when we came back here, and we all fell in love with it,” Kirkwood said. “It was the first time I got to drive it. Some other drivers got to drive around it before, and they were all telling me how great it was going to be. And it lived up to those expectations.”

He also made the commercial case. “I’m glad to see it’s back on for five more years because this is a huge market for us too, right?” Kirkwood said. “Any time you look at the TV numbers, Milwaukee is always one of those that’s pretty high up there.”

Christian Lundgaard’s endorsement was shorter and no less enthusiastic. “It’s awesome,” the Arrow McLaren driver said. “I love Milwaukee.” He went on to describe what the flat mile does to a driver over a green-flag run: “it’s fun for us to be feeling like death and two laps later feeling like a hero. It’s pretty cool, but I just think it creates better racing.”

Points leader Alex Palou, who was beaten here a year ago and knows it, pointed at the pavement itself. “I think it’s a great track for us. I think the fans have been really good with us,” Palou said. “The track itself, just because of how it’s shaped and the tarmac, it creates good racing.”

Enthusiastic drivers benefit from an enthusiastic sponsor, and Snap-on’s involvement runs deeper than a name on a race. The company was founded in Milwaukee in 1920, is headquartered in Kenosha and operates 15 manufacturing plants across the United States, two of them in southeastern Wisconsin.

“Snap-on has been dedicated to celebrating the pride and dignity of Makers and Fixers performing critical work for over a century, and Milwaukee is a wellspring of the energy that has driven our enterprise from the very beginning,” said Nick Pinchuk, Snap-on chairman and chief executive officer. “Extending our partnership with the Milwaukee Mile, INDYCAR and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway reflects our deep respect for the skilled professionals of motorsports who make spectacular race days possible.”

Mark Miles, chief executive officer of IndyCar and Penske Entertainment, framed the renewal around the same idea. “Our partnership with Snap-on reflects a shared commitment to the people, skills and technical excellence that drive INDYCAR,” Miles said. “This extension demonstrates the strength of our extensive relationship across INDYCAR, IMS and the Milwaukee Mile.”

That theme carries through both races. Saturday’s Snap-on Makers and Fixers 250 will recognize technical education partners, students and instructors working against the country’s skilled-trades shortage. Sunday’s Snap-on Milwaukee Mile 250 will honor the Factory 15, a group of associates representing the workers who build the company’s tools. The winning pit crews from each race will receive the Snap-on Makers and Fixers Award, an honor that also goes to the crew that wins the Indianapolis 500. Fans will find the Snap-on Experience, with tool demonstrations and a truck parade, in the Free Fan Zone.

The contract language is a matter for the people who signed it. What the drivers were asked about Friday was the racing, and Marcus Ericsson — who has spent this season rebuilding his short-oval form at Andretti Global — reached for a comparison the series can no longer make.

“This track is one of the most fun tracks in the calendar,” Ericsson said. “I think it races, it’s fantastic. And the fact that we have a doubleheader is really exciting.”

“It reminds me a lot of old Iowa, where there were huge tire deltas and multiple lanes,” he said. “I think that’s the best kind of short oval racing we have in IndyCar.”

With Milwaukee’s immediate future set, IndyCar reinforces its commitment to oval racing — the discipline that separates it from other top-level single-seater series around the world. Whether or not ovals like Iowa Speedway return, or other tracks like Richmond Raceway come onto the schedule, they’ll be built on the history and legacy of tracks like Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Milwaukee Mile, cornerstones of IndyCar’s past and future.