This weekend saw Indycar return to the oldest racing circuit in the world which has been in consistent use since it’s inception. The Milwaukee Mile is legendary amongst the ovals of the USA and was the place where Nigel Mansell claimed his first ever win in the North American premier racing category. 

Unlike F1, IndyCar is somewhat strapped for cash and this historic venue was dropped after the last race was run there back in 2016 due to poor attendance and a lack of finance to promote the event. Yet the course, a favourite with Indycar fans, returned to the calendar this year after proper sponsorship was resolved and a new seven year contract agreed.

This writer attended the 250 mile races at the season’s double header and the sentiment for the drivers and fans alike was complete and utter gratitude the event had been revived.

 

 

 

Indycar Race control issues

The Milwaukee Mile has been the venue for a number of legendary events and built in 1903 it precedes the construction of the likes of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the legendary Brooklands Oval in the south of England and even the fearsome Monza which originally featured a figure of eight configuration with a steeply banked circular section combined with the flat track layout – the latter being largely the same today.

Short track oval racing is fraught with danger as within a handful of laps the entire track is populated by the field of 27 cars. The race on Saturday was on the whole clean and with a less than average number of cautions, However come Sunday the Wisconsin circuit showed its teeth with multiple cautions and a chaotic race.

One of the problems with short oval single seater racing is the way Indycar form up for the start of the race. Unlike in F1 they use a rolling start with the cars lining up two by two to take the green flag. Yet as the cars left the pit lane behind the safety car and built up their speed, the very short nature of the circuit sees them fan out across more than half the track.

Then the field are informed next time around the race is going to go green and the drivers have less than 40 seconds to bunch up together to satisfy race control they are in order.

 

 

 

Start procedure in Milwaukee fails

Both the Saturday and Sunday races proved difficult to manage at the start with drivers at the rear of the field hurtling flat out to catch up the pack and satisfy Race Control’s required formation as they came of the final turn four.

On Sunday it was clear to this relative amateur of oval racing, the cars would not be in position in time and the starter would have to call off the green flag and send the drivers around again to form up within the regulations.

However, instead of issuing the yellow flag early enough to indicate this was the procedure, Race control delayed the cancelled start until the leaders were well on their way into the start finish line. The result was drivers behind the leader anticipated the green flag and launched, taking out pole position driver Joseph Newgarten known as the King of Oval racing.

For subsequent restarts Race Control learned their lessons and the green flag was shown as the cars approached turn four and the start finish straight.

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F1 start procedure needs review

In Formula One Race Control has an equal impact on the racing, but at times this is lost on the fans in terms of the minutia.

During F1’s single formation lap, there isn safety car controlling the pace and the pole position driver is responsible for the formation lap and partly how the grid forms up for a standing start. Yet the pole sitter has no way of ensuring those at the back of the grid make this lap a reasonable pace with the result being this towards the front of the pack can be sitting with their cars over heating and tyres cooling for between 30-45 seconds.

In Monza this year the F1 start was messy. Lando Norris sat for an age in his starting position as the back of the grid dawdled into place. This of course makes the eventual start more dangerous as with cooler tyres and 100 litres of fuel, the leaders approach the first corner in a car not ready for the demands it is about to face.

Bertram F driver and Sky Sports pundit, Martin Brundle, believes its time for Race control to take action after the the Sauber duo at the back of the field took “too long” to take their position for the start.

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Rookie Sprint Races post season suggested

The current FIA mandated procedure sees Race Control wait until the 20th and final car together with the medical vehicle behind it are stationary then a man with a green flag walks across the track behind the cars to signal the procedure with the red lights can begin.

Five red lights slowly are lit on gantry’s and when they are extinguished, the F1 race begins. The formation lap prior to the start is crucial to the drivers pre-race preparation and they are seen weaving, accelerating and braking to create the optimum temperature in the brakes and their rubber.

This improves grip and provides a better launch for the cars who are separated on the grid by a distance of eight metres.

It is becoming more and more common that the drivers at the front of the field are becoming disadvantaged when the pace fit back markers is slow. Pole sitter in Monza, Lando Norris, were left waiting for nigh on a minute with tyres cooling and pressures dropping while the hapless Sauber pair trundled into position path the back.

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Russel wants rookie FP1 practice session banned

At the 2024 Italian grand Prix the formation of the grid took an age and Martin Brundle expressed his ire at how the grid formation is getting out of control. “It’s too long, they need to talk to the drivers at the back about getting underway,” said the veteran F1 racer.

The face of the now institutional pre-race grid walk believes the drivers must address this issue at the upcoming meeting between the drivers and the FIA.

One solution suggested was that the rookie drivers are allowed to complete in a post season Sprint race which would be open for drivers with less than two grand Prix events experience. There they can practice the formation lap procedure together with race starts which should improve the first lap crashes which often mire the start of the Grand Prix.

Presently, teams are mandated to allow each car and driver to give way once a season for juniors to take place in practice one sessions while the regular driver sits out. George Russel admitted in Monza: “I actually quite like the idea, to be honest,” adding “I always have mixed feelings about the FP1 sessions for rookies. Because, unless you’ve had a lot of experience doing F1 tests, it’s very, very challenging.”

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F1 abandon formation lap?

The current world champion, Max Verstappen, was cautious over the impact of this change because: “I don’t know,” he said bluntly. “I don’t think everyone is excited after the final race. Then to do another race on Tuesday… I mean, if you want to give rookies a chance, just put them in the car.”

Yet to blame the rookies is to fail to understand the issue. At the Italian Grand Prix it was experienced drivers like Valtteri Bottas and his team mate Zhou Gaungyu who were excessive in their delay.

The simple solution for the FIA is to mandate a maximum time between each car arriving in its grid position behind the driver in front and to prevent delay and a reformation of the grid, the FIA delegates could issue time penalties at the first round of pit stops for any driver who doesn’t comply.

Alternatively F1 should abandon the formation lap and start the race from the current five minute warning, allowing the teams to leave the tyre warmers in place until just one minute before the start of the Grand Prix.

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Hamilton criticises McLaren race strateg

While the big story in Formula One is the fact that Max Verstappen has failed to claim a grand Prix victory now for the last six race weekends, McLaren were demonstrating how inept their race craft is as a team who have not been in a title chase since Lewis Hamilton drove for the British team.

Red Bull appear to have imploded and are on their worst run now since 2019. Team boss Christian Horner claimed the team is now unable to “trust” their tools but this is no recent phenomenon. The Red Bull boss revealed the team have struggled since late 2023 with their data which is failing to predict balance and mechanical problems when the team arrive at each F1 weekend.

Yet to the rest of the world the early part of the 2024 F1 season appeared to be business as usual with Max Verstappen winning seven of the first ten Grand Prix. His last win was in Barcelona back in June despite the team introducing a raft of upgrades since – non of which are working… READ MORE