By David Morgan, Associate Editor
Oval season is upon us.
The final sprint to the finish of the 2024 NTT IndyCar Series season begins this weekend at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway with Saturday’s running of the Bommarito Automotive Group 500.
The 1.25-mile oval will be one of three ovals on the remaining schedule, along with the doubleheader at Milwaukee and the season finale at Nashville. Only Portland stands alone as the one final road course still to be contested this season.
Two-time series champion Alex Palou comes into the weekend with a 49-point advantage over Will Power, but with ovals dominating the remainder of the season, anything is possible from here on out.
Over the past five years at the track, just two drivers have been at the top of the hill when it comes to the quirky oval, with Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate and six-time champion Scott Dixon coming in as the defending winner and the winner of one of two races in 2020. Not to be overlooked is also the king of the ovals, Josef Newgarden, who banked three straight wins at this track from 2020 to 2022.
Dixon currently sits third in points, ready to strike, while Newgarden will have some work to do if he is to finish the year as the champion, currently residing in eighth place in the standings.
This weekend will be just a two-day show, with two practice sessions and qualifying on Friday, leading in to the main event on Saturday evening.
Saturday’s race is also the third oval event that will be run with the new hybrid system after the doubleheader at Iowa last month. Those races were largely follow the leader events with limited passing and with track position being a key tenet of racing at Gateway, it remains to be seen if that will be the case again this weekend.
By the Numbers
What: Bommarito Automotive Group 500, NTT IndyCar Series Race No. 13 of 17
Where: World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway – Madison, Illinois (Opened: 1967; First INDYCAR Race: 1997)
When: Saturday, August 17
TV/Radio: USA Network & Peacock 6:00 p.m. ET / INDYCAR Radio Network (SiriusXM Channels 85 & 160)
Track Size: 1.25-mile oval
Race Length: 260 laps, 500 kilometers
2023 Race Winner: Scott Dixon – No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda (Started 16th, 123 laps led)
Track Qualifying Record: Will Power – No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet (23.7206 seconds, 189.709 mph – August 25, 2017)
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