When a driver desires to race the Indianapolis 500 for the first time, those drivers go through a rookie test lasting 40 laps, or 100 miles around Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS).
Every driver, no matter their experience level, must go through this process to build up mileage at IMS before being turned loose in practice. Fernando Alonso, Nigel Mansell, and even Kyle Larson all had to complete this initiation.
For Mansell and Alonso, this was before their first oval race, but they had lots of experience in high horsepower cars. For Larson, he raced on dirt and asphalt short tracks and has raced in NASCAR for over a decade.
However, for some racers, the Indianapolis 500 is not only their first oval race, but one of their first races in high horsepower cars. For Nolan Siegel, this was the case, as he raced in one IndyCar Series points paying race (Streets of Long Beach) before trying the Indianapolis 500.
The 19-year-old has been a veteran of the American ladder system. He’s raced at World Wide Technology Raceway, Iowa Speedway and Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park before attempting to qualify for the 2024 Indianapolis 500. That attempt ended with the No. 18 Honda against the Turn 2 wall.
If Siegel were several years older and tried the “500” back in 2019, he would’ve had a bit more superspeedway experience thanks to a race long beloved by spectators and drivers alike: the Freedom 100.
Before 2020, the Freedom 100 was an Indy Lights (now Indy NXT by Firestone) race held during the month of May. After two years with small crowds due to running the race during the second weekend of qualifying, IMS officials moved the race to Carb Day in 2005, which proved to be an instant hit with the spectators.
The crowds grew to appreciate the race which became a staple of the final day of practice before the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. It also gave drivers a chance to sample superspeedway racing before moving up into the IndyCar Series.
That chance is gone. Instead of having drivers gain superspeedway experience before going to Indianapolis, young drivers will go fast on an oval no larger than 1.33 miles when they visit Nashville Superspeedway to conclude the 2024 season.
The Freedom 100 allowed drivers the chance to get comfortable with speeds close to what is in the Indianapolis 500. It gave drivers a chance to get laps around the same track that they want to eventually compete on later during Memorial Day…
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