IndyCar championship continues with short-track battle

Hunter-Reay goes for three straight at Milwaukee

Championship race heads to Milwaukee
Will Power took back the lead in the Verizon IndyCar Series standings from teammate Helio Castroneves at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Aug. 3 and carries a four-point advantage over the Brazilian into the ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 at Milwaukee IndyFest. Can Power take advantage of Team Penske's knowledge of Milwaukee (seven wins) and maintain his points lead?

Hunter-Reay aims for third straight win at Milwaukee
Indianapolis 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay returns to the Milwaukee Mile seeking his third straight win on the 1-mile oval. Can Hunter-Reay, who used a three-race win streak that began at the Milwaukee Mile to propel him into championship contention in 2012, make another push for the title with his fourth win of the season?

Kanaan hopes to continue Milwaukee mastery
With six top-five finishes in his last nine starts at Milwaukee, Tony Kanaan has definitely earned the title of Milwaukee Master. Kanaan won at Milwaukee in 2006 and 2007 and finished second in 2012. The ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 will mark Kanaan's 231st consecutive Indy car start, which will extend his all-time record. Can Kanaan add a third Milwaukee trophy this weekend?

Will competitive 2014 IndyCar Series season add record 11th winner?
The 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series season has seen 10 winners in 15 races. Should a new winner emerge at Milwaukee, it would tie the 2000 and 2001 CART seasons for most winners in a single season.

Young stars target win on storied short-track
Andretti and Rahal are two of the most storied names in Indy car racing and both families hope to visit the winner's circle at Milwaukee. Marco Andretti, whose family has nine wins at the Mile, is a two-time pole winner at Milwaukee and is aiming for his first win of the season. Graham Rahal, whose father finished second at Milwaukee three times, looks to build on the momentum gained at his home race at Mid-Ohio by bettering the mark of his father. Can either driver add another chapter to their family's history at the track?

Bourdais aiming for another win at Milwaukee
Sebastien Bourdais returns to the Milwaukee Mile with KVSH Racing with the form that helped him win four straight Champ Car titles from 2004-2007. Bourdais, who won at Milwaukee from pole in 2006, made his first start at the Mile since his title-winning days in 2013. Can the Frenchman regain his winning form at Milwaukee?

The Mayor of Milwaukee?
James Hinchcliffe may be the "Mayor of Hinchtown," but Milwaukee could be his new domain. The affable Canadian has never finished worse than sixth at Milwaukee in his three previous races and aims to add another oval win to his resume. Is Milwaukee still Hinch's town?

Generation Next
James Hinchcliffe, Simon Pagenaud and Charlie Kimball all scored their first win in 2013, finished top 10 in the championship standings and established themselves as the next stars of the sport. The trio of young stars is joined by a talented rookie class that has already produced a race winner in Carlos Huertas. Will a young star be a threat to win this weekend?

Andretti team hopes make more history for owner at Milwaukee
Michael Andretti won at Milwaukee five times in his storied career as an Indy car driver and has five wins as owner of Andretti Autosport. Andretti, whose Andretti Sports Marketing is promoting this weekend's race, hopes to visit Victory Lane three times this weekend with one of his four Verizon IndyCar Series entries as well as his team's two Indy Lights cars and two Pro Mazda cars. Can Andretti pull off a clean sweep this weekend?

Race Notes:
• The Milwaukee IndyFest will be the 10th Verizon IndyCar Series event at the Milwaukee Mile. Past winners Ryan Hunter-Reay (2004 Champ Car, 2012 and 2013), Scott Dixon (2009), Ryan Briscoe (2008), Tony Kanaan (2006-07), Sebastien Bourdais (2006 Champ Car) and Juan Pablo Montoya (2000 CART) are entered in the event.
• Andretti Autosport has won five of the nine previous Verizon IndyCar Series races at Milwaukee, including the last two with Ryan Hunter-Reay.
• Target Chip Ganassi Racing has won two of the last five Verizon IndyCar Series races at Milwaukee (Dixon in 2009 and Dario Franchitti in 2011).
• Team Penske has seven Indy car wins at Milwaukee. Andretti Autosport has five wins. Target Chip Ganassi Racing has four wins.
• Helio Castroneves has won three poles at Milwaukee (1999, 2006 and 2007). Marco Andretti has won two poles (2009, 2013).
• Marco Andretti has four top-five starts in six races at Milwaukee.
• James Hinchcliffe has three top-six finishes in his three previous starts.
• Scott Dixon has eight top-10 finishes in 10 races at Milwaukee.
• Tony Kanaan has finished in the top 10 in eight of his last 11 starts at Milwaukee.
• Ryan Hunter-Reay and Dario Franchitti are the only drivers to win at The Milwaukee Mile and win the Verizon IndyCar Series championship in the same season. Hunter-Reay accomplished the feat in 2012 and Franchitti in 2011.
• Since the first Indy car race at Milwaukee in 1933, 18 drivers have won at Milwaukee in their Indy car championship-winning seasons: Ryan Hunter-Reay (2012), Dario Franchitti (2011), Sebastien Bourdais (2006), Al Unser Jr. (1994 and 1990), Nigel Mansell (1993), Michael Andretti (1991), Johnny Rutherford (1980), A.J. Foyt (1975 and 1964), Joe Leonard (1972), Al Unser (1970), Mario Andretti (1966), Rodger Ward (1962 and 1959), Jimmy Bryan (1956), Chuck Stevenson (1952), Tony Bettenhausen (1951), Johnnie Parsons (1949), Ted Horn (1947), Rex Mays (1941).
• Since 1993, three drivers scored their first win at Milwaukee: Ryan Briscoe 2008, Michel Jourdain 2003 and Greg Moore 1997.

Championship Facts:
• Will Power leads the Verizon IndyCar Series championship with three races to go for the third time in his career. He also led with three to go in 2010 and 2012, but failed to win the championship
• Power leads Helio Castroneves by four points – the smallest margin between first and second in the points with three to go since 2009.
• There are 11 drivers mathematically eligible for the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series championship. Any driver who trails the leader by 158 points or more following Milwaukee will be eliminated from contention.
• Three drivers were eliminated from championship contention at Mid-Ohio: James Hinchcliffe, Charlie Kimball and Justin Wilson.

Season to Date:
• Will Power won the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. It was the 22nd win of his Indy car career, tying Tony Bettenhausen and Emerson Fittipaldi for 19th all time.
• Mike Conway won the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach for the second time in his career. It was his third Indy car win.
• Ryan Hunter-Reay won the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama for the second consecutive season.
• Simon Pagenaud won the inaugural Grand Prix of Indianapolis, becoming the fourth different winner in as many races.
• Ryan Hunter-Reay won the 98th Indianapolis 500, becoming the first driver to win multiple races in 2014.
• Will Power and Helio Castroneves split the doubleheader races at the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit presented by Quicken Loans – helping Team Penske sweep the wins in Detroit for the first time.
• Ed Carpenter won the Firestone 600 at Texas Motor Speedway for the first time in his career. It was his third Indy car win.
• Carlos Huertas claimed the first win of his career when he won the Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston Race 1. He became the 211th different winner in Indy car racing.
• Simon Pagenaud won the Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston Race 2. It was his second win of the season and fourth of his career.
• Juan Pablo Montoya became the eighth different winner in 11 races when he won the Pocono INDYCAR 500 from the pole. It was his 12th career win. He was the first driver to win the Verizon P1 Award and race this season.
• Ryan Hunter-Reay claimed his second win at Iowa Speedway in three years when he won the Iowa Corn Indy 300. Hunter-Reay was the fifth driver in a row from Andretti Autosport to win at Iowa.
• Sebastien Bourdais and Mike Conway split the doubleheader races at the Honda Indy Toronto. It was Bourdais' first Indy car win since 2007. Conway won for the second time in 2014 and the fourth time in his career.
• Scott Dixon won Chip Ganassi Racing's first race of the season when he came from 22nd position to win the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio. Dixon was the sixth driver in a row from Chip Ganassi Racing to win at Mid-Ohio.
• Mikhail Aleshin, Jack Hawksworth and Carlos Huertas started their first career Verizon IndyCar Series race at St. Petersburg.

Milestones & Records:
• Should Scott Dixon win the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series championship, he will join A.J. Foyt, Dario Franchitti, Sebastien Bourdais and Mario Andretti as the only drivers to win four Indy car titles in his career. Foyt won seven championships in his career, while Andretti, Bourdais and Franchitti each won four titles.
• Scott Dixon tied Al Unser Jr. for sixth on the all-time wins list with his victory at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Dixon, the active leader for wins, won his 34th race.
• Scott Dixon extended his streak of consecutive seasons with a win to 10 seasons with his win at Mid-Ohio.
• Sebastien Bourdais moved into sole possession of eighth place on the all-time wins list with his win at Toronto's Exhibition Place on July 20. Bourdais passed Dario Franchitti and Paul Tracy with his 32nd career win.
• Helio Castroneves tied Rick Mears for 11th place on the all-time wins list with his 29th race win at The Raceway at Belle Isle Park on June 1.
• Will Power tied Tommy Milton for 18th place on the all-time wins list with his 23rd race win at The Raceway at Belle Isle Park on May 31.
• Will Power's win at St. Petersburg extended his streak of consecutive seasons with a win to eight.
• Helio Castroneves reached 40 career poles in his Indy car career by earning the pole for the second race at Houston. Castroneves is the active leader with 40 pole positions, which is tied with Rick Mears for fourth all time.
• With his pole at Iowa, Scott Dixon extended his Verizon IndyCar Series streak to eight consecutive seasons with at least one pole position earned.
• Tony Kanaan will attempt to make his 231st consecutive start at Mid-Ohio, which would extend his all-time record. Scott Dixon with 172 straight starts (fourth all time), Marco Andretti with 148 straight starts (eighth all time) and Ryan Hunter-Reay (16th all time) with 123 straight starts are the only active drivers with a streak of more than 100 consecutive starts.
• Helio Castroneves is the active leader in starts with 291, which is eighth on the all-time list.
• Tony Kanaan has 290 starts, which is ninth on the all-time list.
• Helio Castroneves is the active leader in top-five finishes with 118, which is eighth on the all-time list.
• Tony Kanaan and Scott Dixon are tied for ninth on the all-time list with 116 top-five finishes.

At-Track Schedule (all times local):
Saturday, Aug. 16
10 – 11 a.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series practice #1
1:30 – 2:30 p.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series practice #2
5 – 6:15 p.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series qualifying for the Verizon P1 Award (Single car/Cumulative Time of Two Laps), NBCSN (Taped, 8 p.m. ET)

Sunday, Aug. 17
10 a.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series systems check
2 p.m. – ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 pre-race
2:45 p.m. – Command to start engines
2:50 p.m. – ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 (250 laps/250 miles), NBCSN (Live)

Race Broadcast
Sunday, Aug. 17
3 p.m. (ET)
NBCSN
Qualifying Broadcast
Saturday, Aug. 16
8 p.m. (ET)
NBCSN

Track
The Milwaukee Mile
(1-mile oval)

Distance
250 laps/250 miles

Radio
IMS Radio Network XM 209/Sirius 213

2013 Race Winner
Ryan Hunter-Reay

2013 Pole sitter
Marco Andretti
(42.8584 seconds, 170.515 mph)

Track Records
Single Lap
Patrick Carpentier
(20.028, 185.500 mph)
May 30, 1998
Two-lap Average
Dario Franchitti
(43.3100, 168.737 mph)
June 15, 2012

First Indy car Race
7/17/1933