By Cole Cusumano

MADISON, Ill. – The Bommarito 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway marked my first-ever experience covering an NTT IndyCar Series event, and now I am hooked. Having been a fan of NASCAR for nearly two decades and now being in the media space, this was an entirely different animal for me, as I approached this weekend with brand new eyes.

To be clear, this was not my first time witnessing IndyCar on track. I had only seen the series once before as a spectator at Phoenix Raceway in 2016, and I’ll be honest, it didn’t leave a lasting impression.

As someone who had been attending NASCAR races twice a year at the same track since 2008, the style of competition and the experience as a whole just didn’t do it for me. The lack of atmosphere, nonexistent fanfare, and astonishingly low attendance made it feel like tire tests I had attended in the past. 

This is also likely why IndyCar took Phoenix off the circuit after 2018.

Fast Forward nearly a decade later, I’ve now integrated myself into the racing world by professionally covering NASCAR as a journalist, going on eight years for various outlets – the most recent being SpeedFreaks.

In joining this innovative and in-your-face program that’s been around for 25 years, I’ve had the pleasure of expanding my motorsports palette between series like NHRA, Formula 1 and SuperCross. But the one that’s captured my interest the most has been IndyCar.

In covering NASCAR professionally for nearly 10 years, I developed an understanding and respect for green-flag racing and the strategy element that truly embodies what motorsport is. Having watched IndyCar more in-depth this year, I’ve learned this is a series that exemplifies exactly what pure (or natural) racing is.

Outside of the racing element, I really admired how talented and composed all of these drivers came across, in addition to the razor-edge intricacies the teams must apply to these cars in order to be competitive. I also found the representation of different countries to be very unique, compared to NASCAR.

Two things I love about covering NASCAR are how humble all the competitors are, in addition to the familial atmosphere felt throughout the entire industry – whether it be teams, media, the communications staff – it all just has a very grassroots-family vibe, even though it’s the most popular form of motorsport in the United States.

I think one of my biggest misconceptions – and maybe this was me associating IndyCar with F1, both being open-wheel series – is that the drivers would be very closed-off and egotistical. Boy, was I wrong.

Just to clarify, being able to see how these drivers operate firsthand was the thing I was most excited to experience in covering my first IndyCar event. I more or less just didn’t know how they would treat the media or what access would be like for those covering the sport, and I was blown away by the reality of both.

For a series with such prestige and presumed high class, I was astounded by how grounded the drivers were. I would even argue they were more accessible and willing to share their time with media and fans than NASCAR to some degree. This wasn’t relegated to just the competitors, but the paddock and series staff as a whole.

I found it hilarious and awesome how all of these racers would be speeding through the garage  area on electric scooters, stopping for any and all fans who wanted a photo or autograph. I did find it extremely bizarre that there weren’t fans mobbing these drivers like they would in NASCAR. Heck, there was a point where Hailie Deegan walked right by me and no one ran up to her for anything – that’s something you never saw when she was stock car racing.

That’s not to say there was no interest in these drivers outside of the few fans that flagged them down between the garage area and pit road. Again, adding to these competitors’ willingness to interact with fans, there was an autograph session in the fan midway five hours before the race featuring every driver in the field, and they happily stayed and signed for a double-wide line of people that stretched for nearly the whole frontstretch of the 1.25-mile track.

One major culture shock for me as a member of the media was seeing just how accessible these drivers were and the puzzling lack of coverage on pit road outside of photographers. The media presence on the grid was so bare, I felt awkward videoing drivers strapping into their cars, or being the only reporter literally within feet from Scott Dixon as he suited up for the Bommarito 500.

Another thing I found incredibly badass was these IndyCars were on the grid three-wide before the race, and you had fans literally walking between these machines minutes before they were  about to race. Whereas in NASCAR, there’s mobs of fans and sponsors on pit road, the cars are blocked off and it’s just a madhouse. This was such an intimate and electric feeling and I just found it incredible that anyone with a pit pass could experience that.

The last few things that took me by surprise pertained to the garage area, once again in regard to access and atmosphere. 

For how calculated and precise everything is in IndyCar, I was stunned to see all these engines fully exposed, but was very intrigued seeing the mechanics fine-tune them for all to see. Being up close and personal with these cars, I got a new perspective for how big they really are (I felt they looked more compact on television). 

I also had this fun realization that these drivers and mechanics are like little kids again playing with these suped-up go-karts of sorts. You have the noses and spoilers that detach like a giant puzzle. Also, as they navigate the garage for inspection or to their stalls, you have guys sitting on the side of these machines, pedaling the asphalt with their feet like it’s a giant skateboard. 

That’s no slight or way to diminish how intense this series is, it actually humanized these competitors more for me and aided in this being a feeling like a very fun, welcoming and comfortable experience. 

Finally, as for personal experiences at the track and surrounding this event … I felt privileged to witness Will Power score Team Penske’s 700th pole and his series-all-time-best 71st. I was also excited more than anything to see Alex Palou in person and on track in what’s been a historic season for him and the No. 10 team.

Experiencing these cars on track was something else! 

Being on pit road for qualifying and seeing these open-wheel cars rocket on to the track with the tires squealing was intoxicating. Getting a look at how fast these things were in action under the lights – and accompanied by a beautiful Illinois sunset – was also surreal. The fact they were ripping down the frontstretch and entering Turn 1 at excess of 180 mph was remarkable, on top of the swift juking maneuvers the drivers were able to make.

In terms of the racing product as a whole, I won’t go too in-depth, only because anyone who watched the Bommarito 500 on Fox saw what an outstanding event this was. In my opinion, this was by far and away the best and most entertaining race of the IndyCar season through eight starts – Yes, even more so than the Indianapolis 500.

One of my biggest gripes with IndyCar competition over the years has been the lack of ability to pass, which has been the case at a few tracks this season, but certainly not at WWT Raceway. Not only were the drivers able to make passes, they were able to do it all over the 1.25-mile oval, aiding in a total of 607 passes (263 for position), including 20 lead changes among 14 different drivers.

This was also a testament to the attrition both on track and in the pits, where we most notably saw race leader and five-time Gateway winner Josef Newgarden go airborne just past the halfway point and pole-sitter Power get into the wall from second-place after 47 laps.

This level of competition and excitement wasn’t only relegated to IndyCar, but INDY NXT as well. I was stunned by the moves these young drivers were able to make and was equally shocked by the lack of exposure of this series with up and coming talents like Myles Rowe and race winner Lochie Hughes.

Finally I wanted to add is that I would love IndyCar to return to Phoenix. Former track president Julie Giese and current Latasha Causey have done a tremendous job marketing this track and creating a world-class sporting facility with an unrivaled fan experience with NASCAR Championship Weekend.

IndyCar has also not competed on the reconfigured surface, which has dramatically enhanced the strategic element in NASCAR. For a series where this is already prevalent, I feel like it would thrive at the “new Phoenix,” with an Avondale, Ariz., crowd that’s developed a serious appetite for racing. Not to mention, the track has severely underused its ability to host races at night, and as we saw at WWT Raceway, that could be the key to bringing in new eyes and capturing the attention of newcomers, like myself.

In closing, I’d like to thank the WWT Raceway staff and IndyCar personnel for being so welcoming and accommodating – and especially for keeping the fridges stocked with an abundance of Mountain Dew. I am officially hooked and can’t wait to get out to my next race, hopefully this season!

Next up, IndyCar heads to Elkhart Lake, Wis., for the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America on June 22 at 1:30 p.m. ET on Fox.