The Gateway Arch is in the background as Arrow McLaren driver Felix Rosenqvist exits turn four and drives onto the front straight in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 IndyCar race on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023, at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois.
When the racetrack owned by Curtis Francois reconnected with the IndyCar series in 2017, it was one of the few ovals on which races in that circuit were being contested.
Now an established event on the calendar, the Bommarito Automotive Group 500, which returns for its eighth year Saturday, no longer is the exception. In fact, drivers had better be good on ovals to compete for the championship.
The race at World Wide Technology Raceway now is one of six ovals among the final eight on the season, and Francois would like to think the success of the event in Madison played a role.
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“By standing out the way we have, our race’s success sparked a resurgence of short oval racing,” he said. “Since our event, multiple ovals have joined. It’s been a dramatic shift. Sometimes imitation is the best form of flattery, and the crowds we were putting in the stands certainly caused a lot of people to take notice. Because of that, they added other events that are trying to harness the same energy.”
Races that help determine the championship take place at WWTR, Iowa, Milwaukee and Nashville, Tennessee. In fact, Iowa and Milwaukee host two races each, and Nashville will be the first oval used to end a season in 10 years.
The reemergence of WWTR has had an impact in the world of motorsports. It was named the outstanding facility in 2017 at the Race Track Business Conference, and the Bommarito 500 has since been named the top event of the year.
After hosting its third NASCAR Cup Series race in June, the track is firmly entrenched as one of the few that has three major racing series — IndyCar, NASCAR and NHRA — every year.
“We’ve had tremendous growth over the last decade to bring back the track to what it once was and well beyond that,” Francois said. “We hold our place as one of the premiere tracks in the country. It’s possibly one of the greatest comeback stories in the history of a major track.”
All the while, Francois has sought to upgrade the event and facility each year.
It started with a complete resurfacing of the track before the race in 2017 and has continued to the tune of millions of dollars. Some changes have been related to the facility and some to the entertainment around the event.
This year, WWTR has added access to the garage for IndyCar and NASCAR with a new fan area. More creative is the addition of professional wrestling events on the midway this weekend. “Honestly, it’s my nature to want to improve,” Francois said. “When I see an opportunity, I’m going to get on it. I love that part of the business. One of the main things I hear is people who come back are seeing some improvements. I’m working on plans for additional improvements for 2025.”
Drivers also have had to make improvements in pursuit of wins at WWTR. Josef Newgarden has won four of the eight races since 2017, and Scott Dixon has two wins.
Victories on the series have been spread out this year, with five drivers capturing two events each. Alex Palou will arrive as the series leader, but he never has finished higher than seventh in the Bommarito 500.
