Felix Rosenqvist battled his way through an unusual weekend of racing as the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ only double-header round of the season threw up additional challenges over a rain-affected couple of days at the Milwaukee Mile.
Featuring rounds 16 and 17 of the 2026 season, the Wisconsin short oval offered up two 250-lap races, but it would take two days to complete one of them – with the other taking place in between.
Race 1 originally got underway as planned on Saturday, with Rosenqvist setting a blistering early pace. From fifth on the grid, the Meyer Shank Racing driver powered into the lead by lap 22, going on to build a seven-second cushion over the rest of the field over the next 20 tours.
After pitting on lap 52, Rosenqvist found himself second to Pato O’Ward when the race was neutralised with a caution period for light rain, which turned into a complete red-flag stoppage on lap 90 as conditions deteriorated.
After several hours of waiting for the weather to improve, the window to finish the race on Saturday finally closed as sunset neared, pushing the restart to complete the remaining 160 laps to Sunday morning.
With further rain falling overnight, however, the remainder of Race 1 was ultimately pushed back to Sunday evening, following the running of Race 2 (which retained its original afternoon slot).
“It was an unusual kind of weekend with the rain delays and everything, but in the end we managed to get both races in, full distance, and that’s a good thing,” says Felix Rosenqvist. “Big thanks to the fans who stuck with us and supported us for both races.”
Rosenqvist took a 20th place in Race 2, having started seventh but slipped back due to an issue during his second pit stop that forced him to return to the pits just ten laps later for an extra change of tyres.
Returning to the track just three hours later for the completion of Race 1, Rosenqvist was duly eager to bounce back, taking up his P2 slot on the grid as the race resumed where it had stopped the day before.
The Indy 500 winner continued to run in podium contention for most of the remaining 160 laps, sitting third before the final round of pit stops. Shuffled back in the pit stop sequence and on a subsequent late restart, however, Rosenqvist ultimately came home 17th.
“It’s a disappointing result, no hiding from that,” Felix Rosenqvist concludes. “It was looking so much better for most of it. I was third just a few laps earlier before the final stop, able to move forward and feeling quite confident in the car. Then after the last restart, I suddenly just had zero grip and no pace.
“Very strange, but all in all I think there are some positives to take from an unusual kind of weekend here. Now, we’ll regroup and recharge for one final race this year next weekend. It’s been a super busy month, but I really want to end the season on a high with this team. I’ll give it my everything.”
The 18th and final round of the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES takes place next weekend (September 4-6) at Laguna Seca in Monterey, California.
RESULTS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 16 & 17
Milwaukee Mile 250s
Milwaukee Mile (USA)
Race 1
1: Pato O’Ward (MEX), Arrow McLaren, 250 laps
2: David Malukas (USA), Penske, +1.753s
3: Rinus Veekay (NED), JHR, +2.864s
4: Scott McLaughlin (NZL), Penske, +5.222s
5: Christian Rasmussen (DEN), ECR, +7.210s
—
17: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Meyer Shank Racing, +24.599s
Race 2
1: Pato O’Ward (MEX), Arrow McLaren, 250 laps
2: Scott McLaughlin (NZL), Penske, +0.791s
3: Christian Lundgaard (DEN), Arrow McLaren, +2.745s
4: David Malukas (USA), Penske, +3.288s
5: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, +12.043s
—
20: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Meyer Shank Racing, +2 laps
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | After 17/18 races
1: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, 607 p.
2: Christian Lundgaard (DEN), Arrow McLaren, 507 p.
3: Kyle Kirkwood (USA), Andretti, 505 p.
4: Pato O’Ward (MEX), Arrow McLaren, 503 p.
5: David Malukas (USA), Penske, 484 p.
—
9: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Meyer Shank Racing, 379 p.