What could the Hy-Vee IndyCar doubleheader look like in future years?

NEWTON — After Hy-Vee and IndyCar announced a new sponsorship deal last week, the series said it hopes to keep racing twice in one weekend each year at Iowa Speedway for the foreseeable future.

IndyCar has doubleheader weekends in Iowa and Milwaukee this year, but the series sees Iowa as the place it wants to hold doubleheaders for the foreseeable future, said Penske Corp. president Bud Denker. West Des Moines-based Hy-Vee announced plans last week to continue to be the title sponsor of the Iowa IndyCar weekend in a multi-year agreement. Other details of the agreement are still being negotiated, according to IndyCar and Hy-Vee officials.

IndyCar has dabbled in "doubleheader" weekends for more than a decade, cramming two points-paying races into one weekend. In 2020 Iowa had its first doubleheader as the series tried desperately to find places to race amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Working with Gov. Kim Reynolds, Hy-Vee agreed to sponsor and promote two IndyCar races per year at the track from 2022 to 2024 to re-open Iowa Speedway after it fell off both the NASCAR and IndyCar schedules in 2021.

Hy-Vee will sponsor an IndyCar doubleheader in Milwaukee on Labor Day weekend, but the Milwaukee event will hold only one race next year. Iowa Speedway will hold an IndyCar doubleheader scheduled for July 12-13, 2025.

Doubleheaders challenge teams that need to repair cars that crash during the first race. For as revered as the racing was when Iowa held one IndyCar race per year through 2019, the concerts and twin-races of the past three years give the event character, Denker said.

"I like this thing being a doubleheader," Denker said. "It's unique that way."

Drivers were less than thrilled with the racing this weekend. Both races were largely processional races. Passing on the outside was possible within 10 to 15 laps of restarts. But when cars got within a car-length they stalled out, unable to complete passes.

Scott McLaughlin, driver of the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet, said that it was unfair to blame the track's owner. Eventually the surface would need to be repaved, McLaughlin said. It is up to IndyCar and Firestone to create a package that can race well on the new surface and allow passing on the outside 30 or 40 laps into runs, McLaughlin said.

"You can't blame the track because they have to repave this at some time," McLaughlin said. "But if we can somehow get our cars working when a repave happens and know what we need to do to make it work, we won't run into these issues. I feel like we go into it and not do the right amount of study to get it to work."

Alex Palou spun at the exit of turn four Saturday night and crashed the rear of his car on the front straightaway. No mechanical parts broke. But his crew slept only about three hours after fixing the car before a morning warmup session, Palou said.

"It was not easy for the team to turn the car around," Palou said. "It was a small hit, but it was a good enough hit that you had to take everything apart, look at everything."

Palou has never supported doubleheaders because good races should stand alone. Boring racing on the first night typically lead to boring racing on the second day, Palou said.

"If it's a bad race you're going to have a doubleheader of bad races, like happened this weekend," Palou said.

Will Power won Sunday and wondered if the car is "just too heavy" to be competitive after the series debuted a hybrid system July 7 at Mid-Ohio.

"I don't know what the answer is, but we've got to do something for next year," Power said. "We went from the best oval race we would have all season to potentially the least amount of passing."

'The demographics fit us so well'

Iowa Speedway has long been a beloved track in both NASCAR and IndyCar. IndyCar held its first race at the track in 2007. Nationally televised on ABC, the race rivaled the hype for June's Cup Series race. Since then the 7/8-mile track nicknamed "The Fastest Short Track on the Planet" has become one of the most important tracks on the IndyCar schedule.

Iowa is a strong market given the all the activity at dirt tracks like River Bottom Raceway in Carlisle, Dubuque County Fairgrounds Speedway and I-35 Speedway in Mason City, Denker said. Both IndyCar and NASCAR were pleased with attendance at their race weekends, even though less than a month separated them.

NASCAR sold about 45,000 tickets to all three days, from June 14-16. IndyCar opened the Iowa Speedway gates for free on "Free Family Friday," which had an autograph session, pit-stop challenge and practice. Ticket sales increased 22% this year, Denker said.

Corporate sponsors also sustain the race, he said. While Hy-Vee is the title sponsor, walls and fencing inside and outside the track and the midway were covered with Iowa companies large and small such as Principal Financial Group, Musco Sports Lighting and Lola's Fine Hot Sauce.

"The demographics fit us so well in terms of the open-wheel fan here. Knoxville and all the other short tracks you have around this state, the open-wheel on a per-capita basis is really high," Denker said.

What does a promoter do?

A race promoter pays the sanctioning fee for races to sanctioning bodies like IndyCar, sells tickets and runs race operations. Hy-Vee had dozens of employees working on the race at Iowa Speedway to run things like social media, promotional stands and events operations.

Hy-Vee chairman Randy Edeker said in a news release that the chain is looking forward to continuing to partner with IndyCar.

"This event has been a great fit for Hy-Vee," Edeker said. "We set out to make this a world-class event and believe the momentum we have created will continue into the future as IndyCar continues to gain more fans year after year."

But Edeker's statement was notable for what it did not say. Hy-Vee has not been announced as the race promoter. The length of the contract was also not announced, other than that it was for multiple years. Denker confirmed that those negotiations between Hy-Vee and IndyCar are ongoing.

It has not been announced if the race will continue holding concerts in tandem with the racing. A different third-party promoter, such as Penske Entertainment, could promote the race. But Denker expects Hy-Vee to be a "major part" of next year's race.

In the last three years the chain gained experience and connections to A-list artists, who are already calling asking to be part of next year's race festivities, Denker said.

The concerts draw fans. This year 44% of tickets were sold to out-of-state fans, Denker said. Before the Luke Combs concert Saturday, Denker handed out water bottles to fans to keep them safe as the heat index made conditions feel hotter than 100 degrees.

Natalie Stewart, her husband and son Andrew and her friend Sam Cerceo go to "most" IndyCar races because Andrew's husband works for Ed Carpenter Racing. But this was the first time for the group from Alexandria, Indiana, to see a race at Iowa Speedway. They drove more than seven hours to get here before Friday's practice session.

Stewart wore a Luke Combs t-shirt on pit road before Combs' concert. Cerceo went to the Indianapolis 500 once, but said the concerts were a big part of why she came.

"I'm a big Post (Malone) fan," Cerceo said.

Micro convenience stores expand the Hy-Vee brand

Hy-Vee uses IndyCar in part to give its employees promotions to rally around during otherwise mundane summer months. From November through July the chain advertises on television stations across Iowa promoting the IndyCar weekend. Cardboard cutouts of the No. 45 "Hy-Vee Honda" and its driver Christian Lundgaard promote the event in stores.

At Iowa Speedway during IndyCar weekend, two shipping containers hid convenience stores inside. Hy-Vee placed the micro-convenience stores in campgrounds on the backstretch and behind turn one. Inside, campers can get essentials such as Pepto Bismol, hamburger buns and of course beer.

Hy-Vee is expected to start construction soon on two Indianapolis-area stores. Denker wants the chain to bring the micro-convenience stores to Indianapolis Motor Speedway during next year's Indy 500, saying that campers and fans would love using them in parking lots, the Snake Pit music festival area and exterior campgrounds.

Penske Corp. employs more than 2,000 people in Iowa, most in its truck-rental business, Denker said. IndyCar has plenty of businesses whose primary clients are businesses, Denker said. But IndyCar needs more sponsors that reach consumers directly, like Hy-Vee, Denker said.

"The B to C is what we need more of in this series," Denker said. "B to B is great. But B to C would be an opportunity for us to continue to expand our brand, and Hy-Vee allows us to continue to do that."

Philip Joens covers retail and real estate for the Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-284-8184, pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: What could the Hy-Vee IndyCar doubleheader look like in future years?