NEWTON, Iowa – 30,000 people converged at Iowa Speedway on Saturday and Sunday for the second annual Hy-Vee IndyCar race weekend.
The event – not race – has drawn crowds that dwarf the numbers that the 2010’s saw at Iowa Speedway. There was grass growing through the cracks in the racing surface before Hy-Vee and IndyCar came together and created something special.
“You won’t ever hear me use the word ‘race,’ because it’s an event,” said Bud Denker, president of Penske Corporation. “You bring IndyCar here in 2015 for seven or eight thousand people in the stands – you’ve seen it. That’s a race. This is different.”
From 2022 to 2023, ticket prices doubled.
Yet, still, attendance grew and one of the biggest crowds in Iowa Speedway history watched Josef Newgarden flex his oval skills.
That’s not what Denker – nor IndyCar – focused on when building the ideas for the race, though. The on-track product has been consistent, but they needed unique ideas to bring in new groups of fans.
Bringing in musical acts like Zac Brown Band and Kenny Chesney as well as Gwen Stefani and Ed Sheeran has brought in a duality of fans to hear some music, with the hope they get hooked on the racing alike.
“Well, I think it’s value,” Denker said. “I think you have to look at the price. You mentioned ticket prices, right, and the value you’re getting here is there. I live in Detroit and Ed Sheeran was there last week and sold out two concerts with one show. (That’s with) no IndyCar race. (That’s with) no Carrie Underwood, you know, and the tickets were $100 or $200 and up. So, the value of what you have here with Carrie yesterday and Ed Sheeran is unbelievable. And Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band fill up arenas and stadiums, too. So, I think that’s one thing in terms of what we had here for an attraction of entertainment last year and this year.”
In 2022, 60 percent of the fans in attendance at Iowa Speedway were at the track attending their first-ever race. IndyCar expects the 2023 numbers to exceed 50 percent, as well.
The thinking is, new fans will tell their friends about how much fun they had and the crowd will continue to grow.
That thinking is why Denker spent time on Saturday handing out concert VIP passes to fans enjoying themselves on the concourse. He wants as many people as possible to have the time of their lives.
“It’s similar to what you saw in Chicago this year with the NASCAR race there,” Denker said. “I think they have over half their people had never seen a race before. That’s an absolute key for us. This really helps us by bringing fans here and exposing them to something for the first time. Because motorsports is one of those (sports) where you’ve got to see it to appreciate it and (fans at Iowa this week or in the future) are going to see it and appreciate it in a different way, along with entertainment.”
The influence and branding that Hy-Vee has delivered to the event are just as noteworthy.
In 2022, a total of 73 companies had some kind of sponsorship with the event. In 2023, that number increased to 123.
The temporary buildings erected in turn 1 and turn 4, the suite building in the infield and other race activation ideas came to fruition at Iowa and transformed the track that was almost lost.
“I think the magic of it is because of the partner we have in Hy-Vee, obviously,” Denker said. “We wish we could find more partners like Hy-Vee. I think they make the magic happen for us, and without them, it wouldn’t be an event. It’d be a race. That’s a key piece.”
Could it be considered a crown jewel race in the future?
“No doubt,” Denker said.
“If you ask the drivers right now, and the crews, when have you ever seen crew members go out and watch a concert? Never,” Denker said. “And you see it here yesterday with our concerts. They came out to watch with their wives and brought their wives here to see them. So a true indication to me is the number of people that are here, but also the engagement you have from all parts of who’s in this facility including teams and drivers. It’s just an indication of the popularity of it.”
The combination of new ideas puts forth an atmosphere that has the makings of a crown jewel, even if it’s not there, yet.
Building the tradition, atmosphere and magnitude required to call a race that is not found easily and takes years to build.
Denker would rather that time came tomorrow. He holds the same competitive spirit that any driver or crew member holds while competing during a race.
“It’s really the fact of, you know, building it. You’ve got to build something the first year. It’s very seldom you’re going to have something that’s totally blown-out successful and maybe even sell out like it would be here, right. But, I think as you look at this thing over the next two or three years, you know, we’d like to see a 40,000-person model here each day on Saturday and Sunday. That would be absolutely amazing, and we’re at 30 already, right.”
And although he can’t accelerate the clock, Denker will do his best to try.
“I want to grow this into a big thing,” Denker said. “I think it can grow into a crown jewel. I want that to happen today or tomorrow – but it does take time.
“If you think we took a step forward and wonder, ‘what’s 2024 and 2025 going to bring?’ – Just watch.”
