![\"Indy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Mick-Schumacher-Rookie-Luncheon-By_-Joe-Skibinski_Large-Image-Without-Watermark_m154585.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndianapolis 500 rookie Mick Schumacher milks a cow as part of pre-race traditions. Image: Joe Skibinski<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndianapolis 500 rookie Mick Schumacher milks a cow as part of pre-race traditions. Image: Joe Skibinski<\/p>\n
The tradition dates back to 1936 when Louis Meyer requested buttermilk after his win, and it\u2019s been the norm ever since.<\/p>\n
The honour is extended to the team owner and chief mechanic who get to join the winning driver in Victory Lane.<\/p>\n
Each and every year, the 33 drivers make their milk selection \u2013 with options of whole, two percent, or skim.<\/p>\n
The original buttermilk option was eventually phased out despite some drivers still requesting it to this day.<\/p>\n
The Indiana Dairy Association takes the vote of every driver and has bottles on standby for the end of the race.<\/p>\n
This year, 25 drivers selected whole milk, seven drivers chose two percent, while Romain Grosjean was the only driver to pick skim.<\/p>\n
Those who chose two percent were four-time winner Helio Castroneves, two-time winner Takuma Sato, his teammate Graham Rahal, 2014 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay, and McLaren trio Pato O\u2019Ward, Christian Lundgaard, and Nolan Siegel.<\/p>\n
Some VERY special requests \ud83d\ude02 \ud83e\udd5b<\/p>\n
The @INDairy<\/a> #Indy500<\/a> milk selections are in! pic.twitter.com\/iQYE3NneYT<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Indianapolis Motor Speedway (@IMS) May 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Making the milk selection isn\u2019t the only dairy-related tradition.<\/p>\n A decade ago, Alexander Rossi milked a cow and went on to win the 2016 Indianapolis 500 as a rookie.<\/p>\n Since then, it has been tradition for rookies to milk a cow in the lead-up to the Greatest Spectacle in Racing as something of a good luck charm.<\/p>\n Four rookies are in this year\u2019s race \u2013 Mick Schumacher, Caio Collet, Dennis Hauger, and Jacob Abel.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so fun to see them actually milk it,\u201d Indiana Dairy Association veteran milk presenter Ashley Stockwell said.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of them never have milked a cow before. To them, it\u2019s good luck, right. For this year, if you don\u2019t milk the cow you\u2019re destined to not win.<\/p>\n \u201cTo have them get excited about the tradition of milking the cow and then learning all about the milk and what our hard work does to produce and feed the world and they get to celebrate with is really an honour.\u201d<\/p>\n Schumacher, who inherited the honour of being the highest-starting rookie after Caio Collet was disqualified from qualifying, said he respected the Indianapolis 500 traditions.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m excited to experience all the traditions that are out here,\u201d Schumacher said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there are a lot of them. In some ways it\u2019s great to keep them in the way they are and to experience them year after year. Yeah, very privileged.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously in this event, I\u2019ve noticed how beautiful traditions can be.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that some drivers have certain traditions. I mean, like Conor Daly going to the Snake Pit every year.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty impressive how still the drivers build their own traditions out here. I\u2019m curious to see what mine will be, when I come back here, what I\u2019ll be doing again and what not.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously the golf course is super close. I really enjoy that. I think that that could be my tradition to go golfing at some point. Yeah, maybe riding a bike out on the track.\u201d<\/p>\n The Indianapolis 500 takes place on Monday, May 25 with coverage live and exclusively on Stan Sport in Australia.<\/p>\n Indianapolis 500 \u2013 How to watch, schedule, starting grid & more<\/a><\/p>\n