MILLER: Bourdais’ old magic and new admirer

It’s tough to say what was the most shocking element of Sunday’s ABC Supply 250: Sebastien Bourdais looking like Michael Andretti at The Milwaukee Mile. Or Paul Tracy gushing with praise about his former nemesis.

Both were equally entertaining as Bourdais blistered the field with one of those days that seems to happen more often than not when a team gets it right at the oldest oval in the country.

And the 36-year-old Frenchman being in victory lane is hardly surprising since he’s now done it 34 times since exploding onto the American scene in 2003 and capturing four consecutive Champ Car titles. It’s where and how he pulled off the latest win – which tied him with Al Unser Jr. on the all-time list – that’s most newsworthy.

Because Bourdais has always been a fantastic road racer, be it winning the F3000 championship, dominating Champ Car, running up front at Le Mans or during his second pass through the IndyCar these past four seasons. But ovals were as foreign to him as State Fair corndogs and not necessarily a fun part of his career. Sure, he won Milwaukee once and Las Vegas twice but Seb clearly had an advantage with Newman/Haas Racing and kicking the Sperafico brothers’ butts hardly drew a glance from Indy 500 fans.

He wasn’t beating Andretti, Ganassi and Penske back then but he damn sure blew them all away Sunday afternoon with his KVSH Dallara/Chevrolet. A fact not lost on him as he celebrated with owners Kevin Kalkhoven, Jimmy Vasser and James “Sulli” Sullivan.

“You’re only as good as your car is and can only dominate as much as the field allows you to,” said Seabass after leading 118 of the final 150 laps and LAPPING the field at one point. “Certainly I’ve dominated series and seasons when there were only five or six cars that could really give me a run for my money. Now it’s like 15 cars can win every race.

“It’s a higher quality field so you’ve really got to step up your game. It’s a lot harder to win races, especially when you’re not with the big buck team anymore and I think we’re doing a great job.”

Mr. Tracy agreed. Always candid and colorful in his role as analyst for NBCSN’s coverage of the Verizon IndyCar series, P.T. raved about the guy he battled with, crashed into and pretty much hated from 2003 to 2007. The “Thrill from West Hill” sounded like the president of the Seabass Fan Club during Sunday’s beat down and it rang as sincere as their previous dislike.

“It pains to say that this is the best race I’ve ever seen Sebastien Bourdais drive in his career and it’s nothing short of impressive,” said Tracy while watching him carve through from 14th to first and later hold off Helio Castroneves and Graham Rahal down the stretch.

For what was the last great rivalry in Indy car racing, two guys with their own section of Road Rage on YouTube have gone from a cold war to a friendship nobody could have envisioned 10 years ago. In both cases, Tracy was the instigator.

“I phoned him [Bourdais] a couple weeks ago and told him I thought he did a great job at Detroit and I just wanted to clear the air of all the bullshit,” said the 2003 Champ Car king and unofficial 2002 Indy 500 winner. “All the arguing, hating each other, mouthing off we did and collisions on the track…I just wanted to tell him that was my mentality.

“That was the way I went about handling my adversaries – to gang up, intimidate them and get under their skin because I felt I could beat them that way. I told him I didn’t hate him but I acted like that because I didn’t think I could beat him unless I did. He appreciated it, said he always respected me and it was a good talk.”

It was also good television to hear one of the bravest, cockiest and most successful racers of the past 25 years let us into his psyche. Told afterwards that P.T. had been singing his praises, Bourdais smiled and said: “Paul has been very complimentary to me the past two years and he knows I appreciate it. Who would have ever thought we’d be friends one day?”

Probably the same group that foresaw Seabass giving everyone a driving lesson at the place where Rodger Ward, A.J., Johncock, Sneva, the Andrettis and Tracy left their mark.

“This place is so unique,” said Bourdais, who was fourth quick in Sunday morning practice and very disappointed with qualifying on Row 6. “You start 11th, then you’re P6, P5 and then running for the lead. When car is like that it’s the best feeling and you are in total control. All of a sudden you feel like a real oval racer, which has never been me.”