STREETS OF TORONTO
RACE: HONDA INDY TORONTO
DATE: JULY 16, 2023
JOSEF NEWGARDEN
NO. 2 SNAP-ON DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 11TH FINISH - 5TH POINTS - 3RD (-126)
RACE RUNDOWN: Josef Newgarden propelled himself and the No. 2 Snap-on Chevrolet to a fifth-place finish in Sunday’s race on the streets of Toronto, marking his fifth consecutive top-10 finish at the 11-turn circuit. The 2021 Toronto race winner started 11th and accumulated the most on-track passes during the event, taking advantage of his Firestone alternate tires in the race’s opening laps to overtake valuable track position. The No. 2 team was one of the first teams to hit pit lane, and the Snap-on Chevrolet was serviced for four tires and fuel. With only a few on a similar strategy, Newgarden returned to the field 17th, and he continued to make stealthy progress to the front as multiple cautions lent itself to varying pitting strategies. An issue on pit lane during a stop just over halfway halted Newgarden’s progress; still, the laps remaining proved enough for the Indianapolis 500 Champion to take a late-race charge where he collected a top-five before succumbing to an empty gas tank in the race’s cool-down lap.
NEWGARDEN'S THOUGHTS: “It was pretty big (the fuel save) at the end. Thank goodness I was trying to do a little more than we needed to in the final stint just to prepare for the end. None of us knew what was happening there or what was going to happen with two laps to go. We must have had some fuel error issue because they're going off our calculations and normally they are always spot on. So something must have been messed up today, which we were unaware of. I feel terrible more than anything. I gave away a ton of positions and it was completely my fault. I just slid through the pit box. I'm more disappointed in myself for just giving away an opportunity today. I thought for sure we could have raced toward the podium with those other guys if we could have made it happen. Obviously, that would have meant more fuel save but we would have known what to do. I'm proud of my team. They did a great job. We tried to recover as best as possible. We'll have to take our top-five but unfortunately it was a day that maybe could have been better, but we just didn't realize it."
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN
NO. 3 GALLAGHER DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 2ND FINISH - 6TH POINTS - 6TH (-159)
RACE RUNDOWN: Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 Gallagher Chevrolet team had the pace to win Sunday's Honda Indy Toronto, but the delicate strategy balance did not go their way in a sixth-place finish for the New Zealander. After matching his season-best starting position of second on Saturday afternoon, McLaughlin and team elected for a slightly different, two-stop strategy. Their goal was to "overcut" the field by running longer, but an extended first pit stop and an ill-timed caution flag later in the event wiped away any gains made. Following his final pit stop, McLaughlin found himself in the 15th position. Gradually, he worked his way through the field and put himself in position to capitalize on several cars that had to make late pit stops for fuel, eventually coming home in the sixth position.
MCLAUGHLIN'S THOUGHTS: “It was an up-and-down day for us here at Toronto. We had a really fast Gallagher Chevrolet, probably a winning car but things just didn't go our way with the strategy. I will back my guys always and I think we had the right strategy. It is what it is. We are in this together, and we'll push on with another solid finish. It's hard not to feel a bit frustrated when I think we could have easily won that race."
WILL POWER
NO. 12 VERIZON 5G DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 6TH FINISH - 14TH POINTS - 8TH (-175)
RACE RUNDOWN: Will Power and the No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevrolet team was challenging for a podium finish late in Sunday's Honda Indy Toronto before a late call to pit lane for a splash of fuel relegated them to a 14th-place finish. A two-time winner on the Exhibition Place streets, Power dropped a few spots over the opening laps after taking the green flag from the sixth position. A strong pit stop on Lap 37 that included a front wing adjustment saw Power cycle past Scott Dixon - who pitted on the same lap - into the seventh position. The team called Power down pit lane for what was scheduled to be the final time on Lap 50 with most of the other competitors, and after restarting from the 10th position Power adeptly alternated between pushing his Chevy to carve his way through the field and saving fuel when he did not need to force the issue. After racing his way into the fourth position, just behind those that would finish on the podium, it became clear that he did not save quite enough fuel over the stint. A trip down pit lane for a splash of fuel with one lap remaining relegated Power to a 14th-place finish.
POWER'S THOUGHTS: "I was (surprised). Giving me a number... I could quite easily have just gotten the number and made it. We have to review all that. I'm not sure what happened there. It was good. The Verizon 5G Chevy was really good. The strategy was right. I just needed a much bigger number earlier. I had no idea we were going to run out (of fuel). If I didn't get the numbers and attacked too hard too soon, it's my fault. I was trying to put pressure on the two guys in front to run them out of fuel and probably not watching mine close enough."
WHAT'S NEXT: The 11th and 12th rounds of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season take place next weekend at Iowa Speedway in a doubleheader format. The first race takes place Saturday, July 22 at 3:00 pm ET. The second race begins Sunday, July 23 at 2:00 pm ET. Coverage of both races will be carried on NBC, Peacock, Sirius XM 209 and INDYCAR Radio