TRACK: INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY ROAD COURSE
RACE: GALLAGHER GRAND PRIX
DATE: AUGUST 12, 2023
JOSEF NEWGARDEN
NO. 2 HITACHI DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 25TH
FINISH - 25TH
POINTS - 3RD (-105)
RACE RUNDOWN: Josef Newgarden and the No. 2 Hitachi Chevrolet team endured a tough day in Saturday's Gallagher Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course after an opening-lap incident relegated the team to a 25th-place finish. After qualifying in the 19th position on Friday afternoon, the No. 2 team elected to change to their fifth engine of the season and trigger a six-place grid penalty that dropped the 2023 Indianapolis 500 Champion to 25th on the starting grid. While working to get the 85-lap race off to a smooth start, Newgarden was caught up in a multi-car incident just past the backstretch on the opening lap that resulted in him going a lap down. Through subsequent drive-through penalties from being forced to pit in a closed pit lane and no cautions the rest of the way, Newgarden was not able to mount a charge to regain his lost positions. The finish drops him to third in the series standings heading into the final race at World Wide Technology Raceway where he has won the last three NTT INDYCAR SERIES races.
NEWGARDEN'S THOUGHTS: "Just a very unfortunate start to this race, but this weekend was quite a challenge from the start. We came with a new package because we have struggled lately on the Indy road course, and we wanted to do everything we could to finish the season strong. It just seemed to be one thing after another for the Hitachi Chevy team, from the 10-minute practice penalty for me being late to weigh-in, to the engine change last night to the first lap incident. Clearly not the finish we needed for the championship but this team knows how to fight. We are going to try and make everyone earn it over the last three races."
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN
NO. 3 GALLAGHER DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 10TH
FINISH - 8TH
POINTS - 4TH (-144)
RACE RUNDOWN: Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 Gallagher Chevrolet team earned a hard-fought eighth-place finish in Saturday's Gallagher Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. The most-recent NTT P1 Award winner, McLaughlin started the 85-lap event in the 10th position and quickly worked his way into the top five by Lap 17. After cycling back to the eighth position following his first trip to pit lane on Lap 20, McLaughlin rarely moved off that spot in the running order throughout the remaining laps. His finish added to his total of consecutive top-10 results, which now stands at eight with three races remaining, including the penultimate race at Portland International Raceway where he was victorious in 2022.
MCLAUGHLIN'S THOUGHTS: "Just a disappointing day today on the Indy road course. I thought we had a really good start. The Gallagher Chevy was feeling great over the opening laps, but at the end we just have no fight here right now and we have to figure that out. Our platform needs to be better. We are getting closer but we are definitely not close enough. It’s frustrating but we still finished eighth today, our eighth top-10 in a row. A good points day and we’ll press on to St. Louis."
WILL POWER
NO. 12 VERIZON 5G DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 16TH
FINISH - 6TH
POINTS - 7TH (-174)
RACE RUNDOWN: Will Power overcame a tough qualifying result to earn a strong sixth-place finish in Saturday’s Gallagher Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) road course. Power took the green flag Saturday from the 16th starting position after all three Team Penske cars struggled to find consistent speed in Friday’s qualifying session on the 2.439-mile road course. Starting on black primary Firestone Firehawk racing tires in the No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevrolet, Power withstood an eventful opening lap as multiple cars were involved in an accident that caused a full-course caution. The Verizon 5G Chevy endured a bumpy ride on the curbing in Turn 5 just before the caution period but there was no damage to the car and Power was able to continue. After running as high as 15th following the race restart, Power brought the No. 12 Chevrolet to pit lane for its first service of the day, taking on four alternate compound Firestone tires and fuel on Lap 15. Power continued to advance in the running order following the stop and by Lap 34 of the 85-lap race he had the Verizon Chevy positioned inside the top 10. After welcoming another set of red sidewall alternate tires during a Lap 37 pit stop, Power rejoined the race in 20th-place. Within seven laps, Power moved back inside the top 10 as he ran behind teammate Scott McLaughlin. The Verizon Chevy made its final stop of the race on Lap 61 as the No. 12 crew equipped the car with four sticker alternate tires and fuel. Power moved into the eighth position with 22 laps left, once again running right behind McLaughlin. Despite feeling a vibration on the No. 12 Chevy, Power continued his march forward, as he passed McLaughlin for seventh place with 17 laps remaining. From there, Power set his sights on series leader Alex Palou. With just three laps left, Power got by Palou to claim sixth place as he continued to run strong to the checkered flag. The result marked the ninth top-six finish among 15 career starts on the IMS road course for the two-time and reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion.
POWER'S THOUGHTS: "It was a good comeback for the Verizon 5G Chevy team. Just needed track position. I feel like we were the quickest car out there. It was track position, simply. Every time we got behind someone, we were faster than them, every time we’d go by and left them. Just need to work at qualifying here. It’s very hard to get it right."
WHAT'S NEXT: The NTT INDYCAR SERIES will take its final break of the season before starting the three-race run to the finish at World Wide Technology Raceway just outside St. Louis on Sunday, August 27.