TRACK: WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY
RACE: BOMMARITO AUTOMOTIVE GROUP 500
DATE: AUGUST 27, 2023
JOSEF NEWGARDEN
NO. 2 PPG DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 1ST
FINISH - 25TH
POINTS - 3RD (-125)
RACE RUNDOWN: On Sunday, Josef Newgarden and the No. 2 PPG Chevrolet team looked to be in a position to fight for the win and a piece of history in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at Worldwide Technology Raceway before contact with the wall ultimately forced an early end to the afternoon. Looking for his fifth career win at the Worldwide Technology Raceway 1.25-mile oval and a chance to become the first driver in NTT INDYCAR SERIES history to sweep all oval races in a single season, Newgarden started from top position after qualifying second earlier in the day. The PPG Chevrolet moved up one starting spot in the order after Team Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 team were assessed a grid penalty for an engine change. Newgarden kept the PPG Chevy at the front of the field for the first 61 laps of the race before making his first pit stop of the day for fuel and Firestone Firehawk alternate tires on lap 62. It took Newgarden just four laps to return to the lead following the stop as cars cycled through on pit lane. The PPG Chevy made its second stop of the day on lap 104 after Newgarden began to encounter lapped traffic on track. After working his way back forward to second place behind eventual race winner Scott Dixon, Newgarden brought the No. 2 car back to pit lane under caution on lap 126 for fuel, primary Firestone tires and a turn of front wing. Newgarden told the PPG crew that he preferred the handling of the car better in the previous stint so on lap 146, the team took the extra front wing out of the PPG Chevy after filling the car with fuel and putting on four new Firestone tires. The reigning Indianapolis 500 champion continued his march forward and was once again running second by lap 204, trailing race leader Pato O'Ward by less than half a second. Four laps later, Newgarden was back on pit lane for new tires and fuel and he returned to the track ready to battle O'Ward and Dixon for the win over the final stint. Unfortunately, as he was making his way past cars to get back among the leaders, Newgarden moved up to the high line and made contact with the wall in Turn 4. The damage resulted in a broken right toe link on the PPG Chevrolet and, even with the valiant efforts of the No. 2 crew to fix the car, the team's day was done and Newgarden was scored in the 25th position. Despite the result which eliminated the team from championship contention, Newgarden and PPG team remain third in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship standings entering the final two races of the season.
NEWGARDEN'S THOUGHTS: "Tough result today for the PPG Chevrolet. I was just trying to push and catch up to the guys that were on a different fuel strategy so we could try to make a run at the end and just got up too high and into the marbles. I give a lot of credit to the No. 2 PPG crew for giving me a really fast car again this weekend and for trying to fix the car and get us back out there. It's not the result we were hoping for, obviously, but we'll look forward to Portland and Laguna Seca to try and finish the season strong."
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN
NO. 3 ODYSSEY BATTERY DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 10TH
FINISH - 5TH
POINTS - 5TH (-139)
RACE RUNDOWN: Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 Odyssey Battery Chevrolet team enjoyed another solid day on an oval with a fifth-place finish in Sunday's Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway. The day began with a milestone for the New Zealander as he recorded his first NTT P1 Award on an oval, running his Team Penske pole position total to 64 to once again tie Will Power for the all-time lead for the organization. Unfortunately, the No. 3 team was assessed a nine-position grid penalty prior to the green flag after electing to change engines, putting them on their fifth of the year to trigger the penalty. When the race began, McLaughlin radioed to his crew that he was dealing with a tight-handling condition around the 1.25-mile oval, which the crew improved with multiple front wing adjustments on several of the team's five trips to pit lane. Throughout some intense racing - notably with the No. 18 of David Malukas - McLaughlin was able to soldier forward to improve five positions from the start of the race by the checkered flag.
MCLAUGHLIN'S THOUGHTS: "I'm content with how our Odyssey Battery Chevy ran today. It wasn't a great day, but we were solid and grabbed some points. In hindsight, taking the grid penalty here may have been the wrong choice. We based it off how racy the track was last year, and we didn't get that today. The tire marbles were significant and that made it a one-groove racetrack. But getting my first oval pole position was a big step for me and this team. We have two good tracks for us left on the year, so our goal is to get a win."
WILL POWER
NO. 12 VERIZON 5G DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START - 8TH
FINISH - 9TH
POINTS - 7TH (-177)
RACE RUNDOWN: Will Power and the No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevrolet team bounced back from a Saturday night practice incident to record a ninth-place finish in Sunday's Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway. After the crew worked well into Saturday night to repair the damaged Chevrolet, Power started the race from the eighth position. The team's first stint of the day was the longest of any in the field, setting them up to try for a three-stop strategy. A mid-race caution flag improved those odds even more, eventually placing Power on the rear bumper of race winner, Scott Dixon, late in the event. In the end, the fuel tank on the No. 12 Chevy was just a few laps short of making it to the end during the last stint, forcing Power to pit lane with just a handful of laps remaining. After a quick splash of fuel, the reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES Champion was able to continue on to a top-10 finish.
POWER'S THOUGHTS: "I could not be prouder of everyone on the No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevy. Last night was very long with the damage they had to fix, and it looked like we may be able to sneak a top-five finish if we get a caution late in the race. Unfortunately, that didn't work out but very proud of the effort. Two races left and two more chances to get a win on the year. We can do it."
WHAT'S NEXT: The NTT INDYCAR SERIES now enters the homestretch of the 2023 season with a two-week, West Coast swing beginning Sunday, September 3 at Portland International Raceway.