NTT INDYCAR SERIES Race Report - Iowa Race 1July 22, 2023TRACK: IOWA SPEEDWAY JOSEF NEWGARDEN RACE RUNDOWN: Josef Newgarden and the No. 2 Hitachi Chevrolet team continued their Iowa Speedway dominance as the reigning Indianapolis 500 Champion scored his fifth win on the Newton, IA oval in Saturday's Hy-Vee Homefront 250. It marks the 28th career NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory for Newgarden and his third victory of 2023, having swept all of the oval races so far this season. After qualifying third for the first race of the doubleheader weekend, Newgarden methodically worked his way to the front of the field using front-wing adjustments and working the tools available inside the cockpit of the Chevrolet over the first half of the race. It was on Lap 121 when he was able to make the move around his teammate Will Power to assume a lead he would never relinquish. With Saturday's checkered flag, Newgarden extends his total as the winningest current American driver in the series. NEWGARDEN'S THOUGHTS: “It was a great day. Look, my team is just…they are unbelievable. They gave me a great car. I show up every weekend and I feel like I have got the best of the best behind me. Team Penske, I am proud to be a part of this team and proud to have partners like Hitachi and Team Chevy. Team Chevy has been really tremendous to us, and they are always working hard, even with our feedback. They always take it and put it to use. I love Iowa and obviously it was a great day." SCOTT McLAUGHLIN RACE RUNDOWN: Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 XPEL Chevrolet team tied their best oval finish of second in Saturday's Hy-Vee Homefront 250 at Iowa Speedway. It was a 1-2 finish for Team Penske with Josef Newgarden taking the win as McLaughlin closed late in the 250-lap race to make it an exciting finish. After a brief rain shower delayed qualifying for an hour and a half, McLaughlin placed his No. 3 Chevy on the front row for the second time this season. The former Australian Supercars Champion spent the opening stint focusing on tire wear while keeping race leader and teammate, Will Power, firmly in his sights. While battling his teammates for the lead, McLaughlin was caught behind a slower car while coming to pit lane for his second stop of the day, resulting in several lost seconds of lap time when returning to the track. He eventually worked his way back up to the second position and regularly applied pressure to Newgarden for the lead but was unable to make the pass for his first oval win of his career. WILL POWER RACE RUNDOWN: Will Power added to his record number of NTT INDYCAR SERIES P1 Awards on Saturday morning before driving his No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevrolet to a fifth-place finish in the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 at Iowa Speedway. Under a unique qualifying format for the doubleheader weekend, a two-lap run determined the starting positions for each race. Power capitalized on a stout Chevrolet to sweep the top spot for both races and now sits at 70 pole positions throughout his illustrious career. When the green flag fell, Power immediately shot to the front of the field and remained there for the 120 laps before teammate Josef Newgarden made the pass for the lead. The defending series champion would ride in the second position until making slight contact with the outside wall on Lap 146. While it resulted in a few lost positions, Power was able to soldier on to cross the finish line in the fifth position for his fourth, top-five finish of 2023. POWER'S THOUGHTS: "The Verizon 5G Chevy wasn't damaged too badly with the wall contact, but we definitely had a bit of push after that. I just got a little high. The car in front went up and took the air and boom. It was a pretty square it and I was worried about how much force goes through the suspension. We will probably have to change it tonight." WHAT'S NEXT: The second race of the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend begins tomorrow at 2:30 pm ET. Coverage will be carried on NBC, Peacock, Sirius XM 209 and INDYCAR Radio Back to previous page.Copyright ©2008-2016 Penske Racing. All rights reserved |