For the first time in the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season, Will Power is a race winner, winning at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis.
Team Penske’s Will Power earned his second victory in three seasons at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis around the 13-turn, 2.44-mile natural terrain road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The win was the 30th of his IndyCar career, giving him sole possession of 11th place on the all-time wins list.
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After starting the race from the pole position, the third race this season in which he has done so, Power was able to capture his first victory since he won at Pocono last season. He became the fifth different winner in as many races this season, joining Sebastien Bourdais, James Hinchcliffe, Josef Newgarden, and Simon Pagenaud as race winners in the 2017 campaign. Team Penske drivers have won the series latest three races.
Scott Dixon finished the race in 2nd place a whole 5.2830 seconds behind Power. The 2nd place finish for Dixon was his fifth top 5 finish this season in as many races. Ryan Hunter-Reay finished in a season-high 3rd place, and Simon Pagenaud notched his fifth straight top 5 finish of the season in 4th. Helio Castroneves came home in the 5th position.
Dixon was the highest finishing Honda driver in the field. Honda drivers took five of the top eight spots despite Chevrolet grabbing the win and taking three of the top five positions. The highest finishing non-Team Penske Chevrolet driver was Ed Carpenter Racing’s Spencer Pigot in 9th place.
Other Notable Statistics
The race featured a total of four lead changes among two different drivers. Will Power led the most laps, leading 61 of the race’s 85. Helio Castroneves led the other 24 laps of the race. There were no caution flag periods during the race.
Individual Ups and Downs
Max Chilton tied his career-high finish of 7th place with an impressive run which led to his first top 10 finish of the season. Graham Rahal, despite starting in 20th place, made up a field-high 14 spots to finish in a season-high 6th place. It is the third straight Grand Prix of Indianapolis race during which Rahal has finished 14 or more positions higher than the one where he started.
Spencer Pigot finished in 9th place despite having issues in the pits, and Juan Pablo Montoya finished in 10th place in his first IndyCar race of the season in what was constantly referred to as a “test run” with Team Penske to prepare for the upcoming Indianapolis 500.
Josef Newgarden incurred two straight drive-through penalties for speeding in the pits, turning what could have been a podium finish into a season-worst 11th place effort.
See full race results from the fifth race of the 2017 season at IndyCar.com.
Next: Way-Too-Early Indy 500 Driver Rankings
Next Race
The next IndyCar race is the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, May 28th, 2017 around the 4-turn, 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana. However, a huge two-day qualifying session precedes that race. That will take place on Saturday, May 20th, 2017 and Sunday, May 21st, 2017 and award hefty amounts of championship points to drivers. Practice for the race begins this coming Monday, May 15th.