IndyCar Winner Spotlight: Josef Newgarden wins 2018 Kohler Grand Prix

The 2018 Kohler Grand Prix at Road America concluded with Team Penske young gun Josef Newgarden getting back into winning form.

IndyCar traveled to Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin for the 2018 Kohler Grand Prix for another exciting race in the 2018 season. The 10th race of the 17-race season got going as the field of hungry drivers worked around the 14-turn, 4.048-mile (6.515-kilometer) road course.

Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden led the field for all but two laps of the 55-lap contest en route to taking the victory, his third of the season and first since he won the fourth race of the season at Barber Motorsports Park. Fellow American Ryan Hunter-Reay followed close behind in his #28 Andretti Autosports Honda in second place for much of the race.

The action was ever-present, with drivers moving forward and back throughout the race. Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud was the biggest mover of the race. He picked up a total of seven positions after a poor qualifying effort that results in him starting back in 14th place.

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Newgarden’s win is also significant for Team Penske, as the dominance that the powerhouse team once enjoyed has seen a reduction with the rise of competitive teams with strong driver lineups as as of late. Even still, Roger Penske’s team has five wins this season and 202 all-time.

The star of the day was the reigning IndyCar champion in his #1 Team Penske Chevrolet. Newgarden has experienced a dip in performance, as he finished in 15th place in the second round of the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit and he finished in 13th at the DXC Technology 600 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Newgarden’s win at Road America was his 10th as an IndyCar driver. The American driver was incredibly appreciative of his team and their effort to help him earn the win. Newgarden spoke with NBC Sports after the race and had this to say.

"“We were working for the entire race, but these guys (Team Penske) were the best, the gave me incredible pit stops, I think we nailed the strategy. Tim (Cindric) was coaching me through the whole thing…it was a lot of work.”"

The battle for engine manufacturer was one to watch as well during the Kohler Grand Prix, with Honda managing to secure second through sixth place and Chevrolet managing to secure first, seventh and eighth. Newgarden had nothing but praise for the Chevrolet power plant when asked about the execution of the race by NBC Sports.

"“Team Chevy did a great job this weekend. They gave me the horsepower and fuel economy to win.”"

This recent victory puts Newgarden fourth in the IndyCar championship standings with 343 points, which is 50 points behind with points leader Scott Dixon, who is holding strong with 393 points in his #9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

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With 10 races down in the 2018 IndyCar season, the race for the championship is truly open. Six different drivers have won at least one race so far in 2018, but consistency is looking to play a bigger role than it ever has before. Josef Newgarden has more wins than any driver in the series so far this season, yet his win total just hit three. Even still, he only sits in fourth in the championship standings, which is due in large part to the wealth of competitive teams and drivers that can show great pace nearly every weekend.

Will Newgarden be able to repeat his championship run from last year, or will IndyCar see a new champion crowned when the season finale at Sonoma Raceway rolls around in mid-September?