IndyCar: Team Oval Power Rankings after 2018 Iowa Corn 300
By Asher Fair
Following the fourth of six oval races on the 2018 IndyCar schedule, how do the sport’s 10 full-time teams stack up against one another as far as the oval races go?
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ James Hinchcliffe earned his first oval race victory of the 2018 IndyCar season. He did so in the Iowa Corn 300, which was the fourth oval race of the year. Two oval races remain on the 2018 schedule.
Hinchcliffe’s victory in the 300-lap race around the four-turn, 0.894-mile (1.439-kilometer) Iowa Speedway oval in Newton, Iowa was Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ first oval victory of the season as well. In fact, it was their first oval victory in team history.
A total of three teams have now won at least one oval race so far this season. Prior to Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ victory at Iowa Speedway, Team Penske won the first two oval races at ISM Raceway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Indianapolis 500) with Josef Newgarden and Will Power, respectively, and Chip Ganassi Racing won the third oval race of the season at Texas Motor Speedway with Scott Dixon.
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Ed Carpenter Racing’s Spencer Pigot and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Takuma Sato finished in second and third place, respectively, in the Iowa Corn 300. Both of the teams they driver for are teams that have not yet won an oval race so far this season.
In fact, neither one of those two teams have won an oval race since the 2016 season. Ed Carpenter Racing last won an oval race when they won at Iowa Speedway that year with Newgarden, and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing last won an oval race when they won at Texas Motor Speedway that year with Graham Rahal. With their performances in the Iowa Corn 300, both of these teams showed that they have what it takes to contend for victories in oval races.
How did Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ first oval race victory of the 2018 season affect the IndyCar Team Oval Power Rankings? Here are the formulated IndyCar Team Oval Power Rankings and the non-formulated IndyCar Team Oval Power Rankings following the fourth of six oval races on the 2018 schedule.
To see how the formulated IndyCar Team Oval Power Rankings are calculated, click here.
Formulated IndyCar Team Oval Power Rankings
| Rank | Team | Manufacturer | Last Rank | Trend |
| 1 | Schmidt Peterson Motorsports | Honda | 4 | +3 |
| 2 | Chip Ganassi Racing | Honda | 1 | -1 |
| 3 | Team Penske | Chevrolet | 3 | 0 |
| 4 | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 2 | -2 |
| 5 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | Honda | 5 | 0 |
| 6 | Ed Carpenter Racing | Chevrolet | 6 | 0 |
| 7 | Dale Coyne Racing | Honda | 8 | +1 |
| 8 | Carlin Motorsport | Chevrolet | 9 | +1 |
| 9 | Harding Racing | Chevrolet | 7 | -2 |
| 10 | A.J. Foyt Enterprises | Chevrolet | 10 | 0 |
Biggest Movers
Up: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (+3)
Down: Andretti Autosport, Harding Racing (-2)
Non-formulated IndyCar Team Oval Power Rankings
| Rank | Team | Manufacturer | Last Rank | Trend |
| 1 | Team Penske | Chevrolet | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | Schmidt Peterson Motorsports | Honda | 5 | +3 |
| 3 | Ed Carpenter Racing | Chevrolet | 4 | +1 |
| 4 | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 3 | -1 |
| 5 | Chip Ganassi Racing | Honda | 2 | -3 |
| 6 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | Honda | 6 | 0 |
| 7 | Dale Coyne Racing | Honda | 7 | 0 |
| 8 | Carlin Motorsport | Chevrolet | 9 | +1 |
| 9 | Harding Racing | Chevrolet | 8 | -1 |
| 10 | A.J. Foyt Enterprises | Chevrolet | 10 | 0 |
Biggest Movers
Up: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (+3)
Down: Chip Ganassi Racing (-3)
Next: Top 10 IndyCar drivers of all-time
The ABC Supply 500 is the next oval race on the 2018 IndyCar schedule. That race is scheduled to take place on Sunday, August 19 at 1:30 p.m. ET, and it is scheduled to be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network at that time.