IndyCar: Ryan Hunter-Reay dominates 2018 IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma

By Asher Fair | Sep 16, 2018

SONOMA, CA - SEPTEMBER 15: Ryan Hunter-Reay driver of the #28 Andretti Autosport Honda during qualifying for the Verizon IndyCar Series Sonoma Grand Prix at Sonoma Raceway on September 15, 2018 in Sonoma, California. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images) /

Ryan Hunter-Reay dominated the 17th and final race of the 2018 IndyCar season, the IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma, at Sonoma Raceway.

Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay started from the pole position in the 2018 IndyCar season finale, the IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma, at Sonoma Raceway after not starting from the pole position in an IndyCar race since he did so in the race on the streets of Long Beach, California back in the 2014 season.

Except during pit stops, he never looked back, as he was never passed for the lead of the race.

Hunter-Reay won the 85-lap race around the 12-turn, 2.385-mile (3.838-kilometer) Sonoma Raceway road course in Sonoma, California by 2.7573 seconds in his #28 Honda over Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, who secured his fifth career IndyCar championship by finishing in second place in his #9 Honda.

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Hunter-Reay’s victory is his second victory of the season, as he also won the second race of the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit on the streets of Belle Isle in Detroit, Michigan back in early June.

Team Penske teammates Will Power and Simon Pagenaud were the highest finishing Chevrolet drivers of the race. They finished in third and fourth place in their #12 Chevrolet and #22 Chevrolet, respectively. Andretti Herta Autosport’s Marco Andretti rounded out the top five by finishing in fifth in his #98 Honda.

Dale Coyne Racing’s Sebastian Bourdais, Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi, Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden, Harding Racing rookie Patricio O’Ward, who was making his first career IndyCar start, and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Ed Jones rounded out the top 10 by finishing in sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th place in their #18 Honda, #27 Honda, #1 Chevrolet, #8 Chevrolet and #10 Honda, respectively.

The race featured a total of five lead changes among three drivers. Aside of Hunter-Reay, who led more laps than anybody else in the field with 80 laps led, two other drivers led at least one lap of the race. Those drivers were Power and Newgarden.

The race also featured one caution flag period for five laps. Of the 25 drivers who started the race, all but two finished it. Of the 23 drivers who finished it, all but three finished it on the lead lap.

Here are the full race results of the 2018 IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma at Sonoma Raceway.

Race Results

1st – Ryan Hunter-Reay

2nd – Scott Dixon

3rd – Will Power

4th – Simon Pagenaud

5th – Marco Andretti

6th – Sebastien Bourdais

7th – Alexander Rossi

8th – Josef Newgarden

9th – Patricio O’Ward

10th – Ed Jones

11th – Santino Ferrucci

12th – Tony Kanaan

13th – Jordan King

14th – Zach Veach

15th – James Hinchcliffe

16th – Pietro Fittipaldi

17th – Jack Harvey

18th – Carlos Munoz

19th – Matheus Leist

20th – Colton Herta

21st – Max Chilton

22nd – Charlie Kimball

23rd – Graham Rahal

24th – Spencer Pigot

25th – Takuma Sato

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The next IndyCar race is set to be the 2019 season opener. That race is the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, and it is scheduled to take place on Sunday, March 10, 2019.