IndyCar: Simon Pagenaud wins 2019 IndyCar Grand Prix

Simon Pagenaud earned his first victory since the 2017 IndyCar season by winning the 2019 season’s fifth race, the IndyCar Grand Prix, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud ended what was a 21-race win drought going back to the 2017 IndyCar season finale at Sonoma Raceway by winning the 17-race 2019 season’s fifth race, the IndyCar Grand Prix, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Pagenaud, who started this 85-lap race around the 13-turn, 2.439-mile (3.925-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in Speedway, Indiana in eighth place in his #22 Chevrolet, entered the race as one of only two drivers who had ever won it in five attempts.

Pagenaud won the inaugural running of the race back in the 2014 season driving for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, and he won it again in the 2016 season driving for Team Penske. Team Penske’s Will Power won the race in the 2015, 2017 and 2018 seasons.

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This race came down to a battle between Pagenaud and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon. As Dixon pulled away from the field following the final restart and the laps wound down, Pagenaud, who had passed several cars after this restart, was stuck in fourth place behind A.J. Foyt Enterprises’ Matheus Leist in third.

After passing Leist for third place, Pagenaud was then stuck behind Meyer Shank Racing’s Jack Harvey in second. But after passing Harvey, he quickly closed the gap to Dixon, and with under two laps remaining, he and the five-time IndyCar champion made contact in turn seven before the 34-year-old Frenchman ultimately emerged with the lead and went on to win the race by 2.0469 seconds over Dixon in second in his #9 Honda.

Here is a video of Pagenaud’s winning pass.

The winning move. What a drive, @simonpagenaud 💪#INDYCARGP // #ThisIsMay pic.twitter.com/piKGPkvefs
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) May 11, 2019

Harvey, who had never previously finished an IndyCar race in the top nine, ended up finishing in a career-high third place in his #60 Honda while Leist, who had never previously finished an IndyCar race in the top 10, finished in a career-high fourth in his #4 Chevrolet.

Ed Carpenter Racing teammates Spencer Pigot and Ed Jones finished in season-high positions of fifth and sixth place in their #21 Chevrolet and #20 Chevrolet, respectively, ahead of Power in seventh in his #12 Chevrolet.

Chip Ganassi Racing rookie Felix Rosenqvist, who started the race from the pole position in his #10 Honda, finished in eighth place. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal and Dale Coyne Racing rookie Santino Ferrucci rounded out the top 10 by finishing in ninth and 10th in their #15 Honda and #19 Honda, respectively.

Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden, after going on an alternate pit strategy early on, appeared to be in a great position to win the race ahead of Carlin rookie Patricio O’Ward and Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ James Hinchcliffe, two drivers who joined him on that alternate pit strategy after being given drive-through penalties for avoidable contact earlier in the race.

O’Ward hit Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi at the start of the race, which ruined Rossi’s race from the start, and Hinchcliffe spun out Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay on the lap 16 restart that ensued after Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports rookie Marcus Ericsson crashed to begin the race’s first caution flag period on lap 11.

Hunter-Reay spun into the already spun-out car of Harding Steinbrenner Racing rookie Colton Herta, which knocked Herta out of the race and began the race’s second caution flag period.

However, this strategy ultimately did not pay off for these drivers. Right before the race’s third and final caution flag period, which began on lap 60 when Team Penske’s Helio Castroneves spun out coming out of the pits and stalled his car in the grass, they came into the pits for slick tires. Other drivers, meanwhile, came into the pits for wet tires.

At first, Pagenaud and a few others did not come into the pits at all.

Minutes later, the rain really started to come down, and the drivers who came into the pits for slick tires or had not yet came into the pits at all came into the pits again for wet tires. To make matters worse for Newgarden, his pit crew allowed a stray tire of his to roll across the pit lane, which effectively ruined his race, as it caused him to be penalized and set to the back of the field for the race’s final restart.

Newgarden ended up finishing in 15th place in his #2 Chevrolet and of Hinchcliffe in 16th in his #5 Honda. O’Ward ended up finishing in 19th in his #31 Chevrolet.

The race featured a total of 10 lead changes among six drivers. Aside of Pagenaud, who led only five laps en route to earning the victory, five drivers led at least one lap of the race. Dixon led more laps than anybody in the field with 39 laps led. The other four drivers who led at least one lap of the race were Newgarden, Rosenqvist, Rahal and Dale Coyne Racing’s Sebastien Bourdais.

The race also featured a total of three caution flag periods, which were outlined in more detail above, for 15 laps. Of the 24 drivers who started the race, 22 finished it, and of the 22 drivers who finished the race, 19 finished on the lead lap.

Here are the full race results of the 2019 IndyCar Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Race Results
1st – Simon Pagenaud
2nd – Scott Dixon
3rd – Jack Harvey
4th – Matheus Leist
5th – Spencer Pigot
6th – Ed Jones
7th – Will Power
8th – Felix Rosenqvist
9th – Graham Rahal
10th – Santino Ferrucci
11th – Sebastien Bourdais
12th – Zach Veach
13th – Marco Andretti
14th – Takuma Sato
15th – Josef Newgarden
16th – James Hinchcliffe
17th – Ryan Hunter-Reay
18th – Max Chilton
19th – Patricio O’Ward
20th – Tony Kanaan
21st – Helio Castroneves
22nd – Alexander Rossi
23rd – Colton Herta
24th – Marcus Ericsson

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The next race on the 2019 IndyCar schedule is the season’s sixth race and the crown jewel of the schedule, the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500. Indianapolis Motor Speedway is scheduled to host this race on Sunday, May 26, and it is set to be broadcast live on NBC beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET.