IndyCar: With one final nail in the coffin, Josef Newgarden proves he can win anywhere

Josef Newgarden’s victory in the DXC Technology 600 at Texas Motor Speedway solidified the fact that he is truly capable of winning at any track on the IndyCar schedule.

The 2019 IndyCar season began on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, which was historically one of the worst tracks for Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden.

Newgarden’s average finishing position in seven previous starts at this track was just was just 13.14, and his top finish there was only a seventh place finish in the 2018 season.

His average finishing position at this track was his 11th best average finish among his average finishing positions at the 14 tracks on the 2019 IndyCar schedule at which he had previously competed, and his top finish of seventh place at the track was his 11th best top finish among his top finishes at these 14 tracks.

More from IndyCar

However, that didn’t stop him from dominating this year’s season opener. He led 60 of this race’s 110 laps, including its final 30 and 59 of its final 60, around the 14-turn, 1.8-mile (2.897-kilometer) temporary street circuit to open up the season with a victory.

The three tracks at which Newgarden entered the season with worse average finishing positions than his average finishing position on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida were Texas Motor Speedway, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the three tracks at which he entered the season with a worse top finish than his top finish on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida were Texas Motor Speedway, Portland International Raceway and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Particularly notable in the context of this article is his history at Texas Motor Speedway.

Entering the 2019 season, he had competed in seven races at the four-turn, 1.44-mile (2.317-kilometer) high-banked Texas Motor Speedway oval in Fort Worth, Texas, and his average finishing position was a disappointing 14.43. Additionally, his eight place finish at the track in the 2013 season was his only career top 10 finish there.

Texas Motor Speedway seemed to be Newgarden’s kryptonite. After all, he was also involved in a nasty accident at the track on day two of what effectively ended up being a 78-day race at the track back in the 2016 season.

Newgarden certainly didn’t have the best car in this year’s DXC Technology 600. He qualified for this race in seventh place and spent much of the night running from seventh to 10th. But a pit strategy call by race strategist Tim Cindric and great tire management by the 28-year-old Hendersonville, Tennessee native got him to the lead late in the race, and he never gave it up except for during his final pit stop.

Newgarden was challenged hard by Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, a three-time winner at Texas Motor Speedway, and Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi, Newgarden’s chief championship rival and the third place finisher of the race at the track last season, but he prevailed, leading 54 of the race’s final 59 laps, including the last 48.

In addition to being his first career victory (and his first career top seven finish) at Texas Motor Speedway, this victory was also Newgarden’s first career victory at a superspeedway.

Next. Top 10 IndyCar drivers of all-time. dark

It is safe to say that Josef Newgarden has officially solidified himself as one of the few drivers who is capable of winning at absolutely any track on the IndyCar schedule. He has won two races at what were historically two of his worst tracks entering the 2019 season, and he is leading the championship standings with a chance to win the second championship of his IndyCar career and his second in the last three seasons.