Monday Practice for the 500

Interesting Mix of times on Monday.

It is a very interesting read of the timesheet after there final session on track on Monday before the quick dash on Carb Day and then the 500 itself.
Its a very open field for the 102nd running of the great race.

Don't forget Issue 1 of Race Control out now to complete your month of May reading

https://www.zinio.com/race-control-m34249

You can also follow our updates on FaceBook as well.
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Power takes 3rd Indy GP win.

Power makes history with third INDYCAR Grand Prix win, 200th Indy car win for Team Penske

Will Power etched his name further into the INDYCAR Grand Prix record books while extending the legacy of team owner Roger Penske in Indy car history.

Power won the Verizon IndyCar Series race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course for the second straight year and third time overall - each victory coming from the pole position. Power's triumph by 2.2443 seconds over Scott Dixon also marked Indy car win No. 200 for Team Penske, nearly double that of any other team.

"It's amazing," said Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. "It just shows what sort of team that Penske is, and it's a real honor to drive for Roger. We're given the equipment week in and week out to win, so I can't thank him enough for the opportunity he's given me."

Power led 56 of 85 laps on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile permanent road course to collect his 33rd career victory (ninth all time). Thirty of those triumphs have come since joining Team Penske in 2009, tying the 37-year-old Australian with Helio Castroneves for the most with the team.

Power chased down race leader Robert Wickens, who started second in the No. 6 Lucas Oil Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda, and made a daring outside pass heading into Turn 1 on Lap 51 to take first place. Seven laps later, Power's crew barely got him out of the pits in front when nearly the entire field made final stops for fuel and tires under the second and last full-course caution of the race.

From there, Power kept Wickens and then Dixon in his mirrors to the finish - all the while stretching his tank of Sunoco E85 ethanol to the checkered flag.

"I had to save a lot of fuel at the end and go fast because I knew how good Dixon is at saving fuel and going fast. The Chevy had great fuel mileage," said Power, the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series champion. "Man, I've never driven so hard for an entire race. I was 100 percent the whole time. Yeah, I'm exhausted. Every lap was like a qualifying lap."

Team Penske made its Indy car debut on June 15, 1968, at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada, with driver Mark Donohue. Three years later, Donohue delivered the team's first win at Pocono Raceway. In 1972, Donohue drove to the first of what is now a record 16 Indianapolis 500 wins for Team Penske. Adding the four INDYCAR Grand Prix victories, 10 percent of Team Penske's Indy car wins (20 of 200) have come at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Penske, the 81-year-old mastermind of the team, downplayed the achievement of the 200th win. He gave credit to Power and his crew while also looking ahead to the prize he craves most - another Indianapolis 500 win.

"What a great day for the team," Penske said. "The greatest drivers have performed for us. IMS is the most special place to secure our 200th win. I could not think of a better setting. The most important win now is No. 201."

Dixon, bidding to pick up a 42nd career victory that would tie him for third all-time with Michael Andretti, was satisfied to finish runner-up for the 39th time in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda - particularly after a disappointing qualifying effort on Friday locked him into the 18th starting position.

"It was a great result today for the PNC Bank car and the whole team," the four-time Verizon IndyCar Series champion said. "Everyone on the Ganassi team never quits, never gives up and we were able to make up a lot of spots and finish second. 

"I think that was the worst I've ever qualified without crashing or having a technical issue. Good day in the points for the No. 9 team. I love having this race open up the month for us here at Indy."

Wickens continued to impress in his rookie season, collecting a second podium and third top-four finish in five races. The 29-year-old Canadian admitted that trying to race hard while conserving fuel in the final stint was a learning experience.

"It was the first time in my career I've had to save fuel like that, but in the end, happy with the podium," Wickens said. "Would have liked to be a bit further up, but hard to complain."

Sebastien Bourdais finished fourth in the No. 18 Team SealMaster Honda, using his push-to-pass overtake boost on the final lap to zip past Alexander Rossi (No. 27 NAPA AUTO PARTS Honda) for the position. Helio Castroneves, making his Verizon IndyCar Series return following a full-time switch this season to Team Penske's sports-car program, placed sixth in the No. 3 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet.

The race tied an INDYCAR Grand Prix record with seven different leaders and featured 214 on-track passes with the 2018 car's universal aero kit - an increase of 96 passes from a year ago. 

There were two full-course caution periods for eight laps. The first came on the opening lap when Castroneves and teammate Simon Pagenaud touched, and Jordan King ran into the back of Pagenaud. The second caution waved on Lap 56 when Josef Newgarden spun trying to pass Bourdais.

Newgarden finished the race in 11th place, but continues leading the standings. The reigning series champion is two points ahead of Rossi, 26 up on Bourdais and 31 ahead of Dixon.

Following two days off to convert the cars and Indianapolis Motor Speedway to superspeedway oval configuration, practice for the 102nd Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil begins on Tuesday. Qualifying to set the 33-car field takes place May 19-20. 

Mazda Road to Indy results

Colton Herta (Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing) outdueled Santi Urrutia (Belardi Auto Racing) to the win the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race on the IMS road course for the second straight day. After six races, Herta trails Andretti Autosport teammate Pato O'Ward by one point in the standings.

Parker Thompson (Exclusive Autosport) drove to his second win of the season in the second Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires race of the weekend. Thompson opened a 22-point advantage in the standings over Rinus VeeKay (Juncos Racing) after six races.

In the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda Kyle Kirkwood (Cape Motorsports) held off Alex Baron (Swan-RJB Motorsports) in the second race of the weekend, in a reversal of the first race finishing order. Kirkwood leads Baron by 13 points in the championship after four races.  

Don't forget Issue 1 of Race Control the all new IndyCar fan magazine launches this week. Look out for it on ZINIO.com simply search Race Control from this Thursday. A link will be posted here as well. Its a must read for the month of May.

Looking to 2018

Where will they be in IndyCar in 2018.

Now that the dust has started to settle from the 2017 season the question remains who will be where in 2018.

In  a brief look and a stab at it this is kinda where we see things as they stand now and it includes the chances of new full time teams as well.

So based on the current intel heres a look at a likely car and team count.

4: Andretti Autosport (Ryan Hunter-Reay, Alexander Rossi, Marco Andretti, Zach Veach) Pretty much all out in the open a while ago and back with the Honda engine still as well. Add in Stefan Wilson for the 500 as well and well required for all he let go in 2017.

3: Team Penske (Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud, Will Power) Then Helio in for the 102nd running of the 500 and JPM now not in the mix for a five car deal at Indy.

2: Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Graham Rahal, Takuma Sato) now all official 

2: Chip Ganassi Racing (Scott Dixon, TBD) down from 4 to 2 and bet you bottom dollar Chip will be chasing hard on a title and a 500 in 2018 thats for sure. Who will get to be in the 10 car don't rule out ex WEC Porsche driver and LeMan 2017 winner and World Champ for Porsche kiwi Brendon Hartley -- making CGR an all kit line up. However I do think there is more to go here yet and this would be one of the most prized seats around so expect it to drag out a little more just yet.

2: Dale Coyne Racing (Sebastien Bourdais, TBD) This one normally is pretty close to St Pete before its known and it will need a driver with funds

2: Ed Carpenter Racing (Spencer Pigot, Ed Carpenter/TBD) a great seat to have and newgarden can say that more than anyone so expect Ed to be talent spotting but then again equally a need to pay bills so a pay driver or as he mentioned recently one for the longer term

2: A.J. Foyt Racing (Tony Kanaan, TBD) Will either of last seasons drivers return one would think so but which one Daly or Munoz thats the very big question.

2: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (TBD, TBD) One would have to expect Hinch to be back but then again maybe the number 10 at CGR might suit him or Chip thats a tough one and as for the other driver that again could be a little way from becoming known.

1: Harding Racing (Gabby Chaves) the first of the new teams and after a great showing at Indy they are a very welcome addition to the line up.

1: Juncos Racing: (TBD) Another of the possible new teams and many will want this seat and they will want someone that knows the game I feel.

1: Carlin Racing (TBD) if  this does happen one would have to say Chilton is the likely person for the seat.

So where does that leave drivers from 2017 such as Kimball , Jones, Hildebrand, Gutierrez,  Harvey , Mann,Karam, Vautier and Saavedra for 2018 hmm one can only guess right now and while the 500 will be very appealing you can be certain all of the above alone what full time drives in 2018 first and foremost.

So in many ways the puzzle of 2018 has only just began its a case of watch that space. Maybe Dario has it all inside this book.

Don't forget Christmas is fast approaching so check these out at Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Indy-500-Bound-Travel-tips-ebook/dp/B01BM4K71E/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1507690768&sr=1-1&keywords=indy+500+david+turner

https://www.amazon.com/Mystique-Indy-Brickyard-David-Turner-ebook/dp/B01EEROF5U/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1507690768&sr=1-2&keywords=indy+500+david+turner



Photos supplied by Lyn Davy Media and the David Turner collection from the Sonoma IndyCar event in 2017.

The Championship at Sonoma

The chase for the 2017 Indy Car Championship.

It all comes down to the final race – again. Saturday in Sonoma saw Verizon Indy Car Series points leader Josef Newgarden withstand constant pressure from his nearest championship competitors, setting a track record to win the Verizon P1 Award in GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma qualifying.

Newgarden earned his first pole of the season and second of his six-year career with a scintillating last lap of 1 minute, 15.5205 seconds (113.691 mph) on Sonoma Raceway's 2.385-mile, 12-turn permanent road course. The championship bonus point Newgarden collected for winning the pole stretched his advantage to four points over Scott Dixon heading into Sunday's season finale that offers double race points.

It set up the dramatic run for the pole. Newgarden - the only Team Penske driver to use a new set of the Firestone alternate tires in the first round - was quickest in the Firestone Fast Six with another lap record completed on a used set of red-sidewall alternates despite his teammates each having a new set of the softer alternates at their disposal.

"We were behind the eight ball there, for sure, after the first round," Newgarden said. "We made the best decision we could as a group. There was no way we couldn't run the reds (in first-round qualifying) because we just had no idea what people were going to run.

For Dixon he scrapped though the first round of qualifying at a track where the Chevy aero kit seems to have the upper hand over the Honda set up. He did make it to the final section in qualifying the fast six, which was a positive sign apart from the gang of Penske drivers up front "The car was kind of decent to drive, but just couldn't carry the speed through the corners," said Dixon, seeking his fifth Verizon Indy Car Series championship. A win Sunday would accomplish the feat.

"Good to make it through to where we did," Dixon added. "It was definitely hard work, a big credit to the team. Sixth position, you can definitely make lots happen from there. I think in '15 we started ninth when we won that race (and the championship). Definitely you'd want to be a little further up, but that's the way it goes."

The starting order for the race and the grid for the last race of the championship season looked like this and with that the die was set for the one race shoot out for the championship title.

1. (2) Josef Newgarden,                                     Chevrolet,                  01:15.5205 (113.691) 
2. (12) Will Power,                                            Chevrolet,                  01:15.5556 (113.638)
3. (1) Simon Pagenaud,                                    Chevrolet,                   01:15.6356 (113.518)
4. (3) Helio Castroneves,                                  Chevrolet,                  01:15.8032 (113.267)
5. (26) Takuma Sato,                                         Honda,                       01:16.2208 (112.646)
6. (9) Scott Dixon,                                             Honda,                       01:16.3978 (112.385)
7. (28) Ryan Hunter-Reay,                                 Honda,                       01:16.1815 (112.705)
8. (98) Alexander Rossi,                                     Honda,                      01:16.1934 (112.687)
9. (15) Graham Rahal,                                        Honda,                      01:16.1968 (112.682)
10. (18) Sebastien Bourdais,                               Honda,                      01:16.5811 (112.116)
11. (27) Marco Andretti,                                     Honda,                      01:16.8221 (111.765)
12. (10) Tony Kanaan,                                        Honda,                       01:16.9718 (111.547)
13. (4) Conor Daly,                                             Chevrolet,                   01:17.1016 (111.360) 
14. (8) Max Chilton,                                            Honda,                       01:16.7581 (111.858)
15. (83) Charlie Kimball,                                     Honda,                       01:17.1417 (111.302)
16. (5) James Hinchcliffe,                                    Honda,                       01:16.9539 (111.573)
17. (20) Spencer Pigot,                                        Chevrolet,                  01:17.2662 (111.122)
18. (19) Ed Jones,                                                 Honda,                      01:17.0231 (111.473)
19. (7) Jack Harvey,                                             Honda,                       01:17.2722 (111.114)
20. (21) JR Hildebrand,                                     Chevrolet,                   01:17.1602 (111.275)
21. (13) Zachary Claman DeMelo,                    Honda,                        01:17.2814 (111.100)
22. (14) Carlos Munoz,                                     Chevrolet,                   01:17.2507 (111.145)

Sunday dawned a great sunny warm morning clearing skies after early morning fog and an atmosphere you could cut a knife though as everyone along the paddock area could sense there was to be a lot on the line today. The morning warm up pretty much went in a flash with nothing major to report. Newgarden looking calm and busy taking selfies in the pit lane before jumping in the car, Dixon had a slightly concerned look but proved to be very fast in the session.

A few hours later and it was race time, the anthems played, the driver intros happened and the day time fireworks went with a bang and the then it was game time 85 laps and pretty much winner take all.

For Team Penske, it was to become the perfect day. Simon Pagenaud won the race to conclude the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season. Teammate Josef Newgarden finished second to wrap up the championship.

Pagenaud, the 2016 champion driving the No. 1 DXC Technology Team Penske Chevrolet, beat Newgarden to the finish line by 1.0986 seconds to win the 85-lap race at Sonoma Raceway. It was the Frenchman's 11th career victory and second straight on the 2.385-mile, 12-turn permanent road course. A year ago, Pagenaud won from the pole position at Sonoma to sew up his first championship. It did manage to get a little tense when after the last batch of pit stops came and the NO 1 car took the lead as Newgarden looked to have a shot of passing him but was reminded via team radio to be smart and smart he was.

He clinched his first title and the $1 million champion's prize by finishing second in the race. The 26-year-old Tennessean held off Pagenaud by 13 points in the final standings to become the first American driver to win the championship since Ryan Hunter-Reay five years ago. If ever Indy Car needed to sell the series within its own country yet again the have the most ideal way to do it and market this new champ.

"I don't even know what to say," said Newgarden, the driver of the No. 2 hum by Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet who made his 100th career start today. "It was all year and it took a lot to make it happen. Thank you to my teammates. They were giving me a lot of help to make sure we got this done. It's a huge team effort at Team Penske.

"To finally get it done is a dream come true."

The championship is the 15th for Team Penske, the most decorated team in Indy car history. Newgarden joins the likes of Tom Sneva, Rick Mears, Al Unser, Danny Sullivan, Al Unser Jr., Gil de Ferran, Sam Hornish Jr., Will Power and Pagenaud as Team Penske drivers to win an Indy car title.

"I've had so many great drivers, and as I said, I don't have a favorite," team owner Roger Penske said. "I can't compare (Newgarden) to anyone exactly. He's an American, which is special in this sport because many of the other drivers have come from overseas and different parts of the world. To see Josef kind of take this route and be at the top right now is pretty exciting."

The race ran caution-free for the first time in Sonoma Raceway history, which now spans 14 Indy car events. Newgarden and Pagenaud each led 41 laps. Pagenaud opted for a four-stop strategy to Newgarden's three pit stops, but the Frenchman made up the extra time in pit lane by turning faster laps on an open track.

Pagenaud completed all 2,331 laps this season, becoming just the second driver to finish every lap in a season. Tony Kanaan was the first, when he completed all 3,305 laps when he won the 2004 championship.

"We did what we had to do," Pagenaud said. "We tried. We won the race; it wasn't enough. It's a whole championship. You've got to be strong in every race and I guess Josef was a little stronger this year, so we'll come back. Thirteen points. Next year we'll come back and give him a hell of a competition again."

Power, the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series champion, gave Team Penske a race podium sweep by placing third in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske. Scott Dixon finished fourth in the No. 9 NTT Data Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing to clinch third in the standings, 23 points behind Newgarden. It is the 11th time in his 17-year career that Dixon, a four-time champion, has finished in the top three in points. The kiwi may not have won the title but by heck his stats are so impressive, 11 times in the top 3 at a season end just for starters wow. Big points lost at both Indy and Texas were without a doubt the areas where it perhaps got away from the very likeable kiwi. Speaking after the race  Dixon said "It just seems like the No. 3 car covered us. Every time we short-pitted they followed us and he was just a massive roadblock. Once we got into clean air, we were able to make up ground, but every time we got into traffic we got real loose. Huge credit to everyone on the NTT Data crew obviously not the way we wanted to finish. A big congrats to Penske and Josef (Newgarden) on a job well done."

Speaking of number 3 Helio Castroneves wrapped up fourth in the standings by finishing fifth in the race driving the No. 3 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet. Completing his 20th year racing Indy cars, the 42-year-old Brazilian is still in search of his first series championship.

By finishing third in the race, Power - the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series champion - earned fifth place in the standings.

In what really became a rather uneventful race it had plenty in it as the power of four Penske cars took on the lone Ganassi entry.

In the recent days since the event so much has happened, Castroneves tested the Penske sports car the very next day across the other side of the country in Florida and there is still some talk of him remaining in Indy Car full time and that announcement will come in the next few weeks. TK confirmed the move to A.J. Foyt racing for 2018 so someone (Daly or Munoz) wont be staying there, Sato was officially confirmed at Rahal Letterman Racing for next season, it’s a shame he wont be at Andretti Autosport in 2018 to build on a great year in 2017 and then the Ganassi news of Wednesday 20^th of only two full time cars in 2018 for Dixon stays while the others have either moved on or gone and hmm Brendon Hartley making it an all kiwi line up next season – well watch that space but the rumours are very strong that’s for sure. Ganassi saying on Wednesday its time to get back to running two strong entries and running them well. I think there is more to come in this story yet that’s for sure.

So recapping the race this is how it finished up.

1. (3) Simon Pagenaud,                                     Chevrolet,                   85, Running 
2. (1) Josef Newgarden,                                     Chevrolet,                   85, Running
3. (2) Will Power,                                               Chevrolet,                   85, Running
4. (6) Scott Dixon,                                             Honda,                         85, Running
5. (4) Helio Castroneves,                                   Chevrolet,                    85, Running
6. (9) Graham Rahal,                                          Honda,                         85, Running
7. (11) Marco Andretti,                                      Honda,                          85, Running
8. (7) Ryan Hunter-Reay,                                   Honda,                          85, Running
9. (10) Sebastien Bourdais,                                Honda,                          85, Running
10. (13) Conor Daly,                                          Chevrolet,                    85, Running
11. (15) Charlie Kimball,                                   Honda,                         85, Running
12. (14) Max Chilton,                                        Honda,                         85, Running
13. (17) Spencer Pigot,                                     Chevrolet,                   84, Running
14. (20) JR Hildebrand,                                     Chevrolet,                   84, Running
15. (22) Carlos Munoz,                                     Chevrolet,                   84, Running 
16. (12) Tony Kanaan,                                       Honda,                        84, Running                 
17. (21) Zachary Claman DeMelo,                  Honda,                         84, Running
18. (19) Jack Harvey,                                        Honda,                        84, Running
19. (18) Ed Jones,                                              Honda,                        69, Off Course
20. (5) Takuma Sato,                                          Honda,                        62, Off Course 
21. (8) Alexander Rossi,                                    Honda,                        60, Running
22. (16) James Hinchcliffe,                               Honda,                         52, Electrical 

Race Statistics
Winner's average speed: 104.968 mph
Time of Race: 1:55:52.6840
Margin of victory: 1.0986 seconds
Cautions: 0
Lead changes: 6 among 3 drivers

Lap Leaders:
Newgarden 1-17 
Daly 18-20 
Pagenaud 21-29 
Newgarden 30-39 
Pagenaud 40-47 
Newgarden 48-61 
Pagenaud 62-85 

Verizon IndyCar Series point standings: Newgarden 642, Pagenaud 629, Dixon 621, Castroneves 598, Power 562, Rahal 522, Rossi 494, Sato 441, Hunter-Reay 421, Kanaan 403.

Coming soon I will review the 2017 season and look back at some of the stand outs of the great season it was and now we count down to 2018. Ganassi already back into it this weekend with an official test planned with the 2018 aero kit.

Media quotes via Indy Car Media Services.

Photos David Turner

The Chase for the 2017 IndyCar Title

Countdown to the 2017 Indy Car Championship.

This Sunday in the U.S. will see yet another classic Indy Car Series year come to an end and yet again another championship that goes to the wire and once again it makes a very strong statement about the quality of this series and the drivers that compete in it. For the winner the title and the Astor Cup. Sonoma plays host to the Grand Final for the third year in a row and the 2.385 mile permanent road course with up and down hill climbs will be a great challenge to all. 85 laps will make up the race distance, with a total of 150 seconds of useable push to pass activation for the drivers. Seven sets of Firestone primary tires and four sets of the alternate compound. Teams must use one set of each during the race. That’s kind of almost the easy bit.

Point’s leader is Josef Newgarden going into this the final round of the series this weekend at the Sonoma racetrack just across the bay from the city of San Francisco. He is the new boy on the block in terms of been in this type of position at this time of the year and will that pressure come into play. At the last round leaving the pit at Watkins Glen certainly saw signs of increased pressure as he battled with team mate Will Power out of the pit resulting in an error from Newgarden and hitting the pit lane exit wall. A margin of just 3 points over the 4 time champ Kiwi Scott Dixon who lies in a very strong second after a very dramatic season, who in turn is only 19 points ahead of Helio Castroneves in third he trails the leader by 22. Pausing here for just a second and looking at the top 3. Newgarden an awesome year with four wins in his first full series with Team Penske strong performances but never had the pressure a championship weekend brings. Dixon been there before, won the championship four times and his stats are simply mind blowing. 286 Indy Car starts won the series four times 41 wins overall, 26 poles, 96 top 3 finishes and 140 top 5’s and across his Indy Car life he has lead 5031 laps of racing simply outstanding oh yes and the 2008 Indy 500 title as well. Castroneves on the other hand 3 Indy 500 wins but never claimed a championship so will history repeat itself one has to wonder and this very well maybe his last full time Indy Car season so it very much is a now or never for the very likeable Brazilian.

Moving outside of the top 3 and there are four others that can in theory win the crown and with the final event a double points race there is 100 points on the table for the win plus bonus points for laps lead and poles. In a small side note if Newgarden and Dixon were to tie Dixon would win based on more bonus points rather than race wins. Back to the other contenders then. Current camp Simon Pagenaud is still in the game that’s for sure and while he sits fourth he is only 34 points away from the top of the table, he was also the race winner in 2016 and set a new qualifying record then as well so he is very much suited to this track. Fifth is the last of the four Penske drivers Will Power at 68 points behind the leader and its still possible that’s for sure. One can of course remember Power coming together with Montoya a few years back (2015) costing JPM the title and gifting it to Dixon on a tiebreaker and count back so team boss Roger Penske won’t be wanting that same out come. Then to sixth place and still in with a chance is Alexander Rossi for Andretti Autosport some 84 points behind the leader but the most recent race winner and on a bit of a roll after resigning with the team for next season and rounding out the points chances is Graham Rahal 94 points behind the leader and really out of the chase as it requires too many other things to happen.

So four Penske drivers all in with a chance surround Dixon all Chevy powered to his lone Honda powered entry before the next Honda powered car of Rossi and with little teammate support around him. This of course is both good or bad however time will tell but if there was ever a need for Kennan (9^th), Kimball (17^th) and Chilton (12^th) to get up front now is the time to steal points and protect the team leader while the bunch of Penske drivers race for a tile or trip each other up.

Honda v Chevy and its really anyone’s game in that department but maybe slightly leaning towards Chevy on the Road Course rather than Hondas aero package more suited to the ovals.

No matter what Sunday will bring a championship title and a crown to one of these drivers, if it happens to be Dixon he becomes a five-time winner.

In closing the rumour mill of who is where in 2018 well that keeps getting hotter all the time. Penske down to three full time cars its pretty much out there now and it should and will see the departure of Helio while at Ganassi expect Dixon to be the only one of the current crop that stays while the others depart to shores unknown (apart from TK whom looks set to join AJ Foyt Racing, which is something he has always wanted to do and drive for AJ at Indy) and there is even talk of the team down sizing for 2018 to a two car team and the very very high chance it will be an all Kiwi team with Brendon Hartley set to join and drive the number 10 car heck roll on 2018 already and many hands to be played yet as well.

Photos:

Scott Dixon and the Astor Cup for the IndyCar Championship – Chris Owens Indy Car Media Services

1 Down and 3 to go

IndyCar hits the final exciting stretch for 2017.

                                                        Will Power post race at this years Indy GP

After last weekends great event at Long Pond, Pennsylvania a new contender of sorts has entered the mix in the chase for the 2017 Championship title. Will Power overcame numerous obstacles to get to the front, then held off charging Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden to win the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway for a second straight year. Now with just three races left this season, one oval this weekend at Gateway, followed by the road course at Watkins Glen and the the trip to the West Coast to wrap it all up at Sonoma its going to yet another great season ending to another great IndyCar season.

Power defeated Newgarden by 0.5268 of a second to become the first Indy car driver to post back-to-back wins on the three-turn, 2.5-mile oval in the event's 24-race history. It was also Power's third triumph this season and the 32nd of his 13-year career, moving the 36-year-old Australian into sole possession of ninth place on the all-time Indy car victory list ahead of Dario Franchitti and Paul Tracy."It seriously means a lot. I love racing on ovals," said Power, whose win today is his sixth on an oval track. "Every oval win I get, I really, really enjoy because we don't have many of them. "To come back and win it again in a very different way this year - it was a crazy race, exciting to me - but feels fantastic to go back-to-back."The results also kept the battle for the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series championship tight with three races remaining. 

Newgarden leads Scott Dixon by 18 points, Helio Castroneves by 22, Simon Pagenaud by 26 and Power by 42. The top 15 drivers in the standings remain mathematically alive for the title.

                                                     Dixon post race with team owner Chip Ganassi

Starting the 200-lap race from fifth, Power made an unscheduled green-flag pit stop on Lap 66 to replace a front wing assembly on his No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet and went a lap down. He later had a damaged rear wing assembly replaced during a caution period. Still, Power persevered, was back on the lead lap with 75 to go and worked his way through the field.A lightning-quick pit stop on Lap 177 put Power ahead of the other front-runners who had stopped before him. When race leader Marco Andretti, who was off pit sequence, stopped for fuel on Lap 190, Power assumed first place and withstood pressure from Newgarden and Alexander Rossi over the final 10 laps."Once I got my lap back, I was like, 'All right, it's game on,' I can definitely get back up there," said Power, who has four top-five finishes in the last five races. "I was thinking like top-5 (finish), but when I was pumping out like 217 (mph) laps, I'm like, 'OK, we're going to make some serious hay here.'"The guys did a fantastic job in the pits having to do all that and still able to go ahead and win the race."

Newgarden took consolation that his points lead expanded slightly with the second-place finish."It was a good day for points," said Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 Fitzgerald Glider Kits Team Penske Chevrolet. "Tough when you have an opportunity to potentially win a race at the end of it, but I don't think we had enough for Will, to be honest with you."I'm happy for Team Penske. It's a 1-2 at the end of the day, so keeping it in the family. 

When one car wins, we kind of all win."Rossi led 44 laps and finished third in the No. 98 Andretti Autosport/Curb Honda to earn his second podium finish in the past three races. "It's a really good result, but when you come so close to a win, it's sometimes difficult to swallow," Rossi said. "Looking back to where we were at Pocono last year, when we had a strong car and didn't finish, to come back to be on the podium is a testament to Andretti Autosport and the entire team and the work that they've done all year."Reigning Verizon IndyCar Series champion Pagenaud was fourth in the No. 1 DXC Technology Team Penske Chevrolet, with Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Tony Kanaan and Dixon (who led a race-high 51 laps) finishing fifth and sixth, respectively.Hunter-Reay, who sustained left hip and knee injuries in a qualifying crash Saturday, charged from the 21st starting position to lead 12 laps before finishing eighth in the No. 28 DHL Honda for Andretti Autosport.The thrilling race featured 42 lead changes - a Pocono race record - among 10 drivers. At one point, Kanaan and Graham Rahal swapped the lead for 12 consecutive laps. The race was slowed by three cautions, including one when James Hinchcliffe and JR Hildebrand collided in Turn 1 on Lap 125. Neither driver was injured.The Verizon IndyCar Series returns to action on Saturday, Aug. 26 with the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Valvoline at Gateway Motorsports Park in Madison, Illinois. It marks the return of Indy car racing to the St. Louis region for the first time since 2003 which as a side note was won by the Iceman himself Scott Dixon and in his first championship year as well --- hmmm!!!

Below are the offical results Sunday of the ABC Supply 500 Verizon IndyCar Series event on the 2.5-mile Pocono Raceway, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):

1. (5) Will Power, Chevrolet, 200, Running

2. (14) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 200, Running 

3. (6) Alexander Rossi, Honda, 200, Running

4. (2) Simon Pagenaud, Chevrolet, 200, Running

5. (4) Tony Kanaan, Honda, 200, Running

6. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 200, Running

7. (20) Helio Castroneves, Chevrolet, 200, Running

8. (21) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Honda, 200, Running

9. (7) Graham Rahal, Honda, 200, Running

10. (18) Carlos Munoz, Chevrolet, 200, Running

11. (16) Marco Andretti, Honda, 200, Running

12. (22) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, 200, Running

13. (1) Takuma Sato, Honda, 200, Running

14. (17) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 200, Running

15. (8) Gabby Chaves, Chevrolet, 200, Running

16. (3) Charlie Kimball, Honda, 200, Running 

17. (11) Ed Jones, Honda, 200, Running

18. (10) Max Chilton, Honda, 129, Mechanical

19. (19) JR Hildebrand, Chevrolet, 124, Contact

20. (12) James Hinchcliffe, Honda, 124, Contact

21. (15) Sebastian Saavedra, Honda, 114, Contact

22. (13) Esteban Gutierrez, Honda, 23, Contact

Race Statistics

Winner's average speed: 183.737 mph

Time of Race: 2:43:16.6005

Margin of victory: 0.5268 of a second

Cautions: 3 for 17 laps

Lead changes: 42 among 10 drivers

Lap Leaders:

Kanaan 1-11

Rossi 12-27

Kanaan 28-29

Dixon 30-53

Rossi 54-55

Power 56

Hildebrand 57-58

Dixon 59

Rossi 60-65

Dixon 66-81

Rossi 82-83

Hinchcliffe 84 

Rossi 85

Hinchcliffe 86-87

Dixon 88-97

Rossi 98-99

Hunter-Reay 100-103

Rossi 104-114

Newgarden 115-117

Hunter-Reay 118-122

Rahal 123

Kanaan 124-133

Rahal 134

Kanaan 135

Rahal 136

Kanaan 137

Rahal 138

Kanaan 139

Rahal 140

Kanaan 141

Rahal 142

Kanaan 143

Rahal 144

Kanaan 145-146

Rahal 147

Kanaan 148-149

Rahal 150

Hunter-Reay 151-153

Power 154-176

Rossi 177-180

Newgarden 181

Andretti 182-190

Power 191-200

Verizon IndyCar Series point standings: Newgarden 494, Dixon 476, Castroneves 472, Pagenaud 468, Power 452, Rahal 418, Sato 399, Rossi 394, Kanaan 351 and Hinchcliffe 327.

Will Power photo from the  David Turner Collection

Scott Dixon photo from Shaun Wood  who was trackside at Sundays race

Media Quotes from Indy Car Media Services