WILL POWER
NO. 12 VERIZON 5G DALLARA/CHEVROLET
START – 1ST
FINISH – 2ND
POINTS – 7TH (-161)
RACE RUNDOWN: Starting Sunday’s Hy-Vee One Step 250 from the front of the field thanks to his record-extending 70th NTT P1 Award, Will Power nearly scored the win before crossing the finish line in the second position in his No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevrolet. Power led the first 30 laps of the 250-lap event before teammate Josef Newgarden made a pass for the lead. Once in “dirty” air, the two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES Champion had to fight the handling of his Chevrolet until pitting for the first time on Lap 54. Power and his Verizon crew executed a flawless pit sequence – something they would do all afternoon – as he cycled up to the fourth position following the stop. Race strategist Ron Ruzewski, lead engineer Dave Faustino and Power all did their part to continue to improve the Verizon 5G machine throughout the race. When INDYCAR moved all five lead-lap cars to the front of the field following a caution on Lap 238 it gave Power a shot at the win, despite the “abandonment procedure” that kept him from pitting for fresh Firestone tires. With a great launch, Power was able to move into the second position but was unable to mount an attempt to pass for the lead.
POWER’S THOUGHTS: “Yeah, it was a very good restart. We struggled massively at the beginning and my engineer made a really good change. Taking wing out helped me so much. I had a really fast car, we just needed to pit a couple of laps early so that we could be P2 to Josef and I think we might have had a shot at it. It’s the best car that I have had here, and I was really happy with it and enjoyed the race. Not the first stint though. Man, I was like white knuckling it the whole time, so I am stoked to get the Verizon Chevy to P2. It’s pretty tough to beat Josef here, but we will do it one day.”
WHAT’S NEXT: Following an off weekend, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES will head to Nashville, TN for the Music City Grand Prix – the 13th round of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season – on Sunday, August 6.
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!
