Pato O’Ward restarted Sunday’s IndyCar race from the fifth position with seven laps remaining in the event. Just a few turns into the stint, he was in third.
The up-and-coming young driver is turning himself into an IndyCar star, completing the final two passes on his way to his second victory of the season.
“We made it a little extra harder on ourselves, starting from the back, but I knew I had a great car under me,” O’Ward said on the NBC broadcast. “I need to thank Arrow Electronics… Team Chevy – Team Chevy man. This is a Team Chevy territory.”
O’Ward as well as other drivers stood in jubilation of getting the win for the manufacturer at their home track.
However, it was agony showing on Josef Newgarden’s face following the race after he gave up the lead with three laps remaining.
The veteran had lead the race all day long, but was on older tires at the end – a strategy choice that bit him when cautions came out for Jimmie Johnson and Romain Grosjean.
The Arrow McLaren SP team gets its second win of the year – as well – on a day where it had to substitute an Oliver Askew into their opposite car after Felix Rosenqvist’s car malfunction on Saturday.
O’Ward dedicated the win to Rosenqvist, saying ‘this is for you, buddy,’ as he crossed the finish line to take the checkered flag.
“I texted Felix this morning,” O’Ward said on the broadcast. “The important thing is that he’s okay, but I told him ‘I’m gonna win it for you.’ I told him I was gonna get it done. I like to be a man of my word.”
The win has bigger implications, too, for the driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet.
After securing the victory at Detroit, O’Ward has officially taken the points lead from Alex Palou and has just one marker separating the pair of drivers.
As the series makes its way towards the latter half of its schedule, O’Ward and Palou have a sizeable gap on six-time champion Scott Dixon.
If Dixon is to make himself ‘seven-time’ this season, he may have to win a race or two. For now, though, it’s O’Ward’s title to lose, and the Mexico native is racing as fast as ever.
The NTT IndyCar Series will return to the track on Sunday, June 20, as it goes live from Road America at 11:00 a.m. CT. The race can be seen on NBCSN.
IndyCar Results
Detroit 2
1. Pato O’Ward
2. Josef Newgarden
3. Alex Palou
4. Colton Herta
5. Graham Rahal
6. Will Power
7. Scott Dixon
8. Simon Pagenaud
9. Marcus Ericsson
10. Santino Ferrucci
11. Ryan Hunter-Reay
12. Takuma Sato
13. Alexander Rossi
14. James Hinchcliffe
15. Conor Daly
16. Sebastien Bourdais
17. Ed Jones
18. Rinus VeeKay
19. Jack Harvey
20. Scott McLaughlin
21. Jimmie Johnson
22. Max Chilton
23. Dalton Kellett
24. Romain Grosjean
25. Oliver Askew
| IndyCar Standings | ||||
| Position | Driver | Points | Behind | |
| 1 | Pato O’Ward | 299 | – | |
| 2 | Alex Palou | 298 | -1 | |
| 3 | Scott Dixon | 263 | -36 | |
| 4 | Josef Newgarden | 248 | -51 | |
| 5 | Rinus VeeKay | 243 | -56 | |
| 6 | Simon Pagenaud | 243 | -56 | |
| 7 | Marcus Ericsson | 211 | -88 | |
| 8 | Graham Rahal | 209 | -90 | |
| 9 | Colton Herta | 202 | -97 | |
| 10 | Takuma Sato | 181 | -118 | |
