Team Penske continued its dominance at Iowa Speedway during the Hy-Vee race weekend, with Will Power scoring the win on Sunday afternoon.
Despite starting 22nd in a race where passing came at a premium due to the recent repave, Power used a fast car and strategy to get to the front.
“I had a very good car,” Power said. “Our plan from the beginning was to sit back and save a little fuel. Then we hoped in that gap pray for a yellow and that’s exactly what happened.”
The win is the first at Iowa Speedway for Power, who once struggled on the oval but has finished in the top-five in the last seven races here.
“It’s funny because I was trying to win this for so long,” Power said. “I think I finished second a few times before the repave. I really didn’t think I’d win today. You know how it goes, yeah, I’ve been trying to win this one for a long time. It’s good to check that box.”
His teammate, Scott McLaughlin, won the first race on Saturday night, snagging the first oval win of his career. After setting a new track record in qualifying, McLaughlin finished off the weekend with a 3rd place finish.
McLaughlin was one of several drivers who were vocal about the inability to pass on the outside groove.
“I think the package could use help, and working with Firestone on a few other things,” McLaughlin said. “You can’t just blame the track, because at the end of the day it needs to be repaved at some point.”
While the other members of the team celebrated, it was a different story for Josef Newgarden. The reigning Indy 500 champion swept the Iowa Speedway weekend last year, but qualified 22nd and 14th this weekend.
Although Newgarden was able to pull off a 3rd-place finish during the Saturday night race, the Tennessee native salvaged a 7th-place finish on Sunday.
Rebounding from a crash during the Saturday night race, Alex Palou led the most laps on Sunday in route to a 2nd-place result. He discussed that despite it not being a hard hit, the crew worked throughout the night.
“Nothing broke, but it was not easy for the team to turn the car around,” Palou said. “They had to take everything apart and look at everything. I think they only slept like three hours last night.”
On the final lap of the race, Alexander Rossi was slow off turn two when Sting Ray Robb ran into the back of him, sending Robb airborne and flipping down the backstretch. Rossi then collided with Ed Carpenter, which sent Carpenter’s car on top of Kyle Kirkwood’s.
Robb was taken out of the car and put onto a stretcher, where he was awake and alert but taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.
The NTT IndyCar Series will return to the track on Sunday, July 21 in Toronto for the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto (12:00 p.m. CT, Peacock).
NTT IndyCar Series results
Hy-Vee OneStep 250
Iowa Speedway
Sun. July 14, 2024
1. Will Power
2. Alex Palou
3. Scott McLaughlin
4. Scott Dixon
5. Colton Herta
6. Pato O’Ward
7. Josef Newgarden
8. Graham Rahal
9. Rinus VeeKay
10. Romain Grosjean
11. Santino Ferrucci
12. Linus Lundqvist
13. David Malukas
14. Nolan Siegel
15. Alexander Rossi
16. Kyle Kirkwood
17. Christian Lundgaard
18. Kyffin Simpson
19. Marcus Armstrong
20. Pietro Fittipaldi
21. Sting Ray Robb
22. Ed Carpenter
23. Marcus Ericsson
24. Katherine Legge
25. Agustin Canapino
26. Felix Rosenqvist
27. Conor Daly
NTT IndyCar Series point standings
Following Iowa 2
1. Alex Palou 379
2. Will Power -35
3. Pato O’Ward -52
4. Scott Dixon -57
5. Scott McLaughlin -65
6. Colton Herta -79
7. Kyle Kirkwood -105
8. Alexander Rossi -114
9. Josef Newgarden -132
10. Santino Ferrucci -158
