Newgarden manages to win his third oval race in Texas, ahead of an impressive Pato O’Ward, who takes the championship lead, and Alex Palou on much older tyres. The top 5 is completed by David Malukas and Scott Dixon. McLaughlin, Herta, Grosjean, Ericsson and Ilott round out the top ten.
However, it wasn’t a straightforward race win for the Team Penske driver, with more than 25 race lead changes, multiple crashes and very tight duels among the Top 6 for the race win.
The race start was anticipated due to rain concerns, as storms were predicted to be in the area around 3-4 pm
Pole sitter Felix Rosenqvist appeared to have had a great start, but Scott Dixon managed to pass him on the outside for the lead, starting an heated battle for the lead among the top 6 drivers. Alexander Rossi was slightly pinched by Dixon and went in the grass with the left part of his car, but his track position didn’t suffer from this.
By lap 5, Scott Dixon is in the lead, but 2022 winner Josef Newgarden is extremely close, retaking the lead two laps after. Alex Palou has had a great beginning as well, managing to join the head group of drivers and settling in P4.
Newgarden is then followed by the best performing Arrow McLaren of Pato O’Ward, another former winner in Texas in 2021. Palou overtakes Dixon for the final podium position
Callum Ilott in the back made up 5 places after the first ten laps, with Andretti driver Romain Grosjean improving his starting position, in P9 from P11. Further back, Rinus Veekay gained five positions after a difficult qualifying session.
Around Lap 30 Newgarden began to catch the last drivers at the end of the lead lap, with Lundgaard and Daly lapped on Lap 33. The Team Penske driver took advantage of the high race line to not lose as much time while completing the moves on them. On Lap 45 Grosjean made a sleek move on reigning champion Will Power for P7.
The first driver in the wall was Takuma Sato, who went too wide on the right at turn 2 before bouncing to the other side of the track on Lap 48. The Caution which followed saw many drivers pitting, included the top runners.
Pit lane drama was ensured when Kyle Kirkwood and Alexander Rossi collided in the pit lane, just as the Arrow McLaren driver was leaving and Kirkwood joining the pits. Rossi’s car appeared to have sustained the most consequences, with damage to the right front part of his car which took multiple laps’s time to be fixed.
Rossi was then penalised with a drive through penalty due to unsafe released while 6 laps down.
Racing resumes on Lap 61. Palou goes from the outside for Newgarden’s lead, ensuiring a tight battle. Ericcson leaves the top 10, whereas Romain Grosjean overtakes Dixon for P4 and McLaughlin moves up to P7.
After ten tight laps of swapping the lead back and forth, Newgarden secures again his lead, with O’Ward returning in P2. By Lap 80, Romain Grosjean has joined the podium, improving his starting position by 8 places, with Palou overtaken by Dixon as well.
Best performing rookie driver so far is Juncos’ Agustino Canapino in P14, but all rookies are having a posiive first oval approach so far, with Pedersen in P17 and Robb in P19.
A great run from Malukas as well, who makes the move on pole sitter Felix Rosenqvist for P8 and McLaughlin for P7. Wind starts to pick up around Lap 90, just around the moment Will Power was lapped by his teammate leading the race.
On Lap 103 Kyle Kirkwood’s race comes to an end, as the N°27 car begins to puff smoke from its rear end. The Andretti driver suffrered from a rear right upright failure.
First into the pits on Lap 110 for the second run were McLauglin and Newgarden, thus going for the four stop pit strategy, whereas O’Ward stayed out in the lead. Ilott, Ericsson and Rahal followed him into the pits, just like Grojean did on Lap 112, Palou came in on Lap 114 and O’Ward a lap later.
McLaughlin gained two track positions with the undercut stop, slotting in P6 behind Palou and in front of Herta, whereas the top 5 remains the same.
On Lap 130 Pato O’Ward takes the lead from Newgarden with a brilliant move on the outside. The Team Penske driver tries to strike back multiple teams, but the 2022 oval champion manages to hold on to his lead.
Only seven cars are in the lead lap by Lap 135, but the Arrow McLaren driver manages to extend his gap on the Team Penske driver to 1.2s by Lap 140. On Lap 145 he lapped Scott McLaughlin, and has built a five seconds gap to Newgarden in P2.
Dixon on the low side and Palou on the high fight for P4, with the 2021 Indycar champion winning the battle.
O’Ward is really flying today in Texas, as on Lap 152 he laps Dixon in P5 and Dixon’s teammate Palou on Lap 160, shortly after followed by Grosjean. Only former race leader Newgarden is on the same lap.
On Lap 165 McLaughling pits for the third time, but suffers from a long pit. Defrancesco and Newgarden stops as well, with the latter rejoining in P6. O’Ward pits on Lap 170, locking up on his way to the pits and leaving his teammate Felix Rosenqvist in the lead, who then pits five laps later.
After the third round of pits, Palou is back on the podium, with Grosjean held up in the frenzy and Malukas in P6 ahead of Colton Herta.
On Lap 179 Felix Rosenqvist crashes by going too high, thus losing his car in the dirty part of the track at Turn 4 and hitting the wall. Caution was issued, and the two drivers on the lead lap pit for new tyres. This leaves Palou, Grosjean, Dixon, Malukas, Herta and McLaughlin back on the lead lap for the restart.
With 62 laps to the end Newgarden pits once again to get more fuel, in order to gain an advantage on O’Ward in the lead. Will Power had a pit wall issue, as a tyre not well secured had him bobble off in diagonal.
Race restarted with 57 laps to go, Malukas went off in the grass, Newgarden overtakes O’Ward but they’re both bested by Palou for an action filled restart.
Malukas manages to end up in P4 ahead of Herta, but all the drivers are extremely close, with Newgarden returning in the lead with 52 laps to go and Grosjean resuming P4 by overtaking on the high racing line the Dale Coyote Racing driver.
47 laps to go see Colton Herta taking the race lead ahead of Newgarden and Palou, with the Mexican McLaren driver momentarily out of the podium. O’Ward goes for the lead with 44 laps to go on the outside, with McLaughling in P6 also attempting a move to the front.
40 laps to go, Sting Ray Robb hits the wall heavily leaving Palou in the lead ahead of O’Ward, Newgarden, Grosjean, Herta and Dixon at the caution. It’ll be a longer break as the wall hit by the rookie driver needs extended reparations, but he has confirmed to be OK after the strong impact.
Newgarden and O’Ward head to the pits with 37 laps to go, followed by most drivers out of the top 5. At the restart with 31 laps to go Herta and Grosjean make contact challenging for the lead, with O’Ward going for the lead from the lower.
The McLaren was P5 after the pit, but in two laps he returned in the lead. However, the green flag racing didn’t last for long as Rahal and Defrancesco crashed, just like it had happened last year in the same place.
Defrancesco’s Andretti slowed down on track and Rahal went right over his back and up in the air, issueing yet another yellow flag. Both drivers are ok, and Dixon and Grosjean take advantage of the neutralised race to pit. It’s definitely not Rahal’s team’s day as well, with him out of the race and both his other drivers out of the top 20.
Racing resumed with 12 laps to go and O’Ward in the lead, overtaken by Palou faster on the low line. Malukas is up to P4 and ready to take advantage of the first chance to try and get his second Indycar podium.
Dixon goes in on the inside, as Newgarden moves into P2 on Lap 9. Four cars are in the mix for the win, but they’re joined by Dixon as Newgarden, Palou and O’Ward keep exchanging the race lead.
Grosjean rejoins the head group as well.
With 5 laps to go Newgarden is leading O’Ward and Palou. Dixon goes almost too high an is passed by Grosjean for P5.
With only 2 laps to go, Newgarden and O’Ward are impossibly close and Romain Grosjean hits the wall at Turn 2, clipping Malukas’s rear as well. Yellow flags are issue after the crash, freezing the race for the Andretti driver’s second crash out of the race out of the two rounds completed so far.
Photo credits: Penske Entertainment | Chris Owens
