IndyCar Series leader Will Power is set to arrive at this weekend’s Portland event with a vastly different car to that with which he started last week’s test day.
Team Penske was one of three teams which tested at Portland a week out from the start of track activity in the penultimate event of the season, with its #12 driver setting the pace by a margin of almost a quarter of a second.
Crucially, much was learnt about a circuit at which Power was Penske’s highest qualifier last year in only 14th position.
“We definitely found a lot of stuff, definitely finished with a very different car, so the test was really beneficial,” the Australian told Speedcafe.com.
“It was a track that we struggled at last year compared to Ganassi, and Ganassi tested there last year and we didn’t – we waited until Laguna instead – so I’m hoping that all translates to the condition it’ll be this weekend, which seems similar.”
Mathematically, the battle for the 2022 IndyCar title is down to seven, although, more realistically, it is a fight between Penske’s Power and Josef Newgarden, as well as Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, Marcus Ericsson, and perhaps Alex Palou.
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Just three points separate Penske’s leading two drivers, with Dixon just 11 points further back from Newgarden.
Adding to the intrigue, ahead of the final races of the campaign at Portland and Laguna Seca, Ganassi won at the former last year courtesy of Palou and opted to test at the latter earlier this week, where Penske was relatively stronger in 2021.
“We went the opposite because obviously they had won there last year and they tested and probably found that they were strong there but they were a little weak at Laguna, so they chose to go to Laguna, but it was the opposite for us,” noted Power.
“So, it’s going to be a tight championship race in the last two, because there’s so many good teams and drivers involved.”
Palou would set the pace at Laguna Seca this week but testing was not straightforward for either of Penske or Ganassi, with Ericsson crashing at Turn 6 while Power had a late prang at Portland.
“Mine was a little mistake and if you drop a wheel at Portland, the walls are right there,” said the 2014 IndyCar Series winner.
“If you saw the onboard, it was just a little oversteer moment and then ran out of road on the exit. Any other track, you would have just run off and been fine.
“We were having a very good test to that point, it sucks to crash – the guys have to repair a car – but still found a lot of stuff, so not even a thought on my mind for me this weekend.”
Track action at Portland starts on Saturday morning (AEST), with Practice 2, Qualifying, and the Race itself live and ad-free on Stan Sport.
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