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Will Power has expressed his disbelief at equalling Mario Andretti’s record of 67 top-level North American open-wheeler pole positions.
The Team Penske driver extended his series lead to seven points with his fourth pole position of the season, having prevailed by 0.657mph (1.057km/h) over Marcus Ericsson across his two-lap qualifying run at Gateway Motorsports Park.
IndyCar’s records count the various sanctioning bodies under which racing has been conducted, including Champ Car in Power’s case.
He can thus count his first of those 67 poles as that which he took not too far from his home town of Toowoomba, having qualified fastest for the 2006 Gold Coast event.
Power scored a total of six Champ Car poles and had 57 in IndyCar before the start of the current campaign, before adding more at the May Indianapolis road course event, both at the Iowa double-header (in a single qualifying run), and now the magic 67th in St Louis.
“Amazing, amazing, and I would never have ever been able to do this without Verizon and Penske,” he said just after stepping out of his #12 Chevrolet at Gateway.
“I’ve just had a fantastic career and they’ve given me such great opportunity, and I cannot thank them enough; and of course Chevrolet too, because a lot of those poles were with a Chevrolet engine.
He added, “[It has been an] Amazing year so far and this is a big victory in a way for me to reach the 67 number and equal such a legend of the sport in Mario Andretti.
“I still can’t believe I’m right there with Mario because there’s been no one like him.”
Power had topped Practice 1 with a 180.539mph (290.549km/h) lap but had to dig deep when he was last onto the circuit for his two-lap qualifying run.
Ericsson had left him a hurdle to clear of 182.070mph (293.013km/h), but the Queenslander beat that with a 182.366mph (293.490km/h) first lap and went even quicker with a 183.089mph (294.653km/h) to complete his run at an average of 182.727mph (294.071km/h).
However, it was not without a nervous moment when Car #12 got high through Turns 3 and 4 on Lap 1.
“I’m still kind of shaking because I tried to go wide open in 3, 4 there and got halfway around wide open and then it wasn’t going to make it,” recounted Power.
“So, then I downshifted and kind of floated out towards the wall, but there was nothing left on the table, put it that way.
“On the second lap, I was loose in 1, 2 and then tried to go again as much as I could in 3, 4, but man, it’s just amazing.”
The 2014 IndyCar champion’s qualifying feat comes less than a fortnight after Scott Dixon moved clear of Andretti and into second all-time for race wins after prevailing on the streets of Nashville.
That result saw Dixon move up to second in the series, but the point which Power has earned for pole at Gateway bumps his margin up to seven, with three races to go.
He is thus tantalisingly close to a second title after several frustrating seasons, albeit with the 2018 Indianapolis 500 triumph along the way, and insists he always thought he could genuinely vie for another.
“I did, I did, because we had such potential in a lot of those years,” said Power.
“I’ve worked very hard this year and really good mentally.
“I’ve [also] got such a good group around me this year. I love the group, the crew that I have.
“They’re a really good, positive group, and they’re great guys, so they’re as much to do with this championship as I am; more to do with it.”
Top Line Practice and Final Practice take place this morning (AEST), before race start tomorrow morning at 08:30 AEST.
Stan Sport’s live and ad-free coverage resumes tomorrow morning at 08:00 AEST.
