IndyCar Series leader Will Power says he does not feel “safe” despite earning a front row start at Portland while Scott Dixon could only qualify on Row 8.
Power ended up third-quickest in the Fast Six ahead of the penultimate race of the season but will start in second spot after Team Penske team-mate Josef Newgarden, who trails him by just three series points, incurred a grid penalty for an unapproved engine change.
The Australian is therefore starting ahead of his four biggest rivals for the 2022 IndyCar title, including a full 14 positions clear of six-time champion Dixon and 16 ahead of another Chip Ganassi Racing driver in Marcus Ericsson.
However, he cautions that the qualifying result is no cause for relaxation, given the randomness which Portland tends to produce.
Last year, for example, Ganassi’s Alex Palou went from pole to 16th in a messy opening lap yet managed to still win and take over the series lead for good.
If it is a straightforward race, however, then that will certainly play into Power’s hands.
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“It’s a very tight championship,” observed the 2014 series winner.
“If you’ve watched IndyCar, you can never feel just safe that you’ve qualified well because it can just switch, as you saw last year.
“I mean, Palou and Dixon were pretty much at the back and they came to finish first [and] second or first [and] third or something like this.
“Yeah, it all depends if there’s a yellow [Caution period] at the start.
“If there’s no yellow at the start, which would be a miracle…
“Like, if they start where they’re talking about, if there’s not a yellow, it doesn’t push it towards that two-stop strategy, and you don’t get guys at the back topping off [on fuel] and making it a difficult race.
“If it goes green, it becomes a bit more of a straightforward race and a track position race, and that makes it harder for those guys back there.
“So, we’re hoping that it stays green. I think it’s best for us.”
Power is 14 points ahead of Dixon, 17 ahead of Ericsson, and 43 up on Palou in the series standings.
In fifth spot, Scott McLaughlin has closed to 53 behind his team-mate thanks to qualifying on pole at Portland, with that many points on offer if a driver can win tomorrow and lead more laps than anyone else.
Final practice starts today at 09:15 AEST, with the penultimate race of the season set to get underway tomorrow at 05:30 AEST.
Stan Sport’s live and ad-free coverage resumes tomorrow morning at 05:00 AEST.
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