INDIANAPOLIS — Will Power felt like he had a car capable of a pole on Thursday evening. The problem was, he never got a chance to qualify on Reds due to Takuma Sato bringing out the red flag to end the session 3-minutes and 15-seconds early in qualifying for Race 1. He still started fourth. 

On Saturday morning, Power was able to get a cleaner session and earned his 61st career NTT IndyCar Series pole. It was his fourth of the season and fifth of his career on the 2.439-mile road course. 

It was also his fourth top four starting spot in his last five starts on the season as well in his No. 12 Chevrolet. Power, sits six poles shy of tying Mario Andretti for most all-time in the history of this series. 

In terms of a race win, the last four winners in the series have come from the front row including six of the last seven from a top three starting spot. Power, won on this track in each of the last three times that he won the pole too. 

Colton Herta will roll off second in his No. 88 Honda for his third straight top three starting spot. The duo swept the race weekend last time out at Mid-Ohio and look poised for one of them to win Saturday’s 75 Lap race too. 

Alexander Rossi will start third in his No. 27 Honda. It’s Rossi’s best ever starting spot on this road course. He said on Thursday as well as Friday that this was the best car he’s ever had on this road course layout and he backed that up with an eighth place qualifying effort and runner-up result in Race 1 on Friday. Rossi, has three straight podiums on the season and will be a force in today’s race. 

Alex Palou qualified fourth while Pato O’Ward rounded out the top five of the starting lineup. 

Friday’s winner Josef Newgarden made up 32 more points on leader Scott Dixon by virtue of his win yesterday and Dixon’s ninth place effort. He will roll off ninth with Dixon 15th. 

Where this is key is, 27 of the last 29 INDYCAR races run have seen the eventual race winner come from the top 4 Rows. Neither will do so today. 

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Newgarden, still trails Dixon by 40 points entering today and said on Friday that he really needs to be perfect this weekend in order to give himself a chance at a championship in three weeks on the streets of St. Pete. While Dixon starting 15th is good for him, it’s not great in the sense that he really needs to finish on the podium today still. 

Yes, he’s made up 77 points in four races, but can he make up 40 points in two races with one of them coming from ninth?

Just once since the start of the 2019 season has someone won an INDYCAR race further back than eighth and that was Simon Pagenaud (23rd) at Iowa back in July. Numbers aren’t on Newgarden’s side for a weekend sweep, especially with who’s starting in front of him. 

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