Will Power was prophetic entering this weekend. He said on Wednesday that he’d have at least one win at Iowa so long as his teammate Josef Newgarden wasn’t in the field.

“Heading back to Iowa. Yeah, yeah, yeah, one of my favorite tracks. Been trying to win there for years. There’s one guy that seems to prevent it. Yeah, it’s going to be fun,” said Power this past Wednesday.

For a second straight year, Power swept both poles around the .894-mile track. Also for a second straight year, he leaves without a race win to show for it.

On a day that he became just the 7th driver ever to lead 5,000 or more laps, he had to settle for second…again.

In fact, Power is now 0-for-17 here with 8 of those 17 starts coming from the pole. When your teammate is as good as Newgarden is, there’s just not much more Power can do.

This was his fourth Iowa runner-up finish. 3 of those 4 were won by Newgarden (2016, 2020 Race 2, 2023 Race 2). The other was Pato O’Ward in this second race a year ago too.

Yes, that’s a runner-up finish for Power in each of the last three doubleheader finales here.

“Yeah, good weekend. Two poles, second. I feel like I had the car to really challenge at the end there,” said Power.

“We’re lucky to get the yellow. Probably should have pitted a couple of laps earlier. It probably would have put us in contention. Struggled the first two massively. Like, massively. Massively loose.

“Yeah, once we fixed that, we were really strong again. That was really good. Yeah, good day, good day.”

Power led the first 30 laps but in the first two stints, his car trailed off over the course of the run. So bad, he’d fall outside the top 5 each time. They made adjustments each stop to get it back in the window for a fight at the win in the end.

“I felt like we actually finally had it once we made those adjustments to run with him,” Power continued.

“We came into pits with him, but I had to wait for X and to pit. It was just bad timing on our part to not pit a couple of laps early.

“Obviously risks with that, but not much. Here you have a two-lap window to make a yellow.

“Just ovals in general, he has won every single oval that he has finished in a long time now, yeah.”

Power is starting to find momentum again with 4 top 5 finishes over the last 6 races including 3 of which on the podium. If not for running out of gas on the last lap last weekend in Toronto, that would be 5-for-6 instead.

Power’s last five Iowa finishes are second, third, second, fifth and second respectively. He also has 8 top sixes in his last 10 Iowa starts overall. On another short oval in Gateway, Power finished 3rd and 6th in his last 2 starts.

The thing now is, can he find a win over the next 5 races to keep a streak going?

Power has a win every season since 2007 (16 straight years). Through 12 races run, he’s winless. However, there’s some good opportunites coming up.

“Yeah, very good tracks coming up for us,” Power told me. “Series is ultra-competitive, so I really don’t see — I don’t see many weak teams out of the big four teams: Penske, McLaren, Andretti, and Ganassi. That’s just not — you might start to add Rahal into that now. Lundgaard is starting to be more of a regular top five finisher.

“Yeah, pretty tough field, toughest in the world actually. That’s why, if you can win one, it’s such a big deal. It’s a big deal now to win in INDYCAR.”

While he has no top 10 finishes in 2 tries at Nashville, he has won 2 of the last 3 return trips to the Indy road course. He was 3rd last year. Then it’s to World Wide Technology Raceway for which he’s very quick on. Then it’s to Portland and Monterey to where he can compete too.

He has two top two finishes including a win in 2019 at Portland in his last three tries there while also being 2nd, 26th and 3rd in his three Laguna Seca tries.

Power is hoping not to make history in another way by defending his championship season by going winless.

Alex Palou went winless for the first 16 races a year ago before winning the season finale. The last time someone went that long was Scott Dixon going 14 races in 2014. Dixon went winless in 2004.

Sam Hornish Jr. was winless in 11 races in 2003.

Can Power avoid their company?

Champions And How Long It Took To Win The Next Season

2022 – Alex Palou 16 races – won the 17th and final race

2021 – Scott Dixon – won the 3rd race at Texas

2020 – Josef Newgarden – won the 6th race at Iowa

2019 – Scott Dixon – won the 8th race in Belle Isle

2018 – Josef Newgarden won the 4th race at Barber

2017 – Simon Pagenaud – won the 4th race at Phoenix

2016 – Scott Dixon – won the 2nd race at Phoenix

2015 – Will Power – won the 5th race in the Indy Grand Prix

2014 – Scott Dixon – won the 15th race at Mid-Ohio

2013- Ryan Hunter-Reay – won the 2nd race at Barber

2012 – Dario Franchitti – won the 5th race in the Indy 500

2011 – Dario Franchitti – won the season opener at St. Pete

2010 – Dario Franchitti – won the 6th race in the Indy 500

2009 – Scott Dixon – won the 3rd race at Kansas

2008 – Dario Franchitti – went to NASCAR

2007 – Sam Hornish Jr. – won the 7th race at Texas

2006 – Dan Wheldon – won the season opener at Homestead

2005 – Tony Kanaan – won the 8th race at Kansas

2004 – Scott Dixon – winless

2003 – Sam Hornish Jr. – won the 12th race at Kentucky

2002 – Sam Hornish Jr. – won the season opener at Homestead

2001 – Buddy Lazier – won the 6th race at Pikes Peak

2000 – Greg Ray – won the 7th race at Phoenix

1999 – Kenny Brack – won the 4th race in the Indy 500

1998 – Tony Stewart – won the season opener in Disney

1997 – Scott Sharp – won the season opener in Loudon