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Ontario Honda Dealers INDY Toronto
Toronto, ON
July 21, 2024

JOSEF NEWGARDEN No. 2 HITACHI CHEVROLET

START: 7TH  
FINISH: 11TH  
POINTS: 8TH (-145)
 

RACE RUNDOWN: Josef Newgarden and the No. 2 Hitachi Chevrolet team fought through adversity to finish 11th in Sunday's Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto. Starting from the seventh position, Newgarden was confident he had a Chevrolet that would race well, and he backed that by driving to the fourth position within the first 21 laps of the event. The two-time Toronto winner would jump the No. 60 of Felix Rosenqvist on the first pit cycle of the day to assume the third position. A slight pit road mishap on the team's second, and final, pit stop of the day at Lap 53 dropped Newgarden to eighth in the running order. As the reigning Indianapolis 500 winner began to work his way into position for a top-five finish, a flat right rear tire forced him to pit road. Strong work by the Hitachi crew allowed Newgarden to quickly return to the racing action and nearly salvage a top-10 finish. 

NEWGARDEN'S THOUGHTS: "That's just kind of how our year has gone, unfortunately. This No. 2 Hitachi crew has been so solid all year long but we just had an issue on the second stop. Happens to everyone but we managed it well and fought back to get in position for a top-five finish before the late-race issue. Our Hitachi Chevy had been really good all weekend long. The Andretti cars were going to be very hard to catch but we were in a great position to maximize our day, and you never know what can happen late in one of these races. We'll bounce back in St. Louis next month and push strong to the end of the season."

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN No. 3 GALLAGHER CHEVROLET

START: 4TH  
FINISH: 16TH 
POINTS: 6TH (-83)
 

RACE RUNDOWN: Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 Gallagher Chevrolet team nearly scored a top-five finish in Sunday's Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto before late-race contact with teammate Will Power resulted in him finishing 16th. The 2024 Indianapolis 500 pole winner, McLaughlin led the Team Penske charge in Saturday's qualifying session and started fourth for Sunday's 85-lap event. Electing to start on the Firestone alternate guayule tire, McLaughlin was forced to pit early from the fifth position as the tire wear became too great. The New Zealander would use a long second stint on the primary tire to ease his way back to the fourth position late in the race. On the third of four, late-race cautions McLaughlin was contacted by Power as the two were determined to maximize their points. McLaughlin suffered the worst of the damage, forcing him to retire early from the event. 

MCLAUGHLIN'S THOUGHTS: "It was just, in my opinion, a very low percentage move by Will (Power) there. We both had Palou covered and we were both going to gain points on him going into the homestretch of the season with a lot of ovals left where Team Penske is typically very strong. You never like contact with your teammate, but it happens. I ran into him at Laguna Seca so it's hard to be very upset and hypocritical. Just frustrated when you have these moments, but the Gallagher Chevy team will move past it."

WILL POWER No. 12 VERIZON CHEVROLET

START: 9TH 
FINISH: 12TH 
POINTS: 2ND (-49)
 

RACE RUNDOWN: Will Power had his No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet in the fifth position late in Sunday's Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto before contact with teammate Scott McLaughlin saw him drop to the 12th position at the checkered flag. Power started Sunday's race solidly in the ninth position on the grid and in typical Power fashion he was able to pass his way into the top five as the laps dwindled. A strong 55th lap saw him move past the No. 5 of Pato O'Ward and the No. 60 of Felix Rosenqvist to pick up two positions on the notoriously tough street circuit. Unfortunately, on the first lap back to racing following a Lap 73 restart, Power attempted a pass to the inside of McLaughlin, catching the curbing and bouncing into his teammate. While he was able to continue INDYCAR race officials issued a penalty for avoidable contact to Power, further dropping him to 12th at the finish. 

POWER'S THOUGHTS: "I never want to run into a teammate. That is not something I ever set out to do and I apologize to Scott and his team for knocking them out of the race. We were both in a position to have a solid day against the two Andretti cars and I knew I had a better tire situation than Scott. Unfortunately, we got together and gave away too many points. The Verizon Chevy was solid all day, great pit stops and we are leaving without much to show for it."

Following an extended break for the 2024 Olympics, the 13th round of the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES campaign will take place at World Wide Technology Raceway just outside St. Louis on Saturday, August 17.