Newgarden holds off O’Ward to win 2nd half of doubleheader

On a track nearly impossible to pass on because it’s single-file thru the corners, Josef Newgarden paraded home to victory over Mexican Patricio O’Ward, Will Power and Rinus Veekay to give Chevy a 1-2-3-4 finish in the 2nd half of the Bommarito 500 at WWT Raceway.

In another anti-climatic finish for the fans, the race finished under yellow when Takuma Sato scraped the wall and this caused the parade to slow down behind the pace car.

Newgarden’s crew got him out front on his final pit stop and there was no way for anyone to pass his #1 Penske Chevy.

Newgarden, driving the No. 1 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, pitted for the final time on Lap 153 from the third position to try to undercut the leaders and gain time on them. Exiting pit lane, Newgarden was locked in a stirring side-by-side race with Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet.

As the two approached the backstretch, Newgarden won the game of chicken and pulled ahead of 2020 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year O’Ward and cycled through to the lead on Lap 157 of the 200-lap race. He held off a hard-charging O’Ward in the final laps until last week’s Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Takuma Sato made contact with the wall in Turn 2 with four laps to go, resulting in a caution and an end to the race. Sato finished ninth.

“This was all a pit stop victory right here for me,” Newgarden said. “We got pretty dicey with Will (Power) and Pato (O’Ward) there on track. My guys have been amazing in the pits. They have put me into position every time. It was really fun racing Pato out of the pit. That was for the win right there, that race when we went side by side out of the pit exit.

“Really proud of my team. They won the race. I didn’t win it; they won it.”

Although he did not win, a 2nd and 3rd for O’Ward was much to his liking.

“Man, we had a great weekend,” said O’Ward, who finished third in Saturday’s race at WWTR. “Our objective was to come in and try and score two podiums, and we did that. It would have been great to score a win. We’re so close.

“This Arrow McLaren SP No. 5 Chevrolet was very strong right out of the gates. We were super, super competitive. We’re knocking on the door, man. We’re very close, and we’re going to keep pushing. I know our time will come. We have to stay there.”

Points leader and winner yesterday, Scott Dixon, rounded out the top-5 in his Ganassi Honda.

Power led 40 laps and was ahead as the final round of green flag pit stops began, but 2014 NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Power was caught in traffic attempting to enter pit lane, and he entered the warm-up lane behind the slower car of Ed Carpenter in the No. 20 United States Air Force Chevrolet, forcing him to lose time.

“I felt like we had the car to win,” Power said. “Obviously, it’s a traffic game. I’ve got to thank all of the guys. The Verizon 12 car Chevy was really strong today. We had great stops, great car. The strategy certainly didn’t work out obviously at the end, but still very happy to get a podium.”

Takuma Sato led a race high 66 laps but in the end had to settle for 9th when he skidded up and touched the wall late.

With the win, Newgarden gained on points leader Dixon. He entered the race 117 points behind five-time series champion Dixon but closed the gap to 96. O’Ward is 119 behind Dixon.

Last Lap for Kanaan?

When Tony Kanaan stepped out of the No. 14 Big Machine Vodka Chevrolet this afternoon, he capped an illustrious 23-year career in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.

“I wish I could have given the boys and A.J. (Foyt) and Big Machine a better result, but the rest of the day was fun,” Kanaan said. “It was a good way to end it. I want to thank my fans, my team and everyone who has been involved in this journey, my family. It’s been good.

“I’m done for this year but hopefully not done totally, but we’ll see. My fingers are crossed that maybe I could come back for a proper last lap with my fans, but for now, drop the mic.”

Kanaan’s career is punctuated with highlights: 17 victories, 15 pole positions, the 2004 NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship and an Indianapolis 500 crown that took him 12 years to claim. He holds the record for most consecutive starts at 318, earning him the nickname “Ironman.”

When asked about that moment of stepping out he says, “It’ll be tougher before. After, it’s over, right? That’s it. You can’t do anything about it. So it’s like, ‘Okay. That was good’.”

He thinks a little more, hedging his bet, and says, “I think before and during to be honest.”

Pondering it further, he concludes, “Probably the toughest, toughest time will be when the checkered flag drops and I get out of the car for the last time that I know that’s it. That’s really it.”

Reflecting on his career and what brought him the most joy, he reveals, “I think people expect me to say my wins but I think the biggest joy for me was to be able to fulfill my dream to become a race car driver. And on top of that to be extremely successful and very well-liked by people and then give it back to people. The relationships I made. To me, I think the biggest thing when I look back at my career is how fortunate I was to do what I love. Really. That’s it. And purely driving the race car–despite the results, any money I made or didn’t make. It’s like I was born to drive a race car and I was able to do that my entire life.”

For Kanaan, his rise to the top of America’s premier open wheel motorsports competition is an improbable one. There were so many obstacles in his native Brazil and the biggest one was losing his father to cancer when ‘TK’ was just 13 years old. Devoted to his namesake, Tony made a promise to his father on his deathbed: he would always take care of the family and he would never give up trying to achieve his dream of becoming a professional racing driver.

He kept that promise…tenfold.

What would his dad be most proud of?

“I think my legacy, the example that I set to other people. It’s not about my wins, but my relentless drive to accomplish things — even when people didn’t believe or when people thought it was over. It’s my drive to say it’s over when I say it’s over. It’s not when you guys say it’s over. I think he would–I mean I hope–he would be proud of my determination to refuse to lose in any way, not just a race. I hear more and more these days, when people look at me and my career and the stuff that I went through, apart from my wins and my success, it’s about how relentless I was with all the setbacks that I had since I was 13 when I lost my dad and I’m still here. People tell me, ‘That makes me believe that I can do anything I want. Thank you.’ It inspires people to see that it is possible if you really put yourself into it.”

Last year at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, the then 44-year-old driver finished third in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 —it was the best finish of a tough season for him and the AJ Foyt Racing team. Kanaan’s joy was palpable.

And for those watching, his run last year was inspirational. Fittingly so as he continues to inspire today. We salute you Tony Kanaan not only because of what you accomplished but because of who you are. Champion. Legend. Ironman.

Race 2 Results

Race Statistics
Winner’s average speed: 162.594 mph
Time of Race: 1:32:15.2431
Margin of victory: Under caution
Cautions: 2 for 5 laps
Lead changes: 8 among 5 drivers

Lap Leaders:
Sato, Takuma 1 – 59
O’Ward, Pato 60 – 95
Power, Will 96 – 97
Newgarden, Josef 98 – 101
Sato, Takuma 102 – 108
Herta, Colton 109 – 113
Power, Will 114 – 151
Herta, Colton 152 – 156
Newgarden, Josef 157 – 200

NTT INDYCAR SERIES point standings: Dixon 416, Newgarden 320, O’Ward 297, Sato 274, Herta 250, Pagenaud 237, Rahal 236, Power 226, Ferrucci 216, Rosenqvist 208.