Will Power was left exhausted after delivering a commanding drive to win Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portland and in turn, inching closer to championship leader Alex Palou.
The sublime performance could be outlined simply by the fact Power led 101 of 110 laps en route to a beatdown on the field that saw him finish 9.8267s ahead of Palou’s No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. While pit cycles led to random lead changes, the closest anyone really got to Power’s No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet was at the start when he overtook pole-sitter Santino Ferrucci with an inside maneuver into Turn 1 just seconds after taking the green flag.
Although Palou tried his best to apply pressure on the 43-year-old Aussie, he wasn’t able to overcome the less-favored tire strategy of three stints on the harder primary compound versus the preferred softer alternates.
When reflecting on the win, a visibly tired Power noted the early start alongside Ferrucci, who is a pseudo team-mate due to the technical alliance shared between Team Penske and AJ Foyt Racing.
“Turn 1, Santino and I talked about the start, he was not going to block or anything,” said Power, a two-time IndyCar Series champion.
“He braked earlier than expected, because I braked earlier. I was going to let him lead. Yeah, he's a good teammate. Very fair. I have to thank him for helping me out there. But yes, from there it was a pretty I guess straightforward race of playing the game with in and out laps against Palou. I think we definitely had a better car on reds [alternates]. We could pull a good gap. I think black tires at the beginning, that got a bit tough.
“Yeah, man, a good day. Went green for a long time. Kind of mentally drained. I don't have that many words. But yeah, it's good stuff.”
Returning to championship form
The outing at the 12-turn, 1.964-mile road course not only served as Power’s third win of the season, but also the 44th of his career (fourth all-time behind AJ Foyt, Mario Andretti and Scott Dixon). Additionally, the result elevated him back to second in the title race, where he now trails Palou, the defending series champion, by 54 points (484-430) with three races remaining.
When asked in the post-race press conference by Motorsport.com what has made the difference to regain this level of form as he now has three wins in a season for the first time since 2018, Power provided noted a vast number of items.
“It's never just one thing, to be honest,” Power said. “I think Chevy made a gain last year. Just with that, you've got more chance to qualify in the top six. Qualify in the top six, you certainly have more chance of a win.
“If I look at 2022, there were a lot of, like, races where I went from 16th to third, got a lot of podiums, a lot of second places. Had I qualified slightly better, those potentially could have been wins. It's just putting yourself in that position, having the car.
“Yeah, you are constantly working on that stuff. One year you're a little conservative. Next year you see Palou win with a bit more aggression, so you become a bit more aggressive. I never stop digging and looking. I actually came into this season with the mindset I must win multiple races. It's been a long time since I have. Yeah, that's basically a lot of factors that go into it.”
But any specific adjustments with his race craft or changing what’s maximized now than in his earlier days?
“No, I race pretty similar,” said the 2018 Indianapolis 500 winner. “A couple mistakes this year that I really reflect on that is uncharacteristic of sort of the 2022 year. No, I have the same mentality. I'm very calm in the car always. Rarely do I get flustered or say something on the radio. I'm less calm out of the car if something happens, but...
“Yeah, you just change small things. Built this big toolbox of skills over the years, worked on the mental aspect a lot, which just comes with age, to be honest. No particular thing.
“You have your goals coming into a season, but you are just walking that tightrope of aggression versus consistency. If you look at (Scott) Dixon, 99% of the time he will not go for a move that's sort of in a 50/50. He will weigh on the cautious side. That's won him championships. Palou is further to the aggressive. But he walks that tightrope really well of aggression versus reward.
“Yeah, I'm always playing on that one side or the other. '22 I was too conservative. '23 I had a bad year. This year maybe I'm a little bit over-aggressive at times. But that's the game you play. You got to hit that sweet spot. It's tough.”
