Category: NTT Indy

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
FIRESTONE GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY
WEATHERTECH RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA
SALINAS, CALIFORNIA
TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT
SEPTEMBER 10,2023

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN LEADS THE CHARGE FOR TEAM CHEVY AT WEATHERTECH RACEWAY AS THE 2023 NTT INDYCAR SEASON ROLLS TO A CLOSE

• Chevrolet won the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturer Championship
• McLaughlin’s runner-up finish is his fourth of the year-plus a win at Barber-and 24th podium for Chevy
• McLaughlin ended the season third in the final standings
• Team Chevy drivers scored six of the top-10 finishes
• Will Power – 4th
• Callum Ilott – 5th
• Alexander Rossi – 7th
• Pato O’Ward – 9th
• Ryan Hunter-Reay – 10th
• The 95-lap race was slowed by eight caution periods for 35 laps

MONTEREY, CALIF (September 9, 2023) – Scott McLaughlin launched his No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet from his front-row starting spot at the drop of the green flag ready to lead the field to turn one. But the newly re-paved 2.2-mile WeatherTech Raceway had other ideas. As drivers headed to turn two a melee ensued with cars slipping and sliding off into the gravel pit that set the pattern for the remainder of the 95-lap race.

Differing fuel strategies and timing of yellow flags made for an exciting albeit chaotic race.

Pole winner Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was in the lead group until another dust up pushed him down in the running order. He was credited with a 19th place finish.

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, had a fast car and led for 15 laps, but pit strategy with a ill-timed caution dropped him back. He fought his way back to finish ninth.

Chevrolet in the INDYCAR Series will resume competition early 2024.

CHEVROLET AT LAGUNA SECA (V6 era), since INDYCAR’s 2019 return:

Wins: 0
Pole Awards: 2
Podiums: 4

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“Our race was looking so strong, and that was a very disappointing end to what could’ve been a great result. We kept our nose clean, did a nice job on track, and the team nailed it in the pit stops. It’s frustrating having our day thrown away by other people’s mistakes.

“It’s been a strong season for us and performance has been consistent. We still need to clean things up here and there, but I’m proud of the job that I’ve done. We’re going to come back next year even stronger and see where we can stack up, racing hard and pushing for wins.”

Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“What a ride. It really was a roller coaster for my final drive with Arrow McLaren. We started on pole with a mega car and a strong first half of the race. Then Marcus came into me and our day was ended from there. The No. 6 crew fought hard to stay in the race, but it’s a shame considering the potential we had going for us. I have to thank the team and especially my crew for the speed we had all season long. To have two poles and two podiums in the wild season that we had, I’m really proud of us and I leave with my head held high. It’s been really special racing with Arrow McLaren, and now I’m excited for what’s to come in 2024.”

Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“I think we learned a lot this year. There were a lot of very positive things to draw upon. It was just a year of a lot of weird things. Today’s race was a perfect example. We had to manually jack the car up for the last two pitstops. It’s the little things like that that we need to work on, but ultimately the team grew massively. On the No. 7 side, I feel like we improved tremendously throughout the year and have a lot of things to learn from when we see all these tracks again for the second time together next year. We’ll focus on the positives, try to improve on the negatives and go into the off-season.”

Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 EXPEL Chevrolet at Team Penske:

THE STRATEGY PLAYED IN YOUR FAVOR AND THERE IS A SMILE ON YOUR FACE, LET’S TALK ABOUT THAT

“Halfway through the race, I was like, this is not working out and this is not our day. At the start of the race the Xpel Chevy was just not getting off and I was mad there for a bit. It was just annoying and I had a really fast car, but we just kept our heads down. I had a mega restart and got a heap of spots that put us in position there. So yeah, just super proud.”

YOU LOCKED DOWN THIRD IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND I THINK THAT HAS A LOT TO DO WITH WHAT THE THUMBS UP WAS TO THE FANS THERE

“Yeah, ultimately, we didn’t win as many races as we did in 2022, but I think it was a better season overall. I mean we were solid when we needed to be and we haven’t been out of the top 10 since the Indy 500 and just these guys and girls on the team, the pit stops were phenomenal. When I had left front wing damage, they fixed it straightaway to get me out. It’s a really good team and we are really building toward 2024. I said to the guys today, next year starts today, and I am very proud of that.”

Will Power, No. 12 Verizon 5G Chevrolet at Team Penske:

“I just can’t believe we got back to fourth, that was crazy. We probably could have been a bit better actually.”

SOME OF THOSE RESTARTS WERE REALLY, REALLY WILD WITH THAT FINAL RUN INTO THE CORNER. WHAT WAS YOUR TAKE ON SOME OF THE CHAOS YOU SAW?

“I reckon they will basically change that rule next year because those dive bombs just create more yellows. You shouldn’t be able to pass until you are out of the last corner at least.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 20 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“It was a good day for the No. 20 BITNILE.COM Chevrolet team. Mission accomplished is what we see here at the end. It’s always tough when you are trying to points race while also being aggressive and competitive. We tried to balance those two in what was a pretty chaotic race. It was difficult at times to think about points but also wanting to move forward. All in all, we ran in the Top 3, finished in the Top 10 and secured a position in Leaders Circle. Mission accomplished!”

Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“I stayed out of the initial chaos in Turn 2, but then got hit by (Scott) Dixon. They gave him a drive-through penalty, which then helped him get on the right strategy. How lucky can he be and how unlucky can I be? It took three minutes to get my car restarted which was very frustrating. I felt like I was trying to create a tornado with my hand, signaling the safety team over! But from there my race was pretty much over, I just had to concentrate on staying out of all of the mess. It was a good day for the team, good day for Ryan (Hunter-Reay) and good to get both cars in Leaders Circle. Unfortunately, just not a great finish for the No. 21 BITNILE.COM Chevrolet, we should have had a shot at winning. Now we will wait a few months and try again!”

Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“Honestly it was going to be a solid day and an easy top 10 finish for the team. On the last restart, they checked up on the bottom, and when they started to crash, one of the cars came out and jumped in front of me and I had nowhere to go. Overall, the team did a fantastic job all day, it’s just a shame that we have nothing to show for it.”

Benjamin Pedersen, No. 55 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“Definitely one of the craziest races of the whole year. Happy to have finished it. Finished p16 so one of our better road course results for the year. I think we had quite a bit in the bank still but unfortunately got hit on one of the restarts and cycled to the back. I think if that wouldn’t have happened, we were on track to be P-7 or right around there. With such a crazy race happening, to have finished p 16, which is one of our better results, I’m pretty pleased to finish the year that way–and also helping Chevrolet get the manufacturer’s championship. Looking forward to next year.”

“I think it’s the nature of the track especially now with the new pavement and how much faster the cars are going. That makes it even harder to follow closely so I think it will be really interesting. I don’t think the tire deg is going to be bad either so I think for everyone its going to be a matter of not making any mistakes in the race.”

Callum Ilott, No. 77 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:

YOUR FINISH HELPED CHEVROLET WIN THE MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP TODAY

“I think they were quite happy with that, and they weren’t expecting that. It was a great day all around for us. Obviously, I wish it was a bit more, because we would have been in for a good position unfortunately. But yeah, great finish.”

HOW NICE IS IT TO HEAD INTO THE OFFSEASON WITH SOME WIND IN YOUR SAILS AND A TOP FIVE FINISH, MATCHING A CAREER BEST?

“Yeah, I can’t complain. Honestly, it’s been a tough year and putting it together a bit more at the end there, with the way the race panned out, it was a good one. I think we are going to have a nice offseason.”

DETROIT (Sept. 10, 2023) – Chevrolet has won the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES (NICS) Manufacturer Championship for the eighth time since it returned to the Series in 2012.

“It is an honor to receive the 2023 INDYCAR Manufacturer Championship trophy on behalf of Chevrolet,” said Jim Campbell, US Vice President Performance and Motorsports.

“This championship is a result of teamwork, preparation, and execution on track throughout the season. Thanks to our powertrain engineers, our technical partners at Ilmor and our race teams, including Team Penske, Ed Carpenter Racing, Arrow McLaren, AJ Foyt Racing, Juncos Hollinger Racing and Paretta Autosport for their combined efforts that resulted in delivering our eighth championship since 2012.”

In the 12 seasons of the Chevrolet 2.2-liter V6 twin turbo direct injected INDYCAR engine, Team Chevy drivers have amassed 111 wins of the 198 races to date – an impressive 58.6%. Team Chevy drivers have been crowned champion seven times since 2012 and scored five Indianapolis 500 wins.

All of Chevrolet’s full-time teams contributed valuable time and effort toward the seventh NICS Manufacturer Championship. Team Penske, with drivers Will Power, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin; Ed Carpenter Racing, with drivers Rinus VeeKay and Ryan Hunter-Reay; Arrow McLaren, with drivers Pato O’Ward, Felix Rosenqvist and Alexander Rossi; AJ Foyt Racing, with drivers Santino Ferrucci and Benjamin Pedersen; and Juncos Hollinger Racing, with drivers Callum Ilott and Agustin Canapino, were instrumental in Team Chevy’s success.

Although having less than half of the total car count, Chevy powered drivers maximized all their available support, engineering tools and simulator time to enable performance growth that translated to consistency and strong results.

Since 2012, in addition to the eight Manufacturer Championships, Chevrolet has won seven driver championships with Ryan Hunter-Reay (2012), Power (2014 and 2022), Scott Dixon (2015), Simon Pagenaud (2016) and Newgarden (2017 and 2019).

Additionally, the Chevrolet 2.2-liter V6 engine powered drivers to win the Indianapolis 500 with Tony Kanaan (2013), Juan Pablo Montoya (2015) Will Power (2018), Simon Pagenaud (2019) and Josef Newgarden (2023).

Previously, Chevrolet competed in Indy-style racing as a manufacturer of V8 engines from 1986-93 and 2002-05, powering 111 wins, one manufacturer championship in 2002, seven Indianapolis 500 wins and six driver championships.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
FIRESTONE GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY
WEATHERTECH RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA
SALINAS, CALIFORNIA
TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING REPORT
SEPTEMBER 9,2023

FELIX ROSENQVIST PUTS CHEVY ON THE POLE FOR LAST RACE OF 2023 NTT INDYCAR SEASON AT LAGUNA SECA

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN QUALIFIED SECOND MAKING ALL CHEVROLET FRONT ROW

· With a lap of 1 minute: 06.6416 seconds/129.897 mph, Felix Rosenqvist powered his No. 6 Arrow McLaren NTT Chevrolet to the pole for Firestone GP of Monterey

o His NTT P1 Award winning lap around the newly repaved Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca was 4.9 seconds faster than the 2022 event

o It is second pole of 2023 for Rosenqvist, and the fifth of his career

· Scott McLaughlin will start alongside Rosenqvist in the No.3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet

o This is the eighth front row starting position for McLaughin in 2023

MONTEREY, CALIF (September 9, 2023) – The newly re-paved 2.2-mile

Weather Tech Raceway proved to be an exciting challenge with in the testing and practicing sessions leading up qualifying for the 95-lap race./

The change in the surface didn’t seem to bother Felix Rosenqvist at all. He neatly navigated the course to post a record-setting time of 06.6416 seconds/129.897 mph as the next to the last car to take the checkered flag concluding the Fast Six.

The last car to finish was Scott McLaughlin who was equally as quick, but he had to settle for 1minute:06.653 seconds 120.88 mph to make it an all Chevrolet front row.

Chevrolet remains in the thick of the battle for the Series’ Manufacturer Championship heading into tomorrow’s race just 15 points down to our competition.

Sunday’s 95-lap, 212.61-mile race takes the green flag live on NBC at 3 p.m. ET. All practice and qualifying will be live on Peacock, INDYCAR Radio, and SiriusXM Channel 160.

OTHER CHEVY FINISHERS
4TH Josef Newgarden
8TH Rinus VeeKay
9TH Will Power
11th Santino Ferrucci
12th Pato O’Ward
13th Agustin Canapino

CHEVROLET AT LAGUNA SECA (V6 era), since INDYCAR’s 2019 return:

· Wins: 0

· Pole Awards: 1

§ 2018: Will Power

· Podiums at Laguna Seca by Team Chevy: 3, since the 2019 return to Laguna Seca

· Laps Led at Laguna Seca by Team Chevy: 35 laps led since the 2019 return to Laguna Seca

WHAT THEY ARE SAYINGS:

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“Not the best qualifying for us. It was probably one of our worst all year. I’m not sure what made the balance shift so much in Q2 versus Q1 for me. I just couldn’t extract the lap time. But I’m happy for the team with Felix’s pole. Tomorrow we’ll have three cars with pace starting in three parts of the field, the front, middle and rear. We’re going to give it everything we have to finish our season strong.”

Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“That was a killer lap. I had to wrestle my way to it, and there were some sketchy moments, but that made it so much more special. A big thanks to my Arrow McLaren crew, NTT DATA and Team Chevrolet. Tomorrow will be our last race together, so this is an awesome way to get that going. Track position is super important here, so we’ve given ourselves a great opportunity for a positive race.”

Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“The car was great. There wasn’t much more we could do there once a red flag comes out and takes it away from you. It was the best car we’ve had through the weekend so to not break out of Round 1 is really disappointing. Colton Herta and I have had probably the strongest cars all weekend, and we’re starting in the back half of the field. It’s a shame, but I’m really happy for Felix on pole.”

Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 EXPEL Chevrolet at Team Penske:

“Really good day for the XPEL Chevrolet. That’s another front row for us. We’re killing those. Just barely missing the poles which is unfortunate. We’ve had a few where we’ve been barely close. Bummed for this one because this XPEL Chevrolet was really fast. We’ll just try to make the right decisions tomorrow and make good strategy choices, and hopefully find ourselves at the end of the race in Victory Lane.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 20 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“We made some good gains yesterday, but I haven’t been able to find the grip and predictability I need from the No. 20 BITNILE.COM Chevrolet yet. Unfortunately in qualifying, I just dropped the right rear into a little bit of sand and the car turned around and then stalled. We’ll start near the back, but hopefully go have a good race and move forward.”

Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“I would have been more satisfied with a Fast 6 experience! We have had really good pace in practice so I would have loved to have done a little bit better. I just couldn’t get it 100% right. Starting 7th is decent and I think we are one of the fastest cars out there, especially on old tires. I am confident that we can do well in the race and move up some positions!”

Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“It’s honestly been a great week so far to start. Obviously we qualified P11 after a motor change, no install, really rushing and pushing is really impressive from the team’s side and yeah just kind of rewarding to qualify 11th. Probably could have gotten to tenth or ninth if I had just put in the perfect lap but we still have got to work away at it. We’re still missing something on the reds, but we definitely learned something from session one to session two from the team side. But we’ll see what we can do from the race starting 17th.

“I think we’re better on the primary tires so that’s probably where we’ll live. It’s hard to pass so you’re kind of banking on people to make mistakes. It’s also the final race of the season so for sure, people are going to crash trying to pass. Just have to stay clean and try and bring home a top 10 or top 15. If we’re lucky and play our cards right, a top 10.”

Benjamin Pedersen, No. 55 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“We’ll be rolling off P23. We lost a bit of relative pace compared to practice so we’re going to look into that as to why that was. But both cars will be starting pretty close to each other so looking to finish the year as strong as possible and go forward. It looks like it’s pretty challenging to pass so it will be interesting with strategy what we can come up with, but we’ll be definitely giving it everything we have tomorrow to finish the season strong.

(asked Why is it so hard to pass?)

“I think it’s the nature of the track especially now with the new pavement and how much faster the cars are going. That makes it even harder to follow closely so I think it will be really interesting. I don’t think the tire deg is going to be bad either so I think for everyone its going to be a matter of not making any mistakes in the race.”

Callum Ilott, No. 77 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:

“It was a pretty interesting day. I think we had a bit more potential than we showed. It was a bit of a messy day. There’s a lot of, a lot on the track, guys running off the track and bringing it on. Just massive, massive. Trying to get the best I could unfortunately that was the 20 overall, so not so great, especially over the last year, the speed we had here. But yeah, tomorrow’s a new day. They should be good to get everything right and try and move forward. But yeah, we’ve we’ve got a new car, I think has been on the block so far today has been good. Just to get a bit more out of it.”

Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:

“Really Happy. Our best qualification. P7 in his group, 13th for the race. Unfortunately I have to take a penalty and start 19th. Only four tenths off for my first time at Laguna Seca. Really proud of my team. Thanks to everyone for their hard work. Tomorrow we will go for our best result of the years, and why not rookie-of-the-year.”

MONTEREY, Calif. (Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023) – Arrow McLaren posted stickers reading “THANK YOU FRO” inside the car of Felix Rosenqvist this weekend at the season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey.

After NTT P1 Award qualifying Saturday, the team has even more reason to thank the Swedish driver.

Rosenqvist won the pole for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season finale in his last race with Arrow McLaren, turning a lap of 1 minute, 6.6416 seconds in the team’s No. 6 Chevrolet during the Firestone Fast Six. It’s the second NTT P1 Award this season and fifth career pole for Rosenqvist, who will move to Meyer Shank Racing next season.

“This is our last race together tomorrow, so what a way to get that going,” Rosenqvist said. “Especially here, track position is super important. We couldn’t have given ourselves a better opportunity.”

Rosenqvist will try to earn his second career win and first with Arrow McLaren in the 95-lap race Sunday. Live coverage starts at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock, Telemundo Deportes on Universo and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Scott McLaughlin will join Rosenqvist on the front row after his qualifying lap of 1:06.6513 in the No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet. McLaughlin just missed unseating Rosenqvist from the top spot on the last flying lap of the Firestone Fast Six, almost overcoming a mistake at the start of his hot lap.

“I dropped a wheel at (Turn) 10, the fast right-hander, just trying to get that extra little bit,” McLaughlin said. “The car was mega. I really feel bad for these guys on the XPEL Chevy. Congrats to Felix. It’s pretty awesome he got his last pole with the team there.”

Christian Lundgaard qualified third at 1:06.7478 in the No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. The Firestone Fast Six was a case of what could have been for Lundgaard, who bounced inside the apex of the famous Corkscrew corner on his penultimate qualifying run, losing time on a lap that appeared to be headed for pole.

Lundgaard also set an INDYCAR SERIES track record of 1:06.4610 during the second round of qualifying, breaking Helio Castroneves’ record of 1:07.722 set in 2000. The 11-turn, 2.238-mile road course was repaved this May, with extra grip leading to quicker times and higher speeds.

Two-time series champion Josef Newgarden qualified fourth at 1:06.7937 in the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet.

Six-time series champion Scott Dixon will start on the inside of Row 3 after qualifying fifth at 1:07.0171 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Alex Palou, who clinched his second season championship last Sunday at Portland, qualified sixth at 1:07.2846 in the No. 10 The American Legion Honda of Chip Ganassi Racing. Palou earned a spot in the Firestone Fast Six for the ninth time this season.

Juri Vips was the top rookie qualifier, seventh in the No. 30 Mi-Jack Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Former Formula 2 driver Vips made his NTT INDYCAR SERIES debut last weekend at Portland.

One of the biggest surprises in the first round of qualifying was the elimination of Colton Herta, who led practice Friday in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda fielded by Andretti Autosport w/Curb-Agajanian. Herta, who will start 15th, won this race from the pole in 2019 and 2021.

A 30-minute practice at noon ET will precede the race, with live coverage on Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Qualifying Results

1. (6) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, 01:06.6416 (120.897 mph)
2. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 01:06.6513 (120.880)
3. (45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 01:06.7478 (120.705)
4. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 01:06.7937 (120.622)
5. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 01:07.0171 (120.220)
6. (10) Alex Palou, Honda, 01:07.2846 (119.742)
7. (30) Juri Vips, Honda, 01:06.8300 (120.557)
8. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 01:06.9172 (120.400)
9. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 01:06.9282 (120.380)
10. (28) Romain Grosjean, Honda, 01:07.1292 (120.019)
11. (14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 01:07.4479 (119.452)
12. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 01:07.9392 (118.588)
13. (78) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, 01:07.4009 (119.535)
14. (15) Graham Rahal, Honda, 01:07.2323 (119.835)
15. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, 01:07.4666 (119.419)
16. (11) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, 01:07.3726 (119.586)
17. (7) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 01:07.5425 (119.285)
18. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 01:07.4029 (119.532)
19. (8) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 01:07.6149 (119.157)
20. (77) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, 01:07.5183 (119.328)
21. (60) Tom Blomqvist, Honda, 01:07.7419 (118.934)
22. (18) David Malukas, Honda, 01:07.7816 (118.864)
23. (55) Benjamin Pedersen, Chevrolet, 01:07.7583 (118.905)
24. (51) Sting Ray Robb, Honda, 01:07.8639 (118.720)
25. (20) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet, 01:11.0620 (113.377)
26. (29) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, 01:07.9083 (118.642)
27. (06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, No Time (No Speed)

MONTEREY, Calif. (Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023) – Hunter McElrea did everything he could by leading all 35 laps to win the INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 on Saturday at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, but Christian Rasmussen’s hands are all but on the series; championship trophy after the first race of the season-ending doubleheader.

McElrea never trailed from the pole position to earn his second victory of the season in the No. 27 Smart Motors car fielded by Andretti Autosport, winning the race under caution. The win pulled McElrea from 65 points to within 51 of leader Rasmussen with one race remaining, at 12:50 p.m. ET Sunday (live, Peacock, INDYCAR Radio Network). Rasmussen finished second today in the No. 6 HMD Motorsports with DCR machine.

“What a crazy race,” McElrea said. “I was driving like 90 percent and built like a six-second lead. The car was phenomenal. The restarts weren’t easy, weren’t making my life easy, but I knew we had the speed. That’s it: I just have to win two races and hope for the best.”

Rasmussen earned the pole for the race Sunday, and all he needs to do is start the 35-lap event to clinch the championship for the INDYCAR development series.

“I did what I needed to do,” Rasmussen said. “Hunter was super quick all race long, and I knew I really didn’t have anything for him. It was a lonely race for me. I was just sitting in second. I had a big gap in front and a big gap behind.

“I just have to start the race. Just going to be full enjoyment. Starting on the pole position, and we’ll see what happens.”

Danial Frost finished third Saturday in the No. 68 HMD Motorsports with DCR car. Kyffin Simpson placed fourth in the No. 21 HMD Motorsports with CGR machine, with Matthew Brabham rounding out the top five in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing entry.

McElrea controlled the entire race from the front. He cruised to nearly a seven-second lead over Rasmussen when the first of four caution flags in the race flew, on Lap 18. McElrea pulled away to a lead of nearly two seconds after the first lap after restarts on Laps 22 and 26.

Rasmussen kept it closer on the final restart on Lap 30. He had saved push-to-pass for the end of the race and kept within a second of leader McElrea on the closing laps around the 11-turn, 2.238-mile road course.

Danish driver Rasmussen pulled to within one-half second of McElrea when the No. 28 DHL car of Jamie Chadwick and the No. 39 HMD Motorsports with DCR machine of Nolan Siegel collided in Turn 10, triggering the race-ending caution on Lap 34.

“I was bringing it pretty good at the end,” Rasmussen said. “I could keep close to Hunter because I think I saved so much through the race. I don’t know if I would have had something for him on that last lap, but very satisfied with P2.”