Will Power was delighted to secure his second victory in succession as he withstood the late race pressure from Tony Kanaan to win on the Verizon IndyCar Series’ return to Road America.
The Team Penske driver led from start to finish around the Elkhart Lake circuit, save for a few laps during the pit stop cycles as other drivers ran slightly longer than the Australian driver, but was forced to defend in the closing laps from the rapidly closing Chip Ganassi Racing driver as Power used the black Firestone tyres as opposed to the faster red tyres of Kanaan.
Despite having sat out the opening race of the season at St Petersburg due to illness, Power still believes he is in contention for the championship, and now is only 81 points behind series leader and team-mate Simon Pagenaud with seven races to run.
“TK (Tony Kanaan) had the reds on and was coming hard,” revealed Power. “He was quick all race. I had my work cut out and did everything I could to stay ahead.
“I’m stoked to get the Verizon car to Victory Lane. Thanks to Chevy. It’s a phenomenal car and phenomenal engine. I’m just so stoked. I wasn’t going to let it go on the restart. I was determined to get a great restart and keep the lead.
“TK was mega quick there at the end. I just had a few more push to pass left and that helped. The Firestones were great. We had no problems – we could do full stints. It was just great, great.
“I was talking championship even before this race. There are seven races to go and we’re still in it. There could be a 100-point swing in the last race. We have to go for it. It’s just a great place and I’m just so stoked to win that way. I badly wanted to win another race. I needed that one. It is huge!”
