CHEVY INDYCAR AT POCONO: Team Chevy Advance – Chevrolet Aims for Third Win in a Row at Pocono

Chevrolet Aims for Third Win in a Row at Pocono

· Will Power has stood in victory circle the past two years
ᴏ Chevrolet has won three of five races since Indy car return to Pocono

· Team Chevy drivers seek to improve title prospects
ᴏ Josef Newgarden is third, Power is fourth in standings

· Ed Carpenter to mark 175th career race
ᴏ Team owner/driver relies on Chevy power since 2012

· Pocono Raceway hosts its 25th Indy car race

DETROIT (Aug. 15, 2018) – Past success at a racetrack is a tangible motivator for Verizon IndyCar Series (VICS) drivers. More intrinsic, though no less significant, is a driver’s perceptions of the venue – “their enjoyability factor,” according to Will Power.

Power returns this weekend to Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, for the ABC Supply 500 with motivation and momentum. Power, the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series champion and four-time title runner-up, has won the past two 500-mile races on 2.5-mile tri-oval designed by Rodger Ward.

“Experience, understanding what I want from the car. I enjoy the track. I think that’s what makes me do well there,” said Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet who won the Indianapolis 500 in May.

To tackle the three distinctly different turns of the aptly named “Tricky Triangle,” drivers will have to compromise on car set-up to attain balance each lap over a full fuel stint.

“The most similar track is Indianapolis for the fact you take a total road course race line,” added Power. “I think the thing that differentiates that track is it’s three very different corners: one with a lot of banking, one that’s very open, pretty much wide open every lap, then one that’s kind of like Indianapolis with no banking and the car slides around. It is a great race circuit.”

Drivers backed by the 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged direct-injected V6 Chevrolet engine have won three of the five races at Pocono Raceway since the Verizon IndyCar Series returned after a 13-year absence. The event will be the 25th Indy car race at the racetrack. Mark Donohue won the inaugural race in 1971 and Danny Sullivan won in 1989 in a Chevrolet-powered car – both for team owner Roger Penske — before the hiatus.

Power, whose next pole start will tie A.J. Foyt for second on the all-time list at 53, is fourth in the driver championship standings. He enters the race weekend on the heels of a third-place finish at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Teammate and reigning series champion Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 1 Hitachi Chevrolet, is 60 points behind the leader in third and 14 points out of second place after a fourth-place finish on the Mid-Ohio road course. He has also had success each of the past five years at Pocono Raceway.

Power, Newgarden at Pocono Raceway

  2017 2016 2015 2014 2013
  S    F S   F S    F S   F S    F
Power 5    1 8   1 3    4 2  10 4    4
Newgarden 14  2 2   4 4    2 21  8 15  5

Both drivers seek similar outcomes in the 200-lap race to improve their title prospects with four races remaining.

“Our average finish here is 4.2, which is solid. I just seem to have good luck. The races seem to flow for me. We never really get caught up in anything,” said Newgarden, who has three victories this season including the 1-mile Phoenix oval and has earned the pole for the race on the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway oval. “Pocono is a difficult track and, with a lot of really strong competition, it’s not an easy place to win.

“Team Penske tends to perform strong there and I know we have all the right people in place to give us the best car possible to make a run for the win. Every lap really counts between now and the end of the season. We need to be consistent and not make mistakes.”

The event will mark the 175th career race for Ed Carpenter, who will compete in the No. 20 Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet. The team owner/driver has relied on Chevy power since the team joined INDYCAR for the 2012 season.

Carpenter, 37, competes in Verizon IndyCar Series oval races and Jordan King drives the No. 20 Chevrolet in road/street course races. Carpenter, who has three career victories, was the pole winner and runner-up in the Indianapolis 500 in May.

“It is such a unique track, which makes for a fun challenge,” Carpenter said of Pocono Raceway. “The fact that it is a 500-mile race is something that I look forward to as well.”

The Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport will pace the field to the green flag for the 500-mile race.

In the 200-lap race on the 2.5-mile tri-oval, Team Chevy will be well represented by:

A.J. FOYT ENTERPRISES:

Matheus Leist, No. 4 ABC Supply Chevrolet

Tony Kanaan, No. 14 ABC Supply Chevrolet

CARLIN:
Charlie Kimball, No. 23 Tresiba Chevrolet
Max Chilton, No. 59 Gallagher Chevrolet

ED CARPENTER RACING:

Ed Carpenter, No. 20 Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet
Spencer Pigot, No. 21 Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet

HARDING RACING:
Conor Daly, No. 88 Harding Group Chevrolet

TEAM PENSKE:

Josef Newgarden, No. 1 Hitachi Chevrolet
Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet
Simon Pagenaud, No. 22 Pennzoil Chevrolet

Chevrolet IndyCar V6 Year-By-Year Results

Year Races Wins Poles Notes
2012 15 11 10 Engine Manufacturer Championship; Driver & Owner Titles (Ryan Hunter-Reay/Michael Andretti)
2013 19 10 11 Engine Manufacturer Championship;
Indy 500 win (Tony Kanaan)
2014 18 12 13 Engine Manufacturer Championship; Driver & Owner Titles (Will Power/Roger Penske)
2015 16 10 16 Engine Manufacturer Championship; Driver & Owner Titles (Scott Dixon/Chip Ganassi);
Indy 500 Win (Juan Pablo Montoya) – first manufacturer to capture all titles since Chevrolet returned to the Verizon IndyCar Series in 2012
2016 16 14 13 Engine Manufacturer Championship; Driver & Owner Titles (Simon Pagenaud/Roger Penske)
2017 17 10 11 Engine Manufacturer Championship; Driver & Owner Titles (Josef Newgarden/Roger Penske)
2018 13 5 7 Wins – Josef Newgarden (Phoenix, Barber, Road America), Will Power (Indianapolis RC, Indianapolis 500). Poles – Newgarden (Barber, Texas, Road America, Toronto), Power (Indianapolis RC, Iowa), Ed Carpenter (Indianapolis 500)
Totals 114 72 81

2018 Verizon IndyCar Series Standings (Chevrolet in bold)

Driver Standings Team Standings Manufacturer Standings
1. Scott Dixon – 494
2. Alexander Rossi – 448
3. Josef Newgarden – 434
4. Will Power – 407
5. Ryan Hunter-Reay – 399

1. No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing – 494
2. No. 27 Andretti Autosport – 448
3. No. 1 Team Penske – 434
4. No. 12 Team Penske – 407
5. No. 28 Andretti Autosport – 399
1. Honda – 1,180
2. Chevrolet – 938

ABC Supply 500 (all times ET)

· Verizon IndyCar Series Practice 1: 10:30 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 18

· Verizon IndyCar Qualifications: 1:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 18

· Verizon IndyCar Series Practice 2: 4:45 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 18

· ABC Supply 500: 1:35 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 19

· TV/Radio/Other: NBCSN will telecast the 200-lap race on the 2.5-mile tri-oval live at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 19. NBCSN will telecast qualifications live at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 18. Practice sessions will be streamed on RaceControl.IndyCar.com in conjunction with the INDYCAR Radio Network broadcast. Qualifications and the race will also be broadcast on INDYCAR Radio Network affiliates, RaceControl.IndyCar.com, indycarradio.com, the INDYCAR Mobile app, Sirius 214, and XM209.

Connect with Team Chevy on social media. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/TeamChevy<https://www.facebook.com/TeamChevy>,follow us on Twitter @TeamChevy<https://twitter.com/TeamChevy>, and follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/teamchevy/?hl=en

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Best New Zealand Online Casinos

RacingJunk.com and Leaf Racewear Safety Equipment Giveaway

Rocketplay Casino

10 deposit casinos

Best Betting Sites in Canada

bettingtop10.ca

Latest articles