MADISON, Ill. – IndyCar score leader Spirit won pole for Saturday night’s race at the World Wide Technology Raceway and drew Mario Andretti for record pole series.
Power’s career 67th pole was won Friday on the short rugby field near St. Louis. The Australian racer spun a lap at 183,089 mph to easily take the top spot for the pivotal race in the IndyCar championship war.
Power goes into Saturday night clinging to a six-point lead on the leaderboard Scott Dixon, and the seven drivers are only 59 points apart. In total, 11 drivers are still mathematically qualified to win the championship with three races remaining.
Power’s fourth pole of the season has been a mainstay he’s been chasing since 2020, when he finally realized that Andretti’s mark was within reach.
“It’s something that I’ve had my eye on for a while. I think when I was 60, I thought, ‘This could happen,'” Power said. “It’s definitely a big box to tick.”
Andretti expects this record to fall soon. Two weeks ago in Nashville, Dixon took his 63rd win to overtake Andretti for second on the all-time list.
“He’s tied right now, but he’s going to break the record because he wants it badly and knows how to do it,” Andretti wrote on Twitter.
But now that Power has taken the record, he’s focused solely on the championship fight.
“I’m not relieved because I’m so focused on the race and the championship. I can think about it later and feel good about it,” Power said. “Right now it’s important to have a good car in the race and have a solid day.”
Indianapolis 500 . Winner Marcus Ericssonwho has held the lead in six races this season, qualified second to Chip Ganassi Racing.
“I think I’m going to do everything I can to try and win this championship,” said Ericsson, third in points and behind Power 12.
Ericsson is followed by Power teammates at Team Penske, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin. Newgarden was the race-winning defender and was 22 points behind Power on the leaderboard in fourth place.
IndyCar Champion Alex Palou qualified fifth for Ganassi and followed by teammate Dixon in sixth. Pato O’Ward Arrow’s McLaren SP finished seventh as the top seven drivers in the standings crossed the top seven – four Chevrolets and three Hondas from Ganassi.
“I think a lot of the time you’ll find yourself racing against people you’re actually fighting for the championship,” O’Ward said before qualifying. With 59 points, he said his goal is clear: “I need to win. I need to win races to have a chance.”
Takuma Sato of Dale Coyne Racing qualified eighth and said after the run he is working on a deal to return to the team next season.
“I think everyone is happy with our position, but a lot has to be done before we tick the box,” said Sato. “It would be a pity if we stopped. We wanted to build this team, it’s small, but it’s a great competitive team and I want to keep it together.”
Andretti Autosport 4-car lineup qualified from 9th to 12th and was led by Romain Grosjeanwho debuted the oval at Gateway a year ago. Devlin DeFranceco 10th and next is Alexander Rossi and Colton Herta.
DeFranceco, a rookie, tested at the Gateway last week in preparation for the race and said his comfort level on the oval has improved significantly since the start of the season. He also said he didn’t know why he was rumored to be a driver about to lose his job.
“I have a multi-year deal with Andretti Steinbrenner Racing. I don’t know where the rumors come from,” DeFranceco said. “What I would know if I had a multi-year contract.”
