By INDYCAR
PORTLAND, Ore. – Scott McLaughlin made winning look easy Sunday in the Grand Prix of Portland. Predicting who will NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship a week from today will be a lot tougher.
McLaughlin earned his third victory of the season, driving his No. 3 Freightliner Team Penske Chevrolet to a 1.1792-second margin over teammate and NTT INDYCAR SERIES points leader Will Power in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet.
SEE: Race Results
That result ensured McLaughlin will be one of five drivers eligible to win the Astor Challenge Cup at the season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on Sunday, Sept. 11 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, joining Power, Josef Newgarden, Scott Dixon and Marcus Ericsson. Power can clinch his second season championship – his first came in 2014 – by finishing third or better, regardless of his rivals’ results.
“The Freightliner Chevy all weekend has been fast and has been right there when we needed it,” McLaughlin said. “The team, the Thirsty 3’s, got the job done in the pits. We did exactly what we needed to do this weekend, and that was win and get max points and keep ourselves in the fight.
“Yeah, we’re a long shot. I don’t care. But we’re a shot, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Power’s lead grew from three to 20 points over Newgarden. Dixon also is 20 points back but is third in the standings due to fewer wins this season than Newgarden. Ericsson is fourth, 39 points back. McLaughlin is fifth, 41 behind Power.
It’s the 17th consecutive season the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship will remain up for grabs until the season finale. It’s the first time since the 2017 season that at least five drivers will race for the Astor Challenge Cup at the final race. Seven drivers held mathematical title hopes with one race to go that year, but double points were awarded at the season finale at Sonoma Raceway, expanding the group of title-eligible drivers, unlike this season.
“I want to win this championship for the guys that have been with me for more than a decade,” said Power, who began driving full time for Team Penske in 2010. “It’s a lot less selfish for me this time around because they deserve it. I feel their pain over the years of losing so many, so I would love to win it for them.”
Dixon finished third in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda after starting 16th, sustaining his hopes for a record-tying seventh season…
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