A week of controversy that draped Scott McLaughlin and his fellow Team Penske squad didn’t stand in his way, as he dominated to win and repeat in the Alabama’s Children Indy Grand Prix on Sunday (April 28).
Penske teammate Will Power followed in second, making it 1-2 Penske finish and concluding one of the most scrutinized weeks the long-time NTT IndyCar Series team has experienced since at least its failure to make the 1995 Indianapolis 500.
Much like last year, the yellows fell exactly in favor of the three-stop strategies like McLaughlin, who pitted during a caution on lap 47. Then another yellow came out for Sting Ray Robb’s crash into the tire barriers, which forced all two-stoppers to the pit lane.
McLaughlin used the ensuing restart to stretch his lead enough to hold the top spot when he pitted for a final time under green, coming out well ahead of two-stop leader Alex Palou.
The win came at a pivotal time for the historic Team Penske IndyCar operation, who was put under a microscope earlier in the week when all three cars were penalized for illegal use of push-to-pass at the first two rounds of the season. After both McLaughlin and Josef Newgarden were stripped of their finishing positions at St. Petersburg, the New Zealand driver started Sunday’s race dead last in the championship. He jumped 20 spots in the standings after this win.
Rookie Linus Lundqvist had the best race of his young IndyCar career, finishing third and earning the first podium in his career. Felix Rosenqvist, who continues a strong start to the season, finished fourth, followed by Palou in fifth.
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