Power holds IRL points lead, but …
JOLIET, Ill. (AP) – As IndyCar’s current king of the road, Will Power built a commanding lead in the series points standings by zigzagging his way to five wins on twisting road courses and street circuits this season. Now he’ll have to hold his own on high-speed oval tracks, or veteran Dario Franchitti just might chase him down.
Power holds a 59-point lead over Franchitti going into Saturday night’s race at Chicagoland Speedway, the first in a season-ending stretch of four straight oval tracks. Franchitti is considered a stronger driver on ovals.
Power is confident, but isn’t clearing space in his trophy case yet.
“I’d feel comfortable if there were two races to go,” Power said. “But definitely, it just takes one bad race and for him to win and then bam, you’re back to equal. In a way, it’s still a lot of racing to go. I guess if I happen to finish ahead of him this weekend, I’ll be like, ‘OK, this is getting closer.'”
And while Power knows he can run with the leaders on an oval, he acknowledges that he’s still learning how to win on one.
“I feel as though on road courses, I can make a win happen,” Power said. “On ovals, because I haven’t won, I’m not sure.”
Power’s Penske teammate, Helio Castroneves, is plenty confident that Franchitti’s Chip Ganassi Racing team won’t be making a comeback in the points.
“I feel that Ganassi should be worried, no question,” Castroneves said. “(Power) is in a very comfortable position.”
Franchitti knows it won’t be easy to make up that much ground in four races. Power might not have Franchitti’s track record on ovals, but he won’t likely be running at the back of the pack, either.
“It’s going to be tough,” Franchitti said. “It’s not just a case of coming to four ovals and he’s going to run right to the back. That’s just not going to happen. We’ve got to absolutely figure out how to be quick every week, and we’ve got to be winning races.”
Franchitti was faster than Power in qualifying Friday at Chicagoland, but only slightly; Franchitti qualified second behind Penske’s Ryan Briscoe, and Power was a strong third.
Just finishing slightly in front of Power won’t be enough for Franchitti to make a comeback bid for the title. He’ll have to be nearly perfect while Power hits a speed bump or two.
“I think we can do it, yeah,” Franchitti said. “But it’s there, and it’s got to be climbed over.”
Power scored more points than any other driver on road courses this year, but his best finish on an oval this season is fifth. The IndyCar series also visits Kentucky Speedway and Twin Ring Motegi in Japan before the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
“I think one thing Will’s got in his favor is he’s with a front-running team with two very experienced teammates who are very good on ovals,” Franchitti said. “They’ll kind of keep him where he needs to be as far as setup and stuff. It’s going to be an interesting fight to the finish, I think.”
Despite his Indianapolis 500 win, Franchitti said he won’t truly consider this season a success unless he wins the championship. Even if that doesn’t happen, he’s optimistic about the direction the Ganassi team is headed, although he’d like to see the team raise its game on road courses.
Franchitti said he does not yet have a deal in place with team owner Chip Ganassi for next season, although he expects it to be done soon.
“I want to be here,” Franchitti said. “Chip and I and the team, they want me to be here, I want to be here. We’re putting the finishing touches on it. There are other options, but this is where I want to be.”
Power, meanwhile, appreciates his rise from substitute driver – he filled in during Castroneves’ tax evasion trial – to championship contender.
“I would never have dreamed I would have ended up driving for Penske,” Power said. “When I first came over there, this was the team that everyone would aim to end up with. It’s just such a sort of weird set of circumstances. It all came together.”