P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Team Penske showed flashes of domination in the two races from Iowa Speedway over the weekend, but it was not enough to keep its star drivers in championship contention. Saturday was the better of the two races for the historic team. Josef Newgarden nearly won for the seventh time on the 7/8-mile oval, but came […]
Team Penske showcased glimpses of dominance at Iowa Speedway over the weekend, but their star drivers fell short of championship contention despite a strong showing on Saturday with Josef Newgarden finishing second.
While Newgarden, Will Power, and Scott McLaughlin secured their best result of the year as a trio, Sunday’s race saw Newgarden placing tenth and his teammates retiring early.
Power, currently the highest-ranked Penske driver, sits eighth in the standings, a distant 271 points behind leader Alex Palou with only five races remaining in the season.
The maximum points gap that can be closed at this stage is 270 points, making it mathematically impossible for Power to clinch his third title even if he were to win all remaining races.
Both McLaughlin and Newgarden have been eliminated from title contention as they sit 12th and 14th in the standings, potentially marking Team Penske’s worst points finish since the 1998 CART season.
To avoid their poorest season results in over two decades, Power needs to make up a 56-point deficit to finish higher in the standings during the remaining five races of the 2025 season.
