Power's Singular Purpose: Add The '500' To His Resume
May 21, 2015 | By Phillip B. Wilson, IMS.com Correspondent
Will Power made his intentions known in the first day back on track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
During a break from testing the new Chevrolet aerodynamic package on May 3, the Team Penske driver from Australia said the Indianapolis 500 was now more important than ever before.
In the past, Power was fixated on what had been an elusive Verizon IndyCar Series championship. He had finished second in points three consecutive years from 2010 to 2012, then fourth in points in 2013. Finally, last year, he won the title.
The epiphany from that accomplishment became clear: Now Power had to win the Indy 500.
He’ll get his eighth opportunity to conquer the ultimate race on Sunday, when Power’s No. 1 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet starts second in the 99th Indy 500.
“The championship to me is the best driver over the whole season, not just one race,” he said. “So if you win the championship, you are the best driver that year. To me, it’s a big deal. That’s something NASCAR does right. They have the Daytona 500, but the championship is a huge deal.
“The Indy 500 is obviously a massive deal. To me now, that’s it. That’s what I want now. It really is.”
Team Penske consultant Rick Mears, one of just three drivers to win the Indy 500 four times, understands Power’s motivation. It’s not that Power didn’t consider the “500” a priority before. Drivers have checklists for what they want to accomplish in their careers.
“If it had happened in reverse, it would be the other thing,” Mears said. “It’s what’s next on the list. But he didn’t get to choose which one was first. It’s just the way it happened. Had he won Indy first, that would make the championship more important. That’s the way I would look at it. Before I had won either one, Indy may be leading the list. Now that he’s won a series championship, Indy is even more important.”
Power nodded when told of Mears’ observation.
“That’s exactly right,” he said.
The 34-year-old driver’s resume includes 25 open-wheel victories, 65 top-five finishes and 38 poles in 144 races dating to Champ Car. But he admits his record has a hole without an Indy 500 triumph.
“Yeah, it does,” Power said. “There are things you have to get right. I don’t think anybody gets a turn. It’s just getting it done, the driver and team engineer, to work together and put yourself in that situation.”
He’s still mindful of defending his series title. After winning the second Angie’s List Grand Prix of Indianapolis on May 9, Power is second in points, five behind teammate Juan Pablo Montoya. He can become the first driver to sweep both IMS races in the same year.
But the Indy 500 has been unkind to him in the past. He’s qualified well, always in the first two rows the past six years, but that hasn’t translated to being in position to win at the end. His best finish was fifth in 2009, his first Team Penske ride at IMS. He was eighth last year, same as in 2010, the only other times he finished in the top 10.
When driving for Hall of Fame owner Roger Penske, whose cars have won a record 15 Indy 500s, one of the obvious goals each season is to win this race. Helio Castroneves has done it three times. Montoya won in his first run in 2000 for Chip Ganassi Racing. But Team Penske hasn’t celebrated an Indy 500 win since 2009.
Penske is again well-represented in the 33-car field with four solid contenders. Simon Pagenaud starts alongside Power on the outside of the front row. Castroneves is in the middle of Row 2. Montoya is on the outside of Row 5.
Power equaled his best Indy 500 qualifying effort last Sunday. He also started second in 2010.
When looking back, he shoulders much of the blame for the previous “500”s.
“It’s been self-induced somewhat, some of those bad days, you know?” he said. “Definitely in 2009 and 2010 were the years I actually had cars that could have won, but it didn’t come together. The rest, I can’t remember how good the car was in ’11. In ’12, nah. In ’13, nah. Last year, nah, the car wasn’t good enough. Now I’ve got to see what I can do here.
“Obviously it’s not to do with the team. It has to do with the driver getting the car right for himself, the driver and the engineer. If you just show up and can drive, that would be easy. But you’ve got to bloody work with your whole team to get it right.”
After the “super frustrating” series of near misses in chasing that season title, he finally broke through. Now he hopes to break though again come Sunday.
“It’s the greatest race in the world,” Power said. “As far as a one-off race, it is the absolute pinnacle event to win. It’s huge.”