Scott McLaughlin boasted a second-place average finishing position following a win and third-place finish, respectively, during the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend on July 12-14 at Iowa Speedway. As a result, the Team Penske driver rose in the Power Rankings and continues to chase NTT INDYCAR SERIES points leader Alex Palou.
Who else rose and fell in this week’s Power Rankings leading into Sunday’s Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto?
↔10. Santino Ferrucci (No. 14 AJ FOYT RACING/SEXTON PROPERTIES Chevrolet; Last Rank: 10)
Ferrucci finished sixth Saturday night and 11th Sunday at Iowa Speedway. He has seven top-10 finishes this season and boasts an average finishing position of 9.7 over the last seven races. That’s why he gets the nod over two-time defending Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden, who has an average finish of 11.8 in that same span. Newgarden had a good Iowa Speedway weekend, but three results of 19th or worse in the five previous races leave him on the cusp of the Power Rankings.
↓9. Marcus Ericsson (No. 28 Delaware Life Honda; Last Rank: 7)
Ericsson drops two spots following a disappointing 23rd-place finish Sunday. He did come away ninth Saturday night and has four top-10 finishes in the last five races. Since June 2, Ericsson has an average finish of 9.6.
↓8. Alexander Rossi (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 6)
Rossi finished eighth Saturday night but ran out of fuel on the final lap of Sunday’s race, collecting Kyle Kirkwood, Ed Carpenter and Sting Ray Robb in a frightening melee. All drivers were unhurt in the accident. Rossi was credited with a 15th-place finish. He has six top-10 finishes in his last eight starts.
↓7. Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27 AutoNation Honda; Last Rank: 5)
Kirkwood dropped a couple spots in Power Rankings following a last-lap crash Sunday that relegated him to a 16th-place finish. Still, Kirkwood was on track for another top-10 result, which would have been seven straight on the season. He climbed from nearly being lapped early in the 250-lap Saturday night race to finish seventh.
↑6. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 9)
Dixon finished fourth in both Iowa Speedway events and comes to Toronto with six top-six finishes in the last eight races this season. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver has won the last two street course races this season, at Long Beach and Detroit.
↑5. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Business Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 8)
Power climbs to fifth in the Power Rankings after dropping in them after the last two races. The two-time series champion rebounded from a bad opening race at Iowa Speedway, where he finished 18th, to charge from 22nd at the start to win Sunday. With a victory June 9 at Road America, Power has two wins in the last four races. What’s holding him back is the seventh-place finish at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, 11th at Mid-Ohio and 18th in Race 1 Saturday night.
↓4. Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda; Last Rank: 2)
After earning his first NTT P1 Award on an oval for Race 1 Saturday night, an error dropped Herta to an 11th-place finish. He started fourth Sunday and finished fifth. Herta has four top-six finishes in his last five starts this season.
↑3. Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 6)
Over the last five races, McLaughlin has finished third in three and earned his first career oval win in another. He won Saturday night’s Hy-Vee Homefront 250 presented by Instacart and finished third a day later in the Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade.
↑2. Pato O’Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 3)
O’Ward finished runner-up to McLaughlin Saturday night and sixth in Sunday’s Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade, totaling seven consecutive top-10 finishes on the season. The Arrow McLaren driver gained 18 points on championship leader Alex Palou during the Iowa Speedway race weekend and is scored third in points, 52 behind.
↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1)
A day after a costly mistake by Palou ended up in a 23rd-place finish, he rebounded to finish second Sunday at Iowa. Palou has nine top-five finishes in 11 races this season. Over his last 30 starts, including the non-points The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge, Palou has 28 top-eight results.