(This story will be updated with driver reaction.)
LONG BEACH, California – Alexander Rossi completed his weekend of redemption at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, capping the weekend with a dominant win on the iconic street course.
Rossi, in the No. 27 NAPA ATO PARTS Honda, led all but 14 of the 85 laps on the 1.986-mile, 11-turn course and crossed the finish line 1.2413 seconds ahead of Will Power. It was the third Verizon IndyCar Series win for Rossi, in his third season, and win No. 58 for Andretti Autosport.
TOYOTA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH: Unofficial results
Starting from the pole position, Rossi zoomed away to a lead of more than nine seconds by Lap 34. He only surrendered the point during the cycle of pit stops and stuck to the two-stop strategy to fashion the win. With the victory, Rossi climbed into the unofficial points lead after three of 17 races this season, holding a 22-point advantage over reigning series champion Josef Newgarden.
Power started and finished second in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, leading six laps. It was the 63rd career podium finish for the Australian, ranking him 16th on the all-time Indy car list.
Ed Jones of Chip Ganassi Racing finished third in the No. 10 NTT DATA Honda, tying the career best that the second-year driver accomplished in last year’s Indianapolis 500. Rookie Zach Veach placed a career-best fourth in the No. 26 Group One Thousand One Honda for Andretti Autosport.
Graham Rahal, in the No. 15 Total Honda for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, overcame a drive-through penalty for making contact with Simon Pagenaud on the opening lap to place fifth.
The race in front of a large and enthusiastic crowd in the Southern California port city was slowed by four full-course cautions. The last yellow waved on Lap 72 when Ed Carpenter Racing rookie Jordan King ran into the back of Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan driver Sebastien Bourdais in the final hairpin turn.
Following a restart on Lap 76, Rossi kept Power at bay over the final 10 laps despite being at a disadvantage in push-to-pass, which allows the driver to activate a boost of turbocharger pressure and additional horsepower.
The Verizon IndyCar Series returns to action Sunday, April 22 with the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at the scenic Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama. The race airs live at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network.