(A version of this story originally appeared as exclusive content on the INDYCAR Mobile app powered by NTT DATA.)

When Rob Buckner took over as Chevrolet Racing's program manager in the NTT IndyCar Series early last year, predecessor Chris Berube had set a very high standard for Buckner to follow.

Since Chevrolet returned to the series in 2012, it had won every manufacturer's championship and five driver's titles. However, there had been just two Indianapolis 500 victories, by Tony Kanaan in 2013 and Juan Pablo Montoya in 2015.

Rival engine manufacturer Honda won its first INDYCAR Manufacturers Championship last season and Honda driver Scott Dixon won the 2018 NTT IndyCar Series championship.

Chevrolet’s big achievement in 2018 was Will Power’s victory in the 102nd Indianapolis 500.

One year later, Buckner and Chevrolet are on a roll. The engine manufacturer has had a fantastic streak over the past six weeks. It began with Simon Pagenaud’s win in a Chevy in the May 11 INDYCAR Grand Prix. It continued with Pagenaud’s Indy 500 pole on May 19 and Pagenaud’s dramatic victory in the 103rd Indianapolis 500 on May 26. Josef Newgarden’s Chevy won the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix Race No. 1 and Newgarden won again in last Saturday night’s DXC Technology 600 at Texas Motor Speedway.

With the exception of Dixon’s Honda winning the second race in the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix, Chevrolet has had quite a run in the NTT IndyCar Series lately.

“They all run together because we have been going non-stop every day,” Buckner told NTT INDYCAR Mobile said. “Detroit, we weren’t too happy with the overall weekend result because Saturday’s result was shortened and in the wet. Big credit to the 2 team (Newgarden), which has been rolling. Tim Cindric getting them out front has been the deciding factor.

“We’re not going to get too caught up in this because a lot of the race, we didn’t have a car in the top six. We know we have work to do when we come back here. We have to qualify better, so we are not getting too excited about this.”

Rossi’s Honda hounded Newgarden in the closing stages of last Saturday night’s race at Texas, but Newgarden was able to prevail and hold off the hard-charger from Andretti Autosport.

“That looked like Josef protecting the bottom and making Rossi go to the topside,” Buckner explained. “Car placement is very important. Credit to him for that. It seems like the other side is very strong right now, so we don’t want to chalk anything up to engine performance.

“I personally don’t see a lot of my own input having impacts like that because it takes hundreds of people to do it. The program is so much bigger than myself, I don’t want to take any of the credit, do I want to.”

Buckner has helped guide Chevrolet’s IndyCar efforts into a winning direction, but the 31-year-old believes there is much left to accomplish.

“Everyone has been really focused on engine performance, making sure we get the most out of them when we can,” Buckner said. “All of our guys here have done a phenomenal job. Our durability and fuel economy have been good.

“We have some positive momentum right now, but we still have some issues and things to do.”

After the Indianapolis 500, Buckner soaked in the Victory Lane celebration for the second year in a row. In fact, he is 2-0 at the Indy 500 since taking over as Chevrolet’s Racing Program Manager.

“It’s really incredible, it’s our 11th one and our first back-to-back Indy 500 win since we came back to the series in 2012,” Buckner said after the Indy 500. “It’s really a credit to Simon. The last couple of laps were all him. He’s been phenomenal all month. We’re just proud to be a part of it.

“The race at the end, it reminded me a lot of the Ryan Hunter-Reay/Helio Castroneves battle in 2014. Simon did a nice job of timing it right to be out front at the end. Rossi was strong all day.

“I had a lot of confidence. We had Pagenaud up there, Josef Newgarden and Ed Carpenter. All three of those guys are plenty capable of winning the race. We were confident but we knew that Rossi has won this race before and he can do it again. The moves he makes on the inside down the frontstretch are pretty brave.”

Because of fierce engine competition from Honda, it’s difficult for either manufacturer to achieve back-to-back wins in the Indy 500. Honda admits that Job No. 1 every year is to win the Indianapolis 500, followed by the championship.

To win at Indianapolis is a major goal for either engine supplier.

“We take a lot of pride in it,” Buckner said. “Our technical partners with Ilmor, Pratt and Miller and Chevrolet Performance. We put all we can into this one race, and everyone has worked non-stop all month and have done a phenomenal job. I’m really appreciative of all the guys here that put in 110 percent every day.”

Despite the success at Indy, however, there were three Chevrolet cars that didn’t make the starting lineup for the 33-car field at the Indy 500. Those included two cars from Carlin including Max Chilton and rookie Patricio O’Ward. McLaren’s Indy 500-only effort with two-time Formula One World Champion Fernando Alonso also did not make the field, and that car was a Chevrolet.

Because of that, Buckner’s overall outlook for the “Month of May” was tempered.

“I guess I’m cynical because I’ve spent more time thinking about the bottom three than the front row,” Buckner said. “We’re going to work with those guys and see how we can all come back better next year with Carlin’s group. Hopefully, we can come back with McLaren again. We would love to power them in the future.

“It took McLaren a while to work through what happened. It was a big disappointment and we were disappointed, ourselves. You replay each day and wonder if you could have done anything different.

“But our race showed strong performance here, and we are proud of that.”