Will Power swept the NTT P1 Award for both races of the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway on Saturday, earning his 65th and 66th career poles and pulling to within one of the all-time INDYCAR SERIES record set by Mario Andretti.
Power grabbed the top spot for the Hy-VeeDeals.com 250 presented by DoorDash later today with a lap of 178.199 mph in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. He was slightly slower on his second lap, which set the grid for the Hy-Vee Salute to Farmers 300 presented by Google on Sunday, at 178.013, but it was still good enough for pole.
SEE: Race 1 Qualifying Results | Race 2 Qualifying Results
“Massive, man,” Power said. “I’m so stoked to get the Chevy Verizon 5G car two pole positions. I’ve been watching this race, and at the test I put a lot of effort into getting everything right for the qualifying runs and the race. I think the car is good. It’s going to be a pretty tough race with all the heat and a lot of (tire) degradation.”
Today’s 250-lap race on the .894-mile oval starts at 4 p.m. ET, with the 300-lap race Sunday starting at 3 p.m. ET. NBC and the INDYCAR Radio Network will provide live coverage of both races on the only doubleheader weekend on the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule.
Every driver in qualifying today had to make long-term decisions with their car setup, as impound rules allow only adjustments to front wing and front-wing endplate angles and tire pressure between qualifying and today’s race. Heat also will be a factor today, as air temperatures are expected to reach the high 90s at the green flag.
“Plenty of compromise there,” Power said. “Plenty of bottoming on that run. We’ll see what we’ve got.”
Power’s Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden will share the front row in both races. Two-time series champion Newgarden qualified second at 177.782 in the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet for today’s race and will occupy the same starting spot Sunday after his second-lap speed of 177.904.
2020 Iowa pole winner Conor Daly qualified third for today’s race at 177.478 in the No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet, followed by Pato O’Ward at 177.421 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet.
Row three today will consist of Scott McLaughlin, who qualified fifth at 177.253 in the No. 3 Freightliner Team Penske Chevrolet, and rookie David Malukas, who will start sixth after his first qualifying lap of 176.932 in the No. 18 HMD Honda.
Colton Herta qualified third for Sunday’s race at 177.525 in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda, but he may not keep that spot. Herta said on the Peacock Premium broadcast that his team plans to change engines before the race tomorrow, which would incur a nine-spot drop on the starting grid.
Daly qualified fourth for Sunday’s race at 177.287. Two-time Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Takuma Sato qualified fifth at 177.278 in the No. 51 Deloitte Honda, with McLaughlin taking the sixth spot at 177.273.
Series leader Marcus Ericsson qualified 12th for today’s race at 175.844 in the No. 8 Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, and he grabbed the 15th spot for Sunday’s race at 175.101.