In 2018, Josef Newgarden, a then-27-year-old IndyCar phenom in his first title defense season, rocked up to Phoenix Raceway and snatched a win from the grasp of rookie Robert Wickens. A late pit stop gave him fresh tires and turned his No. 1 Team Penske Chevrolet into a rocket ship, placing him on the top step of the podium and atop the standings.
Eight years later, in the series return to the desert on Saturday as part of a doubleheader weekend with NASCAR, Newgarden, 35 and coming off his worst season since 2014, turned back the clock with a winning performance that looked like a replay.
A caution on lap 207 prompted Newgarden to pit for fresh tires, giving him a performance boost the rest of the way. The only issue was that when he exited pit lane, he trailed Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward, who was behind eight drivers who had decided to stay out.
In the end, those obstacles didn’t matter. Newgarden’s No. 2 Penske showed unstoppable speed. On lap 243, with only seven to go, he transformed into a slingshot, jumping down the inside of Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood at the end of the back straightaway heading into turn three, and taking a lead he held until the end. Just like in 2018, Newgarden took the checkered flag as the race winner and new championship leader.
“Same sort of deal where I thought we were stronger on an attack position on a restart,” Newgarden said. “I wanted that then there, and I felt that today, too. I thought I could make more happen in an offensive position at the end, and that rung true.”
Newgarden’s car was competitive throughout the race, but his climb to the top wouldn’t have been possible without disaster striking Ed Carpenter Racing’s Christian Rasmussen.
Rasmussen led for 69 laps – second only to Team Penske’s David Malukas, who finished third after staying on old tires following the lap 207 caution – and proved himself to be the greatest threat on the track. He fought his way to the top of the field after starting in 18th place, taking the lead for the first time on lap 73.
Even when he was forced to come into the pits to refuel and change his tires, he always made his way back to the front, using his aggressive driving style to make 61 passes over the course of the race.
That aggressiveness came back to bite him on lap 207, however, as he was involved in the race-changing caution.
Rasmussen was hunting down Andretti Global’s Will Power, who inherited the lead after coming out of the pits on lap 191. The 25-year-old native of Denmark tried to make a move around the outside of Power coming off of turn two, but the veteran Australian closed the door, and the two made contact.
The hit bounced Rasmussen into the outside wall and back into Power, who suffered a rear right tire puncture, while Rasmussen said he sustained suspension damage from the incident.
“I think it’s very clear what happened,” Rasmussen said. “We were the class of the field today, the best car out there. I was so happy with the car. You can’t just run people into the wall, which is what happened today.”
Rasmussen didn’t pit after the two came together, electing to keep his track position, but it eventually became clear that his car wasn’t responding to his inputs the same way it had been earlier in the day.
With nine laps to go, Kirkwood passed him on the start/finish straight, starting Rasmussen’s descent down the field to finish 14th.
“The car was just impossible to drive after that,” Rasmussen said. “I just did what I could to salvage the day … just frustrating, man, so frustrating because we should have won the race today. Obviously didn’t.”
From there, it didn’t take long for Newgarden – who had already climbed to third place after getting past O’Ward and six drivers on older tires – to make quick work of Rasmussen and eventually Kirkwood.
“I’m not going to sit here and say we were the best today,” Newgarden said. “We try and be really realistic about where we’re at, but we executed at a super high level, everyone was on it. The timing stand did a great job, we made the right calls, great pit stops, and look, when we needed to be fast, we were fast.”
That speed translated into more than just a win. For the first time since June 23, 2024, someone other than Chip Ganassi Racing’s Álex Palou will go to sleep as IndyCar’s points leader.
Palou, who was coming off his third IndyCar title in a row and won the season opener in St. Petersburg, Florida, crashed out on lap 21 while running inside the top-10 after making contact with Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Rinus VeeKay. VeeKay was attempting to make a move around the outside, but space was limited.
“(I) didn’t know that there was a car there,” Palou said. “I was fighting with a car inside (Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin). Don’t feel like there was much space there on the outside, but I don’t know, maybe it was my fault.
“Losing the points lead, it’s only the second race, it’s fine. At least we started the season good, started the race good.”
Palou has been a constant atop the points standings, but it’s not an unfamiliar spot for Newgarden, who won the IndyCar Championship in 2017 and 2019.
In recent years, however, Newgarden has slid down the order, finishing second in 2020, 2021 and 2022, before finishing fifth, eighth and 12th in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. In 2018, when he took the championship lead after Phoenix – which was also the second race of the season – he finished in fifth place.
Despite the recent struggles, the veteran remains as confident as ever.
“It’s an everyday process,” Newgarden said. “We’re going to take it one step at a time. Doesn’t mean there’s not going to be some turbulence, but if we do our jobs and we control what’s in our control, I don’t see why we can’t be in the fight.”
Be the first to comment