By the math, with 108 points available to any driver if they win the last two NTT IndyCar Series races, earn pole, lead a lap, and lead the most laps, there are five drivers who remain in contention heading into Sunday’s second race of the Hy-Vee Milwaukee doubleheader.
But in reality, the fight for the championship has been reduced to two with leader Alex Palou (514 points) and Will Power (471, 43 points behind). Colton Herta (88 points down), Scott McLaughlin (92 back), and Pato O’Ward (101 points shy) are within that 108-point window, but the real contest boils down to the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda and the No. 12 Penske Chevy.
Power started sixth and finished second in Milwaukee one, and Palou rolled off 13th and came home fifth. For Milwaukee two, Power starts fourth and Palou is 10th.
If Palou can push the lead to 55 points by the end of Sunday, he’s a three-time champion. If Power can take more points off of Palou, a proper battle will await IndyCar fans at the season’s farewell on September 15 at Nashville Superspeedway.
For the Rookie of the Year championship, the all-Ganassi duel between Linus Lundqvist and Kyffin Simpson widened with Lundqvist’s sixth-place finish and problems for Simpson that left him 25th. Lundqvist (245 points) and Simpson (157 points) have already settled the matter unless Simpson clears his teammate by 89 points between now and the end of Nashville.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1408]
There was significant movement in the Leaders Circle race, which pays $1 million contracts to the 22 entries who finish inside the top 22 at the end of the entrants’ championship.
The No. 66 Meyer Shank Racing Honda driven by David Malukas arrived in Wisconsin with 164 points and held 19th in the standings. It held 19th after race one with 179 points, but thanks to Conor Daly’s amazing drive to third, the No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevy shot from 23rd to 20th and has 176 points. If Daly can run well in race two ahead of the No. 66, it could be an anxious two weeks for MSR on the approach to Nashville.
Pietro Fittipaldi had a decent first race with the No. 30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda, which was 21st coming into the Milwaukee weekend and 21st leaving race one with 168 points. On the bubble in 22nd, it’s the No. 41 AJ Foyt Racing Chevy at 163 points, and on the wrong side of the line in 23rd is the No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevy driven by Christian Rasmussen, which fell from 22nd (160 points).
Last again among Leaders Circle contenders in 24th and 25th is Dale Coyne Racing, with the No. 51 Dale Coyne Racing Honda (144 points) and the No. 18 Honda (121 points).