Simon Pagenaud muscled his way by fellow Team Penske driver Will Power in the closing stages of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course to win, a move Roger Penske said, “We’ll talk about in the trailer.”
But even Power, who finished second, congratulated Power and said it was just racing, blaming himself for being “asleep” on a restart. The win for Pagenaud gives him a 58-point lead over Power with four races left.
The heartbreak driver had to be Conor Daly, who had a six-second lead over Pagenaud but had to stop for a splash of fuel just before the end of the race – indeed, at least three cars ran out of fuel on the cool-down lap. Daly still came back for a sixth-place finish, one spot ahead of fellow rookie Spencer Pigot. Carlos Munoz was third, the highest-finishing Honda, behind a pair of Chevrolets.
Next up: The ABC Supply 500 at Pocono August 21.