Simon Pagenaud put the exclamation point on a sensational breakthrough season, winning today's GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma to clinch his first Verizon IndyCar Series championship in impressive fashion.
Pagenaud, driving the No. 22 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Chevrolet for Team Penske, won the 85-lap race at Sonoma Raceway by 3.2523 seconds over Graham Rahal. The dominating performance saw Pagenaud lead all but nine laps and clinch the series crown by 127 points over teammate Will Power.
"I tried to take my future in my destiny by being aggressive and going as fast as I could," Pagenaud said. "Clearly we had a phenomenal car, I think a very dominant car today, so we could do that.
"I just enjoyed driving today. It was an incredible day and I think it just shows the strength of the 22 team for the whole season."
Pagenaud started the race from the pole position and surrendered the lead only during pit stop cycles in winning for the fifth time this season and ninth of his Indy car career. Power, in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, was running second to Pagenaud until a clutch malfunction stopped his car on track on Lap 36. Power fell eight laps off the pace while repairs were made and finished the race in 20th place, but retained second in the championship for the fourth time in his 12-year Indy car career.
"It was obviously disappointing to have that gearbox problem," Power said. "I think Simon was going to be tough to beat as far as the championship goes. Maybe we could have beaten him for the (race) win, but I doubt it if everything just played out as it was.
"But honestly it was still a very strong year," added the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series champion, whose wife, Liz, is expecting their first child in the off-season. "Four race wins. I won a 500-mile race (at Pocono). Not the right one (the Indianapolis 500), but still a 500-miler."
The championship was the 14th in Indy cars for Team Penske, celebrating its 50th anniversary in racing this year, and the race win was the team's 187th in Indy car competition - more than any other team. Pagenaud, who set a track record in qualifying on the 2.385-mile permanent road course Saturday, etched his name into the Sonoma books again today with his average race speed of 101.181 mph.
Pagenaud now enjoys the spoils of the championship, including a $1 million prize and official presentation of the Astor Cup that will take place Oct. 4 at the INDYCAR Championship Celebration in Indianapolis. It gives the 32-year-old Frenchman two weeks to let the magnitude of his accomplishment sink in.
"It's unbelievable," he admitted. "I think I will realize it more tomorrow. There is so much emotion right now, to be honest, I can't find the words. My whole career has been about this, about today and getting to this point and to this level."
Team Penske completed a 1-2-3 sweep of the championship when Helio Castroneves finished seventh in the race to edge Ed Carpenter Racing's Josef Newgarden by two points in the standings. It marked the first time the same team took the top three championship positions since Penske also accomplished the feat in 1994 with Al Unser Jr., Emerson Fittipaldi and Paul Tracy.
With his second-place race finish in the No. 15 Steak 'n Shake Honda, Rahal advanced to fifth in the championship - the highest-placing Honda driver.
"Good day, good way to end it," said the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver. "I wanted to get Pagenaud, but when I'd get behind him, I'd get massively loose. I thought at one point it was best I salvage a second place rather than do something stupid."
As he did in winning the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil in May, Alexander Rossi ran out of fuel and coasted to the finish line today. He was passed by Andretti Autosport teammate Ryan Hunter-Reay for fourth place, but still secured Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors for the season just as he did for the Indy 500.
Chevrolet, which won 14 of the 16 races this season, also clinched its fifth consecutive manufacturers' championship by 104 points over Honda. Chevy has taken the honor every year since manufacturer competition resumed in the Verizon IndyCar Series in 2012.
Andretti Autosport keeps Hunter-Reay, DHL in fold through 2020
Ryan Hunter-Reay is remaining an Andretti Autosport driver through 2020 and will carry familiar yellow-and-red DHL primary sponsorship for the entire ride.
Andretti Autosport announced it has confirmed Hunter-Reay, the 2012 Verizon IndyCar Series champion, to drive the team's No. 28 DHL-sponsored entry for four more seasons. At the conclusion of the agreement, Hunter-Reay will have driven for the Andretti team for 11 consecutive seasons.
"I couldn't be happier about this announcement and the opportunity to continue with Andretti Autosport as an ambassador for DHL," said Hunter-Reay, 35, whose 16 career wins include the 2014 Indianapolis 500 flying DHL colors. "These next four years will take us to nearly a decade-long relationship with DHL and a full 11 years with the team."
DHL, a leading global express services provider, began as a primary sponsor with Andretti in 2011, but the relationship goes back to 2005.
"To see this partnership develop and continue over a 15-year period through 2020 is the result of hard work by both companies in support of DHL marketing, sales and B2B objectives," said Michael Andretti, Andretti Autosport owner and CEO. "It also reflects the strength of the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500 properties."
Hunter-Reay made his 200th Indy car start two weeks ago at Watkins Glen International, in a career that began in 2003. The Floridian is the most successful active American driver in the Verizon IndyCar Series, with more race wins (16) than all the other current Americans combined.
"Since we first teamed up with Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay in 2011, the partnership has been one of the most powerful ways for us to connect our global brand with the public," said Christine Nashick, chief marketing officer for DHL Express Americas. "We are thrilled to continue this partnership for a decade and with Ryan as our brand ambassador."
