WILL POWER

Alex Palou earned the first pole of his IndyCar career and put himself in position to reclaim the championship lead headed into Sunday’s race at Portland International Raceway.

MADISON, Ill. — (AP) — The IndyCar championship flipped leaders Saturday night when Alex Palou was collected in a three-car accident that included teammate Scott Dixon. The Spaniard quickly picked his way through the field and was up to 10th on a restart just 65 laps into the 260-lap race. But he tapped the rear of six-time and reigning champion Scott Dixon, causing Dixon to spin up the track in a crash that collected VeeKay, Palou and Dixon. With Palou out early at Gateway, the 22-year-old Mexican was in position to take the points lead at the end of the race. “It was very important to me to get a pole,” said Power, who isn't convinced he can catch Andretti's mark.

It pushed Power past Bobby Unser and Helio Castroneves. “It was very important to me to get a pole,” said Power, who isn't convinced he can catch Andretti's mark. Pato O'Ward, who trails championship leader Alex Palou headed into Saturday's night race outside of St. Louis, qualified fifth. Palou qualified 12th but will actually start 21st because of a nine-spot penalty for an unapproved engine change. It's the third unapproved engine change this season for Palou and second this month.

The IndyCar championship flipped leaders Saturday night when Alex Palou was collected in an early three-car accident that moved Pato O’Ward to the point following O’Ward’s runner-up finish to winner Josef Newgarden at World Wide Technology Raceway.

AJ Allmendinger took advantage of two frightening multi-car crashes, the leader getting spun out and a penalty — all in the last five laps — to win the Brickyard 200.

The Australian, who started second, beat Romain Grosjean by 1.1142 seconds for his first win of the season. “Finally, finally,” Power shouted on the radio after crossing the yard of bricks and ending a 13-race victory drought. Grosjean, the Swiss-born driver from France who won the pole in the season's other road race at Indy, matched his second-place finish from May's race on the same course. After being the first driver onto pit row just 10 laps into the race, Dixon wound up finishing 17th in a race that had only two yellow flags. UP NEXTThe series returns to action next Saturday in suburban St. Louis — its third straight race weekend since taking a one-month break.

Will Power took the lead early Saturday, then watched it shrink over the final half of the race before holding on to win another Indianapolis Grand Prix.

Marcus Ericsson survived the perilous city streets of Nashville on Sunday and won the inaugural Music City Grand Prix.

IndyCar may have a hit on its hands if the first few days were an indicator of the enthusiasm from fans and drivers of the race.

Josef Newgarden is the toast of Nashville.

Josef Newgarden snapped his streak of late race misfortunes to win for the first time this season, earning the first IndyCar victory of the year for Team Penske on the same weekend the storied organization celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first win.

IndyCar will celebrate Independence Day in the middle of Ohio.

Alex Palou sailed past Josef Newgarden with two laps remaining Sunday to win at Road America and reclaim the IndyCar points lead.

Josef Newgarden has earned the pole position for Sunday’s IndyCar race at Road America as he attempts to help Team Penske earn its first win of the season.

Pato O’Ward has become IndyCar’s first repeat winner of the season by charging through the field on a final restart to snatch the victory away from Josef Newgarden at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park.

IndyCar Detroit Auto Racing Marcus Ericsson, right, of Sweden, celebrates with team owner Chip Ganassi after winning the first race of the IndyCar Detroit Grand Prix auto racing doubleheader on Belle Isle in Detroit, Saturday, June 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) (Paul Sancya)DETROIT — (AP) — Marcus Ericsson raced to his first IndyCar victory Saturday in the action-packed opener of the doubleheader at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park. The Swede became the seventh driver to win through seven IndyCar races this season, and he's the fourth first-time winner this year. The seven different winners through seven races ties an IndyCar record set in 1958 and matched in 2000 and 2017. Ericsson benefitted from the second red-flag stoppage, this one with six laps remaining when Romain Grosjean crashed in Turn 9.

Marcus Ericsson raced to his first IndyCar victory Saturday in the action-packed opener of the doubleheader at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park.

Jimmie Johnson is struggling at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park, which is just his second career street course and fourth career IndyCar race.

(AP Photo/Darron Cummings) (Darron Cummings)INDIANAPOLIS — (AP) — Scott Dixon ran to the top of the board in the final practice before the Indianapolis 500 and called it a day with 45 minutes remaining in the session. “Hopefully it runs this good in the race,” Dixon said after his lap at 228.323 mph put the six-time IndyCar champion in control of Friday’s practice. That’s it, it’s over.”Rain disrupted the traditional “Carb Day” practice but IndyCar was able to get cars on track for almost two hours later Friday afternoon. Seeing the struggles, not him, but the team are going through for qualifying pace,” Dixon said. Conor Daly, meanwhile, was fourth fastest on the day in yet another strong showing for Ed Carpenter Racing.

Scott Dixon was again atop the leaderboard for the final practice before the Indianapolis 500.

The Indianapolis 500 will open its gates to 135,000 spectators on Sunday for the largest sports event since the start of the pandemic.

Scott Dixon slammed the brakes on IndyCar’s current youth movement by winning his fourth Indianapolis 500 pole by a mere 0.03 seconds in qualifying.

IndyCar Indy 500 Auto Racing Will Power, of Australia, waits in the pit area for his car during practice for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Friday, May 21, 2021. His spot in the Indianapolis 500 was at stake and Power, one of the greatest qualifiers in IndyCar history, was not going to miss the show. The 2018 Indianapolis 500 winner was one of five drivers fighting for a spot in the final row of the May 30 race. A Team Penske car never should have been on the bubble, and yet on Sunday, Power desperately tried to avoid becoming the first Roger Penske driver sent home from the Indy 500 since 1995. Indy 500 qualifying at its worst.”___More AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Will Power saved Roger Penske from embarrassment at Indianapolis Motor Speedway by locking his car into the Indianapolis 500 field.

The 2018 Indy 500 winner will be one of five drivers vying for the final three spots in the field Sunday when qualifying is completed. Power's struggles were the worst of a Team Penske group that has lagged behind the competition all week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Power had qualified in the first three rows of the Indy 500 in 11 of the last 12 years. “For sure that Penske thing is weird.”Scott McLaughlin, the IndyCar rookie making his Indy 500 debut, was fastest among the Penske drivers at 17th. I’ve been in this position enough times before,” said Carpenter, a three-time Indy 500 pole-winner.

Team Penske had an uncharacteristically slow first day of Indianapolis 500 qualifying and Will Power will have to avoid being bumped from the 33-car field when the lineup is finalized.

IndyCar Indy 500 Auto Racing Will Power of Australia climbs into his car during practice for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Tuesday, May 18, 2021. Experience mattered once again, and a trio of former Indianapolis 500 winners led the way. Simon Pagenaud, Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan, all former Indy 500 winners, were sixth, eighth and 10th on the speed chart, while two-time winner Juan Pablo Montoya ranked 12th in his first Indy 500 practice since 2017. “And you know, we'll see.”The changing of the guard in the IndyCar Series is happening at breakneck speed with three first-time race winners this season and four winners aged 24 or younger. There was a strong first strike from Hunter-Reay, an Indy 500 winner and past series champion who is off to a terrible start to the season.

A trio of Indianapolis 500 winners led opening day of practice and temporarily silenced the sudden youth movement.

The kids were at last quieted when Indianapolis Motor Speedway opened for practice. Experience mattered once again, and a trio of former Indianapolis 500 winners led the way. Will Power ran 226.470 miles per hour Tuesday in a Chevrolet for Team Penske, followed next by Ryan Hunter-Reay and Takuma Sato.

Alex Palou and Will Power will start on the front row for the IndyCar Series' first oval race this season.

Colton Herta has rebounded from a first-lap crash in the IndyCar season opener to win the pole on the downtown streets of St. Petersburg.

Alex Palou scored his first career IndyCar victory in his debut race with Chip Ganassi Racing by winning the series opener at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama.

Pato O'Ward set a track record at Barber Motorsports Park to win the pole for the IndyCar season-opening race.

Scott Dixon opens the IndyCar season in search of the motorsports milestone mark of seven championships.

FILE - Roger Penske looks over the track from the grandstand at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, in this Thursday, July 2, 2020, file photo. There will be fans at this year's Indianapolis 500, Penske said Monday, March 22, 2021, but how many remains a moving target based on pandemic restrictions. (AP Photo/Jenna Fryer, File)A fully vaccinated Roger Penske is hard at work at Indianapolis Motor Speedway preparing for a full season of racing that will include spectators at his showcase event. There will be fans at this year's Indianapolis 500, Penske said Monday, but how many remains a moving target based on COVID-19 restrictions. Penske noted Monday that the positivity rate for COVID-19 for Marion County, where Indianapolis Motor Speedway is located, was 3.1%.

Newgarden won the season finale, using a spectacular two-car pass for the lead in a valiant effort to win a second consecutive title. Dixon has won two of the last three championships, a run interrupted last year when Newgarden won his second title. Newgarden tied Dixon with his series-best fourth win of the season but Newgarden was in too large of a hole to catch his rival. It came to a close in front of a sold-out 20,000 spectators, the largest crowd of the season for IndyCar. There was nothing Newgarden could do, even on a day he did everything he had to, to deny Dixon a sixth championship.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – IndyCar opened the second week of March giddy to finally start its season. The entire industry left St. Pete in March unsure how IndyCar could survive. Yet here IndyCar is, back on the St. Pete streets preparing to crown a champion in Sunday's season finale. Now this cruel 2020 season closes right back at St. Pete, the only street course to survive the schedule disruptions and where it all fell apart in March. Askew missed two races but returned for St. Pete, his final race in another unpopular firing by Arrow McLaren.

INDIANAPOLIS – Will Power will start from the pole Saturday at Indianapolis after posting the fastest lap in morning qualifying. It's his fifth pole this season and the 61st career pole, which is second all-time behind Mario Andretti (67). “We made a lot of changes last night," Power said, explaining he was not satisfied with Friday's car. And when Newgarden won Friday's race , with Dixon finishing ninth, the lead was trimmed to 40 points with two races remaining. “It will take more horsepower we'll use more in these conditions, where as in July it would have been easy to do a two-stop race," Power said.

RICHMOND, Va. – Brad Keselowski entered NASCAR's playoffs certain he has as good a chance at the Cup championship as favorites Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin. His confidence was correct as Keselowski indeed won Saturday night at Richmond, the second playoff race, and advanced into the second next round. Harvick, the title favorite, won last week’s opener to earn the automatic berth into the second round. Harvick, Hamlin and Keselowski are the only drivers locked into the next round of the playoffs. Harvick finished seventh.

The Pagoda is seen before a practice session for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)INDIANAPOLIS Andretti Autosport claimed the top of the speed chart midway through Indianapolis 500 qualifying, with former race winners Ryan Hunter-Reay and Alexander Rossi leading a strong Honda showing. Teammate Hunter-Reay was waiting on pit lane to make his run when Rossi radioed feedback from his four laps. Hunter-Reay made a quick adjustment then bumped Rossi with a qualifying run of 231.330 mph. We knew we had the speed, Hunter-Reay said.

Scott Dixon, of New Zealand, pulls out fo the pits during a practice session for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)INDIANAPOLIS Scott Dixon, already off to a tremendous start to the IndyCar season, quickly set the pace on the first day of practice for the Indianapolis 500. Dixon turned a lap of 224.047 mph (360.57 kph) around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the two-hour session for veterans. He has won the Indy 500 once in his career. The day was scheduled to conclude with a 150-minute open practice session.

Josef Newgarden leads Will Power, of Australia, right, during the IndyCar Series auto race, Saturday, July 18, 2020, at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)NEWTON, Iowa Josef Newgarden led nearly wire-to-wire Saturday night to win the IndyCar race at Iowa Speedway, giving team owner Roger Penske a sweep of the doubleheader and his fourth victory across three series this weekend. Team Penske has 13 drivers completing in five series across two continents this weekend. The two Penske entries in the IMSA race at Sebring struggled earlier Saturday. The veteran driver did the same thing in Race 1, leaving black marks on the wall about 30 yards apart.

Two-time and defending champ Josef Newgarden, who won the second race of the Iowa doubleheader, has yet to turn 30. Pagenaud, who like Newgarden drives for Team Penske, won the first Iowa race on Friday night. The natural ebb and flow of sports dictates there must be a wave of youngsters waiting to replace them. Not surprisingly, Ferrucci was fired by his Trident Racing team. Take the doubleheader this weekend, where Herta and VeeKay were in contention Friday night before a caution flag waved.

IndyCar Rev Group Grand Prix winner Alexander Rossi enters Victory Lane Sunday, June 23, 2019, at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Road America allowed fans back in for its events starting last month. Fans this weekend will get temperature checks at gates and receive masks and hand sanitizer as they enter. The only drivers to open an IndyCar season with at least three straight victories are A.J. Drivers believe the Road America course wont be as grueling with all of its straightaways despite its 14 turns.

Race driver Scott Dixon, of New Zealand, celebrates with the trophy after winning the IndyCar auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Saturday, July 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)INDIANAPOLIS Scott Dixon finally made his second trip to Indianapolis Motor Speedway's victory lane. Dixon finished runner-up in each of the last three races on the track's 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course. It's so good to be standing here, racing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway," Dixon said after pumping his fist in a mostly empty and silent renovated winner's circle. Otherwise, it was a relatively easy drive for Dixon, whose 48 IndyCar wins rank third behind A.J.

FILE - In this June 10, 2017, file photo, Will Power, of Australia, pumps his fist as he crosses the finish line under yellow to win an IndyCar auto race at Texas Motor Speedway, in Fort Worth, Texas. IndyCar is getting ready for an all-in-one-day season opener on the fast track in Texas, more than 2 months after drivers were set to roll on the streets of St. Pete. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)FORT WORTH, Texas Scott Dixon, Alexander Rossi and the rest of the IndyCar drivers were in sunny Florida around spring break ready to start the season. Instead of the streets of St. Pete, the pandemic-delayed season will get started at the fast 1 1/2-mile track in Texas with an all-in-one-day opener. Practice, qualifying and the 200-lap race will be held Saturday, the same day that IndyCar has chartered planes to carry teams back and forth between Indianapolis and Texas Motor Speedway.

Then a caution with two laps remaining at Charlotte Motor Speedway cluttered Elliott's clear path to the win and gave Keselowski an opening. Now Keselowski returns to Charlotte Motor Speedway for a Wednesday night race and a shot at consecutive victories. That was the situation we were put in.Both Keselowski and Busch could empathize with Elliott's heartbreak at Charlotte. Keselowski spoke with Elliott as the two switched spots in front of a laptop during the post-race Zoom media availability. But Elliott's team has been the most consistent late in races and Wednesday brings another chance for the driver to finally get his first win of the season.

His Hendrick Motorsports team bounced back with a competitive Chevrolet in the 600 that Elliott drove to the front late in the race. Theres no other choice.KESELOWSKI SHOWS HIS WORTHA Daytona 500 victory is the only crown jewel race Keselowski is missing on his resume. "I hope to continue to compete at a very high level and be able to win races for a long time. Weve got a race win at a major on a team thats really just starting to click together. I hope it does because this is my 30th win at the Cup level with Team Penske.

FILE - This May 26, 2019, file photo shows Simon Pagenaud, of France, celebrating after winning the Indianapolis 500 IndyCar auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in Indianapolis. The Indy 500 has been rescheduled for Aug. 23, 2020, and won't be run on Memorial Day weekend as scheduled for the first time since its return in 1946. On Sunday, he'd chase a second straight Indianapolis 500 victory. Instead, he is spending the Memorial Day weekend quietly at home, far away from deafening engines and roaring crowds. Fans just might park around Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend and celebrate their annual traditions anyway.