Story By: ASHLEY KELLER / TEAM CHEVROLET – ST. PETERSBURG, FL – Josef Newgarden, in his No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet, showcased a strong performance in the 20th Firestone Grand Prix of St. Peterburg, racing to Chevrolet’s 112th win in the 2.2-liter twin turbo direct injected V6 era since 2012, and ninth at St. Petersburg.
After capturing the NTT P1 Pole Award Saturday for Team Penske and Team Chevy, Newgarden led 92 laps of the 100 laps in a relatively clean, green flag race to take the checkered flag in exciting fashion.
“I had a lot of fun today. Roger (Penske) was telling me, ‘You have a big lead. You better hold on to it and not throw it into the wall.’ I think it’s so deserving for the work (Team Penske) put in. I know intimately what’s been put into this program in the offseason. It’s Team Chevy, everything they brought this weekend, and then our team specifically, we worked really hard to close the gap. We didn’t have the speed we needed on road and street courses last year and I think, at least on a consistency basis, and today we brought that speed. We had the execution, as always, exactly what you expect from Team Penske.”
“Congratulations to Josef Newgarden and the No. 2 PPG Chevrolet team on their win in St. Petersburg, said Jim Campbell, General Motors U.S. Vice President of Performance and Motorsports. “We’re really proud of the teamwork by Team Penske in the offseason, along with our Chevrolet engineers. It’s great to see Chevrolet drivers Pato O’Ward from Arrow McLaren and Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske sweep the podium with Josef.”
Also showcasing his talent and the strength of the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet team, as well as teamwork with Chevrolet, Pato O’Ward joined Newgarden on the podium in St. Petersburg finishing second.
“It’s always good to be here in St. Pete,” said O’Ward. “I think it’s a phenomenal place to start the season, and we’ve laid ourselves a pretty strong foundation for the rest of the year, so super stoked for that. Super proud of our friends at Team Chevy, Arrow McLaren. They went to work this offseason, and it’s been fantastic to see the gains we’ve made. We’re just going to keep on pushing.”
“Team Penske were just really, really strong today,” continued O’Ward. “They were obviously the guys to beat. They ended first, third, and fourth. I’m happy that we could maintain ourselves there. I wouldn’t say it was the easiest of laps keeping (Scott) McLaughlin and (Will) Power behind me. It’s such a tough track to pass where I just knew if I didn’t make mistakes, I’d be alright.”
Making moves as the laps wound down, Newgarden’s Team Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin showcased his race craft to navigate traffic, claiming the third step on the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg podium. With the sweep, Chevrolet now has 311 podium finishes in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES since 2012.
“Great day for the DEX Imaging Chevy,” said McLaughlin. “We were really super strong, but I’m really proud of the whole team. The 2 getting the win (Josef Newgarden). Well done to those guys and girls on the team. And then you’ve got with us in third and (Will in) fourth. Me and Will (Power) were pretty bummed after qualifying yesterday. We really had cars to put in the Fast Six. Glad we were able to bring it up to the front and get both podiums. We’re getting close to one-two-three podium for the Penske team, so we’re strong for that.”
“We asked a lot (from Chevrolet) from day one last year, and they’ve come back with something really, really strong,” continued McLaughlin. “Really proud of them. Proud to get a really strong result for them. I think it was one to four. Super strong. That’s great to work with a manufacturer who wants to listen to you and keep working, wants to keep developing, and that’s exactly what we need.”
Adding to the strong performance in the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Chevrolet finished with six cars in the top-10, including Will Power with Team Penske in fourth, Alexander Rossi with Arrow McLaren in eighth, and Rinus VeeKay with Ed Carpenter Racing (10th).
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES next heads west to Thermal Club near Palm Springs, Calif. for the $1 Million Challenge March 22-24, 2024. A new and unique non-championship points All-Star event, the race airs live on NBC Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET.