Felix Rosenqvist staged a memorable turnaround in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ only double-header event of the season to haul himself into victory contention in a thrilling conclusion to the weekend at Iowa Speedway.
Rosenqvist and his Arrow McLaren squad initially struggled around the 0.875-mile short oval in practice and qualifying, not able to match the pace of the front-running cars.
Qualifying in the midfield for both of the weekend’s pair of races, Rosenqvist continued his search for performance in the first 250-lap encounter on Saturday, albeit he did manage to make up eight places from 21st on the grid to finish 13th.
”It wasn’t our best race,” says Felix Rosenqvist. “We had some mechanical issues that affected the balance of the car and made it very tricky to drive. Under those circumstances, I think making up eight places and finishing 13th was a decent performance.”
It was in Sunday’s concluding race, however, that Rosenqvist truly came alive.
Now equipped with an Arrow McLaren machine more to his liking, the 31-year-old Swede powered through from 16th on the grid to stage an unlikely challenge for the victory.
Having worked his way up the field via a strong couple of mid-race stints, Rosenqvist found himself on eventual winner Josef Newgarden’s gearbox as the closing laps approached, sitting second and splitting the three Team Penske cars.
“It was a phenomenal turnaround over the day before,” Felix Rosenqvist explains. “We had two very competitive stints in the middle, taking us all the way up to second. I was able to match Newgarden’s pace up front and tried to follow him through the lapped traffic, and we were well clear of the cars behind.”
Entering the final stages, the race then came down to a late full course yellow situation that set up a dramatic three-lap shootout to the flag.
At the restart, Rosenqvist came under attack from Newgarden’s team-mate Will Power, who dived down the inside – leaving Rosenqvist in a wild slide on the slippery high-line marbles.
Just managing to avoid the wall, the situation cost valuable time and saw Rosenqvist slip to fourth behind Newgarden, Power and restart beneficiary Alex Palou.
Although understandably disappointed with the anticlimactic ending to the race, Rosenqvist – one of just five drivers to finish on the lead lap – could at least take some comfort from having equalled his best-ever NTT INDYCAR SERIES oval result (2022 Indianapolis 500).
“I have to review what happened on that final restart, but I had Will on the inside and was pushed wide into the marbles,” Felix Rosenqvist concludes. “I was lucky to finish the race to be fair; I very nearly crashed.
“I’ve never been so bummed with a fourth place. Still, we have to remember we started 16th and made a massive turnaround this weekend. This was a strong drive and a great effort by everyone at Arrow McLaren – I just wish I was on the podium.”
The next round of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES is the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville on August 4-6.
RESULTS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 11-12
Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend
Iowa Speedway (USA)
Race 1
1: Josef Newgarden (USA), Penske, 250 laps
2: Scott McLaughlin (NZL), Penske, +3.375s
3: Pato O’Ward (MEX), Arrow McLaren, +9.607s
4: Marcus Ericsson (SWE), Ganassi, +14.638s
5: Will Power (AUS), Penske, +22.402s
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13: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Arrow McLaren, +2 laps
Race 2
1: Josef Newgarden (USA), Penske, 250 laps
2: Will Power (AUS), Penske, +0.705s
3: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, +2.686s
4: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Arrow McLaren, +4.116s
5: Scott McLaughlin (NZL), Penske, +7.889s
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | After 12/17 races
1: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, 477 p.
2: Josef Newgarden (USA), Penske, 397 p.
3: Scott Dixon (NZL), Ganassi, 357 p.
4: Marcus Ericsson (SWE), Ganassi, 330 p.
5: Scott McLaughlin (NZL), Penske, 329 p.
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12: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Arrow McLaren, 233 p.