Win was 600th for Team Penkse over all racing series.
Scott McLaughlin made no bones about it.
“I did everything right,” McLaughlin said after the conclusion of the XPEL 375 IndyCar race at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday. Indeed, the New Zealand native did everything right, starting from the outside pole and leading the most laps (186 of the scheduled 248 laps).
Except for one thing—or more precisely, one last lap.
McLaughlin, who won the season-opening NTT IndyCar Series race at St. Petersburg, Florida, three weeks ago, watched almost helplessly as Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden roared past him heading out of Turn 3 and into the final turn to take the checkered flag, defeating McLaughlin by .67 of a second.
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“I was fuming in the car because we had all this traffic and it wasn’t helping me,” Newgarden said. “And then right when I needed it to help me, it helped me literally the last corner of the last lap. Unbelievable.
“Scott led like 95 percent of the laps. I hate doing that to a teammate, but I was going for it just like he was. I was loose, I was driving sideways in 3 and 4 on every lap, trying to get a run. But Team Chevy, what an unbelievable win.”
To his credit, even though he was visibly disappointed before climbing out of his race car after the race, McLaughlin went up to Newgarden afterward and said, “Good job, bro.”
Not only was it the 21st win of Newgarden’s IndyCar career, it also was the 600th race win over all series for Team Penske. The organization has now won the first two races of the 2022 IndyCar season. What’s more, all three Penske drivers finished in the top-4, with Will Power ending up fourth behind Newgarden, McLaughlin and third-place finisher Marcus Ericsson.
When asked if he’s ever had a more dramatic finish and win in his IndyCar career, Newgarden shook his head.
“Never, never, last lap, last corner, that’s what it’s all about at Texas,” Newgarden told NBC.
As for McLaughlin, with a win and runner-up finish in the first two races of his sophomore season in IndyCar, he couldn’t help but think what woulda, coulda and shoulda been Sunday.
“I knew there were going to be dramas in three and four,” he said of the last two turns on the final lap. “I struggled with my turns at three and four. I guess I wasn’t prepared to take the risk on the outside at 3-4, which looking back at it I should have. My teammate Josef, obviously Josef chose to. Once he was on the outside of me, I can’t do anything.
“Yeah, look, I’m gutted. I’ll reevaluate everything over the next few days. But it’s funny, like last year I was fist pumping and jumping out of the car finishing second. I’m like today, it sucks. That’s how it is. That’s how we’re growing. I’ll learn from this, get better.
“Yeah, I probably just need to expand, maybe risk a little bit more when I need, to try different lines. I’ll learn for the big one coming up in May.”
McLaughlin is still No. 1 in the season standings (with 97 points), followed by Will Power (69 points), Alex Palou (67) and Newgarden (65).
“One thing is great, 600 wins for The Captain (team owner Roger Penske),” McLaughlin said. “Literally, if anyone else beat me, I would be pissed. I’m kind of pissed now, but you know what I mean. 600 wins for the team. We led a lot of laps, extended the championship lead.
“Yeah, I’m a race driver. I want to win. It definitely hurts.”
Keyword: How Josef Newgarden Held Off Scott McLaughlin for Dramatic IndyCar Win at Texas