McLaughlin Secures Third IndyCar Victory of 2023 at Milwaukee Double-Header
In a thrilling second race of the IndyCar double-header at Milwaukee, Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske clinched his third win of the 2023 season. The 31-year-old New Zealander started second on the grid and capitalized on an early crash involving pole-sitting teammate Josef Newgarden to take the lead.
Throughout the 250-lap contest, McLaughlin faced intense challenges, including a late side-by-side battle with Colton Herta to secure the lead. Despite a restart with 11 laps to go and pressure from a charging Scott Dixon, McLaughlin held firm to win by 0.4558 seconds over his fellow countryman.
“That was the most fun race I’ve had in IndyCar,” McLaughlin exclaimed, having led 85 laps on the day. “That was a blast. So happy for everyone on the Gallagher Chevy, we just stuck with it. It wasn’t quite so good at the start – the car – and then we just tuned her up and it was awesome.”
Herta, who led 43 laps, finished third, while AJ Foyt Racing’s Santino Ferrucci replicated his fourth-place finish from Saturday night’s encounter. The title contenders, Alex Palou and Will Power, saw their gap reduce to 33 points heading into the season finale in two weeks, following both drivers’ struggles.
Palou’s woes began at the start, where he was left stopped on track during the pace laps due to a battery issue, ultimately finishing 19th. Power slipped on a restart and fell a lap down, but fought back to finish 10th.
The race was marred by incidents, including a crash involving Linus Lundqvist, who hit the back of Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Marcus Armstrong, sending Newgarden crashing into the inside wall and out of the race. Lundqvist received a drive-through penalty for avoidable contact.
Last week’s winner, Alex Palou, faced a tumultuous start, getting towed back into the garage as his team attempted to fix the issue. He eventually joined the fray on lap 29 of 250.
McLaughlin inherited the lead after Newgarden’s crash and soon started to edge clear of teammate Power. However, Power closed back in and took the lead in Turn 3 on lap 44. The Kiwi driver eventually regained the lead and held on to it despite intense pressure from Herta and Dixon.
Behind Ferrucci, Marcus Ericsson (Andretti) and Rossi completed the top six. Power finished 10th, while Palou took 19th. The IndyCar season will conclude in two weeks, with the title battle heating up between Palou and Power.
IndyCar Standings:
- Alex Palou – 1st (33 points ahead of Will Power)
- Will Power – 2nd
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