CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
GMR GRAND PRIX
INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY ROAD COURSE
TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
MAY 14-15 

RACE 5 OF 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES:

DETROIT (May 12, 2021) – Will Power points to starting fast as the most definitive reason he’s been able to finish strong on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. 

Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon 5G Team Penske Chevrolet, has been proficient on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile circuit that incorporates portions of Turns 1 and 2 and the front straight of the famed oval. He has taken center stage in Victory Circle in 2015, ‘17, ’18 and October 2020 – each after starting from the pole – backed by 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged, direct-injected V6 Chevrolet engine. 

Power will join 12 other Team Chevy drivers who will seek to kick off NTT INDYCAR SERIES events this month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a victory in the 85-lap/207.3-mile GMR Grand Prix on Saturday, May 15. Two 45-minute practice sessions precede knockout qualifications Friday, May 14. 

Team Chevy drivers have earned eight pole starts, led by Power’s five, and seven wins in the nine events since the inaugural race on the road course in 2014.

“Generally, if I qualify on pole at that track, we have a great shot of winning,” said Power, who has transferred a pole start to victory nine times with Chevrolet power. “You see different drivers win multiple races at different tracks. The Indy road course has been one of those for me.”

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated reshaping the 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule, with three races contested on the IMS road course. Power and Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden were among the winners. 

After Pato O’Ward broke through for his initial NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory — and the 90th for Chevrolet since it returned to engine manufacturer competition in 2012 — May 2 at Texas Motor Speedway in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet, Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rinus VeeKay is the odds-on favorite as the next first-time winner. 

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, where the 2020 Series rookie of the year has two top-five finishes and a pole start in three races, is a likely venue. VeeKay, 20, driving the No. 21 Sonax/Autogeek Chevrolet, has had a solid start to the season with three top-10 finishes in the four races. Joining the Chevrolet lineup are two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya in the No. 86 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet and Charlie Kimball driving the No. 11 Tresiba Chevrolet for AJ Foyt Racing. 

Following the GMR Grand Prix, attention shifts to the 2.5-mile IMS oval for preparations for the 105th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Sunday, May 30. In 2018, Power and Chevrolet swept the races on the road course and oval. The next year, Team Penske teammate Simon Pagenaud followed suit in his Chevrolet-powered race car.

“Chevrolet teams move from the high-banked Texas Motor Speedway oval to the exceptionally technical Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course this weekend for the GMR Grand Prix. The schedule presents challenges for drivers and Chevrolet engineers to get up to speed quickly for qualifying and the 85-lap race,” Chevrolet INDYCAR program manager Rob Buckner said. “Chevrolet has had great success in the nine races on the 2.439-mile road course and we will aim to start the Month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with another victory and then turn our attention to ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.’ ”