"That's been our whole year": Will Power beats himself up after Team Penske's 3-way disaster at Thermal Club qualifying

Will Power had a torrid qualifying session at the inaugural Thermal Club Grand Prix as the trio of Penske drivers were eliminated in the Group 1 qualifications. The 44-year-old finished 11th in the Group 1 classifications in close proximity to his teammates in the first round.

The 44-year-old has 70 poles in his American premier open-wheel racing career. However, his start to the 2025 season has not been on the same force as he hoped as his qualifying performances have been subpar.

Will Power qualified 13th for the St. Petersburg Grand Prix and retired out of the race on lap 1. He aimed to move ahead of the St. Petersburg weekend, but in his second qualifying session of the season, the Aussie got knocked out in the Group 1 qualifications.

The two-time champion was one of the drivers knocked out among the Team Penske trio and admitted that his preparation for his final run was not on par. He said during the post-qualifying interview:

"I lacked a good out lap to get some front tire temp... maybe we should've left early to have a clear (path). Outlap, did my first corner, I just pushed wide and saw I was 3-tenths down. Then you're kinda on the back foot any way because you put a half lap on your tires," said Power.

"We were good in every single session except the one that counted. That's been our whole year. So far it's been extremely good. Fast in practice, in testing even on black (tires), fourth-quickest then. When it came time to do it, it just wasn't there. Oof, think about it."

Power joined Team Penske in 2009 and is on the last leg of his current contract.

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Team Penske opens up on Will Power's contract situation

Will Power at the NTT IndyCar Series Indianapolis 500 Carb Day - Source: Getty

Will Power has won two championships (2014 and 2022) and 41 races with the Mooresville-based team. Moreover, he is the only driver to have broken Alex Palou's streak of championship victories.

Despite this, the 44-year-old does not have a contract for the 2026 season with Team Penske. Power has expressed his interest in continuing with the Roger Penske-owned operation, and team principal, Tim Cindric, revealed the plight surrounding Power and Team Penske, and said (via IndyStar):

"The fact is, Will’s close to the twilight of his career, and there becomes a bigger emphasis on ‘How long-term do you go?’ or ‘How do you approach it?’ But I think we’ll go business as usual until that time."

Meanwhile, Josef Newgarden finished the Group 1 classifications in ninth, the highest of the Team Penske drivers, as last race's pole-sitter Scott McLaughlin ended the session plum last. Thus, the Mooresville-based squad will be looking over to have a better day in the office for the race on Sunday.