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Team Penske’s Will Power crossed the chequered flag in P5 at the 2025 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. After a dismal qualifying session, it was a good comeback for the Australian driver. The 44-year-old revealed his only regret after the race at the Long Beach IndyCar circuit.
Will Power topped the first practice session at Long Beach and finished P4 in the second practice session. However, the Team Penske driver failed to progress to the second qualifying session and finished P7 in Group 1. As a result, Power started the race in P13.
Will Power hasn't made it out of the first qualifying session in all three IndyCar races this season. The Team Penske driver detailed the sme frustration in his post-race interview with Frontstretch:
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“Yeah, it's a very good day. You know, it was pretty straightforward. It wasn't like any trick strategy. Just had to do a lot of passing on track.I just regret not starting up further again, you know, so. Three weeks in a row, but that's the way it is. A very tight field, it's very tough. So we'll keep digging.” (1:07 onwards)
The Team Penske car showed great pace at St. Pete where Scott McLaughlin took the pole position. However, the Thermal Club qualifying and race was one to forget, as all three Penske cars struggled. The cars again had raw pace at Long Beach but couldn't convert that into strong results.
Most of the drivers who made big gains at Long Beach were the ones who started on the Primary tires. But Will Power was the only driver who started on the alternate soft compound tires, yet finished eight spots up from his grid position, highlighting the raw pace in the Team Penske car.
Will Power detailed his disappointment after poor Long Beach Qualifying
Will Power spoke with FOX after the qualifying session at Long Beach. The Team Penske driver put his disappointment into words and explained how the poor qualifying results stopped him from scoring big points in the races.
Power explained the layout of the circuit where cars stopped at the last corner, the need for a preparation lap, and why he wasn't able to put in a good lap. He explained how the team should've opted for two alternate tire runs rather than putting the hard tires for the first run, which put a lot of pressure on the second run.
“Man, it was just, It was kind of difficult to get a clear lap. People backing up a lot, but don't know how much I missed out by. Yeah, it's kind of, almost needed to go on the first lap, I guess, but then just, it's hard to have a good outlap. Then you got a gap and let people go, and then people stop at the hairpin,” said Will Power.
“But no excuses, man. I mean, we're quick in every single practice this year, we've been fast, every single one, and we haven't gotten the top 12 yet. You make as many excuses you want. We've just got to get it done when it counts.”
Josef Newgarden had a good race after getting rid of the alternate tires in just a couple of laps and moving up to the Top 10. Unfortunately, his seat belts came undone midway through the race, and he had to make an extra pitstop, which sent him to the back of the field.
