Newgarden 'calculated' Ericsson advantage in IndyCar Mid-Ohio final laps
Josef Newgarden was "calculating" his lack of pace relative to Marcus Ericsson in the closing stages of IndyCar's Mid-Ohio race, which he narrowly won over the ex-Formula 1 driver.

Two-time IndyCar champion Newgarden secured Team Penske's first win of the season following an unlucky pair of races at Detroit and Road America, in which he had led the most laps but was denied from taking either win late on.
Ericsson made Newgarden work for the win, however, and began to quickly erode the Penske driver's lead in the final 15 laps.
Newgarden managed to hold on, but explained that his rear tyres were completely spent by the end as Ericsson's Chip Ganassi Racing car was within a second of him across the finish line - making it a "touch-and-go" scenario for the team.
“Marcus did not make it easy,” said Newgarden, who chalked up his 19th IndyCar victory.
“It seemed smooth at the beginning of the stint. It felt pretty comfortable. Then 10 to 15 laps to go on primary tires, I was chewing up the rears."
“I was just kind of calculating the pace loss, looking at where he was, looking at overtaking [push-to-pass boost], all that.
"That kept me busy. That's pretty much what I was focusing on; it's not the thing you want to be kept busy with. You'd rather be busy looking at the gap growing and taking it easy. That was not the case.
“It was a hard-fought win. I think we definitely had the car to win the race, but it didn't come easy. These guys made us push for it and work.

Josef Newgarden, Team Penske Chevrolet
Photo by: Joe Skibinski
“Looking at the numbers lap after lap from 10 to go, it looked fine to me. It looked like it was going to be close, he's probably going to be there right at the end, but I don't think he'll have enough to get by. I was confident enough.
“But I knew I had to be perfect. It was not easy, he was much quicker at the end of the race. I feel we were quicker in the beginning, but he was quicker at the end.
"It was how to manage fuel across the stint, but replacing it with grip – how do you manage the grip and time loss we have relative to Marcus with 10 to go?"
Newgarden looked dominant in the early stages, having built a gap over Colton Herta in the first half of the race prior to the Andretti driver's pitstop woes, which left him with an even larger gap to Ericsson.
However, Newgarden was left unsure of why he had such a dearth of rear grip relative to Ericsson in the closing stages, suggesting that the increase in temperatures across the weekend had hamstrung his car's tyre management capabilities.
“Maybe it's just the balance and the temperature,” Newgarden suggested.
“Certainly from Friday with lower temps, and the small bump in temps from Saturday [we were] not looking after the rear-end of the car as good as I thought we were going to. We made some adjustments to that side of the racecar and it wasn't enough.
“It wasn't disastrous. I still think we were one of the best cars in the field, certainly very strong in the beginning of stints.
“It's just the back end that left us exposed. Next year we need to clean up that weakness.”
Related video

IndyCar Mid-Ohio: Newgarden ends unlucky run with narrow victory over Ericsson
The two key areas where Dixon needs to re-assert his authority

Latest news
Title-winning Newman/Haas Indycars to be auctioned
Indycars raced by Mario Andretti, Michael Andretti, Nigel Mansell and Sebastien Bourdais are among artefacts of the legendary Newman/Haas Racing team to be auctioned by RM Sotheby's in October.
Ganassi will support Palou’s IndyCar title bid despite contract dispute
Chip Ganassi Racing won’t waver in its support of Alex Palou’s IndyCar title defence, despite being locked in a legal dispute with the Spaniard who intends to join McLaren.
Why the 2022 IndyCar title fight is Penske vs Ganassi yet again
There have been wins, poles and promise from others, but the 2022 IndyCar Series championship battle has distilled down to a fight between old rivals Team Penske and Chip Ganassi Racing once more. A principal from each explains what has elevated their teams beyond other rivals ahead of the final three races
Nashville IndyCar winner Dixon feared race was ruined by shunt
Scott Dixon was convinced that car damage had ended his victory hopes at IndyCar's Nashville round, before working his way to the front to eventually claim his 53rd series win.
How Ericsson achieved Indy immortality as Ganassi's main man stumbled
Chip Ganassi Racing team was strong again in the Indianapolis 500, with poleman Scott Dixon and reigning champion Alex Palou leading almost three quarters of the race between them. But when dominator Dixon was penalised for pitlane speeding, ex-Formula 1 driver Marcus Ericsson stepped up to score the biggest win of his career and seize the IndyCar points lead
Ranking the top 10 IndyCar drivers of 2021
In an enthralling 2021 IndyCar campaign, the series bounced back from its COVID-19 truncated year prior and Alex Palou defeated both the established order and his fellow young guns to clinch a maiden title. It capped a remarkable season with plenty of standout performers
How F1's other IndyCar exile finally unlocked his potential
Romain Grosjean's swashbuckling rookie year in IndyCar captured the imagination of many in 2021. But another ex-Formula 1 driver whose potential was masked by five years of toil in, at best, middling machinery also enjoyed a breakout year in 2021 - winning twice and finishing sixth in points. Here's how Marcus Ericsson finally delivered on his promise
How Ganassi's relentless new champion outfoxed IndyCar's best
IndyCar sophomore Alex Palou stunned by overcoming team-mate Scott Dixon and the rest of a white-hot field in 2021. He was consistently fast and crucially showed a level head, rebounding well from setbacks to put himself in a near unassailable position entering the final round
Have Harvey and RLL formed IndyCar’s next winning match-up?
Despite appearing to have an IndyCar job for life with Meyer Shank Racing, Jack Harvey’s departure and move to Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing sparked plenty of debate. However, Harvey's and RLL's combined strengths could prove to be a winning combination - if they get the balance right
Remembering Dan Wheldon and his last and most amazing IndyCar win
Saturday 16 October marks the 10th anniversary of Dan Wheldon’s death. David Malsher-Lopez pays tribute, then asks Wheldon’s race engineer from 2011, Todd Malloy, to recall that magical second victory at the Indianapolis 500
Why Kyle Kirkwood is America's new IndyCar ace-in-waiting
Kyle Kirkwood, the record-setting junior formula driver, sealed the Indy Lights championship last weekend. But despite an absurdly strong junior career and scholarship money, his next move is far from clear
Why IndyCar title glory is just the start for Ganassi's new star
Newly-crowned IndyCar champion Alex Palou has been lauded as a complete driver and veteran-like in only his second season. The 24-year-old is still in the early days of his career, but the parallels are there for all to see with his six-time champion Chip Ganassi Racing team-mate who has been CGR's team leader since 2014