Newgarden: I won't repeat Pagenaud's Penske first year slump
Josef Newgarden feels he will be able to avoid a Penske-first-year IndyCar slump like the one experienced by Simon Pagenaud in 2015 when he joins the team this season

Newgarden replaces Juan Pablo Montoya in Penske's line-up for 2017, after five seasons in the series with Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing and then Ed Carpenter Racing.
Pagenaud won a pair of races on his way to fifth in the 2014 standings with Schmidt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports, but then finished his first Penske season a winless 11th in the points.
While Pagenaud bounced back in style to win the 2016 title, Newgarden does not anticipate a similar transition phase.
"Simon is an interesting case because if you look back at it, he didn't have that terrible a year in a lot of respects [in 2015]," Newgarden said.
"The results weren't what they wanted, they finished outside the top 10 in the championship.
"But from a speed standpoint, Simon didn't struggle the first year.
"That wasn't the missing ingredient.
"So I'm hoping that's not a problem in the transition. I don't foresee it being a problem."
Newgarden believes the fact he is taking over an existing entry at Penske will help, compared to Pagenaud (pictured in 2015) arriving to drive a newly-added fourth car.

"He's talked about the difficulty of them having to add a team, different people," Newgarden said of Pagenaud's experience.
"Sure, he brought over [race engineer Ben] Bretzman so that was his continuity for him, but there were some other elements that weren't continuity.
"With me, it's going to be a different ball of wax. I've got an existing team on the #2 car.
"They've been in place for a while, so that shouldn't be as big of a shuffle from the team side.
"It's going to be more me learning how the team operates, gelling with my engineer [Brian Campe] very quickly.
"That's going to be the biggest difference for me.
"It's hard to predict how it's going to go. I think all signs point that we could have a very good start to the season."

IndyCar driver JR Hildebrand feels 'sense of urgency' to repay ECR
Ganassi IndyCar pair Dixon and Kanaan fear tough start with Honda

Latest news
Lundgaard: Vettel could expect “tough transition” to IndyCar
Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard said that four-time Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel would face a hard task adapting to the demands of IndyCar if he wished to make the switch.
Lundgaard signs multi-year IndyCar deal with Rahal Letterman Lanigan
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced that the team has “restructured a new, long-term agreement” with Rookie of Christian Lundgaard for “2023 and beyond”.
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.
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