Power: Penske team-mates, Palou strongest threats to IndyCar title defence

Power, the 2014 and ’22 champion, led his Penske teammates Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin in a Penske 1-2-4 in the 2022 points standings, with Ganassi’s Scott Dixon, Palou and Marcus Ericsson filling out places 3-5-6.

But Power said there were other teams he is watching warily.

“I think you'll learn over the first five races who is really right in the game,” he said. “It's so hard to predict. So many fast drivers and fast teams, good teams. Who knows?

“You know the Penske cars will be good, Ganassi will be good, the Andretti guys. You have [Kyle] Kirkwood in there now, and I think he'll be very strong. McLaren guys too.

“It's crazy. It's very, very fiercely competitive.”

However, asked directly who he expects to be his fiercest title rivals, Power replied: “Apart from my two teammates, I want to say Palou is probably going to be the other toughest guy, I think.

“Who knows? If [Colton] Herta gets some real good consistency… It's very difficult to say. I mean, Dixon is always there. I feel like Palou is a faster version of Dixon because he's extremely fast and consistent. I think obviously they're both extremely good drivers.

“The field is full of very good drivers.”

Despite Penske winning nine of the 17 races in 2022, the most dominant victory came from outgoing champion Palou in the season finale at Laguna Seca. Asked if that rang alarm bells at Penske to double-down in its efforts in the off-season, Power said: “I always say we put a ton of effort into the Indy 500 again. I'm not sure there's all that much to be found on road and street courses.

“But yeah, Palou was another planet last race! He's going to be right in the game again this year. Yeah, it's interesting, just interesting, that last race with the [tyre] deg and all that. Definitely some variants I felt between the tyre [sets].

Will Power, Team Penske Chevrolet

Photo by: IndyCar Series

“I scuffed two sets and I really struggled in the middle stints. Then I put on a non-scuffed set at the end and I was right on pace with Josef at least.

“Yeah, maybe there's something in that. I don't know. But, yeah, you expect Ganassi's guys to all be up there, all of them.”

Given that very little testing was done in the off-season, Power admits he is not sure which engine supplier, Chevrolet or Honda, has the upper hand in this final season for the 2.2-litre engines without hybrid power, but he suspects there is little in it.

Chevrolet’s gains in the previous offseason, he pointed out, were down to revised mapping resulting in improved driveability, rather than a horsepower leap.

“Looking at the sectors [in testing], it looked like Honda may have been turned down,” he said. “It seemed as though they turned theirs down for whatever reason. Maybe it's to save the engine. Don't know.

“Really it's the road and street courses, then there's Indy – there's everywhere and then Indy. How good are we at Indy at the lower boost level? That will be the question.

“I think on the road and street courses there's not much to be found. It was pretty even last year. I expect it will be reasonably even, hopefully even, this year. Or hopefully we've got the upper hand!

“I mean, we've had the engine so long, no one's going to make a massive jump. You'd be questioning the jump if they did!

“Last year was a big gain for us. It wasn’t power, it was just the way the drivability is, the [power] delivery is so much better.”