As soon as the green flag waved, Power, who started second, was already in the slipstream of Santino Ferrucci and immediately launched an attack, passing Ferrucci in Turn 1. The entire field made it through the first corner without issue, but later in the opening lap, one of the title contenders ran into serious trouble.
Kyle Kirkwood made an overtaking move on Scott Dixon in Turn 7, pushing Dixon off the track with his left wheels. The championship’s third-place contender was then overtaken by several cars until Pietro Fittipaldi collided with Dixon after hitting a curb in Turn 9, sending Dixon into the wall. This crash not only ended Dixon’s race but likely his championship hopes as well. Fittipaldi received a drive-through penalty for the incident.
Once the race resumed, it only took a few laps for Palou to pass Ferrucci. Palou stayed within about a second of Power for an extended period, until the duo encountered backmarker Fittipaldi, prompting Palou to briefly attempt a move. However, Fittipaldi quickly got out of Power’s way, only to receive another drive-through penalty after spinning Conor Daly.
Romain Grosjean drove a solid race, moving up from sixth to fourth, matching his team’s best result of the season. However, the motorsport veteran threw it all away on lap 62 when he spun in Turn 1. Fortunately for Grosjean, he managed to restart his engine, but he rejoined the track right in front of Christian Rasmussen, resulting in contact between the two. Other cars narrowly avoided him, but Grosjean then went off track again due to a puncture, dropping him to the back of the field.
At the front, Power maintained his lead. Palou tried everything during the pit stops, from pitting later to pitting earlier, but he couldn’t overtake the Penske driver. Palou ultimately sealed his fate by switching to a set of used hard tires, while Power had switched to fresh soft tires a lap earlier. This caused Palou’s gap to Power to quickly widen.
Power’s third win of the season was never in doubt, as he crossed the finish line with nearly a ten-second lead.
Rinus VeeKay put in a strong performance, opting early on for an alternative pit strategy. However, this didn’t yield the desired result, as the Dutchman got stuck behind Alexander Rossi during his second stint. As a result, VeeKay missed out on his fifth consecutive top-ten finish, although an eleventh place offered some consolation.
Updated standings after the Grand Prix of Portland
Full results of the race on Portland
PhotographyPenske Entertainment
