Power proud of IndyCar recovery drive to Mid-Ohio podium

With a potential pole-winning car Power had his fastest two laps deleted in qualifying, after impeding Helio Castronevess when the team failed to warn him of the rapid approach of his former team-mate. That relegated the #12 Verizon Team Penske-Chevrolet to 21st on the grid.

A spin on the opening lap was a result of trying to pass – then avoid contact with –Takuma Sato in 19th at Turn 9.

Having dropped to the back of the 27-car field, Power climbed to 23rd by Lap 9 when he made a not-much-to-lose first stop under caution, and then proceeded to climb to a legitimate 18th before the first round of stops commenced on Lap 23.

He would have gone longer than the front- and most midfield runners thanks to the earlier splash of fuel on Lap 9 but in anticipation of a full-course yellow that flew on Lap 31, the team chose to pit him, and he would emerge in 12th.

A Lap 39 restart saw him pass David Malukas and Simon Pagenaud on consecutive laps, then Alex Rossi and the mechanically faltering Pato O'Ward on consecutive laps. The second on-strategy stop saw the #12 crew get him out ahead of both Scott Dixon and Marcus Ericsson, and on the final restart, Power took advantage of his fresh alternate-compound Firestone to zap past Rinus VeeKay to claim third. He then looked after his reds over the last stint, rather than wear them out trying to pass runner-up Alex Palou.

“The enjoyment of a skill is executing it the best you possibly can," said Power.

"I enjoy it a lot. I enjoy qualifying, putting it all together over a whole race weekend. When you have a day like that, it makes you want to keep going for a long time.”

Describing the start of the race, Power said that he “went up the inside [of Sato], everyone was very choked up and just