4 Takeaways From Christian Lundgaard's Worst-To-First Win At Road America
Christian Lundgaard seemed as surprised as anyone that he won Sunday at Road America. After all, he ran into the back of Scott Dixon on the opening lap. So to go from worst-to-first is not something, as he said, would have on a "bingo card" for the race on the longest circuit on the INDYCAR schedule, which meant a relatively short race when it comes to laps with just a 55-lap race on the 4.014-mile course. "I knew we were going to be fighting for a top-10 regardless, just from the pace that we had," the Arrow McLaren No. 7 driver said in the news conference after his second win of the season. "I didn't really expect it to be a win." Here are my takeaways from Road America: 1.Lundgaard Earns Big Victory Lundgaard didnt win at all last year in his first year at Arrow McLaren, so to earn two victories in 10 races this season is a huge step, especially for a driver who still isnt signed yet for the 2027 season. "I feel like we've done so well on the road courses this year, which we did last year," Lundgaard said. "Many of them [last year] fell short. So far this year, we've kind of just picked up the pieces and won." 2. Malukas Trying To Be Positive David Malukas earned his third runner-up finish in his last six starts, in part because he had enough pace (he started second) and part because the caution came out twice after he pitted, helping with his track position. The race featured a one-lap dash to the finish after a late caution, but Malukas had nothing for Lundgaard. "P2 champions," Malukas said in his postrace news conference in referring to his recent second-place finishes. "That's been the story of this season. "Big, big kudos to this team because that race ... was insane. I didn't even know what was going on. Next thing you know we're P2." Malukas also has another second hes second in the series standings, 60 points behind leader Alex Palou, who finished fifth on Sunday. 3. Power-Rahal Tangle Will Power turned Graham Rahal as Rahal tried to keep Power from passing him for third on the final lap. Race stewards ruled that there would be no penalty for avoidable contact, allowing Power to remain in third and Rahal finishing 23rd. "It was unfortunate there I was braking and he was braking and he just jerked to the left," Power said in his postrace news conference. "I don't understand why that was. It took me by surprise, obviously, and that's what caused that. "Its a pity. ... From my perspective, I could not do anything. I was at the capacity of braking." Power has had a rough season with five races where he has led races but had no podium finishes. Rahal indicated that it was typical Power aggression. "It was just Power being Power," Rahal said in a team news release. "I had every right to move to the right at the end of the brake zone. People can say that I came back to the left, but he ran into the back of my car he wasn't even next to me. Its frustrating to not be able to get the result that I felt like we deserved." 4. Armstrong Saw Win Slip Away Marcus Armstrong still seeks his first win after a race where he led 14 laps and was leading with four laps remaining when his engine blew. It was another so close, yet so far for a driver who is now 11th in the series standings. Armstrong indicated that there was no indication that there was an issue with the engine before it expired. "Im just gutted, really," Armstrong said in a team news release. Honda engineers will take a look and see what happened. The Chevy teams continue to be plagued by engine woes because of a valve coating issue with four teams having to replace engines over the Road America weekend. 4 . Whats Next: Mid-Ohio The INDYCAR teams have a weekend off before a July 4 holiday weekend trip to Mid-Ohio, another one of the historic road courses on the circuit. Scott Dixon won the race last year after a late-race mistake by Alex Palou on the 2.258-mile course.
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