zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Racing
/
How This Weekend's IndyCar Championship Could Shake Out
How This Weekend's IndyCar Championship Could Shake Out-October 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:10:48

The start of the 2022 IndyCar Portland Grand Prix.

Heading into this Sunday’s IndyCar championship finale at Laguna Seca, five different drivers are still eligible to take the Astor Cup: Will Power, Josef Newgarden, Scott Dixon, Marcus Ericsson, and Scott McLaughlin. Some drivers are farther back than others, so we’re going to give you a quick rundown of what each driver needs to do — and what they need their competitors to do — in order to call themselves the 2022 IndyCar Series champion.

To win the championship on Sunday, Power needs to finish the finale in third place; it won’t matter what any of his other competitors manage to accomplish if that’s the case. If Newgarden and Dixon finish third or lower, Power can still win, even if he places 14th.

While it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility to expect Power to sweep the weekend, a dominant performance in IndyCar can often be easier said than done. Power has been consistent all year long, but in the competitive IndyCar field, just one mistake could leave his competition nipping at his heels.

Josef Newgarden and Scott Dixon: 503 Points

Scott Dixon (left) and Josef Newgarden (right).

Power’s Penske teammate Josef Newgarden is currently tied for second in the championship alongside Scott Dixon. As mentioned above, even a perfect weekend — meaning pole position, race win, and fastest lap — wouldn’t be enough to pip victory from Power if he took a podium position. They’d have to win and hope Power finishes fourth or lower.

It’s not impossible for either driver; both are more than capable of showing a mad display of dominance. However, it’s not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

Marcus Ericsson: 484 Points

Image for article titled How This Weekend's IndyCar Championship Could Shake Out

Marcus Ericsson held the lead of the IndyCar championship for a while after his Indy 500 victory, but Ericsson is now sitting quite far from championship contention. For him to take the championship, he’d have to win the race and hope Power scores 19th or lower, at which point they’d be tied, but Ericsson would win the championship via countback thanks to that 500 win. Additionally, Newgarden and Dixon would have to finish fifth or lower. If McLaughlin wins, though, even a second place won’t get the job done for Ericsson.

It’s very much a long shot for Ericsson, who has been a consistent but unremarkable points-scorer this year; expecting him to pull out a stunning performance would likely be too much.

Scott McLaughlin: 482 Points

Image for article titled How This Weekend's IndyCar Championship Could Shake Out

Our final championship contender is Scott McLaughlin, who’s currently in a win-or-bust situation — one where he’d also have to count on disaster striking down everyone else in front of him. In this scenario Power would have to finish 22nd or lower while Dixon and Newgarden would have to finish sixth or lower.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Racing
Rubbin's Racin' And Pushin's Shovin' For Angry NASCAR Racers In Iowa
Rubbin's Racin' And Pushin's Shovin' For Angry NASCAR Racers In Iowa
Ryan Reed was not happy with Ross Chastain driving him into the wall during the green-white-checkered finish of last night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race. The two exchanged stern words and pointed fingers after the race, but it’s safe to say that a different finger was implied in Reed’s post-race push....
Oct 14, 2026
Watch Justin Wilson Pass Two Cars Like A Badass 'Round The Outside
Watch Justin Wilson Pass Two Cars Like A Badass 'Round The Outside
Live Recording - Aug 2, 2015, 2_58 PM ‘Round the outside, ‘round the outside, ‘round the outside. The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio is still going on, but at least so far the Badass Racing Move Of The Day™ goes to Andretti Autosport’s Justin Wilson, who on lap 6 passed...
Oct 14, 2026
Kenseth Wins NASCAR Race After Everyone In Front Of Him Runs Out Of Gas
Kenseth Wins NASCAR Race After Everyone In Front Of Him Runs Out Of Gas
To say that today’s Sprint Cup Windows 10 400 at Pocono Raceway was chaotic would be the understatement of the year. After racking up seven cautions in the first 72 laps alone, the race ran long and nuttier than usual. Watch how it ended: with cars everywhere dropping like flies...
Oct 14, 2026
Was This Driver Really Told To Push His DTM Competitors Out Of The Way?
Was This Driver Really Told To Push His DTM Competitors Out Of The Way?
Did Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich really instruct driver Timo Scheider, “Schieb ihn raus!” (or “Push him out!”) over the radio during yesterday’s Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters race? Dr. Ullrich claims that he was on a different channel than Scheider, but the TV edit looks pretty bad. Here’s the...
Oct 14, 2026
Kasey Kahne Slams Into Pit Wall With Car; Pauses NASCAR Race
Kasey Kahne Slams Into Pit Wall With Car; Pauses NASCAR Race
Thankfully, no one was hurt in a rare, but frightening accident where an out-of-control NASCAR race car slammed into the pit wall at Pocono Raceway. Kasey Kahne got loose coming out of turn 3 at the track, spinning into the pit lane itself. KAHNESIZ Curiously, this is the second time...
Oct 14, 2026
Rahal Wins At Honda Indy 200 And More People Gotta Watch This Stuff
Rahal Wins At Honda Indy 200 And More People Gotta Watch This Stuff
There’s a kind of understanding, a kind of awareness you reach whenever you watch racing live that you never really get just from watching TV. It’s happened to me at Formula One, MotoGP, most sports car series, and now after covering the race at Mid-Ohio, I get IndyCar too in...
Oct 14, 2026
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved