Fifteen races down, two to go for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship, and the pursuit is historic. Newgarden sat second behind race leader and Team Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin during the two-hour weather delay that came at Lap 214 of 260. He had started in the top eight of five of the eight races since Indy and has finished on the lead lap in all the oval races except Race 1 at Iowa, when he was one lap down in 14th amid Newgarden’s domination. “They have the confetti, it’s a lot,” Malukas said of his first impressions of the post-race celebration. Grape juice will again be needed if Malukas finishes on the podium in either of the season’s final two races as his 21st birthday is Sept. 27. Atop the standings are Power and Newgarden, who are separated by three points.

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