Will Power has shared his thoughts following his qualifying session at the Detroit Grand Prix. The Australian driver failed to progress into the Fast Six round to compete for pole position.
The Team Penske driver, who was in dire need of a redemptive qualifying, especially off the back of the controversy that saw him get disqualified during the Indy 500 event, could only muster a ninth-place start for the race. The 44-year-old appeared surprised by his qualifying position, and in his interaction with the media, he did not hold back his thoughts.
Reflecting on his qualifying in a video shared to X (formerly Twitter) by IndyCar, Will Power stated:
“I mean, that was a good lap, I think I missed a bit in braking in [turn] 3 because the lap before I locked up, but I just needed to do it the lap before. That’s where the tire was at its best. One-tenth gets us through. Yeah, it’s just IndyCar man. It’s so, so, so tight.
You just leave a little bit of something somewhere, you’re not going to make it. Um, yeah, but not a big deal here. It’s a lot of mayhem. I never liked that lap. I was like, that’s only ninth?! I was like, my God.”
Will Power’s result, although disappointing, was the second best of his Penske team. The Mooresville-based team witnessed none of its drivers secure qualification to the final round of qualifying, with Scott McLaughlin, who qualified highest, mustering eighth place, and Josef Newgarden qualifying 24th after hitting the barriers during his run.
However, given that the Detroit Grand Prix is known to be one laced with mayhem, Power and his teammates could clutch up substantial points during the main race.
Will Power barrelled Kyle Kirkwood during Detroit GP practice
Ahead of the qualifying rounds, Will Power had a rather surprising moment when he bizarrely barrelled into Kyle Kirkwood during the practice session. The 44-year-old rear-ended Kirkwood and subsequently pushed him off the track.
The situation unfolded when the Team Penske veteran, who was looking to set a lap time, appeared to have been obstructed by the Andretti Autosport driver. However, rather than coasting around Kirkwood until he got a clean gap to commence a lap, Will Power opted to push him off the track with his front wing until he got himself clean air.
The rather unusual move indeed left several watching baffled, questioning the thought process of the Penske veteran to push Kirkwood off. During his interaction with the press, Power explained his reasons for the unorthodox push on the track.
Speaking in a video shared to X by IndyCar, he stated:
“Well, I came around and, you know, he was right up in the middle and made contact, so I thought, ‘Well, I may as well get a gap now’. So I just pushed him past the car in front, just moved him out of the way, and got a really nice gap.
So, uh, yeah, if I hadn’t touched him already… I was like, ‘Oh well, I’m already touching him, so I might as well keep pushing him and get myself a gap’. Got a good gap and finished the run nicely.”
The clash indeed left Will Power with a damaged front wing, and the two-time IndyCar series champion had to switch to a new front wing to complete the remainder of the session. Kirkwood, on his part, appeared not to suffer any damage to the rear of his car and still managed to clock the fastest lap time during the practice session.
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Edited by Tushar Bahl
