Felix Rosenqvist in the No.6 SmartStop Arrow McLaren Chevrolet says he may not have won in Portland but he feels that his second place finish was a bit of a comeback for him.
The Swede who started the race from 11th came through the field to finish in second place just ahead of his former teammate Scott Dixon.
Speaking following the race, Rosenqvist who is expected to be announced as a Meyer Shank Racing driver later this week commented saying:
“We didn’t get the win, but to me, that was kind of a comeback. We had a really good strategy. Team Chevy gave us really good power, and everything was just rolling our way, which it’s been awhile since it’s felt that way. The flow was just there throughout the race. That was good fun; I really enjoyed that.”
Pato O’Ward in the No.5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was left disappointed after finishing the race just off the podium in fourth place and speaking following the action he said:
I wouldn’t have changed anything with the strategy. I was very happy and comfortable with the car, and I felt like I drove a really good race. It’s just frustrating; it’s the same story every time. As soon as we get to lapped cars, it’s always a race to get by them. They really destroy and diminish your chances to fight for a better position. In this case, it was a podium position. We had the pace for that, but when someone in front of you is doing everything in their power to block you, blowing their push to pass so you use yours, that shouldn’t be happening in a series like this. I hope to see the rules change in the future. But for now, we’ll settle for a P4. I’m bummed because the team deserved more today with the performance we had in pitlane, the strategy and lap times we were putting out.
Alexander Rossi started the race in 9th and came home in 20th place and speaking following the action he said:
”I think we were recovering from a bad first stop due to the sequence of cars coming in when we were trying to leave, and we were on for a fifth, sixth-place day. I was overtaking Marcus Ericsson when he moved in the straight, broke our front wing and that was our day. It’s a shame. We struggled this weekend to really get the balance right, but the race was probably the best part of the weekend, and it was going to be a pretty good day for the team. It still was, obviously, but it’s a shame we weren’t also able to get a result.”
Arrow McLaren Race Director Gavin Ward said:
“That was a strong day for the team. Top two Chevys, you have to be happy with that. And we secured another podium, which makes 10 on the year and our fifth second-place finish. It was a great day for Felix and the No. 6 SmartStop Arrow McLaren Chevrolet crew, they executed on a really high level, and he’s had pace all weekend, so I’m really happy for him. Pato had a strong race to get the most out of what was available there. I thought we were going to have all three cars in the top 10, but unfortunately there was a little incident with Alexander toward the end that ruined that one. One more to go here. Let’s finish strong.”