Andretti hoping (and needing) to win at home

Marco Andretti returns home this weekend for the 15th round of the 2015 Verizon IndyCar season at Pocono Raceway. The Long Pond, Pennsylvania race track is located just 45mins north of where the legendary Andretti family calls home.

Our mentality is this is a must win for us. Maybe some of the guys at the front, they’re going to be conservative ... I have a little bit less to lose

Marco Andretti

Despite this being in his backyard, that's far from the only reason why the third-generation racer enjoys the Tricky Triangle. "I was saying this earlier, if this track was anywhere in the world, I would love to race here. I honestly think it's made for these race cars. It's such a challenge, it's so fun, presents good racing. Obviously it's tough to find a balance - I'm sure everybody has been saying this - between (Turns) 1 and 3, but that's definitely what makes it fun.

Long shot for the title 

Marco is on pace to have one of the best seasons of his career. He is seventh in points with an average finish of 8.3 and stands as the only driver to have completed every lap so far

"Even when we're a lap down, we still managed to come back and keep it on the lead lap. There's only been a few races where we were out of the top 10. From that standpoint, I'm happy with my season. I wish the highs were a little bit higher, but we’re minimizing how bad the lows are. But we need to capitalize when we have cars to do it.

“It takes me staying out of trouble," he said of continuing this string of consistency. "It’s definitely a credit to Honda as well for its reliability. Even when we’ve been a lap down we’ve still managed to come back to be on the lead lap.

With just two races remaining, the 28-year-old is on the fringe of the title fight but still mathematically eligible. Six drivers and 87 points stand between him and the crown. As such a long shot, he is focused on just one thing - winning.

"Our mentality is this is a must win for us. Maybe some of the guys at the front, they’re going to be conservative, just keep yourself in that position. Whereas me, I have a little bit less to lose.

"I just have to worry about me and try to maximize what we can do, and the rest will hopefully take care of itself."

Michael's importance

Another driver in the field with a famous surname is Graham Rahal. He goes into the penultimate round within ten points of championship leader Juan Pablo Montoya. Since his father Bobby moved off the pit box, Graham has excelled to levels previously thought impossible to many. With that being said, would it be prudent for Marco if his father Michael were to take off the headset?

"Quite honestly, it's been really good. I wouldn't change really anything on the 27 stand. Dad is extremely good at calling races. I don't know the Rahal dynamic, maybe they were fighting on the radio or something, but Dad and I, we've been getting along great."

He will start the 500-miler from 22nd position.

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