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Opinion: Newgarden is asserting himself as IndyCar's next superstar

We always talk about how this or that racer is “the real deal”, someone who will work their fool tails off trying to get to the top rung of a chosen motor sport and stay there.

Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet

Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet

IndyCar Series

Race winner Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Race winner Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, Simon Pagenaud, Team Penske Chevrolet
Race winner Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet takes the checkered flag
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet takes the checkered flag
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Race winner Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Conor Daly, Dale Coyne Racing Honda and Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet in huge crash
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
Josef Newgarden, Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet

Watching the drivers wend their way up the ladder and through to prominence can be exciting, especially for fans who might glimpse emerging excellence. Sometimes it’s noticeable to those behind the fences before a team owner realizes how proficient a driver might be.

Paying his dues

Such is the case with Verizon IndyCar Series driver Josef Newgarden, 25, who didn’t get his start as a racer until driving a kart at age 13. His rise has been meteoric ever since. Tennessean Newgarden has paid his dues, racing through a variety of Skip Barber series, in Formula Ford here in the USA and also in the very tough British series, including taking the Kent class win in the famous Formula Ford 1600 Walter Hayes trophy races with Team USA/Cliff Dempsey Racing.

These forays, along with a single 2010 season of GP3 prepared Newgarden for a return to the United States, where he earned the Indy Lights title in his rookie year with Sam Schmidt Motorsports, the most successful Indy Lights team in the modern era.

As that series champion, securing five wins and three poles in 14 races, Newgarden earned a scholarship for the Verizon IndyCar Series and landed with Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing. His progress has been steady, as he entered the series at a time when testing has been pretty much banned before, during and after each racing season. Nothing like learning on the job, right?

And Josef Newgarden has learned on the job, doing it with a sense of humor and gratefulness that belies his years and the social mores of his generation. He doesn’t feel entitled to be in the most difficult open wheel series in the world, one that races on permanent road courses, street circuits, small and large ovals - unlike any other. Josef has met every obstacle and is working to conquer them all.

At this point, he’s got three wins in the exceptionally competitive Verizon IndyCar Series. His first came on a permanent road course (Barber Motorsports Park) last April, the second in June of 2015 was on the streets of Toronto and he earned his third victory on the 0.875-mile Iowa Speedway oval the second Sunday in July, 2016.

Coming back from Texas injury

Okay, so points leader Simon Pagenaud had three wins in-hand this year before Indianapolis 500 practice began, but Pagenaud works with Team Penske, has three winning teammates and all the resources a race could wish for. Pagenaud has also had no accidents that could have set him back, as Newgarden experienced in a nasty crash at Texas Motor Speedway four weeks before his latest victory.

With a broken clavicle and right wrist, no racer could have expected to return to action within two weeks at Road America, the undulating 4-mile permanent road course in rural Wisconsin. Newgarden
started that race at the back after a challenging qualifying session and finished eighth, stating neither injury bothered him much. He was fortunate to have the testing skills of teammate JR Hildebrand at his disposal - for Road America and Iowa Speedway.

On Sunday Newgarden showed everyone that still didn’t believe that he is the Real Deal. Doctors cleared him to race and he promptly placed his Ed Carpenter Racing (ECR) Chevrolet on the front row next to Pagenaud, overtaking the pole sitter before the race was one lap in. Newgarden led 282 of the 300 laps in this year’s Iowa Corn 300 to win by a gaping 4.28 seconds from a charging Will Power of Team Penske, with four-time and reigning champion Scott Dixon third and points leader Pagenaud fourth.

With this victory, Josef Newgarden earned more than respect - he evinced awe for his racing chops and ability to push pain to the back burner. He claimed the car was the best car he’s ever had (anywhere, I wonder?) and that credit goes to the ECR team led by Jeremy Milless, lead engineer. They did their part; the driver did his and that’s when amazing victories like this one come together.

Next weekend the ECR team with Josef Newgarden and second driver (rookie) Spencer Pigot return to the scene of Newgarden’s second victory, the streets of Toronto. While Iowa is likely the most physical oval INDYCAR visits on its 16-race agenda, the Toronto race circuit has a sufficient number of bumps and a profound lack of run-off area.

Is Newgarden’s wrist up to that task? Will Hildebrand be standing by again (he’s looking more like a lucky charm, isn’t he)? Can Josef eat into Simon’s 73-point lead, knowing he can’t make up any points at all when the series re-visits the scene of his accident and race-ending crash at Texas Motor Speedway in late August?

Josef's future

Another big question is where Newgarden will race in 2017. He’s been working with this very small team since 2012 and, although Jacques Villeneuve conquered the big guys with then-small Team Green back in 1994-5, it really hasn’t been done in the current era. Will one of the big guys: Penske, Ganassi, Andretti decide this young American is the right fit for them or will Josef Newgarden continue to make his mark and win with the group that brought him to this dance?

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