Will Power impressed at the 2026 Markham GP, starting from last on the grid to ending up finishing on the podium. He looks forward to more podiums in the IndyCar series Championship.
Best finish in Canada since 2016
Will Power was in disbelief at finishing on the podium as he qualified at the back ahead of the IndyCar Markham GP, with Andretti changing his engine ahead of the race. He claimed he doesn’t know how the team got here, but good strategy calls played a huge factor.
The Andretti driver stated they were really good on the restarts, which helped make up a lot of positions. He explained that the tyre degradation was substantial towards the end, but they were lucky enough that others, like Alex Palou, had to save fuel.
Power made great headway up to third at the 2026 Markham GP.
“I don’t know how we ended up there. Actually we had a really good car on restarts. Definitely made a lot of positions there. Then it was about making good strategy calls.
“At the end there you had to make a lot of passes to move yourself forward, which we were able to do. My tyres were pretty done at the end there. Just sort of holding on. But the others had to save fuel, so that helped get us up to third.
Will Power knew that his teammate Marcus Ericsson was faster throughout the IndyCar Markham GP. Having run close to the front throughout the race, Ericsson made it up to first.
Power said he was going to let him go on the back straight but admitted there were miscommunications with the team.
“Marcus was just very fast all day. I was going to let him go on the back straight, but he made his way there. There was a bit of miscommunication with the team.
“He’s coming. I’ll let him go on the back straight, not lose much to Palou, I’ll get through. It worked out well.”
During the final ten laps, Ericsson and Power made contact at the hairpin. Ultimately, Ericsson got past the No. 26 car, but Power was thankful they didn’t ruin the weekend for Andretti.
“I had no clues there. I just turned. That was close that we didn’t ruin a good day for the team there.”
Teamwork wins two Andretti podiums at the 2026 Markham GP
Power explained that the No. 28 car had good pace and could pull a big gap before his final stop, rejoining right with the Australian.
Unfortunately, Power got the short end of the strategy call. His tyres were too degraded to compete with Ericsson’s pace. However, he believed the team picked the strategy that was right for him at the IndyCar Markham GP.
“Marcus, like, pulled an 18-second gap. He just took off because he had the pace. He had good pace. We could have opted for that strategy. My tyres went off pretty badly at the end. I think the strategy we did was correct for us.
“Just didn’t quite have the pace ’cause I had that many more laps on my tyres. I really hustled to make track position. Kind of hurt my tyres early. Tried to conserve.
The Australian driver claimed his fourth podium of the IndyCar season. Although he missed the race win at the 2026 Markham GP, Power emphasised his strong season.
If he can keep up the good race pace and Andretti continue to deliver with strategies, he knows he could move his way up in the standings.
“But that was, man, good day. Good day. Obviously it would be nice to get a win, but I keep getting podiums. That’s all we’re looking for, really good race pace, good strategies and everything.
Power credited his Team Principal for putting him in the best spot at the IndyCar Markham GP. He reveals that Ron Ruzewski, who he worked very closely with previously at Team Penske, joked about a bonus for getting Power a podium.
“Ron Ruzewski usually puts me in the best spot. He did it again today. He told me, What bonus do I get you if you get on the podium?
“I’m thinking it is impossible. I said, Whatever you want. He’s done that many times in my career. Goal is top three today. I’m like, There’s no way, dude. We end up there (smiling). He does a very good job. Very good job on the stand.”
First impressions: IndyCar Markham GP
Power expressed excitement towards Markham’s new track. Throughout the race, there were six cautions, with many incidents occurring at the track’s tight hairpin corner.
“A very cool track. I said it from the first laps, epic track. Very high commitment. Cool street course. Very easy. Like, as you saw, you got to be so on your toes to drive it.
“Yeah, I’m glad the race had a ton of action. I didn’t want a full green boring race starting where I was, it just played out like that.”
Miscommunication for Andretti
Power gave some insight into Andretti’s discussion surrounding the collision with Ericsson towards the end of the race.
He claimed the team told him Ericsson was quicker and on his way, so Power wantes to stay close to Palou by letting him through on the back straight.
“Yeah, it was miscommunication ’cause the team came on and said, Marcus is really quick, he’s coming.
“I said, Okay, tell him I’ll let him go on the back straight so I can stay close to Palou.
“He didn’t get the message, or it wasn’t quick enough for him. Yeah, miscommunication. I didn’t even look in my mirror. I just turned. Obviously at that point I was upset because we lost such a gap. Just miscommunication. It was going to be fine, yeah.
“But we ended where we were going to end anyway, so it was fine.”
Achieved the impossible task
The Australian driver thought achieving a podium was out of reach during the IndyCar Markham GP.
The Andretti team worked overnight to repair damage from FP2. Given the extra work they put in, Power was happy to hand them a good result.
“Yeah, man, the guys worked. A lot of those guys got two hours’ sleep last night. Repaired a car from practice two, do an engine last night. I wanted to have a good day for them. You have to put everything out of your mind, head down.
Given all the cautions, Power claimed the No. 26 car was quite good on the restarts. The work the team put in ultimately paid off.
He mentioned both the Portland GP and Mid-Ohio as their most recent success stories. Power qualified P3 during both races, showing the progress made by the team.
Power is very happy with the results so far this 2026 IndyCar season. Having had four podiums is quite an achievement, and after the IndyCar Markham GP, he knows they have the potential to get more.
“Car was really good on restarts. I think we made good changes for the race. Yeah, the team’s really clicking. I would say like Mid-Ohio and Portland we were really, really starting to gel, everything is working out. Obviously again today another podium.
“It’s been a good year. Four podiums in a year in INDYCAR, it’s very tough, man. It’s very tough to get that. As bad as it has looked at times, we’ve had great potential. We’re really starting to come on now.”
