Power’s streak in jeopardy at GP of Long Beach

Will Power. (Chris O'Meara/AP)

Will Power will be in for an uphill battle on Sunday as tries to keep his streak alive.

Dating back to last season, the Penske driver has racked off three straight victories, including a win in the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series opener in St. Petersburg.

Programming alert: Catch coverage of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach beginning at 4:00 p.m. ET / 1:00 p.m. PT on Sportsnet ONE. | Full TV schedule

Power will start in position 14 in Sunday’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach after failing to make it out of the first round of qualifying on Saturday.

This poor performance in qualifying is even more disappointing because the 33-year-old Aussie was dynamic in practice, coming away with the best single-lap time in the three trial runs.

Sitting in the first two positions for Sunday’s race will be a pair of Andretti drivers in Ryan Hunter-Reay and Canadian James Hinchcliffe.

Hunter-Reay will look to build on his second-place finish in St. Petersburg, while Hinchcliffe will be seeking to get his season off the ground after engine issues prevented him from making any sort of noise in the opener.

Lastly, fans will be able to get their first really good look at rookie sensation Jack Hawksworth. The 23-year-old will start fifth on Sunday and given his talent, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him competing nose-to-nose with the rest of the series veterans for a podium position.

Track Info

The 1.968-mile, 12-turn circuit encircles the Long Beach Convention Center — which houses a Family Fun Zone and numerous displays during the race weekend — and runs down scenic Shoreline Drive.

It offers numerous overtaking opportunities, including a hairpin turn just before the frontstretch.

Virtual Lap

Past winners
  • 2013 – Takuma Sato
  • 2012 – Will Power
  • 2011 – Mike Conway
  • 2010 – Ryan Hunter-Reay
  • 2009 – Dario Franchitti

Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Qualifying Results
Pos. Driver Team (Engine) Time Speed (mph) Round
1. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport (Honda) 01:07.8219 104.462 Firestone Fast Six
2. James Hinchcliffe Andretti Autosport (Honda) 01:07.9403 104.280 Firestone Fast Six
3. Sebastien Bourdais KVSH Racing (Chevrolet) 01:07.9580 104.253 Firestone Fast Six
4. Josef Newgarden Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (Honda) 01:08.0097 104.173 Firestone Fast Six
5. Jack Hawksworth (R) Bryan Herta Autosport (Honda) 01:08.0525 104.108 Firestone Fast Six
6. Simon Pagenaud Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (Honda) 01:08.0732 104.076 Firestone Fast Six
7. Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet) 01:07.9981 104.191 Round 2 – Top 12
8. Marco Andretti Andretti Autosport (Honda) 01:08.0179 104.161 Round 2 – Top 12
9. Helio Castroneves Team Penske (Chevrolet) 01:08.1119 104.017 Round 2 – Top 12
10. Justin Wilson Dale Coyne Racing (Honda) 01:08.1218 104.002 Round 2 – Top 12
11. Carlos Munoz (R) Andretti Autosport – HVM Racing (Honda) 01:08.1506 103.958 Round 2 – Top 12
12. Oriol Servia Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Honda) 01:08.3532 103.650 Round 2 – Top 12
13. Tony Kanaan Target Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet) 01:08.4424 103.515 Round 1 – Group 1
14. Will Power Team Penske (Chevrolet) 01:08.1159 104.011 Round 1 – Group 2
15. Takuma Sato AJ Foyt Racing (Honda) 01:08.5660 103.328 Round 1 – Group 1
16. Juan Pablo Montoya Team Penske (Chevrolet) 01:08.3649 103.632 Round 1 – Group 2
17. Mike Conway Ed Carpenter Racing (Chevrolet) 01:08.5702 103.322 Round 1 – Group 1
18. Ryan Briscoe NTT Data Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet) 01:08.3699 103.625 Round 1 – Group 2
19. Charlie Kimball Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet) 01:08.6507 103.201 Round 1 – Group 1
20. Mikail Aleshin (R) Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (Honda) 01:08.4321 103.530 Round 1 – Group 2
21. Carlos Huertas (R) Dale Coyne Racing (Honda) 01:08.7051 103.119 Round 1 – Group 1
22. Sebastian Saavedra KV AFS Racing (Chevrolet) 01:08.9619 102.735 Round 1 – Group 2
23. Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Honda) 01:09.0562 102.595 Round 1 – Group 2

NOTE: Qualification results do not reflect grid penalties.

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