Australian Will Power wins IndyCar race in Sonoma

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Australian Will Power drove to a dominant win Sunday at the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma to widen his lead in the IndyCar championship standings with four races remaining in the season.

Driving the No. 12 car prepared by Team Penske, Power started on the pole and led nearly all of the race’s 75 laps at Infineon Raceway en route to his series-high fifth win of the season in the Izod IndyCar Series.

Power was tested late in the race when a crash involving rookie Bertrand Baguette brought out a caution period, bunching up the field for a restart with six laps remaining.

But Power held off a charging Scott Dixon, who finished second, and Dixon teammate Dario Franchitti, the defending Sonoma winner and reigning IndyCar champion.

Power’s victory widened his lead in the standings to 59 points over Franchitti and 95 over Dixon, both of whom drive for the Target Chip Ganassi Racing team.

‘It’s unreal, what a perfect weekend,’ said Power, who broke his back in a practice crash at Infineon a year ago and then spent months recuperating. ‘I want to win this championship.’

However, the final four races are on oval tracks, as opposed to twisty road courses such as Infineon, and Dixon and Franchitti have much more experience on ovals.

-- Jim Peltz in Sonoma, Calif.