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Josef Newgarden is the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series champion

By Brittany Frederick

SONOMA, CA - SEPTEMBER 16: Josef Newgarden, driver of the #2 hum by Verizon Chevrolet, celebrates after setting the pole position in qualifying for the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma at Sonoma Raceway on September 16, 2017 in Sonoma, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images)
SONOMA, CA - SEPTEMBER 16: Josef Newgarden, driver of the #2 hum by Verizon Chevrolet, celebrates after setting the pole position in qualifying for the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma at Sonoma Raceway on September 16, 2017 in Sonoma, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images) /
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Josef Newgarden is the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series champion, becoming the second consecutive winner for Team Penske and first American champion since 2012.

Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden is the new Verizon IndyCar Series champion.

Newgarden was the most talked-about driver in the IndyCar offseason when he signed a deal to drive for the super team at Penske, and the consistent favorite for the championship as he earned multiple race wins and two pole positions.

Even though his lead was down to just four points coming into Sunday’s GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma, Newgarden remained the hot hand for the 2017 IndyCar title by capturing the pole for the season finale and then running up front throughout the race.

Now he’s the first American champion since Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay in 2012, and he’s climbed to the top in his very first year with a new organization.

“It’s fun to be a part of Team Penske,” Newgarden said when we spoke to him shortly after the start of the season. “It’s a great opportunity to kind of relearn and work hard again to figure out strengths and weaknesses. That’s important to go through as a young athlete. I think you need to go through things like that, that make you think about it again.”

He clearly put in the work in capturing the IndyCar championship that he has contended for in each of the last two seasons. Newgarden’s win also extended Penske’s near-complete dominance over the IndyCar Series.

The championship is Team Penske’s second consecutive title, and their third in the last four years. Only the 2015 title, earned by Scott Dixon, belongs to a non-Penske driver and that was awarded on a tiebreaker with then-Penske driver Juan Pablo Montoya.

Read our interview with Josef Newgarden about his championship journey here.

Next: Complete GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma results

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