Information contained in this news release is current as of the date of the press announcement, but may be subject to change without prior notice.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tokyo, September 19, 2018 —Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd. today announced that driver Josef Newgarden of Team Penske, who is sponsored by the Hitachi Group, came in 8th place during the last race of the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series that took place on September 16, 2018 at Sonoma in California. This brings a close to the 2018 season, with Newgarden achieving an overall ranking of 5th place for the season.
Newgarden competed in his first full season of the IndyCar Series in 2012, and has since steadily improved his performance. He won the long-cherished Series Championship in 2017, and sought to defend his championship this season.
He promptly secured his first win of the season in the second race, which took place on April 7 at Avondale in Arizona. His second victory occurred at the season’s fourth race on April 22 at Birmingham in Alabama, where he dominated from pole to finish to achieve a stunning win. At the season’s tenth race held on June 24 at Elkhart Lake in Wisconsin, he kept his lead from start to finish and achieved his third win of the season. The season’s final race on September 16 at Sonoma in California was a highly technical course filled with a variety of corners and differing elevations. Newgarden continued to go on the attack until the last lap, finishing in the 8th position for an overall ranking of 5th place for the season.
During this season, Newgarden fought for the top position at many races, including starting in the first row for 7 out of the season’s 17 races. By the conclusion of the fifth race, he was in the top ranking for the annual championship. As the only driver who mesmerized racing fans with two wins from the pole position for this season, Newgarden has the following to say.
“It was a great season and a lot of great moments for the whole team and myself. I was honored to carry the colors of Hitachi this season on our No.1 Chevrolet for a number of races in 2018. It was really special to win in the Hitachi Chevy at Barber after that being such a long race. I want to thank everyone from Hitachi for all of the support they have shown my team and I this season.
We are headed into the off-season knowing we did our best and there are some areas to improve to be more consistent. We just have to work to be a little stronger next year and go for the championship and the Indy 500.”
Newgarden’s Team Penske participates not only in the IndyCar Series, but also in the NASCAR Series. In the 52 years since the founding of Team Penske, the team has a total of 500 victories in the various series in which it has participated, marking a great achievement in American motorsports history.
Hitachi Automotive Systems wishes to express our sincere appreciation to everyone for their warm support of Josef Newgarden, sponsored by the Hitachi Group, during the course of this year.
Newgarden speeding through the fourth race where he won from the pole position
| Date | City | Race Finish Position |
Rank Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 11 | ●St. Petersburg, Florida | 7 | 7 |
| April 7 | Avondale, Arizona | 1 | 1 |
| April 15 | Long Beach, California | 7 | 2 |
| April 22 | ●Birmingham, Alabama | 1 | 1 |
| May 12 | Indianapolis, Indiana | 11 | 1 |
| May 27 | Indianapolis, Indiana | 8 | 3 |
| June 2 | ●Detroit, Michigan | 9 | 4 |
| June 3 | ●Detroit, Michigan | 15 | 5 |
| June 9 | Fort Worth, Texas | 13 | 5 |
| June 24 | Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin | 1 | 4 |
| July 8 | ●Newton, Iowa | 4 | 2 |
| July 15 | ●Toronto (Ontario, Canada) | 9 | 2 |
| July 29 | ●Lexington, Ohio | 4 | 3 |
| August 19 | ●Long Pond, Pennsylvania | 5 | 3 |
| August 25 | Madison, Illinois | 7 | 4 |
| September 3 | Portland, Oregon | 10 | 4 |
| September 16 | Sonoma, California | 8 | 5 |
●：Hitachi primary sponsor races (races where Hitachi’s logo was prominently displayed on Newgarden’s car).
Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. The company is engaged in the development, manufacture, sales and services of automotive components, transportation related components, industrial machines and systems, and offers a wide range of automotive systems including engine management systems, electric power train systems, drive control systems and car information systems. For more information, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi-automotive.co.jp/en/
