Will Power: “You gotta be a body builder to drive these things”

Will Power

Will Power returned to the Verizon IndyCar Series and claimed a podium finish at the Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday evening.

But the Australian Team Penske driver admitted it was hard going and extremely physical around the one-mile oval, but was happy to see the chequered flag in third place.

“Man, the Gs were unbelievable," said Power. “We were wide open at the end there when it cooled down. So much load! You gotta be a body builder to drive these things.

“I did actually I was watching the laps countdown and with one hundred laps to go, I was like, I got this and I can finish this race. Very good!"

After pulling out of the opening race of the season at St Petersburg due to illness, Power admitted nerves were playing a part during his pre-race build-up, but praised his team for getting him through the 250-lap race, and apologised to them for the pit lane error that saw him drop behind team-mate Simon Pagenaud into P3.

“I was really nervous going into the race. You know, can I do this?" said Power. “But the guys in the pits were awesome! The Verizon crew was just mega.

“I made a mistake there at the end. But the pit box is very slippery but still I was really happy with third place."