Race distance: 248 laps / 310 miles

2017 race winner: Josef Newgarden (No. 2 PPG Automotive Refinish Team Penske Chevrolet)

2017 pole winner: Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet), 47.4579 seconds, 189.642 mph (two laps)

One-lap qualifying record: Will Power, 23.7206 seconds, 189.709 mph, Aug. 25, 2017

Two-lap qualifying record: Will Power, 47.4579 seconds, 189.642 mph, Aug. 25, 2017

At-track schedule (all times local):

Saturday, Aug. 25

6:56 p.m. – Driver introductions

7:35 p.m. – Command to start engines

7:40 p.m. – Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta & Valvoline (248 laps/310 miles),

Championship facts:

 Scott Dixon leads the Verizon IndyCar Series championship with three races to go for the second time in his career. He also led the championship with three to go when he won the title in 2008.

Dixon has held the championship lead since his win at Texas Motor Speedway in June.

 Scott Dixon leads Alexander Rossi by 29 points with defending series champion Josef Newgarden (-66) in third and Indianapolis 500 winner Will Power (-81) in fourth.

 There are 10 drivers still mathematically eligible for the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series

Championship: Scott Dixon, Alexander Rossi, Josef Newgarden, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Will Power, Robert Wickens, Simon Pagenaud, Graham Rahal, James Hinchcliffe and Sebastien Bourdais. Any driver who trails the points leader by 159 points or more following the race will be eliminated from contention.

 Since the first Indy car race at Gateway Motorsports Park in 1997, only Alex Zanardi (1998) and Josef Newgarden (2017) have won the Gateway race and the championship in the same season.Key championship point statistic: Since 2010, the driver who has led the championship with three races to go has won the championship four times – Dario Franchitti in 2011, Will Power in 2014, Simon Pagenaud in 2016 and Josef Newgarden in 2017.

Point differential: The 29 points which separate Scott Dixon and Alexander Rossi is the fourth-largest margin with three races to go since 2010. Will Power led Helio Castroneves by four points in 2014 and Ryan Hunter-Reay by five points in 2012. The average deficit with three races to go since 2010 is 22.6  points.

Championship-eligible drivers’ results at Gateway: Scott Dixon is the only championship-eligible driver to have raced Indy cars at Gateway Motorsports Park more than once. Alexander Rossi, Josef Newgarden, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Will Power, Simon Pagenaud, Graham Rahal, James Hinchcliffe and Sebastien Bourdais all raced there for the first time last year…Newgarden won at the track in 2017 followed by Dixon and Pagenaud.

For more information on Gateway Motorsports Park, please call (618) 215-8888 or visit www.gatewaymsp.com. Follow GMP on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram.