IndyCar
The merger of Champ Car and the IRL left his future uncertain. Power's Walker Racing team announced they would not be making the switch from Champ Car to IRL due to lack of sponsorship. However, Power later signed with KV Racing Technology, to drive the No. 8 Aussie Vineyards—Team Australia car in 2008, continuing to work with Team Australia boss Craig Gore.
Power won the final Champ Car race at Long Beach in 2008, also giving Power his first IndyCar Series win. He scored two top-five finishes in IndyCar Series races, enough for 12th overall, outpointed by team-mate Oriol Servia. In the non-points event in Surfers' Paradise, Australia, Power won the pole position, but crashed out while leading the race.
Penske Racing announced on 13 January 2009 that for the 2009 IndyCar Series season, Power would replace Helio Castroneves at the helm of the No. 3 Team Penske Honda-Dallara while Castroneves attended to his federal tax evasion charges. Power drove the No. 3 Team Penske Honda-Dallara to a sixth-place finish in the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, the first race of the year. Following the GP St. Pete, Castroneves was acquitted of all tax evasion charges and returned to the team for the following race at the Long Beach Grand Prix. Roger Penske, two steps ahead as usual, came prepared for this scenario however, and had spare cars on hand for both St. Petersburg and Long Beach, employing the option beginning at Long Beach and continuing through 5 more races that season. Power's new car, the No. 12 Penske Racing Verizon Wireless Honda/Dallara was officially entered for the Long Beach Grand Prix late on Friday evening and all the setup data garnered from his two sessions in the No. 3 Dallara was successfully transferred over. Power stormed to a dominant pole position with the last-minute effort and ultimately finished 2nd to Dario Franchitti after leading 16 laps. Power was also entered in the same third car for the Indianapolis 500, in which he finished in fifth place after a pit crew gaffe on the final stop (while Power was running 2nd) cost him a shot at Castroneves for the victory. To reward Power for his efforts, he was retained by the team to drive in five more races in Toronto, Edmonton, Kentucky, Sonoma and Homestead. His team being crewed by Penske's Rolex Sports Car Series team, as Power's races were specifically scheduled on their RSCS off-weekends. Power's dreams and efforts came to fruition when he captured his first IndyCar race win driving the No. 12 Penske Trucking Dallara/Honda for Roger Penske in dominant fashion at the Rexall Edmonton Indy.
Power's season was brought to an abrupt close during practice for the 2009 Motorola Indy 300 in Sonoma however, as Nelson Philippe spun exiting Turn 3 and stalled in the middle of the racing groove. As turn 3 is a completely blind corner, taken at high speed while cresting a hill, oncoming drivers had no indication there was anything over the hill or any time to react once they got there. EJ Viso could barely avoid him, making light contact, but Power, following just behind Viso, had nowhere to go and crashed heavily into the stationary Frenchman. Both drivers were airlifted from the racetrack in short order. Power had two fractured vertebrae while Nelson Phillipe suffered a fractured ankle. Both drivers were concussed in the incident and were hospitalised. Both drivers' injuries would cause them to miss the rest of 2009 season.
On 19 Nov. 2009, Team Penske announced that Will Power would join the team full time for the 2010 season with sponsorship from Verizon Wireless. Power opened the season in dominant fashion, winning the first two races of the 2010 season at Brazil and St. Petersburg, making him the first IndyCar driver since Sam Hornish Jr. in 2001 to win the first two events of the year. He went on to win from the pole at Watkins Glen, giving Roger Penske his first Izod IndyCar Series win at the historic track. Over the course of the season, Power scored five wins (all on road courses) and a record eight pole positions. Power's efforts were rewarded with triumph in the Mario Andretti Road Course Championship, winning the inaugural Mario Andretti Trophy as the road course champion for the 2010 IndyCar Series season.
During the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series season he won 6 races; Barber Motorsports Park (Birmingham, AL), Sao Paulo (Brazil), the second doubleheader event at Texas Motor Speedway (Fort Worth, TX), Edmonton City Center Airport (Alberta, Canada), Infineon Raceway (Sonoma, CA), and the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix (Baltimore, MD). However, his season was far from easy. At Toronto he and championship leader Dario Franchitti touched in Turn 3 while battling for 5th, resulting in a spin for Power, which put him midpack where he was hit by former team mate Alex Tagliani. Power was irate with both drivers, particularly Franchitti, who with some level of controversy was not penalised for the contact and won the race. With a few laps to go during the IndyCar Series' 225-mile return to New Hampshire Motor Speedway, amid protests from drivers and teams to not restart because of wet track conditions, the race was restarted and Power caught in the ensuing melee started by a spinning Danica Patrick. An irate Power exited his vehicle and spoke with several officials, even consulting with his race strategist Tim Cindric before displaying the middle finger to IndyCar director of competition Brian Barnhart. Power's immortal obscene gesture was captured on live television and met with immense support from IZOD Indycar Series fans as well as support from members of several other team organisations in the paddock. Power's "Double Angry Birds" gesture however ended up landing him with a $30,000 fine, payable through public services to the league, although team owner Roger Penske said he would gladly pay the fine off. Power won the pole at the Kentucky Speedway and led the first 48 laps until he had contact with rookie Ana Beatriz as he exited his pit. The resulting damage relegated him to 19th place, while title rival Franchitti led the most laps, finished 2nd, and took an 18 point advantage. Power's season ended in a violent, high-speed 15 car crash at the final race of the season in Las Vegas that claimed the life of British driver Dan Wheldon. Wheldon, Power and 3 other drivers were taken to the hospital. He lost any chance of having the points championship after the wreck, due in part to his role in the accident (his car was damaged beyond repair) and also to the fact that the race was abandoned following the wreck. Power was later diagnosed with a compression fracture in his thoracic vertebrae and was expected to have surgery to correct the problem.
For the 2012 IndyCar Series season, Will Power returned to Team Penske to once again pilot the No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dallara/Chevrolet with teammates Castroneves and Briscoe. The road and street course heavy 2012 schedule played into Power’s strength, making him one of the pre-season favorites to win the championship. After opening the season with a seventh place finish at Saint Petersburg, Power scored three consecutive victories at Barber Motorsports Park, the streets of Long Beach, and the streets of Sao Paulo to vault into the championship lead. Power held onto the points lead until the tenth of fifteen races, when rival driver Ryan Hunter-Reay scored his third of three consecutive wins to take over the lead. Power regained the lead and built a 36-point advantage with two races remaining after strong second place finishes at Mid-Ohio and Sonoma, coupled with two misfortunate finishes by Hunter-Reay. The season’s penultimate race on the streets of Baltimore saw Power and Hunter-Reay choosing different strategies when rain began falling. Electing to remain on slick tires despite the wet conditions, Hunter-Reay gained the track position necessary to earn a much-needed win, while Power finished sixth. With the lead cut to 17 points entering the MAVTV 500 season finale on the 2-mile Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, Power was well positioned to earn his first championship. Those hopes took a huge hit when Power’s car spun and hit the wall on lap 55 of the 250-lap race. Despite heavy damage, Team Penske got Power’s car back on track long enough to gain an additional position, forcing Hunter-Reay to finish fifth or better to win the championship. Hunter-Reay ran outside of championship position for most of the race but finally moved into the top five with 21 laps remaining, eventually finish fourth. Hunter-Reay’s championship resulted in Will Power finishing second in the standings for the third consecutive season. Despite losing the overall championship, Power won for the third time the Mario Andretti Trophy as the 2012 road course champion.
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