Scott McLaughlin finished a career-best third in the NTT IndyCar Series standings this season.
The Team Penske driver began the season with three races of sixth-place finishes or worse, though quickly put his No. 3 Chevrolet in victory lane at Alabama’s Barber Motorsports Park in April after a hard-fought battle with Romain Grosjean.
A dismal month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with finishes of 16th (Indy Road Course) and 14th (Indianapolis 500) set up the 30-year-old for a stretch finished of ninth-place or better over the final 11 races.
McLaughlin’s hot streak earned the Kiwi an additional three podium finishes including the season-finale at California’s WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca where he finished runner-up.
His second-place finish at Laguna Seca vaulted the No. 3 team to third in the standings above Pato O’Ward and McLaughlin’s Penske teammate Josef Newgarden.
Next season will be McLaughlin’s fourth full-time campaign in the IndyCar Series.