Team Penske's Simon Pagenaud explained how he had to be aggressive in the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey to secure the championship at all costs for the team.
Pagenaud had qualified the lowest of all the championship competitors in sixth place, but despite his starting position, he went straight on the offensive.
With team-mate Josef Newgarden leading the championship going into the double-points finale, Pagenaud's objective was to ensure either he or Newgarden won the title for Team Penske.
His aggression was clear to see early on as he made a move on title rival Alexander Rossi into Turn 4 which left the Andretti Autosport driver dipping two wheels into the dirt on the outside.
"The mission for me was simple. It was to go to the front and then be aggressive," said the Frenchman
"So I was going to be ahead of Rossi at any cost.
He came out of the pits, he was on cold tires, I was on warm tires, I went to the inside, he blocked. I was like, man, you're blocking, I'm going for it. And I think he knew that.
"I was in a position today that I had nothing to lose. I didn't really care if I was going to be third or fourth in the championship, to me it was either second or first.
"So my mission and the Team Penske mission was to be ahead of Rossi to lock it in for the team. I was going to do it at all costs."
Once he was clear of Rossi he continued to charge towards the front of the field, he pushed on a battle with the leaders.
In the latter stages, he battled hard with Chip Ganassi's Scott Dixon for the final spot on the podium, but couldn't find a way past the outgoing champion having used all of his push-to-pass earlier in the race.
"It was very, very difficult to get around him [Dixon]. I was out of Push-to-Pass, which I had to use in a pit sequence to jump people, and I spent too much money, basically, too quick.
"But overall I thought it was an amazing race."
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