Steve Wittich

When choosing your #INDYCAR Fantasy Challenge driven by Firestone squad for the INDYCAR Grand Prix, one team stands out. 

Team Penske, looking for its 200th Indy car win spanning 50 years, has been dominant on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. The "Captain's Men" have three wins, three poles, six of the 12 possible podiums and led 229 of a possible 331 laps.

Knowing you need to choose at least two Team Penske drivers is easy. Deciding which of the quartet you want as part of your squad is far more challenging. 

Defending Verizon IndyCar Series champion and current points leader Josef Newgarden ($32) has won five of the last 10 races dating to Toronto last July. But, finishes of 17th, 20th, 21st and 11th in the first four races on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course do not inspire a lot of confidence. 

Newgarden's teammates – Will Power, Simon Pagenaud and Helio Castroneves – are each valued at $27 this week. All three are hungry for a good result. 

Power, who has made contact with the wall in three of four races to start the 2018 season, needs a good result to kick-start his month of May, and the INDYCAR Grand Prix could be just the event to help get him back into championship contention. The Australian has two wins, two poles and has led 126 laps in the past four IMS road-course races. 

Last year, Pagenaud was leading the Verizon IndyCar Series points headed into the INDYCAR Grand Prix. This year, a slight drop in pace and some bad luck has the 2016 series champion entering the weekend a disappointing 15th in points and in need of a win. Luckily, the IMS road course is a circuit where Frenchman has excelled, winning twice (2014 with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and 2016 with Team Penske) and finishing fourth last year. 

Castroneves, fresh off a victory at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship last weekend, is making his first Verizon IndyCar Series start of the year. The 30-time Indy car winner might not have a win on the IMS road course, but with two podiums and a worst finish of sixth in four tries, the Brazilian has the best average finish of the Team Penske drivers. It's not surprising, but he’d also like nothing more than to be the pilot to get Roger Penske his 200th Indy car win. 

Newgarden’s higher fantasy salary combined with his lack of INDYCAR Grand Prix results leads me away from the leader in the chase for the Astor Cup. Pagenaud has won this event twice but has not shown the pace we’d expect yet this year. I'll be passing on the Frenchman as well. That leaves me with Power and Castroneves as the first two drivers on my squad. 

I seem to be choosing between Alexander Rossi ($30), Sebastien Bourdais ($28), Ryan Hunter-Reay ($28), Scott Dixon ($27) and James Hinchcliffe ($27) for most every race. With a little luck, Bourdais could be leading the championship. With two podiums and an average finish of 6.3 on the IMS road course, Hunter-Reay makes a lot of sense. Dixon is Dixon, and at that low of a price, it’s hard not to pick him. A combination of pace, good strategy and fantastic pit stops have Schmidt Peterson Motorsports veteran Hinchcliffe looking like a title contender. 

But it's Rossi who will be joining my squad as the third driver. The 26-year-old started the season with three straight podiums, scored his first top-10 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in 2016 and was unofficially the quickest driver in a March manufacturer test on the same circuit. 

Choosing Rossi, Power and Castroneves ate up $84 of my $100 salary cap, leaving $16 and a choice between Spencer Pigot ($15), Gabby Chaves ($14), Charlie Kimball ($14), Matheus Leist ($14), Jordan King ($13), Max Chilton ($13) and Zachary Claman De Melo ($12).

Ed Carpenter Racing rookie King has not had the results that his pace has shown so far in 2018. In three races, the 24-year-old’s average quickest race lap is 5.3, tied with Power and behind only Rossi. King also unofficially had the third-fastest lap in a March test on the IMS road course. So King it is to round out my team of four drivers for Saturday’s race.

Don’t forget to enter your picks at fantasy.indycar.com. Even if you haven’t signed up yet, you can still join and win great weekly prizes.