Seventy-one and holding.

That’s Will Power’s situation when it comes to extending his NTT INDYCAR SERIES career pole record, a mark that might stand forever. But there was another side to Power’s Saturday in preparation for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear.

Power (photo, top) took another step toward reaching the top-step level that has defined his career. No, the two-time series champion couldn’t match the qualifying lap of three-time defending series champion Alex Palou, but he was close in his best qualifying session of the season.

Power will start second in Sunday’s 100-lap race (12:30 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX One, INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls).

“Definitely (pleased),” he said after watching Palou eclipse his lap of 1 minute. 2.1249 seconds. “You know how bad it can go at times. Pretty happy with that (lap).”

Then Power considered how close he was to his 72nd career pole, significant because he last won a pole on a track other than an oval at the end of the 2022 season.

“Damn,” he said. “Just that one guy all the time. I don’t know, I don’t know. (We) keep doing things that suit him, like one-lap qualifying.”

Will Power Alex Palou

This race featured the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ revised Firestone Fast Six round, where the driver with the fastest lap in the second round – in this case it was Scott McLaughlin – chooses when he makes his final qualifying attempt in a single-car run. McLaughlin opted to go first, when his Firestone tires were the warmest. Power (photo, above, left) went second, Palou (photo, above, right) fourth.

Power was pleased not only to have his best starting position as an Andretti Global driver, but because it was a shining moment in a season that’s started as a struggle.

Power is uncharacteristically 17th in the driver point standings, and it’s no wonder. His average starting position through seven races is 16.6. His average finishing position is only marginally better at 16.3. He qualified in the top 10 only twice entering this race and finished in the top 10 once. His best race was the Java House Grand Prix of Arlington, which also is a street race, when he finished third after starting fourth. But that was two months ago.

Power finished 29th in last week’s Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.

“Never feel comfortable,” he said of making the transition to Andretti Global after 17 seasons with Team Penske. “Even in the Indy 500, I’m thinking this is going to be a good race, and suddenly it wasn’t. Yeah, same thing with the Indy road course (the Sonsio Grand Prix, where he started 25th and finished 13th). I think we had a shot to win and didn’t.”

Power said he has been in this sport long enough to know his focus should be “to (do) your job as best you can, then after (the race) is done decide if it was good or bad.”

He paused to laugh. “Don’t (evaluate) during it.”

This qualifying effort earned Power his first front-row starting position since winning the pole for last year’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at World Wide Technology Raceway. But he was first out of the race when he crashed on Lap 48.

Power finished fourth in last year’s race on Detroit’s nine-turn, 1.645-mile street circuit, and the Motor City has been good to him. With three wins at Belle Isle Park, Power is second to Scott Dixon (four wins) in series victories in this town. Power won his races in 2014, 2016 and 2022. Dixon also won three races on Belle Isle, and he won the 2024 race on this circuit.

Power said the bumps on this course give drivers with experience an edge, and he hopes to use it to his advantage Sunday to score his 46th series victory and first since last year’s BITNILE.com Grand Prix of Portland.

“In some respects, it comes a bit down more to driving,” he said. “The car is never perfect; it’s how you attack the corner. The car does matter, but on smooth circuits the balance is really, really critical. There’s not as much you can do as a driver.

“The ovals are even another step of you can’t do much (as a driver). You have to get a good balance. But here, yes, I would say this is a track where driving and a lot of technique comes into play.”

Power said his qualifying lap only lacked a little from being the best it could be. In Round 2, he was a tad quicker at 1:01.3554, a time that was better than Palou’s pole-winning 1:01.9017.

“I knew I left a little on the table,” Power said of his Fast Six effort before turning to Palou in the press conference. “You definitely scooped that up.”

That is why Power will have to wait for his 72nd career pole.