an engine problem after 79 of 85 laps. At the following race, the GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma at Sonoma Raceway, Hunter-Reay started 7th and was running in the top 10 late in the race when on a restart Alex Tagliani made contact with Hunter-Reay, causing Hunter-Reay to spin. Hunter-Reay would finish 18th, one lap down, while his main championship rival Will Power finished 2nd. At the following race Hunter-Reay took the championship battle to the final race of the season after he won the Grand Prix of Baltimore on the Streets of Baltimore. At the season-ending MAVTV 500 IndyCar World Championships at Auto Club Speedway Hunter-Reay and Power both had to receive 10-grid spot penalties due to both of them exceeding their five-engine change limit. Hunter-Reay was also battling Tony Kanaan for the A. J. Foyt Oval Championship. In the race, Hunter-Reay and Power were both running mid-pack early in the race. On lap 56, Power spun in turn 2 when he was slightly ahead of Hunter-Reay. Hunter-Reay would avoid Power. With Power in 25th place, Hunter-Ready needed to finish 6th or better to win the championship. Team Penske later managed to repair Power's car (a rarity for open-wheel race cars) in order for Power to complete additional laps. Power was able to complete 66 laps to move up to 24th place. Hunter-Reay now had to finish in 5th place or better. Hunter-Reay gradually moved up through the field and into the top 5 to move into the championship lead. On lap 241, Kanaan crashed in turn 4 and the race was stopped. On the restart, Hunter-Reay managed to stay in the top 5. As the leaders started lap 250 (the final lap), Hunter-Reay was in turn 4 in 5th place when 4th place Takuma Sato spun and crashed. Hunter-Reay was able to avoid Sato just as Ed Carpenter passed Dario Franchitti for the lead. Carpenter would win the race while Hunter-Reay finished 4th and won both the overall and the oval championships. Hunter-Reay became the first American to win the series championship since Sam Hornish Jr. in 2006. Hunter-Reay would score 468 points to win the overall championship and 168 points to win the oval championship. Hunter-Reay also finished 2nd in the Mario Andretti Road Course Championship with 300 points compared to Power's 379. During the weekend of the championship Fontana race, Hunter-Reay was offered to drive