Penske Racing takes top 3 spots at Fontana as Helio chases Dixon for IndyCar championship

Driver Scott Dixon, of New Zealand, rides on a scooter in the pit road prior to a practice round for the MAVTV 500 IndyCar World Championship at Auto Club Speedway, Friday, Oct. 18, 2013 Fontana, Calif. (AP Photo/Alex Gallardo) (The Associated Press)

Driver Scott Dixon, of New Zealand, sits inside his car during a practice round for the IndyCar auto race at Auto Club Speedway, Friday, Oct. 18, 2013 in Fontana, Calif. (AP Photo/Alex Gallardo) (The Associated Press)

FONTANA, Calif. – Penske Racing swept the first three spots in qualifying for the season finale at Auto Club Speedway, where Helio Castroneves is chasing Scott Dixon in the race for the IndyCar championship.

Will Power won the pole for Saturday night's race and Castroneves was second. AJ Allmendinger, brought in by team owner Roger Penske to aid Castroneves' title bid, qualified third.

But in snatching the pole away from his teammate, Power grabbed a point that could have gone to Castroneves. He trails Dixon by 25 points heading into the final race.

Dixon qualified seventh.

Both Castroneves and Dixon made engine changes before the weekend and will take 10-spot penalties on the starting grid. It means both will have to drive through early traffic in their championship race.