SONOMA, Calif. – Ryan Hunter-Reay said before Sunday’s season-ending Grand Prix of Sonoma that he had one focus and one focus only: winning the last race of the year.

Not only did Hunter-Reay accomplish that feat at Sonoma Raceway, he gave his team a shot in the arm heading towards the 2019 IndyCar Series season.

Hunter-Reay led all but five of the 85 laps turned around the 2.52-mile, 12-turn Northern California road course, piloting his No. 28 DHL Honda to a dominant victory and jumping up to fourth in the final point standings in the process.

It was a sorely-needed performance for the Floridian, as Hunter-Reay endured a rough summer stretch following his first win of the season at Detroit’s Belle Isle Park in June that ultimately took him out of the championship hunt.

Much of that frustration was due to bad luck, but there was no such misfortune this time around. Hunter-Reay’s pace was strong, his team’s strategy was flawless, and the driver never faltered en route to one of the strongest performances in his Indy car career.

In fact, Hunter-Reay’s sole complaint after the race was how long he felt it took to actually reach the twin checkers.

“Man, it felt like the race just didn’t want to end, but I guess that’s what happens when you spend the whole day out front,” said Hunter-Reay. “Any time I needed the pace to put it down, we leapt out to a lead (and) I was able to maintain that.

“It was nice. It seems like the day is a lot longer when you’re out there, because you just want to end the race. Can it please end now? Can it please end now?” he recalled. “All in all, a good day and certainly enjoyable. … The sun was going down there in turn two, right on the horizon. It was starting to blind me going through two. I was glad it ended for that reason, if anything else.”

As the final laps ticked away, Hunter-Reay came up on a congested group of slower traffic, but he was able to stay in line behind them and still hold off a charging Scott Dixon in the end.

“My only tense moment of the race was catching the lap traffic at the end. I had burned up the rears a little bit,” Hunter-Reay pointed out. “Maintaining the gap to Scott (Dixon) and Will (Power) was my focus. When I started catching those guys, that was at the time my tires were at their worst. With the dirty air, sliding around a little bit, it started becoming a little interesting at the end.

“Luckily, I was able to maintain the gap and finish up front. I think that was one of the most tense moments. I had a big moment in turn two during the race, where I lost the rear and had a huge correction. It was one of those that almost could have went around, but thankfully, it didn’t. From there, it was mistake-free. I just put my head down and drove.”

Hunter-Reay cited a handful of near-misses during the year that kept him from being a more serious contender for the title, but was quick to add that he’s optimistic about his chances for next season.

Now that he’s been back to victory lane twice as well and ended a long winless drought, he’s also got another threshold in mind: crossing the 20-career win mark.

“I’d love to get into the 20s, no doubt about it,” noted Hunter-Reay. “(When) I start thinking about numbers and race wins, I can’t help but think about all the ones that slipped away. Every race car driver is like that. You think of the ones that should have been.

“I guess it comes with it when you concentrate on winning races like we did this weekend. That’s what we’re going to do,” he continued. “Every year I think about six races that got away from us and why. Had they not, we would be right there fighting in the championship. Should have, could have, would have.”

At least, going into this offseason, Hunter-Reay has a huge bright spot to carry with him.

He’s hoping that next year, he can convert that momentum into a second Indy car championship.

“We’ve won one; now we want another,” said Hunter-Reay. “We’ll be ready to fight for it starting in St. Petersburg, you can count on that.”