Fountain, Colo. ? Gil de Ferran earned his first Indy Racing League victory Sunday and put a stop to a string of misfortunes.

Leading all but eight laps will do that.

In a race that was halted for 51 minutes by rain and hail, de Ferran and Penske teammate Helio Castroneves repeated their 1-2 finish in qualifying.

De Ferran, one of only four drivers to win back-to-back CART championships, moved to the IRL circuit this season along with Team Penske and showed he is ready to resume his dominance.

“The car was absolutely fantastic today,” de Ferran said. “It was perfect over the last three-quarters of the race. It’s one of the best oval cars I’ve ever driven. It was good in traffic. I could drive low or high. The guys did a great job in the pits.

“We’ve been knocking on the door since the beginning of the year, and I’m glad to get one under my belt.”

De Ferran ran out of fuel on the last lap while leading at Nazareth on April 21, and a wheel came off his car while he was among the leaders late in the Indianapolis 500.

“I wasn’t getting frustrated,” de Ferran insisted. “Things just weren’t really going our way.”

De Ferran finished 1.4 seconds ahead of Castroneves, winner of the last two Indianapolis 500s and this season’s IRL points leader, and 2.0 seconds ahead of Sam Hornish Jr.