INDYCAR Power Rankings: It's Alex Palou's World
It's Alex Palou's world and the rest of the drivers are just living in it, recognizing that they could have an excellent season and still not match Palou.
Palou's eight wins give him the chance to clinch the title at the next race in two weeks at Portland. He sits 121 points ahead of O'Ward and needs to leave Portland with a 108-point lead to clinch his fourth championship.
Here's how the drivers stack up after the weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca:
Dropped out: Rinus VeeKay (Last Week: 10)
On the verge: Josef Newgarden, Graham Rahal, Christian Rasmussen
10. David Malukas (Last Week: 8)
Malukas had a strong qualifying effort in making the Fast Six but was 13th in the race. That's still two top 10s in his last three starts and no finish worse than 15th since early May for the A.J. Foyt Racing driver. He's 10th in the standings.
9. Felix Rosenqvist (Last Week: 6)
Rosenqvist found himself in the barrier in the opening lap after contact from Kyffin Simpson. He wound up 24th. He started 12th, so that can happen in the middle of the pack, but the Meyer Shank driver never got to show what he had. He's sixth in the standings.
8. Will Power (Last Week: Not Ranked)
Power started fifth and finished seventh as the top-running Team Penske driver in the race. He's ninth in the standings despite two engine issues in the last month.
7. Kyle Kirkwood (Last Week: 4)
Kirkwood had a race to forget, as he was penalized with a stop-and-go for avoidable contact when he got into Rinus VeeKay. He finished 16th and was mathematically eliminated from championship contention. The Andretti driver is still fourth in the standings.
6. Marcus Armstrong (Last Week: 5)
Armstrong continues to have a workman-like season, starting 10th and finishing eighth. The Meyer Shank driver has eight top 10s in the last nine races and is eighth in the standings.
5. Colton Herta (Last Week: 9)
Herta started third and finished third for his second podium of the season. The Andretti driver now has back-to-back finishes of fourth and third and maybe has found his groove. This could be a little bit late for the 2025 season but still good to see. He is seventh in the series standings.
4. Scott Dixon (Last Week: 3)
Dixon was ninth and finished fifth for his sixth top five of the season. A teammate of Palou's at Ganassi and a six-time champion himself, Dixon (third in the standings) was mathematically eliminated from having a shot at the title.
3. Christian Lundgaard (Last Week: 7)
Lundgaard's second-place finish was his fifth podium of the season in a year when he still seeks his first win. He ran a solid race but still finished 3.8 seconds behind Palou. The Arrow McLaren driver is fifth in the standings.
2. Pato O'Ward (Last Week: 1)
O'Ward wasn't the happiest with his car but still muscled his way to a fourth-place finish. The Arrow McLaren driver is still mathematically alive in the championship hunt, but he is a distant second at 121 points behind Palou.
1. Alex Palou (Last Week: 2)
Another pole. Another win. Another race where he earned max points. The Ganassi driver looked pretty much unbeatable on the way to his eighth victory of the year and would need a huge collapse and an O'Ward surge to get beat for the title.
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
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Indianapolis Star
9 hours ago
- Indianapolis Star
How Alex Palou can clinch fourth IndyCar championship at Portland
It's official: Alex Palou's lone remaining 2025 IndyCar title challenger Pato O'Ward no longer has control of his longshot of all longshot title hopes still with three races remaining in the season. What does that mean? It means that no matter what O'Ward does, even if he were to pull off a max points weekend at Portland International Raceway next month, Palou could still end the Arrow McLaren driver's mathematical shot at what would be his first IndyCar title in his seven-year career by virtue of a runner-up finish and leading a lap. In stick-and-ball sports with teams battling for playoff spots, we'd say a team no longer has control of its own destiny. Although it's felt that way for the Chip Ganassi Racing driver's title challengers for two months or more, it's mathematically locked in now, after Palou snagged his eighth win of the season — becoming the first driver in the sport to do so since 2007 (Sebastien Bourdais) and the first outside the split (Al Unser Jr.). Palou's 2025 campaign is one of just 10 driver seasons in the various iterations of major American open-wheel racing dating back to 1946 to have reached eight wins — a feat only seven other drivers have reached (Mario Andretti did so three times with eight wins each in 1966 and 1967 and nine in 1969). He reached that milestone Sunday at Laguna Seca — a race he won from pole, the fourth time he's done so this season in five out-front starts, compared to a 1-8 record for the rest of the field — by thoroughly dominating the race at the central California track yet again, leading 84 of 95 laps and only briefly surrendering the lead to an off-sequence Nolan Siegel during a pit cycle. It was Palou's third win at the track over his last four starts, continuing his run of five starts at Laguna Seca without a finish off the podium. 'I think this was probably one of our best weekends ever,' Palou said. And even yet, after having eliminated 25 of the series' 27 full-season drivers from title contention with three rounds left and O'Ward 121 points adrift, Palou remained unwilling to put on the crown just yet. 'It's never over until it's over,' he said. 'I think I proved that at Mid-Ohio, and we've seen that in the past as well. 'It's not done until it's done. We still need to win it. We still need to keep our heads down and try to win some more races.' IndyCar TV ratings: Series maintains recent audience trend despite head-to-head Brickyard 400 battle Palou's correct; the No. 10 CGR crew led by strategist Barry Wanser, engineer Julian Robertson and crew chief Ricky Davis would've needed to leave Laguna Seca with a 162-point cushion to O'Ward in order to have this championship wrapped up with three races remaining — a feat made impossible by virtue of the combination of O'Ward's Toronto win a week ago and Palou's 12th-place finish that slashed 30 points off the championship leader's advantage down to 99. But Palou needs to be just 108 points up on O'Ward leaving Portland on Aug. 10 to lock the championship up, meaning the young Mexican driver needs to make up a minimum of 14 points to stay mathematically alive. The maximum points any driver can score in a non-Indy 500 event is 54 — including 50 for a win, a point each for winning pole and leading at least one lap and two points for leading the most laps of any driver. Those bonus points can trickle down to any other driver on the grid (with the caveat that only one driver can win pole and only one can lead the most laps in the race), so there aren't point totals a driver finishing in a certain spot would earn. But the base point awards for given finishing positions are as follows: 40 points for second; 35 for third; 32 for fourth; 30 points for fifth (and two fewer for each successive position down to 20 for 10th); 19 points for 11th (and one fewer for each successive position down to five for 25th); five points for each position below 25th. Points report: IndyCar 2025 drivers title, Rookie of the Year, Leaders Circle standings after Laguna Seca Without listing every single points possibility that would either keep O'Ward alive or allow Palou to clinch (keeping in mind O'Ward stays alive by making up at least 14 points and Palou can clinch at Portland by staying within 13 points of O'Ward), here are the nuggets of note that would allow Palou to secure Aug. 10 his fourth IndyCar title in five years: But there are additional ways in which Palou could leave Portland knowing he and the No. 10 crew need only take the green flag in the final two races of the season at the Milwaukee Mile and Nashville Superspeedway, earning a minimum of five points in both instances, to clinch the title. With Palou's 121-point cushion, he need score a minimum of 41 points over the final three races to guarantee himself the championship. O'Ward could finish with a run of three perfect 54-point weekends, and 41 additional points for Palou would still wrap things up. McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown: IndyCar must remain 'commercially viable' despite team's growth That 41-point target would amount to finishing 16th in the final three races (without any bonus points), for 42 points. None of the top 8 drivers in points have suffered a three-race stretch at any point this year where they've scored fewer than 41 points, and Palou has never had such a stretch in his five seasons with Ganassi. With that in mind, given Palou's lead and the knowledge that holding an 108-point lead after Portland would secure his fourth championship, he would only needs a 98-point cushion leaving the 15th race of the season to feel as if things are locked up given five points if he starts the final two races. Here's a sampling of how Palou could maintain a 98-point leaving Portland and needing to start the final two races for the championship: Best in class: Pato O'Ward targeting second-place IndyCar championship finish
Fox Sports
21 hours ago
- Fox Sports
Power Rankings: Christian Lundgaard, Will Power Charge Back In
INDYCAR Editor's Note: Power Rankings is a feature after every NTT INDYCAR SERIES race in which staff writer Eric Smith ranks the top-10 current drivers in the series based on objective recent and season-long performance statistics and the subjective 'eye test' of what he sees during race weekends. Alex Palou captured his series-leading eighth victory of the season July 27 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, defeating Christian Lundgaard by 3.7965 seconds. Lundgaard's runner-up finish burnished a strong season for Arrow McLaren. The team boasts 11 podium finishes this season between Lundgaard and fourth-place finisher Pato O'Ward, a team record. The previous high was 10 between O'Ward, Felix Rosenqvist and Alexander Rossi in 2023. After 14 races, O'Ward trails Palou by 121 points heading into the next race, the Grand Prix of Portland, on Sunday, Aug. 10 at Portland International Raceway (3 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). Here are the updated Power Rankings following the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey as the series heads into an off weekend: ↑10. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR) Power returns to the Power Rankings for the first time since mid-June, following the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway. He earned his second consecutive Firestone Fast Six appearance and finished seventh at Laguna Seca, his second top-10 in the last four races. ↓9. David Malukas (No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet; Last Rank: 8) Though Malukas finished 13th at Laguna Seca, he holds on to a spot in the rankings with two top-10 finishes in his last three starts. He enters Portland 10th in the points standings. ↑8. Christian Rasmussen (No. 21 Liquid Science Chevrolet: Last Rank: NR) Rasmussen earned his third top-10 finish in the last four races by finishing ninth at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. This marks the highest he has climbed in the Power Rankings. ↓7. Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27 JM Bullion Honda; Last Rank: 4) Kirkwood's slide continues with his third finish of 16th or worse in the last four races. Despite five top-eight finishes in the last eight starts, including two wins, his recent inconsistency is concerning. ↓6. Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda; Last Rank: 5) Armstrong finished eighth Sunday, his seventh top-10 result in the past eight races. The lone outlier was a 14th-place finish in Toronto, where a pit lane penalty disrupted a promising run that began with a third-place start. ↑5. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR) Lundgaard storms back into the rankings after his runner-up finish at Laguna Seca, his second podium in five races and fifth of the season. In comparison, he had just three podiums in 52 starts with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. The No. 7 Arrow McLaren car had four podiums in 81 starts before his arrival. ↑4. Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda; Last Rank: 7) Herta moves into the top five for the first time since the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in April. His third-place finish at Laguna Seca marked his third top-four result in the last five races. He had only two in the nine races before that. ↔3. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 3) Dixon surged from 19th to fifth at Laguna Seca, earning his seventh consecutive top-10 finish. The streak includes a win at Mid-Ohio and a runner-up at Iowa Speedway. ↔2. Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 2) O'Ward qualified second and finished fourth at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for his seventh top-five finish in the last eight races, six consecutively. ↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1) Palou rebounded from a 13th-place finish in the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto to lead 84 of 95 laps after claiming the NTT P1 Award in qualifying to take his third victory at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Palou has two wins in the last three races. recommended Item 1 of 2
Fox News
a day ago
- Fox News
INDYCAR Power Rankings: It's Alex Palou's World
The run for Pato O'Ward atop these INDYCAR rankings didn't last all that long. It's Alex Palou's world and the rest of the drivers are just living in it, recognizing that they could have an excellent season and still not match Palou. Palou's eight wins give him the chance to clinch the title at the next race in two weeks at Portland. He sits 121 points ahead of O'Ward and needs to leave Portland with a 108-point lead to clinch his fourth championship. Here's how the drivers stack up after the weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca: Dropped out: Rinus VeeKay (Last Week: 10) On the verge: Josef Newgarden, Graham Rahal, Christian Rasmussen 10. David Malukas (Last Week: 8) Malukas had a strong qualifying effort in making the Fast Six but was 13th in the race. That's still two top 10s in his last three starts and no finish worse than 15th since early May for the A.J. Foyt Racing driver. He's 10th in the standings. 9. Felix Rosenqvist (Last Week: 6) Rosenqvist found himself in the barrier in the opening lap after contact from Kyffin Simpson. He wound up 24th. He started 12th, so that can happen in the middle of the pack, but the Meyer Shank driver never got to show what he had. He's sixth in the standings. 8. Will Power (Last Week: Not Ranked) Power started fifth and finished seventh as the top-running Team Penske driver in the race. He's ninth in the standings despite two engine issues in the last month. 7. Kyle Kirkwood (Last Week: 4) Kirkwood had a race to forget, as he was penalized with a stop-and-go for avoidable contact when he got into Rinus VeeKay. He finished 16th and was mathematically eliminated from championship contention. The Andretti driver is still fourth in the standings. 6. Marcus Armstrong (Last Week: 5) Armstrong continues to have a workman-like season, starting 10th and finishing eighth. The Meyer Shank driver has eight top 10s in the last nine races and is eighth in the standings. 5. Colton Herta (Last Week: 9) Herta started third and finished third for his second podium of the season. The Andretti driver now has back-to-back finishes of fourth and third and maybe has found his groove. This could be a little bit late for the 2025 season but still good to see. He is seventh in the series standings. 4. Scott Dixon (Last Week: 3) Dixon was ninth and finished fifth for his sixth top five of the season. A teammate of Palou's at Ganassi and a six-time champion himself, Dixon (third in the standings) was mathematically eliminated from having a shot at the title. 3. Christian Lundgaard (Last Week: 7) Lundgaard's second-place finish was his fifth podium of the season in a year when he still seeks his first win. He ran a solid race but still finished 3.8 seconds behind Palou. The Arrow McLaren driver is fifth in the standings. 2. Pato O'Ward (Last Week: 1) O'Ward wasn't the happiest with his car but still muscled his way to a fourth-place finish. The Arrow McLaren driver is still mathematically alive in the championship hunt, but he is a distant second at 121 points behind Palou. 1. Alex Palou (Last Week: 2) Another pole. Another win. Another race where he earned max points. The Ganassi driver looked pretty much unbeatable on the way to his eighth victory of the year and would need a huge collapse and an O'Ward surge to get beat for the title. Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
