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Fox Sports
28-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Power Rankings: David Malukas Jumps into Top 10 after Strong '500'
INDYCAR Alex Palou reached victory lane in Sunday's 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge and continued his iron grip on the top spot in Power Rankings. The three-time series champion, who won all three races during the Month of May when factoring in the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix presented by AmFirst on May 4 at Barber Motorsports Park and the Sonsio Grand Prix on May 10 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, remains the only mainstay in the Power Rankings. Here's who rose in the Power Rankings entering Sunday's Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear airing at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX, the FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network. ↑10. David Malukas (No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR) Originally finishing third in the race, Malukas was elevated to second place following post-race penalties assessed to Marcus Ericsson and Kyle Kirkwood for technical violations on their Andretti Global cars. Malukas' performance at the Indianapolis 500, coupled with his consistent speed during the oval practice sessions and qualifying seventh, propels him into the Power Rankings. ↓9. Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda; Last Rank: 8) Herta's performance during the Month of May was notably underwhelming, especially considering his previous success on the IMS road course. In the Sonsio Grand Prix, Herta qualified 13th but finished 25th after a challenging race. In the '500', he started 27th and managed to finish 14th. ↓8. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 7) Despite strong practice sessions leading up to the '500,' a brake issue before the field even took the green to start the race compromised Dixon's race, leading to a 20th-place finish and ending his streak of climbing through the field in previous races. Dixon gained 14 spots at Barber Motorsports Park to finish 12th and 11 more in the Sonsio Grand Prix, coming home fifth. ↓7. Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 Pennzoil Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 3) Starting from the 10th position, McLaughlin lost control of his car during the final pace lap while trying to warm his Firestone Firehawk tires, resulting in a collision that ended his race before it officially began. This incident disrupted a promising season for McLaughlin, who had previously achieved four top-six finishes in the five races leading up to the Indianapolis 500. ↓6. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 2) Power had a dismal '500', finishing 16th after starting 33rd. Entering the '500,' Power had finishes of sixth, fifth, fifth and third, respectively. While McLaughlin is two points ahead of Power in the standings, Power has crossed the finish line ahead of his Team Penske teammate in four of the last five races. ↔5. Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27 Siemens Honda; Last Rank: 5) Kirkwood remains fifth after finishing 32nd in the '500.' While there's a case to drop him further, Kirkwood is the only driver not named Alex Palou to win this season when the Andretti Global driver was victorious in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. That's a race he dominated from the pole. Also, Kirkwood has four top-eight finishes in six races this season. ↑4. Felix Rosenqvist (No. 60 SiriusXM Honda; Last Rank: 10) Rosenqvist started fifth and finished fourth in the '500,' the same spot he enters Detroit in the points standings. FRO has three top-five finishes in the last five races and five top-10 results in six races this season with Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian. ↑3. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 6) Lundgaard earned his best-career '500' finish with a seventh-place result Sunday. He has five top-10 finishes in six races this season, including three consecutive podiums at The Thermal Club, Long Beach and Barber Motorsports Park. ↑2. Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 4) O'Ward finished third in the '500' for his fourth top-six finish in the last five races this season. Next up, however, is a street course in Detroit. O'Ward finished 11th (St. Petersburg) and 13th (Detroit) on street tracks this season. ↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1) Palou has five wins in six races this season, with an average finish of 1.2. His worst result this season is second on the streets of Long Beach. Now that he's a '500' winner and points leader by 112, he's almost untouchable. recommended
Fox Sports
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Favorites and Sleepers: Indianapolis Road Course
INDYCAR Alex Palou bucked the trend last year of six consecutive different winners in the last six Sonsio Grand Prix events. Will Power struck victory in the 2018 Sonsio Grand Prix, followed by Simon Pagenaud, Scott Dixon, Rinus VeeKay, Colton Herta, and Palou winning the next five years in succession. Two-time defending winner Palou also has three wins in the opening four races this season, including last Sunday's Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix powered by AmFirst. Saturday's 85-lap race around the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course shapes up to be Palou vs. the field. Which side comes out on top in the fifth race of the season airing at 4:30 p.m. ET on FOX, the FOX Sports app and the INDYCAR Radio Network? Favorites Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) O'Ward has six consecutive Firestone Fast Six qualifying performances on the IMS road course, including an NTT P1 Award in the 2021 Gallagher Grand Prix. He finished on the podium in both races in 2023, runner-up in May and third in August. O'Ward earned the pole position this season for the The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix and finished runner-up in the race. He finished sixth at Barber, too. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) Lundgaard is off to a hot start to the season, joining Palou as the only two drivers with a top-10 finish in all four races this season. Entering the IMS road course, which is arguably his best track, Lundgaard made his debut here in August 2021 and has never started worse than eighth in six tries. He's qualified on the front row in three consecutive IMS road course races, including a 2023 Sonsio Grand Prix pole, and finished second, fourth, fourth and third, respectively, in his last four efforts. This year at The Thermal Club, Lundgaard started second and finished third, sparking a three-race streak of podium finishes, including a runner-up last Sunday at Barber. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) Dixon has 14 top-10 finishes in 16 IMS road course starts, including a sixth-place finish in May 2023, a fourth-place finish last May and a remarkable comeback from an opening-lap spin in August 2023 to land in victory lane. Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) The two-time defending race winner also won at The Thermal Club in March and last Sunday's race at Barber. Palou had six top-five finishes in as many tries on natural road courses last season, including two victories and a pair of runner-up finishes. Chip Ganassi Racing has won the last three races on the IMS road course, too. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet) The all-time wins leader (five) and NTT P1 Award record holder (six) on this road course has two wins, a runner-up finish last year and a pair of third-place finishes in his last seven tries on this circuit. He charged from 21st to finish sixth at The Thermal Club in March, finished fifth at Barber and secured four top-two finishes in six natural road course starts last season. Sleepers Alexander Rossi (No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet) A July 2022 race winner on the IMS road course with Andretti Global, Rossi was third in this race in 2023 and eighth last year for Arrow McLaren. Rossi has eight top-eight finishes in his last nine IMS road course starts. He finished ninth at The Thermal Club in March and eighth in Barber. Graham Rahal (No. 15 Fifth Third Bank Honda) This has been a strong track for Rahal. He has 14 top-10 finishes in his last 15 tries, including placing 10th and second, respectively, in 2023. He qualified and finished ninth last year. Rahal's NTT P1 Award here in August 2023 was his first in over six years. Rahal led a race-high 36 of 85 laps but finished runner-up to Dixon in the closest INDYCAR SERIES finish ever at the IMS road course, with a margin of .4779 of a second. He finished 11th at Thermal this season. Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda) Herta is a sleeper as a past winner in 2022 because that's his lone podium on the road course in the last five tries. But he has three top-three finishes in 11 IMS road course starts. Herta qualified and finished fourth this season at The Thermal Club and started third and finished at Barber Motorsports Park. On natural road courses last season, Herta finished eighth, seventh, sixth, second, fourth and fourth, respectively. Felix Rosenqvist (No. 60 SiriusXM Honda) Rosenqvist won his first career NTT P1 Award here in 2019. The Swede most recently qualified on the front row in two of his last four starts on the IMS road course, including a second-place start and fifth-place finish in this race in May 2023. Rosenqvist qualified 10th and finished there last year. This season, Rosenqvist finished fifth at The Thermal Club and 13th at Barber. Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda) Meyer Shank Racing has been quick on this circuit, producing starting spots of third, second, sixth, seventh, third and seventh for Jack Harvey when he raced for the team from 2019-21. Armstrong qualified eighth and finished fifth last season for Chip Ganassi Racing and finished seventh and 17th, respectively, at The Thermal Club and Barber this season. recommended
Fox Sports
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Power Rankings: No Surprise Here, Alex Palou Remains No. 1
INDYCAR Following a dominant victory in Sunday's Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix powered by AmFirst, Chip Ganassi Racing driver Alex Palou continues to solidify his position atop the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Power Rankings. The top 10 drivers entering Saturday's Sonsio Grand Prix airing at 4:30 p.m. ET on FOX, the FOX Sports app and the INDYCAR Radio Network, remain unchanged for a second consecutive race, but there was still plenty of movement with several drivers either rising or falling. There was also a change in the best driver, not named Alex Palou category. This list reflects the top 10 drivers entering Saturday's 85-lap race on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. ↓10. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 9) Dixon has dropped since his runner-up finish in the March 2 season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding. Still, he has finishes of 10th, eighth and 12th, including a rally Sunday at Barber Motorsports Park coming from 26th at the start to gain 14 spots, the biggest improvement in the field. 9. Alexander Rossi (No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet; Last Rank: 10) Rossi earned his best finish in four starts with Ed Carpenter Racing during Sunday's race, finishing eighth. He did so from the 15th starting position. Rossi has three top-10 finishes in four starts with ECR, with a worst finish of 15th in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. 8. Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 8) O'Ward's natural road course pace continued with a sixth-place finish at Barber Motorsports Park. In The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix, he started on pole and led 51 of 65 laps in a second-place effort. However, he has struggled some on the street circuits, finishing 11th in St. Petersburg and was 13th in Long Beach. 7. Felix Rosenqvist (No. 60 SiriusXM Honda; Last Rank: 4) Rosenqvist endured his worst weekend of the season at Barber, qualifying 14th and finishing 13th. That ended a streak of three consecutive top-10 starting spots and race finishes. 6. Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda; Last Rank: 5) Herta has two front-row starting positions in four races; he started third in Barber. Unfortunately, those strong Saturdays have not converted into strong Sundays. A slow pit stop in St. Petersburg relegated him to a 16th-place finish. In Long Beach and Barber, Herta faded in the race, finishing seventh in each. Between those races, Herta started fourth and finished fourth at The Thermal Club. 5. Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27 PreFab Honda; Last Rank: 2) Kirkwood finished outside the top 10 for the first time this season at Barber. However, he rallied from 18th to finish 11th. After a strong Long Beach race weekend where he earned NTT P1 Award honors and led 46 of 90 laps en route to the victory, his start to the 2025 season has been strong. He finished fifth in St. Petersburg and eighth at The Thermal Club. ↑4. Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 Good Ranches Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 7) McLaughlin's two-year winning streak at Barber ended, but he still started second and finished third. The Team Penske driver has three top-six finishes in four races this season with the outlier being when he qualified 25th and finished 27th in a tough day at The Thermal Club. He began 2025 with an NTT P1 Award and fourth-place finish after leading a race-high 40 of 100 laps in St. Petersburg and started and finished sixth on April 13 at Long Beach. ↑3. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 6) Power earned his third consecutive top-six finish by coming home fifth at Barber. Previously, he climbed from 13th to finish fifth at Long Beach and charged from 21st to finish sixth at The Thermal Club. He has been the top-finishing Team Penske driver in two of the last three races. 2. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 3) Most seasons, Lundgaard, who has three consecutive podium finishes and a fourth-place average through four races, would likely be the top driver in these Power Rankings. However, Palou has been that much better. Still, Lundgaard has been second best as we approach a track that he has never started worse than eighth in six tries and has finished second, fourth, fourth and third, respectively his last four tries. ↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 HRC Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1) Palou earned his third win in four races to begin the 2025 season. His worst result is second at Long Beach. Oh, and he has won the past two Sonsio Grand Prix events at IMS. The Spaniard who led 81 of 90 laps at Barber has been atop the Power Rankings for more than a year. He remains there this week as well. recommended
Miami Herald
05-05-2025
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
Alex Palou runs away with third win of year at Alabama
Spanish star Alex Palou is starting to pull away from the pack in the 2025 IndyCar Series. Palou won his third grand prix in four events to start the 2025 season when he notched an overwhelming 16.0035-second victory at the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix on Sunday at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala. 'I was a bit lonely there, but I loved it,' Palou quipped. 'It was an amazing day.' Palou led 81 of the race's 90 laps and was not seriously threatened by second-place finisher Christian Lundgaard of Denmark. The driver of the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Honda, Palou won the IndyCar Series title in 2021, 2023 and 2024 and already has a 60-point edge on the field as he takes aim at his fourth. Palou won the first two grand prix of the season (St. Petersburg, Thermal) and placed second to Kyle Kirkwood in Long Beach. Sunday marked Palou's 14th IndyCar grand prix victory, and it came in Alabama, the site of his first in 2021. 'It's amazing,' he said. 'We've always been really good here. I love this place. Like, every single lap here just feels amazing in an IndyCar. Yeah, it's going to be extra special from now on.' Lundgaard, who has only one once in the IndyCar Series, came in second after back-to-back third-place finishes. He is second to Palou in the points race. 'It's awesome. It's everything we could have hoped for and much better,' said Lundgaard, in his first season driving the No. 7 car for Arrow McLaren. Scott McLaughlin of New Zealand, Rinus VeeKay of the Netherlands and Will Power of Australia rounded out the top five. Field Level Media 2025 - All Rights Reserved
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Unstoppable Alex Palou leaves Barber with third IndyCar win of the season
Another caution-less IndyCar race makes it 339 green flag laps since the last caution at St. Pete, which didn't really pave the way for Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou (#10) third win of the season. But it certainly may have helped. The three-time IndyCar championship winner again demonstrated his own masterclass of how to own the IndyCar field at the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park, finishing well over 15-seconds ahead of the rest of the field. At some point hearing from the team over the radio: "Everything looks good. Nice and smooth. Take a drink." Palou set the pace from the moment the green flag waved for the start, running an almost unobtainable pace for the other cars in the field, winning directly from pole and making for his second-ever win at Barber, his first win claimed just four years ago with Chip Ganassi Racing. Advertisement "It was the perfect day. I would say a perfect weekend. First time we were rocking that number 10 HRC livery. I'm super proud of everybody that has been working on the 10 car and Chip Ganassi Racing and HRC as well. Yeah, honestly it's been just a perfect day. The car was amazing — super fast, and I just had a ton of fun. I was a bit lonely there, but I loved it. It was an amazing day. "I mean, we've always been really good here. I love this place, every single lap here just feels amazing in an IndyCar. So yeah, it's gonna be extra special from now on." The rest of the field, whether on primaries or alternates, was left to gamble tire strategies — would using the required primary set at the start of the race get the difficult tire out of the way and allow them to utilize alternates for better control and speed for the rest of the race? Or would using them in the final laps of the race give an advantage over tires that were hanging by a thread (not literally)? Where tire strategy worked: the handful of drivers who started the race on the black primary tires seemed to benefit the most, with the top seven cars using their primaries either right at the start, or at their second stop. But Alexander Rossi (#20), Kyle Kirkwood (#27), and Christian Rasmussen (#21) bet on the primaries for the end which didn't quite work out strategy-wise, as Rossi explained. Advertisement "It's horrible," the Ed Carpenter Racing driver and Indy 500 winner told media post-race. "Like, we knew it was going to be bad at some point, but with where we started, we were just trying to get as much track position as we could on the alternate tire and build a big enough gap to the cars we were able to put them on. At the end, it was a lot of work to keep Nolan [Siegel] and Joseph [Newgarden] behind there, but, the team called a great race, and they were great in pit lane so I think that was the most we could do on the day." Tire strategy will hopefully play a more interesting role going into Indianapolis next week for the Sonsio Grand Prix where cars will now be required to utilize two sets of alternate and two sets of primaries for the race. Qualifying for Indy's race on the roval kicking off the Month of May is Friday, May 9 at 4:30pm EDT, with race day on Sunday, again at 4:30pm EDT. To read more articles visit our website.
