Latest news with #IowaSpeedway
Fox News
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Fox News
Alex Palou Pads Championship Lead With Iowa Win: 'It's Magical'
NEWTON, Iowa — Alex Palou could skip the next two races and still have at least a 21-point lead over the next closest driver with three races remaining. Palou has no plans to skip a race. But with a 129-point lead on Pato O'Ward with five races remaining, he can race knowing it would take a total collapse for him to lose the championship. The thing is, Palou, following his win Sunday at Iowa Speedway, said they have raced that way all year, that they have raced that way in most of his championship seasons in 2021, 2023 and 2024. "Honestly, that's how we've been racing since Race 1 in St. Pete," Palou said. "We started racing not thinking about the points because it was the first race of the season. And I raced hard today, as hard as I could, risking everything because I wanted to get the win and I wanted to fight hard. "I don't think we've ever raced for points. The only places I remember was probably Nashville last year and Long Beach in 2021, where you know that if you finish in [a certain] position, you can be the champion." The contenders just know they are racing against greatness. O'Ward finished fifth on Sunday in the second race of the Iowa doubleheader, a day after he won the first race of the weekend. That would, on most weekends, cut into the championship lead. But Palou built on Saturday's fifth-place finish and rode to a victory on Sunday. With a pole and the number of laps he led, he actually earned four more points over the weekend than O'Ward. "He's got to not finish for two races, and we've got to be on the podium — or even winning — and maybe we'll catch a whiff [of him]," O'Ward said. "The longer this championship goes on, the more you see it not happening." Kyle Kirkwood had entered the weekend 113 points behind, but he left fourth in the standings, 180 points back. Scott Dixon, with a second-place finish Sunday, moved to third but sits 173 points behind. "They're firing really well and just doing a better job than everybody else," Dixon said. The current car also seems to fit into Palou's wheelhouse. "Alex, if you look at driving style, he has a very smooth driving style, actually quite similar to Dario [Franchitti]," said Dixon, a six-time series champion and Chip Ganassi Racing teammate to Palou. "Whereas with all that weight at the back in the hybrid, it's quite difficult for me. "It's not something that feels natural, and I just agitate the car a lot with my aggressive kind of style." Things certainly fell Palou's way Sunday. Josef Newgarden seemed to have the most speed but on his last green-flag pit stop, the caution came out for a wrecking Callum Ilott. That left Palou in the lead (Palou had not yet pitted) and needing to hold off David Malukas, Dixon and Marcus Armstrong. But Palou was also able to work his way through traffic. After the race on Saturday, his team opted to focus on speed and not fuel mileage. They turned Palou loose and let him race everyone straight up. "I was passing so many cars I felt like I was Lightning McQueen or something," Palou said. "It's the first time that I'm not getting overtaken every single lap on a short oval. It was very fun. "There was a lot of traffic, which was good. It was fun getting to see different people struggling in different areas. Then you would get to another car and he would be running the line that you liked, and then you would struggle for five, 10 laps." It is hard to wipe the smile off Palou's face these days. Even as he was worried Friday during a tornado warning, he tried to smile as his wife and their baby daughter took shelter in the media center with many INDYCAR team members. The team members probably figured that if Palou is somewhere, it's safe. He has, after all, been mostly the definition of invincible these days. "Being here [in the media center] seeing so many people actually makes it feel safer. And seeing like 90 percent of the paddock [being outside] taking pictures and videos, at least it makes it seem like you're not being irresponsible," Palou said about the adventure earlier in the weekend. Leave it to Palou to be responsible. He has pretty much taken care of business all year. And he's now eyeing a lofty goal of 10 wins this year, if he wins three of the final five events. "I'm going to work toward getting 10, obviously, but I'm not waking up and thinking about getting 10," Palou said. "I think it's a pretty realistic goal, and it's far — it's three wins. "It seems like it's 'only' three, but it's very far. That's the amount of wins I got in 2023, and that's one more win than I got in 2024." But he already has seven this year. "Honestly, it's crazy," Palou said. "It's been an amazing season. When I say I don't really have words, it's tough to describe. It's magical." 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.
France 24
a day ago
- Sport
- France 24
Palou wins seventh of season at IndyCar Farm to Finish 275
The pole-sitter and Indianapolis 500 champion collected his 18th career IndyCar triumph in 93 starts after 275 laps around the 0.894-mile (1.43km) Iowa Speedway oval. "It has been an unbelievable day, unbelievable weekend but more than anything an incredible year for us," Palou said. "I cannot really believe it, honestly, and winning here is super special. I struggled on short ovals for so long. Super happy. Another win. Seven wins in one year. It's insane." It was only his second career oval triumph after winning at Indy in May. The event completed a double-header weekend in Newton, Iowa, with race one going to Mexico's Pato O'Ward on Saturday. New Zealand's Dixon finished second on Sunday followed by compatriot Marcus Armstrong, who matched his best career IndyCar finish, then American David Malukas and O'Ward. It was Dixon's 14th top-five finish at Iowa without a victory. "We weren't too sure how it was going to go," Dixon said. "Everybody did a great job to basically throw the kitchen sink at it." Palou, with 515 season points, boosted his lead over O'Ward from 105 to 129 points with Dixon 173 adrift in third after 12 races as the Spaniard tries to capture a fourth crown in five campaigns. American Josef Newgarden, Saturday's runner-up and is a six-time race winner at Iowa, finished 10th after twice pitting with the lead only to have a caution flag moments later send him to the back of the lead lap. Palou grabbed the lead at the start but Newgarden overtook him and seized first place on lap 66. Newgarden went into the pits on lap 130 for fuel but moments later Sweden's Marcus Ericsson crashed in turn four, allowing rivals to make pit stops under caution as Newgarden cycled back. Palou returned to the track in the lead with Malukas second and O'Ward third at the restart with Newgarden 11th. Fast-charging Newgarden clawed his way back, passing Malukas with 40 laps remaining and overtaking Palou five laps later to reclaim the lead. Newgarden then pitted to refuel just as American Colton Herta crashed to bring out a caution flag with Palou pitting and staying in the lead and Newgarden fading to ninth. The next IndyCar race will be next Sunday at Toronto.
France 24
2 days ago
- Sport
- France 24
Mexico's O'Ward wins at Iowa in 100th career IndyCar start
O'Ward took his first victory of the season by edging six-time Iowa winner Newgarden after 275 laps over the 0.894-mile (1.43km) Iowa Speedway oval in the first of two weekend races at Newton, Iowa. "This is great. We've been waiting for this one all year," O'Ward said. "It's crazy. My 50th race was also a win here in Iowa (in 2022) and that's the only other win I have here so it's a cool story." O'Ward overtook pole-sitter Newgarden on the last pit stop exchange and held him off after a restart with 10 laps remaining. "Josef is the master at these races. He rules around here so I knew we had to be spot on," O'Ward said. Newgarden led 232 laps but settled for second, followed by Penske Racing teammates Will Power of Australia and New Zealand's Scott McLaughlin, who started 27th and last after a qualifying crash but nearly made the podium. "We lost track position there and it was game over," Newgarden said. On lap 153, Newgarden surpassed 2,000 laps led at Iowa, the first time any driver has led that many laps at any IndyCar track. O'Ward had not won since last year at the Milwaukee oval. "This is awesome and we have another chance tomorrow," O'Ward said. "It would be really cool to double up." Spain's Alex Palou, who won the pole for Sunday's race, is the campaign points leader with six wins including the Indianapolis 500 but saw his lead shrink from 114 to 105 points, 461-356 over O'Ward. Pole-sitter Newgarden grabbed the lead at the start and O'Ward charged into second after the first set of pit stops. They stayed that way until Newgarden's last pit stop with 43 laps remaining. He returned to the track just behind O'Ward and the Mexican refueled and stayed ahead of Newgarden until US racer Nolan Siegel crashed, halting the race for outer wall repairs. That set up a restart with 15 laps remaining, but Britain's Callum brushed the outer wall to force another restart with 10 laps remaining, O'Ward speeding away and staying ahead to the finish.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Josef Newgarden wins pole for Iowa race in IndyCar doubleheader in Newton
NEWTON—The King of Iowa Speedway added another trophy to his collection July 12. Josef "Ovals" Newgarden has won six of the 12 IndyCar races at Iowa Speedway since 2016. On July 12 he won the pole for the first race at Iowa Speedway. Newgarden, the 2023 and 2024 Indianapolis 500 winner, said in a news conference that due to a partial repave, Iowa is a different track than it was 24 months ago before the repave. Newgarden finished third and seventh, respectively, in last year's two IndyCar races in Iowa. Advertisement "It's a totally different race," Newgarden said. "Last year no one could really do anything, and the one time you needed to qualify well was here last year and we had a disastrous qualifying. So I don't know how to analyze what the race will be." Josef Newgarden at Iowa Speedway in 2024. Team Penske — owned by IndyCar owner Roger Penske — has dominated both IndyCar and NASCAR at Iowa Speedway. In June 2024 Penske driver Ryan Blaney won the first NASCAR Cup Series race at Iowa Speedway. IndyCar teammates Scott McLaughlin and Will Power followed that up by winning the two IndyCar races here last year. But this year Team Penske has not won a race and has been plagued by scandal for the second straight year. Newgarden won the 2023 and 2024 Indianapolis 500 races. In May Newgarden and Power's cars failed technical inspections before the second round of qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 when IndyCar officials found unapproved adjustments to the rear attenuator of both cars. Advertisement Newgarden and Power were moved to starting spots No. 32 and 33 and finished 22nd and 16th, respectively. Team Penske fired three executives in the wake of the violations. McLaughlin crashed on a pace lap of the Indy 500 and never took the green flag. Each week seems to bring new struggles for Team Penske. On June 15 Newgarden appeared to be cruising to a win near St. Louis when he was T-boned by Louis Foster's car after Foster clipped the Turn 4 wall, causing Newgarden's car to flip on the front stretch. On July 6 at Mid-Ohio, an engine fire forced Power out in 26th place. Newgarden spun on Lap 1 and finished last in 27th. "I think we've had a lot of speed all year at different times and at different places," Newgarden said. "Not every time, but there's a lot of times when we have had speed and it's just not materialized. So I don't think today is necessarily a surprise for us, but it's always good to get a little win on the board." Penske Corp. President Bud Denker with Josef Newgarden at the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 Presented by Instacart in 2023. Philip Joens covers retail, real estate and motorsports for the Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-284-8184 or pjoens@ This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Josef Newgarden wins pole for first race at Iowa Speedway
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
What is the start time for the IndyCar races at Iowa Speedway?
If you buy something through a link in this article, we may earn commission. Pricing and availability are subject to change. The IndyCar Series heads to the Iowa countryside for a doubleheader on the 7/8-mile Iowa Speedway oval: a 275-lap race on Saturday and another on Sunday. This weekend has been a Penske paradise in recent years, winning the last 4 races there and 8 of the past 9. Josef Newgarden has 6 wins at this track. However, Team Penske has a particularly rough season and is coming off a Mid-Ohio weekend that saw its 3 cars finish among the last 5 in the 27-car field. Advertisement Tire allotment: Thirteen sets for use through the doubleheader weekend. An extra set will be available for Friday's high-line session. Nathan Brown is your best IndyCar follow, and keep up with coverage throughout the season with IndyStar's motorsports newsletter. Who is leading IndyCar? 2025 IndyCar results Alex Palou, has won six races, is back to a two-races-of-max-points lead on and Kyle Kirkwood, who has three race wins. Scott Dixon snuck in a win last weekend at Mid-Ohio. Who won at Iowa Speedway in 2024? 2024 IndyCar results at Iowa Speedway Team Penske's Scott McLaughlin won the first race, and teammate Will Power won the second. Advertisement IndyCar expert picks, predictions for Iowa from IndyStar's Nathan Brown How will Team Penske fare? It won't be the sweep the team managed a year ago, but Team Penske will get at least one win — their first of this miserable year — from Scott McLaughlin. Who else has a legit chance to win these races? I think there's actually a decent list of folks I wouldn't be surprised to see win this weekend, including: McLaughlin, Will Power, Josef Newgarden, Pato O'Ward, Colton Herta, Kyle Kirkwood, Alex Palou, Scott Dixon, Santino Ferrucci, David Malukas, Felix Rosenqvist and Conor Daly. What's happening at the short track?: IndyCar Series tries to improve races since repave Advertisement 'I know how to outsmart him': Santino Ferrucci plots revenge on Conor Daly after Mid-Ohio incidents What is something no one sees coming? Palou doesn't record a podium this weekend. Last year, he had one runner-up finish and looked in line for another before he crashed on his own. Short ovals still aren't Chip Ganassi Racing's strength, and with such a deep field, I think he gets a pair of top-10s and maybe one top-5. If Kyle Kirkwood or Pato O'Ward have a strong weekend, they could make a reasonable dent in Palou's 113-point championship lead. The Inside Line: Nathan Brown and Joey Barnes break down the race at Mid-Ohio Advertisement IndyCar Series schedule at Iowa Speedway (All times ET; all IndyCar sessions are on IndyCar Live, IndyCar Radio and Sirius XM Channel 218; the following is a revised and updated schedule after severe weather canceled the majority of on-track action Friday afternoon) IndyCar schedule at Iowa Speedway on Saturday, July 12 10-10:30 a.m.: IndyCar high-line practice (two 15-minute split-field sessions), FS2 10:45-11:30 a.m.: IndyCar full-field practice, FS2 Noon-1 p.m.: Indy NXT race, 75 laps, FS1 1:30-2:30 p.m.: IndyCar qualifying, FS1 5-7:30 p.m.: IndyCar race 1, 275 laps, Fox IndyCar schedule at Iowa Speedway on Sunday, July 13 1-3:30 p.m.: IndyCar race 2, 275 laps, Fox Advertisement How IndyCar qualifying works at Iowa Speedway Drivers take 2 hot laps on the 7/8-mile oval. The first determines their starting spot for Saturday's race, the second for Sunday's race. What channel are IndyCar races at Iowa Speedway on? TV on Saturday: Coverage begins at 5 p.m. ET, Saturday, July 12, 2025, on Fox. Green flag is scheduled for 5:20 p.m. Will Buxton is the play-by-play voice, with analysts James Hinchcliffe and Townsend Bell. Kevin Lee and Jack Harvey are the pit reporters. TV on Sunday: Coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET, Sunday, July 13, 2025, on Fox. Green flag is scheduled for 1:20 p.m. Advertisement How can I stream the IndyCar races at Iowa Speedway? Fox Sports app. Watch free with a Fubo trial How can I listen to IndyCar races at Iowa Speedway? IndyCar Nation is on SiriusXM Channel 218, IndyCar Live and the IndyCar Radio Network (check affiliates for each race) Will it rain during the IndyCar races at Iowa Speedway? Saturday: Rain is possible with highs in the upper 70s. Sunday: Partly cloudy skies and highs in the low 80s. 2025 IndyCar Series schedule The 2025 IndyCar Series schedule includes 17 races, all televised on Fox. (Times are ET; %-downtown street course, &-road course, *-oval) Advertisement March 2, St. Petersburg, Florida % (Winner: Alex Palou) March 23, Thermal, California & (Winner: Alex Palou) April 13, Long Beach, California % (Winner: Kyle Kirkwood) May 4, Birmingham, Alabama & (Winner: Alex Palou) May 10, Indianapolis & (Winner: Alex Palou) May 25, Indianapolis 500 * (Winner: Alex Palou) June 1, Detroit % (Winner: Kyle Kirkwood) June 15, St. Louis * (Winner: Kyle Kirkwood) June 22, Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin & (Winner: Alex Palou) July 6, Lexington, Ohio & (Winner: Scott Dixon) July 12, Newton, Iowa *, 5 p.m. July 13, Newton, Iowa *, 1 p.m. July 20, Toronto %, noon Advertisement July 27, Monterey, California &, 3 p.m. Aug. 10, Portland &, 3 p.m. Aug. 24, Milwaukee *, 2 p.m. Aug. 31, Nashville *, 2:30 p.m. IndyCar drivers for 2025 (Team and drivers; *-Indianapolis 500 only) IndyCar Series 2025 points championship points (Through 10 of 17 races) Alex Palou, 430 points Kyle Kirkwood, 317 Pato O'Ward, 305 Scott Dixon, 282 Christian Lundgaard, 263 Felix Rosenqvist, 259 Colton Herta, 217 Marcus Armstrong, 209 Will Power, 202 Santino Ferrucci, 198 Scott McLaughlin, 197 David Malukas, 187 Rinus Veekay, 179 Alexander Rossi, 176 Kyffin Simpson, 162 Christian Rasmussen, 155 Nolan Siegel, 147 Conor Daly, 144 Josef Newgarden, 142 Marcus Ericsson, 141 Graham Rahal, 139 Louis Foster, 118 Robert Shwartzman, 113 Sting Ray Robb, 105 Devlin DeFrancesco, 99 Callum Ilott, 95 Jacob Abel, 64 Takuma Sato, 36 Helio Castroneves, 20 Ed Carpenter, 16 Jack Harvey, 12 Ryan Hunter-Reay, 10 Kyle Larson, 6 Marco Andretti, 5 This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IndyCar at Iowa practice, qualifying, race schedule
