Palou balances plans in trying to win Indy 500
INDIANAPOLIS » Few had heard of Alex Palou when he arrived in IndyCar after several years of racing in Japan. It was 2020, during the pandemic and a season of no spectators, and the Spaniard drove for one of the smallest teams in the series.
But the next year he moved to Chip Ganassi Racing. And won the seasonopening race. Then he finished second in the Indianapolis 500. He capped it by winning the IndyCar championship in just his second season in the series.
Now the 26-year-old starts on the pole Sunday for the Indy 500 seeking the biggest win of his life. He is the FanDuel Sportsbook favorite, and his steely demeanor and strong Ganassi car make him a solid bet.
Palou is unflappable, rarely makes mistakes and has an unbelievable ability to focus on his job and tune out all distractions.
Consider this: It was only 10 months ago when Palou found himself entangled in a nasty contract spat with Ganassi and McLaren Racing,
and in the fallout, he was pretty much iced out by his teammates. But during qualifying this weekend, Scott Dixon stopped Palou as Palou headed out to qualifying to offer animated tips for his run.
All is well again in Palou’s world, even as he straddles both the Ganassi and McLaren lines. Mediation determined that Palou was contractually bound to Ganassi through this season, but he will move to McLaren next season.
The drama didn’t slow him last year — he won the season finale and finished fifth in the standings — and he has opened his final year with Ganassi with a bang. He won the road course race at Indianapolis
Motor Speedway to open the month and take over the IndyCar series points lead, then won the pole for the 500.
Although he doesn’t address his future with Ganassi or McLaren, he was adamant he will be in IndyCar next season, although F1 is his goal.
“Yes, yes, I will be in IndyCar next year,” Palou said. “I always said that F1 was not my target. But once I won the championship, I saw that there could be a slight opportunity. I was like, ‘I want to try and see if I can pursue that, because why not?’ And I still want to have that chance. But if it doesn’t come, I’m going to be completely happy in IndyCar.”