Portland, OR – Alex Palou seems unstoppable, taking the win at the 1.964-mile, 12-turn Portland International Raceway for his sixth NTT INDYCAR victory in 13 races this season. Polesitter Felix Rosenqvist, Will Power, Rinus VeeKay and Kyle Kirkwood completed the top-five.
“I had an absolute rocket ship today,” said Palou, winning his third Portland race by leading 60 of 110 laps. “The car was so nice to drive every single lap. And, I am lucky enough to drive it. It’s incredible to get our sixth win of the season. This team makes me look good. Chip (Ganassi, team owner) has put the best people, the best team around me. Nobody expected those reds, the softer tires, to be that fast and to be that good, especially for so many laps. I was a little bit worried that someone may save them for the end and we might have a battle.”
Marcus Ericsson, who started fourth on the softer red tire, managed to pass Palou, on the harder blacks, for second-place without any resistance on Lap 4. The Spaniard was conservative, knowing that three pit stops were expected, allowing opportunity to gain back positions on a track where passing is very difficult.
“This was one of those weekends where we wanted to do good,” continued Palou, about his quest for a fifth title. “We want to do good every single weekend. But we don’t know what’s going to happen at Markham, a new track for everyone. We don’t know what’s going to happen at DC. There are still a lot of points to play out. It was important to maximize. A win gives you a big amount of points (50 points for the win, 40 points for second, etc.). The same way that, in the last two weekends, we got a huge gap, someone else can do the exact same thing. So, we need to keep on pushing. I don’t take our success for granted. We’re so lucky to be in this position and to have the full package. You don’t know if it’s going to end next weekend, next year, or in 2028. At some point it’s going to end. This cannot go forever.”
Rosenqvist took the lead, ahead of Palou, into the tricky first turn, the Festival Curve, and fortunately, all 25 drivers made it through. There was only one caution, lasting two laps when Graham Rahal slid off the racing surface at Turn 11, a high-speed and high-commitment portion of the track, on Lap 7. With so many laps under green flag conditions, drivers had to run very fast laps as though they were qualifying.
“Our car was very powerful,” said Rosenqvist, who led a total of 33 laps and finished 4.1167 seconds behind the winner. “Alex just drove better, to be honest. Not a lot quicker, but he was a little bit quicker, especially on the blacks. That first stint he outsmarted us by running one lap longer. I didn’t know he did that, so maybe we need to work on communication. I don’t think I could have kept up with that pace he did anyway. I got twisted up leaving my box because I was so close to the Schumacher crew (in front). Between the overcut and that, we lost the position.
“We were pretty competitive,” continued Rosenqvist, this year’s Indy 500 winner. “That was all I had with a little oversteer because I was fighting the rears a lot. Alex just did a better job in traffic than me. My first year we had poles at Meyer Shank. Then we had some podiums. And this year, we have race pace. It’s hard to pass. Sometimes you’re getting three seconds because of a lap car and the next time you lose three seconds.”
Power missed the radio call to pit for the final time on Lap 86, which could’ve given him the opportunity to fight Rosenqvist for second-place.
“A great day for us,” stated Power, earning his third podium of the season. “I didn’t quite have the pace of the top two guys. I was probably about a tenth off. It was seriously a fast pace all day. Qualifying laps. Such a quality field now. That’s why it stays green because the drivers are so good.
“I heard something but I just didn’t hear it clear enough,” revealed Power, about missing his radio call to pit. “Normally the strategists will repeat it multiple times. That probably lost me three seconds behind the back marker. It cost us quite a bit of time. I absolutely got held up massively. I was racing a back marker into Turn 10 and was beside him. He actually raced me and that hurt. I’m glad to finish third.
“We’ve closed the gap at Andretti Global,” added Power. “It takes time. We’ve made significant gains in many areas: pit stops, set-ups, road courses, and ovals. Next year we should be in a pretty good position.”
It was also a strong result for VeeKay, driving for Juncos Hollinger Racing, who finished fourth and is 10th in the title fight.
“We kept calm and had a good strategy,” explained VeeKay, who is considered one of the potential free agents to replace Scott Dixon at Chip Ganassi Racing. “I just tried to stay out of trouble. I finished ahead of Ericsson and Kirkwood (who are both Andretti Global drivers). Racing is fun when you are competitive. I’m really enjoying it. INDYCAR is such a competitive sport, especially around a place like this, when one or two tenths can make the difference in starting 20th or being in the Fast Six. My team did an incredible job by giving me the car I needed to be quick and be comfortable out there, great pit stops, and the strategy to stay with and even pass other guys. It’s great to finish fourth and have a Chevy up in the field.”
Previously, the preferred tire at Portland was the softer, alternate (red) tire. Firestone brought the same tire (in construction and compounds) used at Barber Motorsports Park in March, designed to provide more grip. The reds lasted about 20 laps but the pit window was 30 laps on fuel. The top six finishers preferred running two sets of blacks, the harder tires compared to the reds. Some drivers ran two sets of each for the three-stop race.
Up next is the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham, August 14 -16, a new temporary 12-turn, 3.52-kilometer (2.19-mile) street circuit that no one has competed on before. The lone Canadian stop on the schedule moves from the previous location on Toronto’s waterfront to one of the city’s northern suburbs.
“It’s a challenge for the drivers, but also for the teams,” explained Palou. “We have no references. Obviously, we have, nowadays, great tools with the simulator. At Honda, they do an incredible job for us. But it’s never the same as knowing the track, knowing every bump, how much you can push the car, or how to set up the car. It’s a big challenge for everyone in the paddock.”
Who can catch Palou, a driver with a 22.5% win rate and 21 career victories? With five races remaining, there are still 270 points possible. Palou leads with 510 points, followed by Kyle Kirkwood, 400, David Malukas, 392, Christian Lundgaard, 375, and Pato O‘Ward, with 355 points.
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