Photo credit: www.motorsport.com
The Thermal Club once again showcased its connection to Alex Palou, similar to the unfolding narrative of the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series championship. The inaugural points race on the southern California circuit concluded with Palou leading the pack, mirroring his success from last year’s $1 Million Challenge. However, this time around, the two-time reigning champion faced a more challenging road to victory.
Starting from third position, Palou struggled with his red tires during the Fast 6 qualifying session, which had seen him dominate earlier rounds. For much of Sunday’s Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix, he found himself behind Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward and Christian Lundgaard. It wasn’t until the final stint that Palou began his drive to the front.
Utilizing the softer red tire, Palou took time to navigate past Lundgaard, engaging in an impressive multi-turn battle before overtaking him for second place on lap 59 of 65. Following this, Palou set his sights on O’Ward, drastically reducing a gap that had initially approached ten seconds within a mere five laps. By the end of the backstretch, Palou executed a daring maneuver for the lead with ten laps remaining, securing a position he would hold onto until the checkered flag waved. He managed his tires effectively and finished with a convincing margin of 10.1854 seconds, maintaining an advantage over O’Ward, even when challenged by lapped traffic.
This victory marks Palou’s 13th win in IndyCar, highlighting his consistent performance with multi-win seasons for three years running. This year, he has maintained an undefeated streak, having also clinched victory in the season opener in St. Petersburg.
Palou expressed his satisfaction with the team’s performance: “What an amazing weekend. Honestly, we’ve had a really fast car since practice. They executed very well. Everybody at Chip Ganassi Racing, the 10 car, executed perfectly.”
O’Ward led the race for an impressive 51 laps after achieving pole position, his first since 2022, but ultimately settled for second place due to Palou’s electrifying late-race charge. Lundgaard rounded out the podium for Arrow McLaren, while Colton Herta and Felix Rosenqvist secured fourth and fifth places, respectively. Will Power made significant gains, moving from 21st to finish sixth, with Marcus Armstrong, Kyle Kirkwood, Alexander Rossi, and Scott Dixon completing the top ten.
Clear Sailing with Minimal Incidents
The race unfolded smoothly with virtually no interruptions, leaving little room for error among the competitors. The top four qualifiers maintained their positions, with eight out of the top ten finishers also starting within the top ten. Aside from Scott McLaughlin, who withdrew after multiple laps due to an overheated hybrid unit, the race saw very few incidents. McLaughlin, meanwhile, was involved in an early collision, exchanging spins with Devlin DeFrancesco, but both drivers were able to continue. Callum Ilott had to pit for a new nose after inadvertently hitting his Prema Racing teammate Robert Shwartzman. Marcus Ericsson experienced a solo spin following his first pit stop yet managed to keep his race on track.
IndyCar is set to continue its season with the highly anticipated Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 13.
Visual Highlights from Thermal Club – Race
Source
www.motorsport.com