ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Don’t engrave Alex Palou’s identify on the 2025 INDYCAR championship trophy simply but.
Sure, he led 26 laps on his technique to the victory Sunday afternoon within the season-opening INDYCAR Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
Sure, he crossed the end line 2.8 seconds forward of teammate Scott Dixon and 6.2 seconds forward of Josef Newgarden.
And, sure, he already has three championship trophies, together with the 2023 and 2024 rings.
“He makes it look straightforward, doesn’t he?” crew proprietor Chip Ganassi stated. “Makes it look straightforward. Doesn’t sweat.”
So in a world the place overreacting to sports activities outcomes is a favourite pastime, don’t be able to anoint the Spaniard because the 2025 champion.
His competitors definitely (and expectedly) isn’t.
“It’s Spherical 1,” stated third-place finisher Josef Newgarden. “Let’s see the way it goes.”
Newgarden felt he might have received however that they had fueling points.
“We simply had gasoline miscues two instances,” stated Newgarden, who was working out of gasoline on the ultimate lap.
Palou teammate Dixon knew what he wanted to beat Palou on Sunday after Dixon could not hear his crew tell him when it needed him to pit — and he pitted a lap later than the crew needed.
“Get a radio that works,” the six-time collection champion Dixon stated on the right way to beat Palou. “That might be good.”
Alex Palou on St. Petersburg victory: ‘So glad we acquired that quantity 10!’
Palou is aware of it’s solely Race 1 and every part went effectively for him Sunday. However that isn’t a coincidence. His earlier street/road course outcomes are second, fourth, second, first and fourth.
“We’ve at all times struggled right here for some motive, and we acquired it now to really feel like what I would like and what we want as drivers to push and to extract one hundred pc,” Palou stated.
“That being stated, I don’t assume that interprets to different racetracks as a result of prior to now we’ve been struggling right here however not at different locations. I don’t assume that what we realized right here we will take to [the next street course at] Lengthy Seaside.”
And though he felt higher than prior to now, Newgarden famous that he completed third even with the errors.
“To have miscues like that and to nonetheless end third, I believe is a good day in quite a lot of methods,” Newgarden stated. “Actually happy to come back out of right here with factors. Clearly there’s much more than might have been.”
Whereas he stated he was actually happy, Newgarden’s mannerisms confirmed he was bitterly dissatisfied. And Dixon didn’t mince phrases.
“I’m fairly pissed off,” Dixon stated. “We had a superb race going and we didn’t get it executed. It doesn’t really feel good.”
That’s typical racing. There’s a winner and the remainder of the sphere really feel like losers, particularly those who consider their lack of successful might have been prevented.
And that’s the place the Palou crew thrives. Certain everybody makes errors, however Ganassi famous that Palou’s timing stand the place race choices and technique are made “has all-stars on it. By way of technique, calling the race, communication — there’s no one higher than the ten automotive guys.”
Ganassi stated his Dixon and Kyffin Simpson groups have work to do to catch as much as Palou.
“I do not know that one race winner makes you [the favorite],” Ganassi stated. “We’re definitely the season favourite till subsequent week or till the following race. What I am most comfortable about is every offseason, each crew does work on their vehicles.
“You do not sit flatfooted all winter. You are working in your vehicles attempting to make them higher. I believe our vehicles are higher than they had been a 12 months in the past — at the least right here in St. Pete.”
2025 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Recap
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and IndyCar for FOX Sports activities. He has spent a long time masking motorsports, together with over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting Information, NASCAR Scene journal and The (Daytona Seaside) Information-Journal. Comply with him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
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