Editor’s Note: As the final days of the year pass, we will look back at some of the biggest races of the 2-25 season, beginning with the Indianapolis 500.
INDIANAPOLIS — Three-time NTT Indy Car Series champion Alex Palou drove a methodical race and struck when the time was right to win Sunday’s 109th Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Driving the No. 10 Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing, Palou passed Marcus Ericsson late in the race led the final 14 laps to score his first oval victory in 29 career starts and win the biggest race in the world to add to his accolades during five seasons in the IndyCar Series.
It was also Palou’s fifth victory in the first six races of the season, the only blemish being a second-place finish in the Grand Prix of Long Beach.
The 28-year-old Spaniard bided his time throughout the race and used lapped traffic to his advantage to save fuel and pass Ericsson, who had beaten Palou out of the pits during the final round of green-flag pits stops with just over 30 laps remaining.
Palou’s victory came after he finished fifth last year, fourth in 2023, ninth in 2022 and second in 2021.
“I cannot believe it. What an amazing day, what an amazing race,” Palou said. “Just celebrating made me tired. I cannot believe it. It is amazing to be here, it is amazing to win.
“First oval win, what a place to get it. It was tough conditions when you were third or fourth in the pack.”
It was the sixth Indianapolis 500 victory for team owner Chip Ganassi.
“It is an incredible thing,” Ganassi said of the Indianapolis 500. “It is going to make Alex Palou’s life and it certainly has made mine.”
Ericsson became a player late in the race and nearly won his second Indianapolis 500. Ericsson previously won the 500 in 2022 and finished second in 23. Ericsson’s Anderetti Global machine finished .6822 seconds behind the winner in a race that ended under yellow when Nolan Siegel crashed on the final lap.
“That was painful to miss out so close again. Second time second place here and this is a winner takes all place,” Ericsson said.
A day after the race, Ericsson, sixth-place Kyle Kirkwood and Callum Ilott were disqualified by IndyCar officials.
David Malukas contended at the front of the field all day long and brough his A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet home in third, but was elevated to second after Ericsson’s disqualification.
“I’m not going to lie. I was crying coming into the pits,” said Malukas, who missed last year’s 500 with an injury and without a ride much of last season. “We were just so close to getting it. We were the No. 1 car all day long…Obviously bittersweet because we didn’t get it.”
Pato O’Ward finished third for Arrow McLaren, while Felix Rosenqvist finished fourth for Meyer Shank Racing.
Attempting to complete 1,100 miles by running the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 in the same day, Kyle Larson was involved in a crash on lap 92 that ended his day at Indianapolis.
Other contenders including Scott McLaughlin, who crashed on a parade lap, Scott Dixon, polesitter Robert Shwartzman and two-time defending race winner Josef Newgarden suffered bad luck of one kind or another along the way.
There were 22 lead changes among 14 drivers and the race finished at an average speed of 168.883 mph.
