by Terry Widdows
Laguna Seca, Sunday 27 July 2025
Alex Palou is making the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES his own. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver dominated the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey with a clinical drive from pole, leading 84 of 95 laps to seal his third win at Laguna Seca in four years, and his eighth victory of the season.
Only three races remain, but with a 121-point lead in the standings, Palou’s third consecutive title now feels inevitable. He heads into the break on a level of form rarely seen in modern open-wheel racing.
Eighth win, historic territory
This was Palou at his most efficient. He only surrendered the lead during pit cycles and controlled the pace throughout, resisting any threat from behind despite two late caution periods and tyres past their best. His final margin over second-placed Christian Lundgaard was 3.8 seconds, but for most of the race it was more.
“It’s been an awesome weekend, an awesome year,” Palou said post-race. “I couldn’t be happier right now. It’s super fun to be here, one of my favourite tracks for sure.”
The win puts him among the most dominant single-season performers in series history. Only A.J. Foyt (10 wins in 1964), Al Unser (10 in 1970) and Mario Andretti (9 in 1969) have managed more. Palou becomes the first driver since Sébastien Bourdais in 2007 to reach eight in a single year.
He now sits on 19 career victories from just 95 starts, already inside the top 25 of all-time American open-wheel winners.
Early chaos, clean execution
Laguna Seca was far from quiet in the midfield. The opening lap saw two separate incidents. First, Conor Daly and rookie Robert Shwartzman clashed in Turn 3, with Shwartzman ending up in the gravel. Later in the same lap, Kyffin Simpson collided with Felix Rosenqvist, punting the Meyer Shank driver into the tyre wall at Turn 6 and bouncing off the barrier himself.
Rookie Jacob Abel brought out a caution on Lap 11 when his car appeared to suffer a brake or suspension failure, skimming straight through Turn 1 into the gravel trap. Then later, Kyle Kirkwood ran into Rinus VeeKay and earned a penalty that mathematically ended his already-fading title hopes.
The race’s final two cautions came when Marcus Ericsson ran wide at Turn 6, and Santino Ferrucci looped it at the top of the Corkscrew in the closing laps.
Lundgaard shines, Herta holds on
Behind Palou, Christian Lundgaard delivered a strong recovery to finish second, muscling past Colton Herta in a committed dive down the inside of the final corner. Herta still managed third in his home race, while Pato O’Ward, Palou’s only remaining title rival took fourth.
Palou’s performance wasn’t just dominant in terms of pace. It was consistent, composed, and clean. His average finish at Laguna Seca is now 1.6 which is the best of any driver at any track on the current schedule.
The only other driver to technically lead was rookie Nolan Siegel, who inherited the front momentarily during a pit cycle to log the first laps led of his young INDYCAR career.
All eyes on Portland
Palou has won at Portland twice before, in 2021 and 2023. And with the Astor Cup nearly in his grasp, another clean weekend in Oregon could seal it.
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES returns after a short break for the BITNILE.com Grand Prix of Portland, live on FOX on Sunday 10 August at 3 p.m. ET.