Alex Palou is on hearth this season and nobody has an extinguisher

Bruce MartinSpecial to FOXSports.com

INDIANAPOLIS — In a metropolis stuffed with establishments, two of essentially the most well-known within the capital metropolis of Indiana are the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and a venerable institution downtown — St. Elmo Steakhouse. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway opened in 1909 and held the primary Indianapolis 500 in 1911. St. Elmo Steakhouse opened in 1902 and has change into well-known for its tongue-burning, sinus-clearing shrimp cocktail, made with contemporary horseradish and its thick, juicy steaks.

So, to proceed that theme, Saturday’s Sonsio Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway highway course is the appetizer — or on this case — the St. Elmo’s shrimp cocktail. It whets the palate for the feast that follows on Might 25, the 109th Indianapolis 500.

Saturday’s twelfth working of the Sonsio Grand Prix was as predictable because the fiery burn from the primary chew of the shrimp cocktail, as Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing received it for the third yr in a row.

It was additionally his fourth victory within the first 5 races of the 2025 NTT IndyCar Collection season. Palou has received three NTT IndyCar Collection championships in 4 seasons, together with the final two in a row. He enters the 109th Indianapolis 500 with a 97-point lead over Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti World within the battle for the championship.

Palou’s newest victory was a spicy affair. He began on the pole however misplaced the lead in Flip 1 when Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing handed him on the skin.

Rahal would lead 49 laps within the 85-lap race, however Palou was sizing him up like a 90-day, dry-aged ribeye, able to devour the juicy piece of meat.

It lastly occurred on Lap 58, when Palou’s No. 10 DHL Honda went aspect by aspect with Rahal’s No. 15 Honda by way of the infield portion of the highway course. Palou accomplished the cross in Flip 7 and by no means appeared again.

“I occur to love the shrimp cocktail,” Palou instructed FOXSports.com. “It’s very spicy and very popular.

“However I actually like a giant juicy steak, and to me, that will be successful the Indianapolis 500.”

Palou is aware of all about bringing the warmth, as he’s on hearth in INDYCAR and no person has an extinguisher.

Then got here one other shocker to the 2025 NTT IndyCar Collection season.

A yellow flag.

That’s proper, the yellow flag truly made its second look of the season, its first because it was displayed from Laps 1-6 within the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 2. Since that point, INDYCAR races have included 408-straight laps of inexperienced flag racing.

That meant no late-race restarts and in the end, no possibilities to compete for place. This has performed into Palou’s dominance this season.

On Lap 70, David Malukas’ No. 4 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet ran off beam in Flip 8 and stalled. The followers on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway seated on the frontstretch reacted by imploring the flagman to wave the yellow flag.

When INDYCAR Race Management lastly issued the warning and the yellow flags waved, the followers let unfastened with the loudest cheer of the race.

Who knew that warning intervals have been so standard?

“I believed there was going to be a warning in Lap 1 as we speak as a result of Flip 1 is hard. However particularly Flip 7, we have usually seen a whole lot of accidents,” Palou mentioned afterward. “So, when that did not occur, I used to be, like, ‘Oh, man, there’s an opportunity that with all people working the identical technique as a result of we’re pressured into doing that, there is likely to be no yellows in any respect.’

“I do not know what occurred. I do not know if it was a mechanical difficulty or only a contact. However yeah, I did not like that, to see the warning. At any time when there was a warning, I used to be, like, ‘No, come on, I simply bought the lead, let me go.’”

POST-RACE INTERVIEWS: Álex Palou and Pato O’Ward

Palou had no cause to fret as a result of when the inexperienced flag waved on Lap 72 and Pato O’Ward’s Chevrolet was second, Palou was in a position to preserve his benefit and drive away to his fifteenth profession win.

“Yeah, I am pleased that even with the restart we have been in a position to maintain the lead,” Palou mentioned.

The opposite drivers within the race didn’t share the identical sentiment.

Rahal instructed his race strategist and timing stand after the race that the Chip Ganassi Racing Honda’s have such superior pace and dealing with that they will speed up at a unique tempo on the straightaways and might simply overtake and nonetheless draw back within the corners.

Palou defeated O’Ward by 5.484 seconds within the last 13 laps. Rahal was visibly pissed off in pit lane that after an excellent race, he misplaced grip on the rear tires late within the race and completed sixth.

“These Ganassi automobiles are simply in a league of their very own,” Rahal mentioned. “The grip they’ve, the flexibility to comply with so shut in comparison with all people else, I don’t know.

“It’s not simply Alex. It was the identical with Scott Dixon. I used to be genuinely proud. I didn’t lock up as soon as, I didn’t put one wheel flawed, I defended as greatest as I might.

NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Sonsio Grand Prix Highlights

“They’re simply in a league of their very own. It’s a unique stratosphere of grip.

“I did my greatest. I attempted to drive as flawlessly as I might as a result of that was the one strategy to beat them. We’re simply not of their league proper now.”

However no person in INDYCAR is in Palou’s league proper now. He received the primary two races of the season, then completed second within the April 13 Acura Grand Prix of Lengthy Seashore to Kyle Kirkwood.

Since that point, Palou has rebounded with two-straight victories, together with final Sunday’s Kids’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park and Saturday’s Sonsio Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway highway course.

“I attempted,” Rahal instructed FOXSports.com. “They’re so quick and never just a bit. It’s all over the place. They speed up on a unique tempo. It’s like they’ve 10 further kilos of enhance.

“It’s wild.

“I had each driver come up and down pit lane as we speak telling me to take it to him. We did one of the best we might, and I attempted to make them proud, however they’re on a unique degree proper now and all of us have a whole lot of catching as much as do.”

Bruce Martin is a veteran motorsports author and contributor to FOXSports.com. Observe him on X at @BruceMartin_500.