Pato O’Ward Tag

By INDYCAR MONTEREY, Calif. – When the going gets most chaotic, nobody in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES finds a smooth path to Victory Lane better than Scott Dixon. Dixon did it again Sunday, overcoming a starting grid penalty and an early on-track penalty and adapting strategy to multiple caution periods to win the season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. It was the third win of the season and 56th career INDYCAR SERIES victory for six-time series champion Dixon, who won on this 11-turn, 2.238-mile circuit forRead More

By INDYCAR MONTEREY, Calif. – Colton Herta wants the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey to be a throwback weekend, in more ways than one. Herta led the opening practice for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season finale Friday at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, turning a top lap of 1 minute, 7.5382 seconds in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda featuring a livery very similar to the iconic paint scheme his father, Bryan Herta, drove to victory at this track in 1998 and 1999. His top lap came on Firestone primary tires, which haveRead More

By INDYCAR PORTLAND, Ore. – Alex Palou put a decisive stamp of authority on a dream season, winning the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland on Sunday at Portland International Raceway to clinch the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship. Palou, from Barcelona, Spain, earned his second series title in the No. 10 The American Legion Honda fielded by Chip Ganassi Racing after claiming his first championship in 2021 with the team. He became the first driver to seal the INDYCAR SERIES title with one race to spare since Sebastien Bourdais claimed ChampRead More

By INDYCAR PORTLAND, Ore. – Graham Rahal earned two poles in an INDYCAR SERIES season for the first time in 14 years, and he also gave the rest of the field something to think about entering the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland on Sunday. Rahal turned a top lap of 58.3195 seconds in the No. 15 PeopleReady Honda fielded by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing to add an NTT P1 Award to the one he won last month for the Gallagher Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. And unlike the otherRead More

By INDYCAR PORTLAND, Ore. – Christian Lundgaard reaffirmed his status as one of the breakout stars of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season by leading the first practice Friday for the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland at Portland International Raceway. Lundgaard, from Denmark, was quickest with a top lap of 58.1776 seconds in the No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda fielded by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Lundgaard, in his second full season in the series, earned his first career victory in July at Toronto and is eighth in the standings with two races remainingRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer PORTLAND, Ore. – Last Sunday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway certainly had its opinions. Some see it as Scott Dixon dominating the race as he lapped all but the podium en route to his second win of the season. Others look at the oval debut of the Firestone alternate tires as either overhyped or arguably worsening the product at Gateway. On paper, the race saw 10 lead changes but Dixon and Josef Newgarden led a combined total 221 of 260 laps. It’sRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor INDIANAPOLIS – There’s a reason they call him “The Iceman.” On a day in which he took over sole possession of the record for consecutive starts in the NTT IndyCar Series, it appeared Scott Dixon’s race may have been over before it ever really started when he was spun on the opening lap of the race, but never say never when it comes to the six-time series champion. The opening lap misfortune may have instead been a blessing in disguise as Dixon was able to pitRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor INDIANAPOLIS – It’s been a day for Graham Rahal. After starting the morning with the fastest speed in practice, the driver of the No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda backed it up in qualifying to secure the pole for the Gallagher Grand Prix – his first since Detroit in June of 2017. A stretch of more than six years. Though he had some qualms with the way his car was driving at certain points through qualifying, the end result is no doubt a stark contrastRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor INDIANAPOLIS – Is this finally Graham Rahal’s weekend? The driver of the No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda has certainly made positive strides in that direction to start off the Gallagher Grand Prix weekend on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course as he finished the first practice session of the day at the top of the board. Rahal’s lap of one minute, 9.842 seconds was enough to allow him to take the fast time during the 90-minute session, just ahead of Arrow McLaren driver FelixRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor NASHVILLE – There’s something about Kyle Kirkwood and winning on street courses in 2023. For the second time this season, the newest member of the Andretti Autosport stable was cool, calm, and collected under pressure as he put on a masterclass in Nashville to win the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix. After starting eighth, Kirkwood cycled to the lead a couple of different times as pit stop strategy played out, but once he cycled back to the top spot on lap 54, it was hisRead More