Palou overtakes Herta in Corkscrew and wins eventful race · RaceFans

Alex Palou achieved his second victory of the IndyCar season in impressive fashion and emerged victorious after a thrilling race at Laguna Seca.

The Ganassi driver decided not to make a second pit stop like many of his rivals when the safety car was deployed, allowing him to conserve fuel and overtake his rivals for the lead – first Alexander Rossi at the Andretti Hairpin, then Colton Herta at the Corkscrew.

From then on, however, it was not an easy run to the finish flag, as a series of incidents in the final third of the race led to further interruptions.

Marcus Armstrong brought out another caution with 20 laps to go after being spun by Christian Lundgaard in turn four. The Ganassi driver rejoined the track at high speed and was nearly hit by oncoming cars as Armstrong spun.

Race control delayed the deployment of the safety car until all drivers had a chance to pit, allowing Josef Newgarden to move up to second place. This was a stroke of luck for the Penske driver, who had lost time earlier in the race due to a drive-through penalty for violating pit exit rules.

When Palou expressed concern about the Indianapolis 500 winner’s appearance in his rearview mirrors, he was told, “They handled it as usual and waited until everyone pitted.” But he didn’t have to worry for long, because shortly after racing resumed, Newgarden ran wide in turn six and dropped to fifth place.

This restart was a painful sight for Penske as their other two cars collided. Scott McLaughlin’s car slid off his feet in turn six, causing a collision with Will Power. McLaughlin retired shortly after with damage.

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Jack Harvey’s retirement with an apparent engine problem caused another stoppage. Palou’s car almost slipped away from him on the final corner on this restart and Herta glanced at the outside line of the first corner before backing off.

However, chaos again broke out at turn six when Agustin Canapino lightly touched Kyffin Simpson’s left rear, sending him into a spin that Graham Rahal was unable to prevent. The RLL driver collided violently first with the spinning Ganassi and then with the unprotected barrier on the right, and although both escaped unhurt, a lengthy clean-up operation was required.

The race finally resumed with five laps to go and Palou led the field to the chequered flag. Herta finished second ahead of Rossi and Romain Grosjean, who improved his previous best result for Juncos Hollinger for the second year in a row.

Newgarden made sure his luck was completely lost when he lost fifth place on the penultimate lap, allowing Kyle Kirkwood to move up and lead the first stint of the race after brilliantly overtaking Palou on the outside of the Andretti hairpin early on.

Scott Dixon finished third ahead of Power. Seventh place was an excellent recovery from the rider who also dropped to last place on the first lap after being forced off the track. Pato O’Ward finished eighth ahead of Santino Ferrucci and Marcus Ericsson, the latter having retired twice.

With his victory, Palou is in the lead after eight of 17 rounds of the championship. At the same time, it marked the end of an era for IndyCar, because when the field reconvenes at Mid-Ohio in two weeks, it will be hybrid-powered.

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Race result

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