Written by Adrian Beecher
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Alex Palou put on a clinic at Barber Motorsports Park Sunday afternoon, turning in a lights-to-flag victory in the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver led 81 of 90 laps in the No. 10 HRC Honda, making it clear the road to the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES title runs straight through him.
The 2021 series champion started from pole and never looked back, executing a two-stop strategy to perfection while keeping a healthy margin over the field throughout the race. His closest challenger, Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard, finished a distant second, 16.8 seconds behind.
“It was a perfect day, a perfect weekend,” Palou said post-race. “The car was amazing, super fast. I had a ton of fun. I was a bit lonely there, but I loved it. It was an amazing day.”
Palou’s margin of dominance wasn’t just visual — it was strategic. With tire wear and fuel conservation key to success on Barber’s technical 17-turn, 2.3-mile circuit, Palou extended his middle stint on black tires while preserving push-to-pass. By the final run, he had over a minute of boost left and used it to stretch his lead effortlessly.
“We nailed it,” Palou added. “We started with the reds, went black, black, and I was like, ‘Okay, I know we’re gonna be a bit slow at the beginning of the blacks,’ but it paid off big. The last black stint was awesome.”
It’s Palou’s second career win at Barber — his first came in 2021, also with Ganassi — and his third victory in just four races this season. The result expands his championship lead and sends a strong message as the series now shifts toward its signature events at Indianapolis.
Scott McLaughlin, who won this event in 2023 and 2024, rounded out the podium in third for Team Penske. Despite strong pace, he admitted there was little anyone could do to reel in Palou.
“Alex did a great job,” McLaughlin said. “From our team, we did a really good job coming back because I feel like we had a bad test here. We fixed it yesterday, massaged it today, and got it going, but yeah — he was just on another level.”
The race marked the debut of the red-and-white No. 10 HRC livery — a nod to Honda Racing Corporation’s increasing involvement with Ganassi’s INDYCAR program. It didn’t take long for that partnership to produce results.
“To win our first race with HRC on the car is really special,” Palou said. “Everyone at Chip Ganassi Racing worked so hard to get us here. It’s awesome to see it come together like this.”
As the series heads into the month of May, Palou’s form puts him in the driver’s seat — both literally and figuratively. He’s now a clear title favorite heading into the GMR Grand Prix and the 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500.
Image Credit: Mitch White
