IndyCar champion Alex Palou makes huge Indy 500 admission

Alex Palou celebrating a win in IndyCar — Photo: © IMAGO

IndyCar Series

IndyCar champion makes huge Indy 500 admission

Alex Palou has never won the Indy 500

Chris Deeley

Friday 17 January 2025 03:00

IndyCar champion Alex Palou has revealed whether he would rather win the Indy 500 than get a historic third title in a row, if he was forced to choose.

The Spanish driver has won three championships and 12 races over the last four years with Chip Ganassi Racing, but has yet to take victory in the most famous race in motorsports.

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Helio Castroneves denied Palou the victory in 2021, passing him with a couple of laps to go and holding him off in a dramatic ending to claim a famous win.

Palou took pole position two years later in 2023, but could only finish fourth in a chaotic race which was red flagged a record three times. In four Indy 500s with Chip Ganassi, the 27-year-old has never finished outside the top 10.

He's a three-time champion, but there are still things that he wants to change and improve. @AlexPalou | @CGRTeams pic.twitter.com/CljWWxYo3Y
— INDYCAR on FOX (@IndyCarOnFOX) January 16, 2025

Would Alex Palou choose title or Indy 500?

Asked the key question about a huge third title vs the Indy 500, he answered: "I don't know. It's tough. I want to win the Indy 500 so bad. I know what it is, but I don't think anybody knows exactly how big it is until you win it. At least that's what I heard from the drivers, as well, and you can see it from outside.

"But winning three IndyCar championships in a row is pretty sweet, as well. Probably I would say the three championships in a row and then win the Indy 500 in 2026, which that's - to your equation, that works. I would do that.

"If it's only one, then that's it then I need to retire, I would obviously do the Indy 500. But as I'm not going to retire now, I'll get the three championships and then the Indy 500 in the future."

McLaren IndyCar Daytona 500 Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Helio Castroneves