IndyCar boss slams 'CLICKBAIT' story linking champion with F1 move

Chip Ganassi has come out hard against reports that newly minted four-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou could quit the team.

The Spaniard is already one of the sport's all-time greats at just 28 years old, cruising to this year's championship with two races still to spare.

Having previously been with McLaren and competed in a practice session for the papaya outfit at the 2022 United States Grand Prix, 28-year-old Palou's name often gets thrown into the mix for a move to F1.

Earlier this week, Palou was rumoured to have held talks with Red Bull bosses over a potential move to replace Yuki Tsunoda for the 2026 season, getting fans excited that Red Bull could have two four-time racing champions in their two seats.

However, after Palou and his team shut down the rumours, Ganassi has now defiantly confirmed that it was a 'clickbait' story, and that no conversations have been taking place.

"I read that myself," Ganassi told media. "There was nobody quoted in there. I talked to Palou. Palou said he’s never talked to anybody, doesn’t know anything about it.

"I talked to his management. They know nothing about it. I know nothing about it. I think it’s a clickbait story."

Earlier in the week, Ganassi had said: "He had an opportunity to leave and he decided to stay. I don’t know how many times I have to say that. Everybody can see that."

Who started Palou rumours?

Red Bull are looking to fill their second seat alongside Verstappen for 2026, with Tsunoda due to be out of contract at the end of the 2025 season.

Tsunoda has only scored seven points from 12 races since replacing Liam Lawson earlier in the year, and so the temptation for Red Bull to replace him with a champion - albeit in a different series - is clear to see.

However, Palou made an astonishing claim when addressing the rumours himself that it may well have been the management team of one of his IndyCar rivals that started the rumour, to try and push him out of his seat.

"There’s been nothing, nothing at all," Palou told The Associated Press.

"We have heard nothing from anyone. The only thing I’ve heard was it was a manager for some other driver in IndyCar who would like to have my seat who said it to start something."

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