At times, Pallo was nearly two seconds faster per lap than his rivals and his third win of the year certainly seemed ominous as he came within striking distance of Will Power (the previous points leader and Pallo’s obvious nearest rival again this year). Looks like a better challenger. This pair fought for the last time in 2022.
But there was much more to take in from a race that featured a star team struggling, Romain Grosjean’s historic result, a driver affected with a broken wrist and a narrow victory that was actually a great achievement.
The Race has picked the winners and losers from the Wild Laguna Seca Race.
Winners
alex palou
Pallo’s speed was so good that even what looked like a mediocre punter tactic was saved from obscurity.
He built up a gap of more than 20 seconds with a group of cars that elected to stop for the second time on lap 37 of 95 – led by Colton Herta and Alexander Rossi – pitted, rejoining in third. But then overtook the leading pair in second a handful of laps because they were saving fuel and stopping after Pallo meant he didn’t need to do that.
Even three late cautions inside the final 20 laps could not stop him from winning and taking a good points lead.
It is his third win of the year, and his results at Laguna Seca in IndyCar read: second, first, third and first.
To be fair, he and his Ganassi team were just a little bit above their rivals in terms of using that astonishing speed to maximize strategy and tire reduction, after using two sets of tactics and a fast six qualifying group. Were.
A third title in four years looks increasingly likely unless his short oval form is up to scratch or a hybrid mixes things up when it is introduced next week.
Andretti
It may feel like it was the second time for Colton Herta to win and the first to lose, but the entire Andretti team had the kind of result it really needed.
Teammate Kyle Kirkwood was the better qualifier of the two and passed Palou not once but twice, initially on the outside of Turn 1 and then again at the same corner after the first pitstop.
But Herta overtook the lead in the crucial next pitstop window, and was eventually beaten only by Pallo on another strategy. While Herta went for a different strategy to Palou, you felt like either strategy would have won the race given Palou’s speed.
But after a three-race slump, Herta didn’t do anything stupid and scored good points.
Kirkwood continues to answer those who questioned whether he could combine consistency and his amazing speed. He has his best ‘worst’ finish in the series so far this year (11th on the Indy road course) and scored another top five finish – the only two ahead were on the same strategy – his third in a row.
Hertha and Kirkwood now sit fourth and fifth respectively.
Marcus Ericsson had a tough weekend as he lacked pace in qualifying – not for the first time this year – but he scored his fourth top 10 of the year after starting in 18th. It wasn’t his cleanest race with two off, but a lot of drivers failed to avoid racing deep in the pack, and he did.
David Malukas
Finishing 16th might not normally be something to celebrate, but reaching the end was a victory for Malukus. And besides, he would have reached much higher heights without the puncture.
He qualified an impressive 12th for his first race, as he was ruled out by McLaren after suffering a fractured wrist, and was then given a lifeline at Shank by taking over Tom Blomqvist’s seat for the rest of the year.
Despite struggling with his wrist, he completed all 95 laps and likely would have been in the top 10, ahead of his team-mate Felix Rosenqvist, who had started in third. This was based to some extent on the ‘Palu strategy’, although Maluka had the momentum to implement it.
More races like this will raise more questions about McLaren’s driver choices and push Maluka even higher in people’s estimation.
Rosenqvist struggled to match his strategy and fell behind some drivers on the other main strategy in the process. Some brake locking also contributed to his final 11th place finish.
romain grosjean
Despite being unhappy with the driving standards of his rivals in qualifying – he said he had a car fast enough for pole, but finished eighth – Grosjean drove a sensible and measured race.
Following the ‘Palu strategy’ gave them a partial boost, but some fantastic pace after their last stop really helped consolidate their position at the front.
He finished fourth, which was Juncos Hollinger’s best race result in IndyCar history. After such a difficult year for Grosjean and the team, it was a welcome tonic that is better than what Callum Ilott managed at this track last year.
Santino Ferrucci
Ferrucci’s Laguna Seca race was a good reflection of his 2024; He received a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct in the pre-race warm-up against Romain Grosjean, and then turned a 17th-place start into a ninth-place finish, dropping him to 12th in the standings.
Whatever your opinion of Ferrucci, he has had five top-10s in eight races this year on a team that many consider underdogs. Foyt is clearly doing something right!
Honda
Laguna’s fifth consecutive win solidified Honda’s position as top dog among the manufacturer teams, as Chevrolet looked like it might take the lead this year.
1-2s, five cars in the top 10, and a lockout of the first two rows after qualifying are some of the highlights, and while the unreliability of the early season combined with the introduction of hybrids at the next race could shake things up. , Honda has performed well outside of the Indianapolis 500 victory.
lost
penske
It ranked seventh, 14th, and 15th, and ranked seventh, 19th, and 21st. Any day like that is a loss for Penske.
Willpower was a shining light. He was its worst qualifier in 15th and dropped places in a congested start, but then used an early undercut to make up places before being elbowed out late – including a late dive by teammate Scott McLaughlin at turn one Was. 6, which effectively ended McLaughlin’s run in the top 10 for the entire day.
Josef Newgarden had a very bad day, where he received a drive-through penalty for a pit exit violation on his first stop, but then he used Pallo’s strategy and was incredibly lucky as the caution came out on his last stop. So they piled on – which meant going instead of going. After leading at the tail end of the top 10, he dropped to second place only. But then he let it all loose and spun late at Turn 6 to finish 19th.
This leaves McLaughlin eighth in points and Newgarden ninth. Meanwhile, the Power are still in the lead, but their lead is now 23 points short of Palou.
agustín canapino
Canapino had a career-best 13th in qualifying, at a track where he confidently raced in the top 10 last year, so achieving his best series result of 12th seemed possible.
In the race he clawed his way back up the order after falling behind at the start, but got a drivethrough to clip Kiffin Simpson in a spin that ended his and Graham Rahal’s race – Rahal was collected in the ensuing crash – and Canapino. Finished at 18th place.
Given that Juncos teammate Grosjean finished fourth, a better result should have been possible – and would have put Canappino further away from an intense leader circle battle.
Christian Lundgaard
Lundgaard started in sixth place and finished 15th, which was honestly a very good result considering his race performance.
Rennie was closing in on the flashpoints at the Curve, battling McLaughlin at the start and collecting a brake-marker board that got stuck to his front wing, and getting a drivethrough for avoidable contact late on. Was.
He also went over the corkscrew and went completely airborne, which was certainly very impressive to see but not good for the car driven by Rachel Letterman Lanigan.
This result was his fourth result of the year outside the top 10, after looking like a comfortable selection for a top-10 championship this year.
The team has struggled with five of the last nine races of the season being on ovals, so it could be a tough finish to the year. These road course races are important for the entire team.
del coyne
Coyne suffered a double DNF at Laguna Seca, due to engine trouble for Jack Harvey and a crash for Luca Ghiotto.
There is currently no driver for the Mid-Ohio race as Giotto is unavailable, and whoever is added will likely be without experience in the hybrid unit making its debut next time around.
It’s been a tough year for the David vs. Goliath team and it’s hard to see how much it can improve. At this rate, it would be very lucky to get any car in the leader circle without a lot of good luck.
Rinus VK
Veeck, who has never finished lower than 14th in the championship in his career, is 17th with only two top 10s this year.
His Ed Carpenter team struggled with balance in qualifying, where Veeck finished 20th, and he did not finish due to a mechanical problem.
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