He has a series-high four victories, but Alex Palou’s runner-up finish at Toronto might be his most impressive result this season – and the latest reason the Chip Ganassi Racing star remains entrenched atop the NBC Sports IndyCar Power Rankings.
After starting a season-worst 15th at one of the circuit’s tightest and trickiest tracks, Palou worked his way through traffic while his team orchestrated another sublime strategy that had him challenging for the lead.
Though his No. 10 Dallara-Honda was damaged on a restart with 40 laps to go, Palou somehow managed to pass third-place finisher Colton Herta and nursed home a wounded front wing that essentially was attached by tape.
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“I could feel it dragging on Turn 2,” Palou said. “I was, like, ‘Oh, man, that’s not good.’ I thought, honestly, that we were not going to end the race with that nose. I think it was only the vinyl, like the stickers, that were holding it because there’s nothing else there. So, yeah, pretty impressive.”
Such extraordinary feats and twists of good fortune have been commonplace during a magical 2023 season for the Spaniard, but Iowa Speedway could be the biggest test yet.
Palou has limited experience at short ovals (though he has excelled at speedways this year with a career-best third at Texas Motor Speedway and a fourth from the Indy 500 pole position), and championship rivals Scott Dixon and Josef Newgarden have excelled at the 0.894-mile track.
Heading into the Hy-Vee Race Weekend, here’s NBC Sports’ assessment of the current top 10 drivers through 10 of 17 races this year (with previous ranking in parenthesis):
1. Alex Palou (1): It now has been a year since the last time he didn’t finish on the lead lap – he started both 2022 races at Iowa outside the top 10 and wound up a lap down twice at the checkered flag. Bet against him this weekend at your own peril, though.
2. Christian Lundgaard (8): Palou might be the presumptive champion, but a case can be made for the newly clean-shaven Lundgaard as the IndyCar MVP. No driver singlehandedly has raised an organization’s game more than the 2022 rookie of the year has at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
“I’m glad it’s finally gone.”@lundgaardoff and his friend made a bet he wouldn’t shave his mustache until he won an @IndyCar race. pic.twitter.com/8sAjXNBovR
— INDYCAR on NBC (@IndyCaronNBC) July 17, 2023
3. Scott Dixon (2): A streak of four consecutive finishes of fourth or better shows the six-time series champion might be read to extend his streak of 18 consecutive seasons with a victory. Though winless in 17 starts at Iowa, Dixon has an average finish of 6.5 here that ranks among the series’ best.
4. Josef Newgarden (5): Angry with himself for sliding on the entry to his last pit stop, a fifth at Toronto still was solid for s the best-in-class Chevrolet. As a four-time winner at Iowa, this weekend is Newgarden’s firewall for making a serious run at a third championship.
5. Pato O’Ward (3): Finished a disappointing eighth after qualifying third at Toronto, where his No. 5 team continued to be plagued by the same mistakes that have neutralized the early season promise of title contention. Iowa brings a glimmer of hope as the site of O’Ward’s most recent win last year.
6. Scott McLaughlin (4): He stuck with his team despite a tactical midrace blunder to pass on a pit stop under yellow, that relegated a winning car to a sixth. Team Penske’s Iowa speed offers a shot at oval redemption for the No. 3 team and McLaughlin, who was kicking himself after the Indy 500.
7. Colton Herta (9): Toronto was his first podium of this star-crossed season, and maintaining moment could be a challenge because Andretti Autosport has been strongest on street and road courses. But Herta (and teammate Romain Grosjean) did look sporty at Texas a few months ago.
8. Will Power (6): Iowa is the House That Newgarden Built, but his Penske teammate is fairly good, too. Power has five poles (including both races last year) at Iowa along with three consecutive podiums. After a Toronto fuel strategy debacle, a breakthrough first win at Iowa would be well-timed.
9. Marcus Ericsson (7): Toronto marked a fourth consecutive race outside the top five for the usually consistent Swede. With Ericsson still unsigned for next season and reportedly allowed to field offers from the market in August, Iowa could be a critical weekend toward charting his IndyCar future.
10. Graham Rahal (NR): His drive from last to ninth at Toronto (and his strong showing at Mid-Ohio) underscored that the recent RLL turnaround stems beyond Lundgaard’s emergence. Rahal was sounding the alarm early before the Indy 500; will the team’s subsequent improvement keep him at RLL?
Falling out: Alexander Rossi (10)
PAST NBC SPORTS INDYCAR POWER RANKINGS
PRESEASON: Josef Newgarden is a favorite to win third championship
RACE 1: Pato O’Ward to first; Newgarden drops out after St. Pete
RACE 2: O’Ward stays firmly on top of standings after Texas
RACE 3: Marcus Ericsson leads powerhouses at the top
RACE 4: Grosjean, Palou flex in bids for first victory
RACE 5: Alex Palou carrying all the momentum into Indy 500
RACE 6: Alex Palou stays on top amid Indy 500 surges
RACE 7: Alex Palou continues roll out of Detroit
RACE 8: Alex Palou maximizing his No. 1 ranking
RACE 9: Who’s behind Alex Palou this week?