In the final race of the 2022 IndyCar season, last year’s champion Alex Palou was finally able to earn his first win of the year.
The Spaniard had struggled on-track for a good part of the season, and was occupied off-track with a legal battle to determine which of his two contracts for next season are valid.
Even though that battle is still ongoing with his Chip Ganassi Racing team, Palou was able to set that aside to give his crew something to celebrate heading into the offseason.
“I think we had the ability and everything we needed for more, so I think we didn’t really maximize the year we had,” said Palou. “But yeah, I knew we were going to have years like that, seasons like that.
“There was a bit more drama than we wanted, but happy to finish here, and hopefully we can start the same way next year.
“We knew it was going to be a tough race even before coming here this weekend because we tested here, and we kind of had good sessions and bad sessions during the weekend.
“And then yeah, with that engine penalty, we just knew it was going to be tougher, at least the first stint, but to be honest, our car was on rails today. Didn’t struggle with tire deg like we did at Portland and the last couple of races. I’m happy that we ended this way.
“I think everything [with the contract dispute] is moving the right direction. I don’t know if it’s going to take one day, one week or one month, but hopefully everything is going to be solved soon. Yeah, I don’t have anything to say clear, but everything is moving the right direction.”
Palou’s victory was achievable in large part due to his fresh engine, which could be turned up for the final race without any need to make it last for multiple weekends.
He pulled away easily once he worked his way to the front, and ended the race with a 30-second advantage over the rest of the field.
The 25-year-old ended the season fifth in the championship standings, but was not particularly pleased with that result after having won the title last season.
Palou has stated multiple times that he believes a resolution to his contract troubles could be coming soon, which will determine if he will stay with his current team or switch to Arrow McLaren SP for next season.
Chip Ganassi himself was seen sticking his head in the cockpit to congratulate Palou on his win, however, so it seems the bad blood between the two may not be that big of a barrier if they continue to work together in 2023.
