The NTT IndyCar Series contested its final race of the 2024 season on Sunday, with a championship on the line as well as a custom guitar trophy for the race winner.
Drivers sped around the 1.33-mile oval, racing side by side at nearly 200 MPH and providing plenty of action for the fans the turned out for the first IndyCar race on the speedway since 2008.
There were a mix of tire and fuel strategies in play, which was helped on by Firestone bringing two different tire compounds to the event.
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Drivers managed degradation as best they could while still satisfying the rules to run both compounds throughout the race.
The driver that managed the situation best was Colton Herta, who was able to pass drivers seemingly at will on restarts.
Herta only led 24 laps, but had the most pace when it mattered most and earned his first oval victory in his sixth year in the series.
Pato O’Ward finished second and was very nearly overtaken by Josef Newgarden in the final laps as the Team Penske driver roared up from behind.
The laps ran out before the two could have a proper battle, however, and O’Ward was able to keep the second step on the podium.
There was also a battle for the title that was taking place further back in the field, with two drivers each battling to earn his third IndyCar title.
Unfortunately for Will Power, his chances of overtaking Alex Palou in the championship race were dashed shortly after the green flag waved.
The veteran dropped a bit on track from his fourth place starting spot in the first few laps, but then had to come to the pits on lap 12 because his seat belt had come loose inside the cockpit.
Power lost a couple laps while his crew refitted his belts on pit lane, and he never was able to recover. He finished in the 24th position.
Palou, on the other hand, ran a solid race from back in the field and ended the day in 11th. His performance was more than enough to clinch the title.
Palou becomes the second youngest three-time IndyCar champion, and does so in just his fifth year in the series.
His impressive form has continued throughout this young career, and the field will likely have to be battling against him for many years to come.
Outside of the battles for glory, there were a few incidents that brought a halt to the action across the 206 lap event.
The first caution was caused by Felix Rosenqvist, who crashed into the Turn 2 wall when his right front tire gave out.
It appeared that the tire simply went flat, and there was nothing the Swede could do except steer his #60 Meyer Shank Entry to a halt on the back stretch.
The second caution came out just before the halfway mark when Katherine Legge brushed against the wall in Turn 4 and spun to a halt.
Marcus Ericsson also had an early end to his day when he brushed the wall, bending his suspension in the process.
There is nearly a six month break before IndyCar is back for its next race, with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg taking place the first weekend of March.
