«What a career, what a year, what a season. This team is amazing. I do not know what to say. I am super happy. Thanks to everyone who has made this possible. I am super proud to be a champion. Now, it will be time to continue with it ». These are some of the first words that Alex Palou he delivered on Sunday as soon as he got out of Chip Ganassi Racing’s # 10 car, which almost perfectly sums up his attitude and approach after a historic achievement in Spanish sport. He had just been crowned, at 24, as IndyCar Series champion in his second season at the event, after finishing fourth in an intense Long Beach Grand Prix.
Being the fifth youngest modern-era champion of the contest (seventh in history counting the championships before 1946), Palou is also the youngest since his teammate Scott Dixon won in 2003 at the age of 23. The New Zealander has won another five titles since then, and the Spanish rider wants to follow in the wake of his veteran teammate for years to come, looking for establish a consolidated career in the United States in which he still has several important goals to achieve, and perhaps many more triumphs ahead.
Yesterday he needed only 12th place, but Palou drove a very academic and methodical race to go from a disturbing position on the grid to touching the podium, while Josef Newgarden and Pato O’Ward did not achieve the necessary results to force a rollover in case of that the Spanish had problems. “Coming to the last race, at this place, without knowing the circuit, the people of the team gave me a really good car, and good strategies. We started tenth and finished fourth, I think we have been super consistent all season».
Before the event, Palou defended that he would continue with his modus operandi of the entire season and that he would not be calculating until after the last stop. Judging from his words last night, he didn’t even indulge in that final stint: “As soon as I knew I didn’t have to make another stop, that we were doing well and that we were more or less up there, I thought: ‘Okay, let’s do 23 more laps, and then I’ll talk to myself again’. I kept driving, I kept braking where I played. When I saw the checkered flag, I thought again, and it was a nice feeling.
Between the celebration and the recognitions, Palou had time to show himself unhappy that his fight with Pato O’Ward ended so soon because of the touch that the Mexican suffered with Ed Jones in the first lap, having to leave later due to a mechanical problem derived from the incident: «I was not satisfied that another pilot spun him, I wanted to beat him. If you make a mistake, it’s your fault, but I don’t think it’s okay for another driver to hit someone who is contesting a title. Maybe they should be more careful with people who are fighting over something like that. “
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All this came thanks to his unexpected choice as second driver for Chip Ganassi Racing, after finishing 16th in a rookie season with several ups and downs, something that did not go unnoticed by Palou: “What is impressive for me is that they saw something in me. I don’t know what they saw but they trusted me. They gave me the opportunity to drive a champion car, they gave me the opportunity to fight for this championship. (Chip Ganassi) saw something in me, and also the whole team. They had to make a big bet, they caught someone who had only added a podium and that’s it ».
“He hadn’t won races, he hadn’t poled, he hadn’t done anything very crazy. I was just piloting and doing my best, ”continued Palou. “At the beggining of the year there were no expectations, there were goals. The one that Chip put me was to win the championship, a tiny goal to start with … He says he likes winners; If you are not, you are in trouble. That is what motivates the team. It’s not bad pressure, it’s good. He does everything possible to make the team successful, lives by and for him, and takes care of all of us.
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Palou also had words for his first mentor in the world of motorsport, Adrian Campos, who gave him the opportunity to drive in the EuroFormula Open and in the GP3 Series despite not having the resources at all to consider competing in single-seaters: “Campos was the person who introduced me to single-seaters. I was going to have done another year of karting, and more, and more, and more. That was my thing, I didn’t even think cars were possible. He gave me the opportunity, and the whole team at Campos Racing. He supported me to get here, so I should be very happy. I think he would be super happy and proud of it »
Ever since Scott Dixon had a disastrous 2004 with the same # 1 number that potential partner Tony Renna lost his life to in an ill-fated test in October 2003, no Ganassi champion has ever taken # 1 in the championship. Dario Franchitti followed in Dixon’s trail on his three title defenses with the team, and Palou plans to do the same, with good reason: “# 10 is the number I started with, my first laps were in a kart with the # 10. There was no particular reason, but I started like this. It’s Chip’s number, the team’s number, and it’s the number we want to keep winning with. There is always a rider who can wear # 1, so I think # 10 is more special».
And from now on, what? Palou himself does not set limits and is clear about his short-term objectives: «What do I need to improve? Everything. I have to be the fastest, I’m not the fastest. I have to try to make everything better. There are many things that I could mention, but with the experience they will be coming next year. We started again in February, there I will no longer be a champion. The Indy 500 hurt a bit, but I learned a lot, it’s something I really want to beat. But my main objective will continue to be the championship. I think it’s harder to win, or it depends more on you, because Dixon was the fastest this year in Indianapolis, he was going to win, and because of a bad yellow he didn’t even finish in the top 20.
“If we continue to perform like this, we will succeed. I don’t know if it will be next year, in two or in five, who knows. In that race, at 200 laps, a lot happens, you have to have the best car, the best team and the best mental attitude. Everything has to be perfect for that race. If I don’t get it next year, it doesn’t worry me much, I think we have many others ahead of us.». Palou always talks long-term about his American experience. For him, it was never a stepping stone to something else, but a professional goal. With a title under his arm and the respect of the entire grid, one can only dream of what he can achieve for years to come.