Palou moves closer to championship with P3 in Nashville

The 2023 INDYCAR SERIES’ most consistent driver delivered another consistent performance Sunday on the streets of Nashville, and in doing so extended his points lead and moved closer to a second season championship in three years.

Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou, driving the No. 10 American Legion Honda featuring the Legion’s Be the One message, scored his eighth podium finish of the season with a third-place showing in the Music City Grand Prix. Palou stayed in the front of the field most of the way, even leading 12 of the 80 laps. He now holds an 84-point lead in the INDYCAR SERIES standings over Josef Newgarden, who finished fourth on Sunday.  

"We had the speed today,” Palou said. “We expected more yellows, but we survived and made it work. We were saving a ton of fuel throughout the whole race, and it was a tough race. We're on the podium and I couldn't be happier for the American Legion team."

It was another strong day for Chip Ganassi Racing, with three top-seven finishes and four in the top 13. Scott Dixon finished fifth and sits third in the series points standings, while teammate Marcus Ericsson – displaying American Legion branding on his livery – moved up a race-best 13 spots to earn a seventh-place finish in the No. 8 Huski Ice Spritz Honda.

"After a tough weekend and qualifying in the back of the field, we had a lot of opportunities in the race,” said Ericsson, who is fifth in the points race. “We wanted to have a solid race because we knew we had a good race car. I think the whole No. 8 Huski Ice Spritz Ganassi Honda crew did a really good job with strategy and pit stops. It was a good race, and we were the biggest mover in the field. Solid day at the track and something to build on for next week."

And teammate Marcus Armstrong finished 13th in the No. 11 Ridgeline Lubricants Honda that also featured American Legion branding. He expanded his lead in the Rookie of the Year standings to 31 points.

“I thought it was going well in the first stint,” Armstrong said. “We picked up a few places and we kept going forward. We had a lot of pace, but started losing track position and overall just struggled on the soft tires. We'll look into things and move forward from here."

The next NTT INDYCAR SERIES race is the Aug. 12 Gallagher Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

In Sunday’s INDY NXT by Firestone Music City Grand Prix, CGR developmental driver Kyffin Simpson finished 15th while also carrying American Legion branding.