Palou battles to 4th-place finish, Lundqvist overcomes wall contact for 13th in Toronto
NTT INDYCAR SERIES points leader Alex Palou showed his mettle on Sunday in Toronto, and in doing so left Canada actually adding to his points lead.
After being penalized during qualifications and starting the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto in the 18th spot, Palou worked his way through the crowd to pick up a fourth-place finish – his 10th top-five showing of the season for Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR).
Meanwhile, CGR rookie Linus Lundqvist, driving the No. 10 American Legion Honda supporting the Legion’s Be the One suicide prevention program, overcame contact with the wall to finish 13th and build on his lead in the Rookie of the Year standings.
Palou, driving the No. 10 DHL Honda featuring American Legion branding, was penalized for blocking during qualifications, which caused him to lose his two fastest laps. But he was able to gain the most spots in the field and pushed his championship lead over Will Power to 49 points.
”I would say these are the kind of days we want after a very tough Saturday,” Palou said. “I feel we had a car that could have won the race if we hadn’t started where we did. I think we maximized everything we had (Sunday). The No. 10 DHL Honda team did an amazing job with pit stops and strategy. They put me in a position to finish up there in the top five.
“I’m glad we finished in the top four and have three cars in the top five. Pretty good recovery by the whole Chip Ganassi Racing team. On to a little bit of rest and then we’ll be ready for the last couple of races.”
Lundqvist now leads teammate Kyffin Simpson by 40 points in the Rookie of the Year race. ”Well that was chaotic to say the least. Not my finest race,” he said. “I had a touch of the barrier. Just got a little frustrated because we had a lot of pace in the American Legion Honda today. We got stuck in traffic and made some moves that didn’t work, but I gave it a go.
“Came away with a 13th at the end that should've been a little bit better, but that’s street racing. I think a reasonable day for the team. We did what we could, we learned. Now we will get a little break and will come back stronger.”
Chip Ganassi Racing wound up placing three drivers in the top five, with Scott Dixon winding up third and Marcus Armstrong fifth. It was Dixon’s 141st podium finish in INDYCAR, tying him with Mario Andretti for most career top-three finishes.
After three straight weekends of racing, INDYCAR will take a long break. The series doesn’t resume until the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 on Aug. 17 on World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Ill.
To learn more about The American Legion’s Be the One veteran suicide prevention program, click here.