Alex Palou: Dominance Through Consistency

Alex Palou is on the verge of winning his third title in four years and back-to-back titles in just his fifth IndyCar season. When looking at undisputed champions for a racing series, one may look toward Max Verstappen and his dominance of F1 over the past few years. The hallmark of Verstappen’s dominance is not just his wins, but his margin of victory. While this F1 season has brought some competition Verstappen’s way, he is still likely to be on the top step of the podium at the end of the season.

If you are looking for a foil for Verstappen’s championship dominance, look no further than Alex Palou of the NTT IndyCar series. While he is not winning every weekend, he is very consistent week in and week out and this consistency has won him two titles in three years and put him on the verge of three in four years. 

Palou Carves His Own Path to Success

Palou’s dominance doesn’t come in win totals but a remarkable consistency which sees him have a career average start of 8.0 and average finish of 7.7. In his two championship seasons, he has a total of eight wins, 18 podiums, and three poles in 33 races. Part of Palou’s consistency comes from limiting his poor performances and taking care of his equipment. He only has two finishes outside of the top 20 in his two championship seasons. 

The case in point for Palou’s dominance through consistency is his 2023 championship. In 17 races, Palou’s lowest finish was eighth, which he did twice that season. Along with five wins, 10 podiums, 13 top fives, and an astonishing average finish of 3.7, Palou cruised to the 2023 title. Between 2021 and 2023, Palou has finished all but two races, one due to engine failure, one due to a crash. 

What Makes Palou Different?

One thing that stands out about Palou compared to other drivers is that he remains calm under pressure and is rarely heard being upset over the radio. Keeping a cool head when things are going sideways (sometimes literally) is key for any race car driver regardless of series. Comparing this to NASCAR Cup Series Champion Ryan Blaney, who is known for outbursts on the radio, it’s almost odd to hear a driver remain so calm throughout a race. 

An example of Palou’s cool head prevailing is the 2024 Monterey Grand Prix. During the race, there was a stopped car on the track, and race control decided to allow Josef Newgarden to pit before throwing the caution flag. This put Palou in a tough spot but he put his head down and focused on the restart and proceeded to dominate the rest of the race.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there is more than one way to win a championship. Max Verstappen does it through pure dominance winning two-thirds of the races he runs and leading a ridiculous number of laps. Alex Palou does it by being consistent week in and week out and not letting the situation around him affect his driving.

While winning no more than five races a season may not seem like enough, Palou has found a way to keep himself at the top of the IndyCar series standings, always giving himself a shot to win the title and at the end of the day, all you can ask for is a chance at the title.

With this current format, if Palou can keep up the consistency he is known for, it would not surprise me to see him win more titles in the near future.