The Ganassi driver surpassed Felix Rosenqvist at the Long Beach 51st running
Race fans from all over the area came down to Long Beach, California, to watch the Grand Prix and were pleasantly surprised when first-time prodigy, Álex Palou, took the checkered flag and ended the race with a victory celebration.
The 29-year-old from Barcelona has been on a tear in the IndyCar Series. He has won 11 out of the last 22 races that date back to last season. Long Beach was one of the last to check off his list.
Palou had been on the Long Beach podium for the last three years. However, this was his first checkered flag and his third IndyCar win in five races this season.
The reigning and four-time IndyCar Series champion worked closely with his pit crew to overtake Felix Rosenqvist who was in the lead of the race-high with 51 of 90 laps.
Toward the end of the race, Palou led with 32 laps during the final pit stops and wheeled his #10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda to win by 4.198s. This happened over the Swede at the iconic 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit.
“It feels so lucky with the opportunity to have won the [Indy] 500 last year and then the Long Beach GP this year. I’m living on this amazing cloud of happiness, and it was incredible work by this team out there.” Palou stated.
He finished the race with an average speed of 97.356 miles per hour. This puts him in the points lead for the IndyCar Series championship standings for the season.
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Palou is currently working towards his fourth straight title.
Starting off in third place, Palou quickly made his move into second as he approached the second lap. From there, he was neck to neck with Rosenqvist for more than half of the race.
There was only one caution during the race on the 58th lap when a piece of debris flew onto the middle of the track. Drivers were forced to hold behind it, but the moment served as a pit for repairs, causing chaos down the pit lane.
Coincidentally, Palou’s location was the closest to the exit as his crew posted a swift time of 8.40 seconds. This was 75 hundredths of a second faster than Rosenqvist.
“I’m super proud of everybody’s job, but especially these guys,” Palou said when talking about his crew. “This crew gave me the win today. It was that pit stop with all the pressure that these boys were able to execute perfectly. From there, it was just managing the tires, and it’s incredible to finally win here at Long Beach.”
Rosenqvist has made four straight top-10’s in Long Beach. This podium marks the best result since he finished second in the Grand Prix of Road America in June 2025.
“I’m proud of today. I think everything we’ve been working on paid off. I’ve been in this position many times before, being up front and then having something fall short. I felt like we had incredible pace on the reds, but not as good as [Palou] on the blacks. I struggled a bit in that area, but it was going to be hard to pass anyway. That last-minute cycle was kind of the defining moment.” Rosenqvist stated.
The next IndyCar Series Race is set to take place in Indianapolis for the Sonsio Grand Prix, running from May 8-9. The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach will return in April of 2027 for the 52nd running of the event.