Inside The Garage: Alex Palou Not Feeling Pressure To Repeat As Indy 500 Champ

Here’s what’s happening this week Inside The Garage: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Speedway, Ind.) — Alex Palou doesn’t have any photos in his motorhome here on the speedway grounds that would remind him that he won the 2025 Indianapolis 500. No big pictures of him lifting the Borg-Warner Trophy. He doesn’t need the reminders or the motivation. His image is all around this place as the defending winner. And as a four-time INDYCAR Series champion. He’s expected to vie for the win next Sunday, and he did nothing to suppress those expectations as he won the pole in dramatic fashion, saving his best laps for his final run. Palou said the pole means something but not everything. “It’s not as important as it seems,” he told me about an hour after winning the pole on Sunday night. “It’s huge that we got the pole, and it feels like a race win. “But I think even without the pole there’s as high of chances. … Having a great view heading into Turn 1 on Sunday doesn’t guarantee us anything.” Winning the 500 last year was the last big INDYCAR trophy he had not earned, as he already had three INDYCAR titles. He added a fourth by the end of last season. Now that he’s got an Indy 500 trophy under his belt, does the Chip Ganassi Racing driver feel less pressure? Well, that’s complicated. “It’s tough to describe,” Palou said. “I don’t feel more pressure, but I don’t feel less pressure than I’ve ever felt before. I feel like I’m just happier than before. I think maybe I have a bit more experience, which doesn’t really mean much. “But at the end of the day, Chip pays us to win — and to win today, not last year. We need to do it all over again.” He also believes winning in 2026 could be harder than 2025. “The field is very, very tight,” Palou said. “We’ve seen 10-15 cars that are capable of running in traffic, depending on the session and being able to overtake. There’s very, very fast cars. “I don’t think we have the best. I don’t think we have the bad one. We have a really good race car.” Palou’s life certainly has changed since his win a year ago. He said he got recognized in an airport in Houston, an area where INDYCAR doesn’t race. He took the Borg-Warner Trophy to his home country of Spain. “It’s so many [appearances] that it’s only about the 500, which is super cool,” he told me and other reporters last month. “I realized when I won, it’s not like [others] …  It keeps on growing. It’s like it never stops.” Palou hopes to get to do more this year. But he does get one perk from winning the pole. The great view going into Turn 1. “As a driver, you love that view. Not only Turn 1, but starting the race here with all the fans, you can feel the energy going. But on top of that, if you are leading, the feeling is the best ever,” Palou said. “I can’t wait for Sunday to go on throttle to see if we can keep up with everybody, if we can stay up front all day and fight for the race at the end.” Most people don’t believe it’s an “if.” It’s a “when.” And if Palou can win again, he’ll cherish the win and look forward to photos with his 29-month-old daughter, Lucia. Last year, some of the most heartwarming photos were of his daughter appearing to refuse to kiss the bricks. Those are the photos Palou wants that maybe could make his way into his motorhome one day. “Those pictures are the best thing that we have. We have it all over the house with her kissing the bricks, or trying to kiss the bricks.” Palou said. “If we can ever get to do that again to see the evolution of her but also to see our smiles and how happy we are, that would be incredible.” To The Rear: Tech Failures Upend 500 Lineup A.J. Foyt Racing’s Caio Collet (10th) and Dreyer & Reinbold Racing’s Jack Harvey (24th) had their qualifying times disallowed and will start the Indianapolis 500 in the 32nd (Collet) and 33rd (Harvey) spots. They both had unapproved hardware that mounted the Dallara-provided energy management system unit. They also will lose their spot in line for pit selection for the 500. INDYCAR Changes Policy INDYCAR has changed its policy for throwing caution flags on road courses where it has tried to refrain from throwing full-course cautions in the middle of a pit cycle. When they followed that policy at the Indianapolis Grand Prix earlier this month, it led to a dangerous situation with a stalled Alexander Rossi on the track. He eventually got out of his car, necessitating the full-course caution. INDYCAR President Doug Boles met with the Independent Officiating Board and they announced a change in policy a couple days later. “Safety has to be the most important thing we do,” Boles told me last week. “I struggled with the length of time there for that [full-course] yellow.” In The News — The Indianapolis 500 is sold out of old grandstand seats and infield tickets. — The NASCAR Hall of Fame vote is Tuesday, where a panel will select the three members of the 2027 class. There will be two inductees selected from the 10 candidates on the modern era ballot and one from the five candidates on the pioneer ballot. — Hyak Motorsports announced that Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had signed a multiyear contract extension to remain with the team. — INDYCAR has set the date for the Arlington Grand Prix next year — March 19-21. Rough Day Social Spotlight They Said It “There’s no other track like this on our schedule.” — Denny Hamlin on Dover after winning All-Star Race