Alex Palou wins at Iowa Speedway and adds seventh victory of season

Alex Palou crossed the finish line first at Iowa Speedway this Sunday, July 13, securing his seventh victory in 12 races of the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series season. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver took advantage of a late yellow flag to maintain the lead until the end of the Farm to Finish 275.

Pit stop under yellow flag

The race was decided in the final round of pit stops. Josef Newgarden and David Malukas pitted before Palou to refuel, but the Honda #10 DHL was able to stay out longer. A yellow flag caused by Colton Herta's contact with the barrier on the backstretch changed the scenario, allowing Palou to make his pit stop under yellow while others had pitted under green flag conditions.

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Palou approaches A.J. Foyt's record

The Spaniard became the first driver since Al Unser Jr. in 1994 to win seven of the first twelve races in a season. Unser Jr. only won one more race that year, while Palou has five remaining opportunities to approach the all-time record of 10 wins in a season, set by A.J. Foyt in 1964 and matched by Al Unser in 1970.

Palou led 194 of the 275 laps at Iowa, completing the "IndyCar cycle" by winning on street circuits, permanent road courses, superspeedways, and now short ovals. "Winning here is very special," explained the Indianapolis 500 champion. "I've had trouble on short ovals for a long time. Today, although the strategy helped us a bit at the end when we were third, we tried everything we could."

Dixon joins Palou on the podium

Scott Dixon finished second in the Honda #9 PNC Bank, giving Chip Ganassi Racing its third 1-2 finish of the season. Marcus Armstrong from Meyer Shank Racing completed the podium in the Honda #66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance, benefiting from the technical alliance with Ganassi.

David Malukas (AJ Foyt Racing) finished fourth, followed by Pato O'Ward (Arrow McLaren) in fifth place. For Newgarden, who led 232 laps on Saturday but finished second, this Sunday brought another disappointment as he finished tenth after temporarily leading the race.

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Incidents and retirements

The race saw several significant incidents. On the first lap, Devlin DeFrancesco lost control in turn 4 and collected Scott McLaughlin, sending both cars into the outside barrier. Will Power retired on lap 21 due to mechanical issues, while Sting Ray Robb hit the barrier in turn 2 on lap 50.

Championship practically decided

With this victory, Palou extended his championship lead to 129 points over O'Ward, with Kyle Kirkwood third, 173 points behind. This gap puts Palou on track for his third consecutive title and fourth in five years, a feat not seen since Dario Franchitti won three straight between 2009 and 2011.

The next race will be in Toronto on Sunday, July 20, where Palou will seek his eighth victory of the season. Palou has previously won at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and Portland International Raceway, two of the remaining tracks on the calendar.

Complete results of the Farm to Finish 275