Álex Palou

Álex Palou
Born	Álex Palou Montalbo (1997-04-01) April 1, 1997 Sant Antoni de Vilamajor, Spain
Occupation	Racing driver
Years active	2014–present
Known for	Three-time IndyCar Series champion (2021, 2023, 2024), 2025 Indianapolis 500 winner

Álex Palou Montalbo (; born 1 April 1997) is a Spanish racing driver currently competing in the IndyCar Series for Chip Ganassi Racing. He clinched the series titles in 2021, 2023, and 2024, and triumphed at the 2025 Indianapolis 500. Palou holds the distinction of being the first Spanish competitor to win a national championship in American open-wheel racing, as well as the first Spaniard to secure victories in both the GP3 Series and the Indianapolis 500.

Early years

Originating from Sant Antoni de Vilamajor, Palou began his karting career in 2003. He earned his sole international championship in the KF3 division of the WSK Euro Series in 2012 and finished as runner-up to George Russell in the CIK-FIA European Championship that same year.

Euroformula Open

Palou made his open-wheel debut in the Euroformula Open Championship during 2014 with Campos Racing. His season highlights included victories at the opening race held at the Nürburgring, another win at the Hungaroring, and a final race triumph at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. He concluded the championship third overall, narrowly missing second place by a single point.

GP3 Series

In 2015, Palou stepped up to compete in the GP3 Series with Campos Racing. Early in the season, he faced reliability setbacks and errors linked to his lack of experience but showed steady progress as the year went on, culminating in a win at Abu Dhabi. At Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, despite qualifying fourth, he lost positions due to poor starts. At the Red Bull Ring, he stalled from third place and was involved in a crash during the second race. A gearbox sensor malfunction at Silverstone forced him to retire and start last in race two, where he impressively climbed back to 13th. Contact at Hungaroring led to a puncture that relegated him to 18th place.

At Spa-Francorchamps, Palou scored his first GP3 points by finishing seventh and fifth despite challenges with tyre degradation and pace. In Monza, utilizing the same engine specification as Belgium, he finished seventh but spun during warm-up for race two, dropping to tenth. After fitting a new engine for Sochi, his speed improved; he qualified close to pole position and finished fourth and ninth across two races. Bahrain saw further reliability issues when a gas sensor failure caused retirement from race one and a last-place grid start for race two, where he secured tenth place.

Palou’s victory at Abu Dhabi marked him as the first Spaniard to win a GP3 race. Starting on pole for race two, he managed tyre wear skillfully to achieve a winning margin of 4.4 seconds. In his second season with Campos Racing in GP3, he recorded a second-place finish in the Silverstone sprint race and fifth at Yas Marina sprint race, ending the year 15th overall.

World Series Formula V8 3.5

In 2017, Palou competed in three rounds of the World Series Formula V8 3.5 championship with Teo Martín Motorsport, earning three pole positions and one victory while finishing tenth in the overall standings. Additionally, he took part in two rounds of the 2017 FIA Formula 2 Championship driving for Campos Racing, accumulating five points and placing 21st in the championship.

FIA Formula 3 European Championship

For the full 2018 season, Palou raced with Hitech Bullfrog GP in the 2018 FIA Formula 3 European Championship, where he achieved seven podium finishes and ended seventh in the final classification.

Japanese Formula 3

In 2017, Palou competed with Threebond and Drago Corse in the 2017 Japanese Formula 3 Championship, achieving three victories and finishing third overall behind Mitsunori Takaboshi and Sho Tsuboi.

Super GT and Super Formula

Palou made a return to Japan in 2019 to participate in full seasons of both the Super GT GT300 category, driving for McLaren Customer Racing Japan alongside Seiji Ara, where he secured one podium and ended the season 15th in the standings. In the Super Formula, representing TCS Nakajima Racing, he claimed a win at Fuji Speedway starting from pole position and also earned pole for the final round at Suzuka. Despite a mechanical failure impacting his final race, he completed the championship in third place.

IndyCar

Palou took part in an IndyCar test with Dale Coyne Racing at Mid-Ohio in July 2019.

2020: Rookie season

On 19 December 2019, Palou was announced as a rookie driver for Dale Coyne Racing with Team Goh for the 2020 IndyCar Series. His management is overseen by former IndyCar competitor Roger Yasukawa.

During his debut at the 2020 Genesys 300 held at Texas Motor Speedway, Palou was involved in a collision caused by fellow rookie Rinus VeeKay. He secured his first IndyCar podium finish at Road America later that season.

2021

For the 2021 IndyCar Series, Palou joined Chip Ganassi Racing to pilot the No. 10 Honda. He earned his inaugural IndyCar victory at the opening round, the Alabama race. Due to qualifying being canceled by weather, Palou claimed his first pole position at Texas Motor Speedway based on his points lead. He also achieved a podium finish at the GMR Grand Prix and placed second in the 2021 Indianapolis 500, finishing behind Hélio Castroneves, which propelled him into first place in the championship standings.

Throughout the year, Palou and fellow contender Pato O'Ward alternated holding the points lead. Palou consistently reached podiums, including a victory at Road America after Josef Newgarden suffered gearbox issues, and a third-place result at Mid Ohio. Despite incurring three penalties for engine changes, he strengthened his championship position. After an accident at Gateway temporarily cost him the lead, Palou regained it by securing pole and winning at Portland. A runner-up finish at Laguna Seca extended his lead to 35 points heading into the finale at Long Beach.

With only Palou, O'Ward, and Newgarden still capable of winning the title mathematically, Palou adopted a cautious approach after O'Ward was eliminated early in the race. Finishing fourth overall, he clinched his first IndyCar championship. This achievement made him the third driver from Chip Ganassi Racing to claim the series title following Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, as well as the first Honda-powered champion besides Dixon since the introduction of the Dallara DW12 chassis and turbocharged V6 engines. Additionally, Palou earned the Mario Andretti Cup as the highest scorer on road and street circuits during 2021. For his victory lap at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he celebrated with a chicken-themed limousine as a tribute to his preferred post-race meal.

2022

Palou commenced the 2022 campaign by securing podium finishes at St. Petersburg, Long Beach, and Barber, outperforming his Chip Ganassi teammates and establishing a strong position to defend his championship. Although the title was ultimately claimed by Penske’s Will Power, Palou ended the season in 5th place, tied on points with Scott McLaughlin, highlighted by a dominant victory at the Laguna Seca finale.

Contract dispute

On 12 July 2022, Chip Ganassi Racing announced an extension of Palou's contract through 2023, including a statement attributed to him. Shortly thereafter, Palou refuted having authorized the comment, alleging it was fabricated and expressing his intention to depart Ganassi after 2022 to join McLaren Racing. McLaren soon confirmed Palou’s signing for the 2023 season, although it remained uncertain if he would compete for Arrow McLaren SP.

Chip Ganassi Racing maintained their contractual position and initiated a civil lawsuit against Palou in Indiana on 27 July 2022. By 14 September 2022, an agreement was reached permitting Palou to race for Ganassi in 2023 while also testing McLaren’s Formula One car. He was scheduled to transition to McLaren in 2024; however, in August 2023, Palou informed McLaren CEO Zak Brown that he would not fulfill his contract. Consequently, McLaren and Arrow McLaren filed a lawsuit against Palou in the U.K. Commercial Court seeking nearly $23 million to recoup investments related to his expected move. Palou admitted to breaching the agreement, citing concerns over McLaren’s ability to secure him an F1 seat and his unwillingness to wait indefinitely.

2023

Palou began the 2023 season with four top-five results in five events and captured victory at the 2023 GMR Grand Prix prior to the 107th Indianapolis 500, where he earned pole position with a record-breaking speed of 234.217 mph. He subsequently triumphed at Detroit, Road America, and Mid-Ohio, securing his second IndyCar championship early by winning the Grand Prix of Portland.

2024

During 2024, Palou consistently finished within the top five in eight out of ten races, achieving two wins at IMS Road Course and Laguna Seca. Additionally, he claimed victory in the non-championship 2024 $1 Million Challenge. His steady performance culminated in capturing his third IndyCar Series title, becoming the first driver since Dario Franchitti (2009–2011) to achieve consecutive championships.

2025

Palou opened the 2025 season by winning the initial two rounds at St. Petersburg and Thermal, followed by three successive victories including Barber, IMS Grand Prix, and notably the Indianapolis 500—marking him as the first Spaniard to win this prestigious event and securing his inaugural oval track win. He also emerged victorious at Road America after overtaking teammate Scott Dixon late in the race. Although leading late at Mid-Ohio, a mistake allowed Dixon to take the win. Palou then won from pole position at Iowa Race 2 and Laguna Seca.

Formula One

In September 2022, McLaren enlisted Palou for their Testing of Previous Cars initiative, enabling him to test the McLaren MCL35M at both Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and Red Bull Ring alongside Pato O'Ward. Palou made his Formula One free practice debut at the 2022 United States Grand Prix, describing the car as "insane" with exceptional capabilities.

On 1 December 2022, McLaren appointed Palou as reserve driver for the 2023 Formula One World Championship. He took part in testing sessions at Hungaroring alongside Oscar Piastri.

Additional Racing Endeavors

Palou is the proprietor of Palou Motorsport, which competes in the Eurocup-3 championship with a lineup of six vehicles piloted by drivers from various countries. During its inaugural season, the team secured three podium finishes, all credited to Javier Sagrera. Furthermore, James Egozi contributed to the team's success by winning three races in both the 2025 Spanish Winter Championship and the main series.

In the realm of endurance racing, Palou took part in the 2025 12 Hours of Sebring event, representing Meyer Shank Racing in the IMSA GTP category.

Personal Details

On December 4, 2023, Palou and his spouse Esther celebrated the arrival of their first child.

Full 24 Hours of Le Mans Performance Record

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Vehicle	Category	Completed Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
2024	Cadillac Racing	Template:Country data NZLTemplate:Namespace detect showall Earl Bamber Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Alex Lynn	Cadillac V-Series.R	Hypercar	311	7th	7th

External links

• Álex Palou's columns from his first GP3 year