The 2024 IndyCar Season has concluded, crowning Alex Palou as its champion for a third time in merely 5 seasons. And all whereas Palou was stopping for a three-time champion finish, the rest of the season crammed itself out with ample intrigue, together with in drama and controversy, along with the complexities of the long-awaited hybrid system. Nevertheless finally, it was a stunning present of racing — demonstrating why this assortment is taken into consideration in all probability the best in open-wheel racing inside the nation.
Now, Palou may have topped IndyCar’s 2024 standings, nevertheless the place does he stand in Motorsport’s rankings? Our esteemed IndyCar writer, Joey Barnes, offers us his prime 10 drivers of the 2024 season.
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VeeKay ended the season outside the best 10 inside the elements standings, nevertheless nonetheless impressed on his ECR swansong
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
Whereas the tip of season desk left Rinus VeeKay thirteenth inside the championship standings, he had a strong 12 months considering he was the second-highest positioned driver in a automotive not affiliated in a technical alliance of the “Huge 4” consisting of Andretti Worldwide, Arrow McLaren, Chip Ganassi Racing or Workforce Penske.
Teamed with Ed Carpenter Racing, the Dutchman took a giant step forward as a frontrunner whereas moreover serving to find an elevated diploma of consistency and tempo as a result of the group obtained deeper into the season.
He solely had two top-10 outcomes via the opening 9 points-paying rounds, nevertheless then found kind over the next eight races, which included his best finish of the season with fifth at Iowa and 4 additional prime 10s.
His mark of seven top-10 finishes was greater than the two drivers that accomplished ahead of him inside the whole standings — Christian Lundgaard and Felix Rosenqvist (every with 5) — and likewise stood as a career-best over his 5 years in North America’s premier open-wheel championship.
Whatever the licensed success, Ed Carpenter Racing and Veekay parted strategies on the end of the season, with the crew bringing on Alexander Rossi in his place.
Ferrucci normally punched above his league in partnership with AJ Foyt Racing
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
The combo of Santino Ferrucci and AJ Foyt Racing persevering with for a second consecutive season collectively appeared lethal at events. This 12 months featured a technical alliance with Workforce Penske, which little doubt helped arrange an improved baseline at various events.
Nonetheless, there was a job to be carried out and the execution was a match for the raised expectations. The small outfit scored a strong 11 prime 10 finishes by means of the 12 months, along with a pair of fourths inside the double-header spherical at Milwaukee.
The one place there have been a great deal of expectations on the shoulder of the 26-year-old pilot was the Indianapolis 500, notably after his thrilling third-place finish in 2023. This 12 months, he as quickly as as soon as extra delivered a stirring qualifying effectivity and started sixth, nevertheless wasn’t pretty as lethal inside the race as he led just one lap en path to ending eighth. It stood as his sixth prime 10 in as many Indy 500 begins.
The Connecticut native moreover captured his first occupation pole at Portland after out-dueling pseudo-teammate Power. He ended the 12 months ninth, a personal best. It was moreover the first time Foyt positioned a driver inside the prime 10 of the last word standings since 2002, when Airton Daré accomplished ninth inside the all-oval assortment then nonetheless known as the Indy Racing League.
Kirkwood couldn’t have secured a victory nevertheless he nonetheless picked up a career-best haul of top-10 finishes
{Photograph} by: Perry Nelson / Motorsport Images
The victories couldn’t have been there for the native of Jupiter, Florida, nevertheless Kyle Kirkwood nonetheless had loads to relish in 2024 as he established a higher diploma of consistency. The Andretti Worldwide driver’s 5 prime fives and 11 prime 10s had been a career-best over his three seasons in IndyCar. Together with a good runner-up outing on the streets of Toronto, he bolstered his reputation on ovals.
Kirkwood started his mark on ovals in 2024 with a seventh inside the Indy 500 and matched it inside the first race of the doubleheader weekend at Iowa. An eighth inside the opening race of Milwaukee’s doubleheader continued the theme, nevertheless it was Nashville the place he truly demonstrated his improved oval prowess.
After starting on pole, he led 67 laps and wanted to beat an unfortunately-timed warning, which bought right here out moments into the preliminary spherical of pit stops. Nonetheless, the tempo was there for Kirkwood to shoot once more via the sphere, ultimately ending fourth.
If the outcomes of his consistency had been raised merely one different two spots higher on widespread, he very correctly might doable be a threat on the prime three inside the whole championship wrestle.
Not one amongst Newgarden’s best years, nevertheless it yielded a second consecutive Indy 500 win
{Photograph} by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Images
Profitable the Indy 500 salvaged what was in some other case a season to neglect for Josef Newgarden.
Whereas he throttled to what gave the impression to be a dominating assertion win inside the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, a black cloud rolled in and stripped him of victory 45 days later ensuing from illegal use of the overtake enhance.
The Tennessee native’s totally different victory at St Louis wasn’t with out controversy, each. He was the chief for a late restart when a pile-up behind took out Penske teammate Power, who squared the blame at Newgarden.
Even with six podiums on the 12 months, it truly was a run of feast or famine. An eighth-place finish inside the championship marked Newgarden’s worst finish end result since turning into a member of Penske in 2017.
The run of fantastic outcomes had been hindered by eight finishes outside of the best 10, along with 4 of twenty fifth or worse. A two-time assortment champion, Newgarden’s tempo was immense at events, nevertheless the errors, each self-inflicted inside the race or qualifying, proved an extreme quantity of to beat.
Although his run as a result of the “Oval King” is now being challenged by Workforce Penske teammate McLaughlin and Arrow McLaren’s O’Ward, Newgarden remained a big threat. He turned the first back-to-back Indy 500 winner since Helio Castroneves in 2001-02.
Basically essentially the most worthwhile driver inside the topic as soon as extra confirmed off Dixon doing Dixon points
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
There have been flashes of Scott Dixon doing Dixon points in 2024, nevertheless there have been moreover a great deal of bizarre outcomes that ultimately left him out of a chance for a seventh assortment championship.
The great was undoubtedly the masterclass at Prolonged Seaside, the place the Chip Ganassi Racing stalwart took good thing about an early warning to go onto an alternate method and delivered by hitting a big gasoline amount whereas heading off a charging Colton Herta. Dixon moreover delivered one different victory in a moist and wild spherical in Detroit, overcoming the carnage that set off fairly a number of cautions.
The ultimate phrase punch to the nether areas doable occurred at Mid-Ohio when a hybrid topic — inside the debut of the updated vitality unit — struck by means of the tempo laps inside the buildup to the inexperienced flag. Even with that finish end result, nonetheless, the New Zealander ended the 12 months with merely 5 podiums and seven prime fives in 17 rounds — a considerable gap to Ganassi teammate Palou. Furthermore, he had an uncharacteristic 5 finishes of fifteenth or worse.
Dixon ended the 12 months sixth inside the championship standings, which marked the first time since 2016 he accomplished outside the best 5; that 12 months, he moreover accomplished sixth.
5. Pato O’Ward
O’Ward endured a dramatic advertising marketing campaign crammed with success and heartbreak nevertheless stays in all probability the best drivers inside the topic
{Photograph} by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Images
There was no shortage of drama surrounding Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward in 2024. Although there have been three wins after a barren 2023, he ended the 12 months one place lower inside the standings in fifth.
The Mexican was promoted to victory in St. Petersburg after Newgarden was disqualified, nevertheless then went on to file three mediocre outcomes of thirteenth or worse over the next three points-paying events. It wasn’t until the Indy 500 that points had been once more on monitor.
O’Ward pulled off a last-lap transfer on Newgarden to take the lead, solely to lose the race in heartbreaking vogue as Newgarden responded with a brave outside transfer two corners later into Flip 3. It was an emotional loss for O’Ward, nevertheless it ignited a fireplace for the second half of the season that included claiming the first win of IndyCar’s hybrid interval at Mid-Ohio after heading off Palou.
He moreover handed IndyCar one amongst — perhaps the — most embarrassing moments of the 12 months by worthwhile the opening race at Milwaukee decrease than 24 hours after Penske Leisure CEO Mark Miles shared controversial suggestions regarding his recognition, which bought right here in mild of the gathering being crushed to going to Mexico by NASCAR. All in all, though, outcomes had been additional of the similar as random mechanical mishaps plagued his prospects of a really explicit season.
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Once more in victory lane and inside the hunt for the title, Power was correctly and actually once more
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
2024 kicked off with the 43-year-old Aussie once more to mirroring the tempo that helped him win the 2022 title. Will Power was a clear draw back to deal with after three runner-up finishes inside the opening 4 rounds, sooner than together with three wins and one different runner-up to convey a season tally of seven podiums – tying Workforce Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin for a lot of inside the assortment.
There was a late surge for a possible third title, which was wiped away inside the season finale after a seatbelt topic hindered any likelihood to dethrone Palou. It was higher than the random faulty topic at Nashville, though. Power’s season moreover had a great deal of snags, along with clashing with McLaughlin in Toronto.
Whereas working fourth in St. Louis, he was moreover the innocent bystander of an odd late restart by Newgarden, which resulted in a crash and adopted with an emotional scene of displaying Newgarden he was ‘No. 1’.
There was a clear likelihood to take the championship lead inside the penultimate spherical at Milwaukee after Palou was hindered by a battery topic, nevertheless Power’s mid-race spin wiped it away. It was moreover the first time since 2008 that Power, the driving force with additional pole positions to his establish than one other, failed to say a chief spot in qualifying.
3. Colton Herta
Herta shrugged off two years of struggles to get once more to the doorway of the gathering
{Photograph} by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Images
It was a renaissance advertising marketing campaign for Andretti Worldwide’s major man. Not solely did Colton Herta rebound after two consecutive down years mired tenth inside the whole standings, he did so in spectacular kind.
Early consistency that included two podiums inside the opening 4 rounds was derailed after crashing out whereas working second inside the Indy 500 after which as soon as extra after a blunder in Detroit, nevertheless the California native was able to persevere with a masterful drive in Toronto and ended a 41-race winless drought that dated once more to 2022.
He then went on to achieve 4 prime fives over the previous 5 rounds, along with a maiden oval victory inside the Nashville season finale. His two wins and 6 podiums put him a career-best second inside the championship.
Common, there was a lot to know as Herta demonstrated a novel diploma of maturity this earlier season. He shook off any doubts of his oval prowess after out-dueling O’Ward in Nashville, whereas moreover not allowing unhealthy outcomes to fester in a month-long slog.
If Herta can proceed this diploma of kind and even add to it, he might present to be a handful for the rest of the paddock.
2. Scott McLaughlin
The Penske scandal ended up costing McLaughlin the IndyCar title
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
There could also be no bigger “what might have been” story of this earlier season than Scott McLaughlin.
The ex-Supercars legend took a giant step forward by capturing his maiden oval win inside the opening race of the Iowa double-header, then furthered it by bagging one different inside the nightcap of Milwaukee’s doubleheader. He led a series-high 637 laps, with Power the next closest at 366.
McLaughlin moreover tied the mark with Power of a series-leading seven podiums in points-paying rounds. That amount might have been higher if not for his perform in Penske’s push-to-pass scandal in St. Pete, which wiped away a third-place finish end result along with teammate Newgarden’s win.
Whatever the penalty, which bought right here 45 days later major into the third spherical at Barber, McLaughlin responded by blocking out the noise and claimed one amongst his 5 poles of the 12 months sooner than taking an authoritative victory. McLaughlin’s three wins tied him with Power and O’Ward for a lot of inside the assortment in 2024.
If the podium result in St. Petersburg was upheld, with how the rest of the season transpired, McLaughlin would have drawn diploma with Palou at season’s end with 540 elements. Nevertheless the Kiwi would have claimed the championship by means of tiebreaker by benefit of getting additional wins.
1. Alex Palou
Palou turned the first driver to secure back-to-back titles in over a decade
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
Alex Palouwas as quickly as as soon as extra in prime kind in 2024. Coming in as a result of the defending assortment champion, the Chip Ganassi Racing driver went on to turn into the first to go back-to-back since Dario Franchitti’s three-peat from 2009-11.
This earlier 12 months Palou netted two victories, six podiums and three poles inside the 17 points-paying rounds, with a stellar current of ending inside the prime 5 in 13 races. Furthermore, he was untouchable inside the $1 Million Downside; major every session, starting on pole and major every lap inside the heat race and first event in IndyCar’s non-points spherical at The Thermal Membership.
The first of Palou’s moments on the best step of the podium outside of the exhibition race bought right here on the Indianapolis road course. He overcame a nasty start from pole and utilized his tempo on in- and out-laps to hunt out the doorway of the sphere.
The second bought right here at Laguna Seca, the place he led early sooner than pulling off a wild transfer inside the Corkscrew on Herta — paying homage to a similar switch Alex Zanardi positioned on Herta’s father, Bryan, virtually 30 years up to now. From there, the Spaniard fended off rivals on a late restart to cap a superb victory.
His great kind earlier to a battery glitch on the second Milwaukee race and an underwhelming Nashville finale meant Palou couldn’t be caught and has firmly entered the dialogue as one amongst IndyCar’s true greats.
Palou solely gained twice in points-paying events, nevertheless was nonetheless on the pinnacle of the pack
{Photograph} by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
