Los Angeles (United States), April 16. American Kyle Kirkwood (Andretti Autosport) won the first victory of his IndyCar career this Sunday with his victory at Long Beach, while Spaniard Álex Palou (Chip Ganassi) , who finished fifth in this event, is now third in the fight for the championship.
Kirkwood, who beat his teammate, Frenchman Romain Grosjean, in a close duel, was also the fastest in qualifying and was able to defend the first position in a very demanding race.
“When I crossed the finish line it was a release, I felt I needed this win. I can’t thank the team enough, the strategy, the saves and with Romain (Grosjean ) behind me,” said the driver at the finish line. American broadcast.
Palou took an honorable fifth place in Long Beach which allows him to climb to third place in the general classification with 91 points, four behind the second classified, the Mexican ‘Pato’ O’Ward (Arrow McLaren), who was ten -seventh on Sunday and thus lost. the championship lead.
The new driver at the helm of IndyCar is the Swede Marcus Ericsson (Chip Ganassi), who is ahead of Palou by 19 points.
This victory for Kirkwood (the third winner in three Grands Prix this year) allows him to climb fourteen positions in the standings to find himself fifth and there are only 21 points left behind which separate the first four.
Kirkwood protected his pole position in a hotly contested start where American Josef Newgarden (Team Penske) overtook four single-seaters, including that of Palou.
The rivalry led to situations of maximum tension during the first pit stop, the role of the mechanics was fundamental in the strategy and Newgarden risked to the limit trying to overtake a Kirkwood who miraculously saved his position by joining the track.
Newgarden led for 27 laps taking advantage of the chaos of the race in his middle part.
This lack of control had O’Ward as one of the main protagonists, first in a parallel accident with Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi) which ended with the New Zealander who crashed his car with the protections and left the race.
This action seemed likely to end in a sanction for the McLaren, but it was not like that and Dixon was very upset.
“It’s a frustrating day. If that’s how they want us to drive, I guess they’ll have to take off their gloves and start fighting,” he said.
O’Ward, after finishing his career, wanted to forcefully respond to him: “I was in and he was out. If he feels it was my mistake, I’m sorry, I don’t see it that way . I’m not. I’m going to apologize for that. It’s racing. Yeah, you come from the outside, you’re more vulnerable to these things that happen.”
Another miscalculation by O’Ward as the race reached its first third put his car in the middle of the track during a turn, affecting, among other things, a Palou who had to brake hard and lost many places. Both rode for much of the race below the Top 10.
The Spaniard was able to lead the event for two laps by delaying his tire change and taking advantage of the fact that the others were stopping in the pits. When he left, with 30 more steps to go, he was in sixth position.
Palou had an excellent end to the race, finishing fifth and putting a lot of distance from his pursuer, Alexander Rossi (Arrow McLaren). Moreover, he came less than a second behind Californian Colton Herta (Andretti Autosport).
“We’re in the Top 5 of the championship, that’s good. It was a great race in St. Pete and in Texas, I’m happy with where we are. We’re going to play these races until Indy 500 and see where we get there,” Palou said.
With 30 laps to go, Kirkwood regained the lead at the second pit stop and Grosjean slipped to second place relegating a Newgarden who continued to drop positions until finishing ninth.
The home straight left a thrilling duel between two teammates like Kirkwood and Grosjean and eventually the American won.
It remains to remember that the Argentinian Agustín Canapino (Juncos Hollinger) led the race for three laps, taking advantage of not stopping in the pits. Shortly after, due to a blow to the wall, he was forced to leave for the first time in that first season.
In two weeks, the fourth round of the championship will be held in Alabama, the traditional first circuit of the 2023 IndyCar after having raced in two urban and an oval so far. ECE
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