By: Spencer Neff
March 23, 2025

2025 The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix Results

After winning the season opener at St. Petersburg, Alex Palou started third Sunday and outsmarted the field to win at the Thermal Club. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver took advantage of new alternate Firestone tires during his final stop of the 65-lap Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix.

Palou led 13 laps on the 3.067-mile, 17-turn road course in Thermal, California, including the final nine laps. It is Palou’s 13th career INDYCAR victory and his first time winning consecutive races since he won three in a row in 2023 (Detroit, Road America and Mid-Ohio).

He is the first driver to start the INDYCAR season with consecutive victories since teammate Scott Dixon did so in 2020, winning the first three races of the year. Dixon went on to win his sixth INDYCAR Championship. This year, Palou is looking for his third consecutive championship and fourth in five years.

Pole sitter Pato O’Ward led 51 laps but would finish second, 10.1854 seconds back of Palou’s Honda. Behind O’Ward, Arrow McLaren teammate Christian Lundgaard would finish third in his Chevrolet-powered entry. After starting 1-2, O”Ward and Lundgaard would complete a double podium in the latter’s second race with the organization.

It is also Arrow McLaren’s first double podium since the 2023 race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course (O’Ward and Rossi finished 2-3).

Andretti Global’s Colton Herta finished where he started the race in fourth and Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist would round to the Top Five.

Team Penske’s Will Power rebounded from a Lap 1 crash at St. Petersburg and starting 21st to finish sixth. His 15 improved positions were the most among the 27-car field.

After issues kept him out of the first two practices with new INDYCAR entrants PREMA Racing, rookie Robert Shwartzman was again the highest-finishing rookie in 22nd.

The race featured five lead changes among O’Ward, Palou and Ed Carpenter Racing’s Alexander Rossi, who finished ninth after starting in sixth.

In a race that featured no cautions for the first time since 2020 (Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course Race 3), the average speed was 102.771 mph.

Race Recap

O’Ward held the lead up front during the first 17 laps but further back, multiple cars had issues. Scott McLaughlin spun after contact with Devlin DeFrancesco, who received a drive-through penalty for avoidable contact.

McLaughlin would finish 27th, 12 laps down.

PREMA Racing’s Callum Ilott would receive front wing damage after contact with teammate Robert Shwartzman.

Rossi would take over the lead on Lap 17 during the first sequence of pit stops before O’Ward cycled back to the lead on Lap 19.

O’Ward continued to lead until his Lap 35 pit stop handed Palou the lead. Palou then led two laps before O’Ward cycled back to the lead.

Palou quickly ate away at O’Ward’s lead following their final pit stops. On Lap 56, Palou would take over the lead of the race. He went on to claim the victory and holds a 39-point lead over O’Ward in the standings with 2 of 17 rounds complete in the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.

Up Next

INDYCAR returns to Southern California in three weeks for Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Opening Practice is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. ET on April 11. Practice 2 is set for 11:30 a.m. on April 12. Qualifying is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.

The morning warmup is set for noon ET on April 13, with the 90-lap race on at 4:30 p.m. Practices and the warmup will be live broadcast on FS1 with qualifying on FS2. The race will be live on FOX. Stay with INDYCAR1909.com for the latest on the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.

Header Image By Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR