100 Days to Indy (2023) s01e05 Episode Script

1
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And it's the two guys
who gave us
that ultimate theater on
the streets of Saint Petersburg.
McLaughlin and Grosjean
going for the win again.
It's Saint Pete. Take two guys.
Scott McLaughlin wins
at Barber Motorsports Park.
[Cheering]
Let's go!
Scott McLaughlin, a winner!
For Scott McLaughlin to
win at Barber was huge,
and Will Power
needed that result.
- We'll get on the podium!
- That's good!
That was a good day.
Go, Willy! You did good.
Momentum from this race
carries over to Indianapolis.
[Engines revving]
♪♪
The month of May
in Indianapolis,
there are parties and parades
and there are festivals.
- Everything just changes.
- There's a buzz in the air.
The whole city gets behind it.
A lot of the drivers
live here in town.
That's what makes the racing
so great at the Indy 500,
'cause you really just spend
a lot of time there.
So for the Indy 500, we get
what they call one-off entry,
meaning that this is the only
race of the season they do,
and they might be
former full-time drivers.
Katherine Legge has been
a sports car driver
for the last decade.
There is not one time when
I'm in a race car
that I think about being
the only woman in the field,
and the car
doesn't know the difference.
If Katherine Legge were to
win the Indianapolis 500,
it would be crazy historic.
Stef Wilson,
a very accomplished
driver in his own right.
But there's no doubt every time
Stef gets in the car,
he's thinking of his brother,
Justin.
Something that helped me
deal with the loss of Justin
was to continue on.
There is no quitting, so I'm
just going to continue fighting
and trying to win
this race for him.
Everybody's thinking about
the Indianapolis 500,
but there's still
one more race.
You have the Grand Prix
in that month-long period,
which is great.
It's two weeks before
the Indy 500.
It's a road course. It's going
the opposite direction.
You get the month kicked off
with a road course race.
Winning that race still means
winning at the Brickyard.
This is the most famous
race track in the world.
Anytime you can win here,
it's a big deal.
♪♪
♪♪
What's up, champ?
- How's it going?
- Good.
You doing good?
My name is Stefan Wilson,
and I'm the driver
of the number 24
Cusick Motorsports
Breyer & Reinbold Chevrolet.
Okay.
Ready to do this?
- Ready?
- Get in there. Come on.
Squat rotations.
Keep that chest up.
Sit your butt down there.
Stand up tall in between.
- There you go. There you go.
- Keep those hands up.
Keep those hands up, Stef.
I never want
to look back and think,
Could I have worked
a little bit harder?
I want to know
that I gave it absolutely
everything in my power.
♪♪
Nice.
Stefan Wilson had success
on the way up to IndyCar,
but then just didn't
find the opportunity
and had been away
from the Indy 500
for a few years
when he got a chance again,
thanks to Don Cusick,
co-interim of this team.
The Indy 500
just consumes your life.
- Again. One, two.
- One more. Time.
And for me,
it has even more importance.
I grew up in Sheffield, England.
Car racing as a passion
really developed in our family
with my dad, Keith.
He raced back in
the '60s and '70s
in Formula Ford in the UK.
Watching the Indy 500
was something that we enjoyed
as a family together.
Justin was my older brother.
He was 11 years older than me.
I was just a chubby little
12-year-old
when he was racing
in Formula One,
and I wanted to
get into racing myself.
And I just remember
looking up to him.
You know, he was my hero.
On track, it is Justin Wilson
out in front.
Inside the car,
Justin, he was an absolute ace.
I'm not sure --
Can I use the word "badass"?
He was 100% focused,
100% determined.
I look back at times in my
career, like Toronto in 2011.
Stefan Wilson is the winner
and the Firestone Indy Lights.
Certainly an excited,
pretty proud older brother
in Justin Wilson.
Having Justin come up
to me in Victory Lane,
I could see he was
proud of me in that moment.
♪♪
Sage Karam just hit
the wall extremely hard.
Justin Wilson got some debris.
I knew that it was
very serious.
Any time that any kind of debris
strikes the helmet,
the outcomes are usually bad.
Once it happened,
we knew it was severe,
because we weren't
getting information.
Even as we left the racetrack,
we didn't really know
a whole lot.
I got a phone call from
Heather Carpenter and she said,
"Yeah, I think you might need
to get on a plane and come."
I said, "Oh, don't be so silly.
He'll be fine."
And then, like,
20 minutes later, she was like,
"We're sending a plane."
So I knew it was
a little bit more serious.
It's with profound sadness
that we announce that
Justin Wilson died this evening
at Lehigh Valley Health
Network Hospital
in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
You say, "Oh, wish it were
a little bit more to the left,
a little bit more
to the right.
A few seconds slower,
a few seconds faster."
In the end, you just
have to tell yourself
that it was an awful accident,
and you've just got to
try and move on from that.
Obviously, all
these things can happen,
and I obviously think
about that with Stef, but
you just get on with it.
[Quietly] Sorry.
We all acknowledge
that there's a risk
and every driver
takes that risk,
but when you see it play out
in the worst possible outcome
and you see the results,
you know, you see a family
left without their husband,
without their father,
without their brother,
without their son,
it takes a toll.
It was a huge loss
to our community
when Justin was taken
from us in 2015.
It took took a while for me
to process it, you know?
I mean, it was the most
painful experience in my life.
Something that helped me
deal with the loss of Justin
was to continue on
and to try and win this race
for him.
I think it's really Zen
to be in nature
and kind of grounds you
and gives you good feelings.
I mean, it is loud and noisy,
and our lives
are all go, all the time.
It's all or nothing, very much
all or nothing in racing.
My name is Katherine Legge,
and I'm racing for
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
in this year's Indy 500,
number 44.
I was born in the UK.
When I was nine years old,
my dad found a local
go-kart track
and he started racing there,
and I nagged him
and I nagged him,
and he bought me a kart
for Christmas that year.
That's when I kind of
caught the bug.
And so the love of motorsport
was born, really,
from the competition
and the adrenaline aspect.
♪♪
For me, Indy is still
kind of American home.
Now, I haven't raced IndyCar
or in the 500 for 10 years,
but I've certainly been
back here every year.
Now we get to go to
the Rahal Letterman Lanigan
Racing Shop,
make seat and get
even more excited for the 500.
♪♪
Katherine Legge came up
through IndyCar racing.
Right now, Katherine Legge,
one of the fastest cars
out on track.
Yeah, there's
no doubt about that.
She has been a sports car
driver for the last decade.
She has won a lot of races,
has been very successful,
and now she's getting
another chance,
and it's a proper chance.
It's the best chance
she's had at the Indy 500.
Like the good old days.
Oh, God. This suit is so tight.
Katherine Legge, this year,
is the only woman in the field.
Part of that is because
she's experienced
and she's very well-regarded
in the motorsports community.
I probably have one of the most
diverse careers in motorsport,
because I've literally
driven everything
from NASCAR, IndyCar,
electric cars, etc, etc.
But it's the first time
I've been back in
an open-wheel car since 2013,
so it's kind of wild,
because it's a long time.
And when I'm looking at the cars
and how much technologically
they have become more advanced,
it's like doing it
for the first time.
Oh, and I've never driven
with a halo either.
So that's going to be
all new to me.
With having this halo
on here in the aeroscreen,
it's not like Indy
before where everyone was trying
to scrunch your head down
as far as --
You have the freedom
to be higher now.
I do believe that
because of the last 10 years
and the amount of driving
of different things
and the experience
that I've got,
I will be a better driver.
at this year's 500.
I think as soon as I do
my first few laps,
it's going to be like no time
has passed at all.
Where you sit in the car,
how much are the front wheel
do you see?
- Oh, that's a great question.
- Can't they put one on?
- And then I'll tell you.
- [Laughs]
I'd like a decent amount
of sidewall at least.
Yeah, I like that much?
Like, not --
so not like normal?
Now you've got the halo
and you're up more.
A little bit up more, yeah.
- Hang on.
- Let me tie my hair back. Yeah.
There is not one time
when I'm in a race car
that I think about being
the only woman in the field
or wanting to be the best woman
or anything
gender-related at all.
They're just other drivers,
and the car
doesn't know the difference.
People like Lyn St. James,
Janet Guthrie,
Sarah Fisher, Danica.
I don't think any of them
wanted to be a beacon of light
for women in racing
across the globe, but they were.
All I care about
is that the racing is good
and that it's interesting and
that the personalities are cool.
I don't care
if it's a girl or a guy,
but if you are a girl
and you are a good driver,
all the better.
- I'm super happy.
- I'm over-the-moon happy.
I imagine winning the 500
literally every day of my life.
I think about what that would
feel like and how it would be,
and I get emotional about it.
And one of the 33 of us
is going to win it, right?
So why wouldn't it be me?
♪♪
[Dog barking]
- Hey. Come on in.
- Hi. How are you?
- How are you doing?
- Good to see you.
When we lost Justin,
part of the reason
why we moved to Colorado
was just to make sure that I was
part of his girls' life
and make sure they knew
who he was.
Enzo's a bit excited.
He's excited for some pancakes.
Both Katie and Stefan
are just huge,
huge part of my family life
and the girls', you know?
We couldn't be without them now.
♪♪
Definitely not ready.
We're gonna cut this one.
Definitely cut this one.
I've already made a mess.
I'm not much of a chef,
but getting the girls over here
and being able to make breakfast
every now and again,
it just allows me
to connect with them
and see what's going on
with their lives,
and at the same time
deliver up
some really delicious
chocolate chip pancakes.
Alright, that's
looking a lot better, okay?
Looking a lot better.
So, Jess, who makes the best
chocolate chip pancakes?
- Just the whole world.
- The whole world?
I think you meant to say
a certain person right now.
Oh, wow. The hesitation
is killing me here.
Oh, she won't even say it.
Jane, who makes
the best pancakes?
- You.
- See? No hesitation there.
Straight in. Easy answer.
It means a lot
that Jane and Jess
are able to watch me race.
Having a connection
with the sport
is important for them
to know who their father was.
♪♪
Even though
it happens in April,
the Indy open test really
is the start of the month of May
for all of these teams.
It's the first opportunity
to get in your Indy equipment,
get around the track
and really get a sense
of the competitive order.
Very keen to just
get in the car,
get all that anticipation
out of the way.
You know, it's nice that we're
getting to do this April test.
- I'm running at noon, dude.
- That's three hours from now.
- You'll be fine. I've got it.
- Yeah, I know.
- It's my 18th year.
- I'm not nervous. I'm anxious.
I just want to get going.
You deserve this opportunity,
so it's great,
great to see you get it.
Can't talk now. Going to be --
♪♪
[Loud mechanical whir]
[Engine revs]
The moment they fire it up,
I'm like, there we go.
[Engine roars]
Let's go!
♪♪
We welcome you as the cars
roll for this open test
in the lead up to
the 2023 month of May
and the 107th running
of the Indianapolis 500.
Oh, oh, oh ♪
Oh, oh, oh ♪
Clear the car to go.
[Engines roar]
This is going to be
everybody's Indy 500 car.
Whatever you want to do
to get up to speed.
This test really does
set the tone for your month.
I've heard from
a lot of drivers
about how thrilled they are
to be back at the Speedway,
including Scott McLaughlin.
Here is Josef Newgarden.
He's done 11
Indianapolis 500 campaigns.
He has come close with a third,
but for him,
that's not close enough.
Here's Katherine Legge.
Katherine is really excited
to start her
third Indianapolis 500.
For the one-off drivers that
are only doing the Indy 500,
the open test in April
is massive,
just to kind of knock
some of the rust off
and start to develop the car.
Awesome job out there.
The open test can be
a little bit intimidating,
because if you're not
quick out of the box,
you're now worried and nervous
for the rest of the month.
Let's have a look at this.
Stef Wilson in the middle
of Josef Newgarden
and Felix Rosenqvist.
It'll be Stef's fifth start
in the greatest spectacle
in racing.
Stefan Wilson
doesn't have the luxury
that the Penske and Ganassi
and Andretti guys have,
that he's been working
with his engineers
and he's been sitting
in data meetings.
This period is it,
and he's got to get
as comfortable as he can
as fast as he can.
We're happy to ride
where we are right now.
Katherine Legge slow
on the track.
You see her trying to get
back to pit road there.
There's a caution
on the racetrack.
Oh, nice.
They tried
to call her into the pits,
and she ran out of fuel.
So all is good, and she'll be
heading back out again.
♪♪
♪♪
Katherine Legge, has she
run out of fuel again?
Yeah, second issue there
for the #44 of Katherine Legge.
We're in
the closing minute anyway.
And there's the checkered flag.
End of the session,
end of a colossal day.
Hard to end up E6 at the end,
but most of the day,
we'll be full, so
to kind of show that speed
straight away,
off the trailer strong,
that's always a big relief.
I'm normally very
"glass is half full,"
so I'm trying not to
be negative.
I'm pretty upbeat,
but I was hoping
to feel a little bit
more confident than I do.
I think we got some work to do,
but I think we'll
get there in the end.
I'm going to the bus.
Dude, I hate this. This is
the worst part of the month.
- It really is.
- You're so dramatic.
I hate dressing myself.
Yeah.
Scott loves to wear
the same four shirts.
Yeah, I do.
The drivers for
the month of May
want to make their life
as simple as possible,
so they park a bus
in the infield and they move in,
and they have to make it
as comfortable as they can be.
Yeah,
I'll be in Indy for the month.
Scott will be there.
The dog will be there.
It's kind of like, I don't
want to be at home alone.
I love being in Indy
for the whole of the month.
Like, having the track
to yourself is sick.
Need golf hats too, Karly.
- Who hung this up?
- That was me.
Oh, my -- [Laughs]
Bet you Josef's got his,
like, laid out perfectly.
Yeah, probably
steamed, pressed.
- Ohh.
- You need pants.
Pants
What suits should I wear?
I don't know. You have
the same four, so
I can't imagine
what I would dress like.
- Oh, my God. No.
- It'd be
You wouldn't even
want to know.
The only thing I'm good
at dressing is my golf gear,
and that's the main thing.
Even that's a bit of a stretch.
So we'll go
and pack the bus now.
My father-in-law, John,
he leaves tomorrow morning,
so we want to make sure
that we are ready to go.
We get there Wednesday,
and then we will be just going
all the way through
till probably the Tuesday
after the 500.
It depends.
If I win, I go to New York
for a media tour.
So hopefully we're not
coming back to Charlotte
for about a month
and two weeks.
♪♪
- This goes inside, then?
- Yeah.
- Gotcha.
- And the hats.
Can't have enough hats,
I guess.
- Yeah.
- No.
You get so caught up in like,
"Oh my God, it's Indy.
Oh, it's Indy.
Like, this is the biggest
race in the world."
It is, but sometimes you get
so caught up by like,
watching highlights,
and certainly I do.
I've completely changed
my approach this year.
Like, I'm just very chilled.
It's just another race.
I've got to execute.
I've got to, you know,
do exactly what I did at Barber
and we'll be in with a shot.
You know, I'm just
a chauffeur and whatever.
Dog walker and whatever you
want to consider --
you know, whatever I can.
I really think this is going to
be a great run, you know?
For him and for us.
Her father came at
the perfect time for me.
Like, I feel really good,
my mind's is really good now.
Just another race.
- I'll see you down there.
- Yeah.
♪♪
- Let's put the glasses on.
- They look so funny.
[Engine starts]
♪♪
♪♪
I was thinking I wanted
to take the pad drum kit
to put up at the bus.
- It actually is pretty good to
- To pack up?
Yeah, you could
pack it up pretty good.
I'll have Colton Herta coming
around wanting to practice, too.
Oh, this is a serious set-up.
You miss this, don't you?
Yeah, I guess that's
the one thing --
You miss me.
You don't miss all the stuff.
I don't, yeah, I miss you,
but I don't miss
all the stuff you bring.
Into last year,
I started not feeling good,
and I was in ICU for 11 days,
and I had a really bad infection
in my spinal column.
Brutal time to see someone
that's so together,
so out of it.
Crazy how close
you came to dying.
I'm not 100%, but I'm excited
to be back with Will,
to be back at the racetrack,
to get out of the house.
It'll be the first race this
season that they will be coming,
so yeah, it was abnormal
not having them for
so many races,
but definitely nice to have
the whole family there.
I have a problem with packing.
I have to be prepared.
Drives Will crazy.
This isn't even close
to what we're bringing.
I know this seems
overwhelming, but for me,
I'm trying to be organized
so I can enjoy the month of May,
given everything that's gone on.
Give us just a little pointer.
So to get up, obviously
that's the first part.
You want your back foot here
and your other foot
just like, shoulder-width apart,
and you use the tension of
the rope to keep the board --
because you want the board
to be like this.
My teammates at Arrow McLaren,
we have lots of fun together.
It doesn't have to be
at the racetrack.
I mean, we've gone,
you know, we've had boys trips.
Because you don't want to,
like, push too hard
because then the nose
will go and --
you look stupid.
I think we're going to
look stupid regardless.
So that's not --
that's not a question about --
It's who's gonna
look less stupid.
It's such a good
family spirit in the team.
It's just this
yeah, home feeling.
And I think that's very rare.
I feel like I should --
Oh, [bleep].
Go.
Look at that.
♪♪
Felix Rosenqvist,
one of my best friends.
I think I do a good job
of bringing out his personality,
because he's a lot more reserved
than I am.
He's good!
♪♪
[Laughter]
Felix Rosenqvist is
pretty quiet.
Pato O'Ward,
the exact opposite.
Oh, he's gone.
Alex, really, really good guy.
Ohh!
Really funny guy as well.
With hindsight, it's like it was
the perfect match for our team.
- A foot there.
- Yeah.
And then your other foot there,
then you'll be fine.
Tony and I were actually
pretty similar.
People like to
call both of us [bleep],
so we kind of bonded over that.
♪♪
We turn it up to the max ♪
We never relax ♪
We bringing it back,
and that's a matter of fact ♪
We're gonna go down
in history ♪
We're gonna go down
in history ♪
Woo-hoo!
♪♪
We're opening
a new detailing shop
if you guys want --
McLaren Detailing.
We do boats, cars,
anything you guys want.
I'm out of a job May 28th,
so call us.
Look at this guy.
We know them.
Me and me and my best friend,
we made a stupid deal
that we can't shave our mustache
until I've won a race.
And I feel bad for him,
because it all relies on me,
so he just walks around
looking like a knob.
I'm convinced they photoshopped
it to make it look darker.
I like it, because
it puts things into perspective.
Like, it pushes you
into a different --
because you want
to get rid of it.
I mean, it's the whole point,
right?
It gives you something
to drive for.
It looks good on here.
Like here, it actually
looks like a mustache.
Oh, yeah.
Can we move the pedals?
Christian Lundgaard's
rookie year
was very much an indication
of the potential of that driver.
Winning Rookie of the Year
was a huge milestone.
I think he is a star
of the future in IndyCar.
In between here a bit.
To me, the atmosphere
in the shop is a good one.
Burnt my head.
Because we've got one direction
we want to go.
Can you spot the Brit
in this group?
[Laughter]
- You're older.
- You've had more time to tan.
If you look at the numbers,
you might say it's been
a really disappointing start
to a second season.
A lot was expected of him,
but the whole team
has to step up their game.
Everyone still believes
when they get it figured out,
Christian Lundgaard
is going to compete for wins.
No, I'm sure they've
photoshopped it darker.
They must have.
[Rhythmic tapping]
♪♪
♪♪
It's a good
warm-up before practice.
♪♪
Let's go.
♪♪
The month of May in Indy
is honestly
the best time of year.
Most of us stay here
for the whole month,
so it's like, an apartment
complex for all the drivers.
I've been coming to this
track since I was literally
zero years old and I
always thought the bus lot
was like,
the coolest place ever.
Like, this is
the executive community
that you want to be a part of.
It's just a special place to be.
Let's see who has the speed
on go-fast day,
the GMR Grand Prix,
as we set the wield
for tomorrow's 85-lap race.
There's nothing
more exhilarating
than IndyCar qualifying.
- When am I gonna get to see you?
- This is the start of it!
It's gonna be a long month,
but it goes by quick,
'cause it's busy.
Let's get a good
starting position and
we'll give it hell
in the race.
I think we're good.
Yeah, I think
we're looking strong.
- I like it, man.
- The cars are looking good.
You're fast everywhere.
- You just need some luck, man.
- Yeah. Thanks.
- Your baby's good, no?
- Really good.
We finally got a car that's
good enough for our driver.
Do it already.
It's hundreds, it's thousands,
in some cases ten thousandths
of a second
that make the difference
between positions here.
You have to be
millimeter-perfect here.
♪♪
You have to place your race car
so close to the razor's edge
of the track in every
single one of these corners.
- Cars roll.
- This is going to be fascinating.
Hey, Alex,
push it when you're ready.
Alexander Rossi right now
on the track.
So you got a lot of room to
gap here and then push hard.
Alexander Rossi
starting from 10th.
Will Power's in trouble.
Big mistake from Will Power
in turn seven, locked up.
Will Power in position 12.
♪♪
♪♪
What a lap from Pato O'Ward.
You're all good here.
How about that lap
from Jack Harvey?
- 109.4.
- Good job.
Shop crew, great job.
Looking pretty good
for all the Rahal cars.
Harvey will jump to third.
- All eyes on him.
- Alex Palou goes to third.
- Track's all yours.
- You're looking good right now.
Lundgaard firing up right now.
♪♪
Lundgaard should go to the top,
does go to the top.
Felix Rosenqvist, here we go.
Have to hustle up here.
We're gonna have to get
to the line here.
.009 is
the miss for Rosenqvist.
P2 by like,
the smallest margin, man.
Christian Lundgaard
is a first-time pole winner.
- First pole position.
- How proud are you?
What a great day
to be in America.
[Cheering]
That's a pole. That's a pole.
Well done. Well done.
Congratulations, boys.
♪♪
[Cheering]
Congratulations,
Christian Lundgaard,
you're a pole winner.
And it's something
that this 21-year-old Dane
has never done.
So let's look forward
to tomorrow to race day
to really kick off
the month of May here at Indy.
We had a plan.
We executed it, and it's been
a pretty great day, actually.
Best start since I've been
with RLL, so
- Well done!
- Thanks, guys.
Way to go!
I hope tomorrow's the day
I get rid of my mustache.
Now I feel like
I've got the best chance
that I've had ever to
get rid of it.
It would be cooler
to wait a couple of weeks
to do it at the end of May,
but if I get
the chance tomorrow,
I'll grab it with both hands.
I need to get this suit off now.
Thank you.
I need to get this suit off.
It's been on for -- no.
I got a new one for tomorrow.
I got a new suit for tomorrow.
I get new suits every race day.
This feels awesome. Awesome.
GMR Grand Prix is
coming your way
in just about an hour or so.
♪♪
The Indianapolis Motor
Speedway.
If you have never been here,
you have to
add it to your bucket list,
because you have to
see it to believe it.
This is the GMR Grand Prix
of Indianapolis.
Yes, we're road course
racing today.
It's just cool, you know?
You know, like you think about
May in Indianapolis.
I just love being here, man,
this whole month.
I cannot wait. Let's go.
The month's started.
Hey, yeah!
Let's go!
Josef's very confident.
He's a very American,
confident guy.
Gonna take my shirt off
so all the girls
can see how strong I am.
Girls love me.
Your American accent
is horrible.
[Laughter]
- You're P4, right?
- You're in front of me.
I'll make sure, I'll give you
a nice little bump.
[Laughter]
- I watched the car.
- It just looks super scary.
- You ready?
- Yeah, are you?
Good.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Oh, dude.
- Good job.
- Thanks, man. You, too.
How much time do we have?
You're looking good, baby!
Woo!
[Fans cheering, screaming]
[Screaming continues]
Viva Mexico!
Let's go.
- Fun race today, brother.
- Let's go out and have some fun.
You're gonna have
a good day today.
I have faith in you.
It's gonna be good
no matter what.
The question is, how good?
♪♪
Let's have a good day
today, boss.
I think we will.
- The fans are ready to go.
- We're ready to go.
We're almost ready to see
racing here at the Brickyard.
I can't tell you how good
it feels to be back at Indy
in the month of May.
The driver field,
they want a good result here
to put themselves
in a positive frame of mind
for the month of May.
♪♪
♪♪
21 year old Danish
driver Christian Lundgaard
becomes the first Danish driver
to ever win a pole position
in Indy car history.
Command has been given.
Hey, Christian,
it seems only appropriate
that you could get
your first win here today
and finally shave off
that mustache.
Yeah, I'm shaving that
mustache, sounds great.
We're going
to give it everything we have
and see where we end up today.
- Field is together.
- Here is car 45.
Getting a terrific start
is the pole man!
Christian Lundgaard
got a flier of a start
and Palou is going
with him on the inside.
They fan out five wide
and it's Alex Palou
challenging Lundgaard.
- Left side.
- Left side. Left Side.
Clear. Clear. Clear.
Overtake will be active.
We're okay here.
Teammates here, Rossi
and O'Ward side by side.
Uh-oh!
All clear. All clear.
Rossi got around there
no problem.
Look at the yellow car here,
pulling to
the side of McLaughlin.
McLaughlin
might have front wing damage.
Think I got --
right front wing.
We'll it on this lap,
get your front wing.
Palou for the lead of the race
on the opening lap.
Alex Palou is going
to lead the first lap
of the GMR Grand Prix
here in Indy.
Awesome pass for
the lead, man. Great job.
Copy that. Let's go.
Lot of chaos there,
but everyone's still pointing
in the right direction.
Kyle Kirkwood hits Will Power
and turns him around.
- It all happens so fast.
- What was that?
Will Power drove Kyle Kirkwood
pretty wide at the exit there.
Kirkwood on the grass.
The two come together.
Will Power the last car
on the lead lap now,
20 seconds behind.
Race control has deemed
Kyle Kirkwood avoidable contact.
Alright, Kyle.
So we've got
an avoidable contact penalty.
We have to let everybody
go up to Power.
- 27's been penalized.
- He has to drop behind you.
Copy that.
Avoidable contact.
I was right.
You don't
pass someone in the grass.
- Water bottle went -- cshhh.
- A little bit more.
Oh, there's a lot to go.
He's been this way before,
so I don't know.
♪♪
Crazy.
I think it was a bit of
a racing incident, like
Yeah, I haven't really got
a dog in that fight, so
That's not what
you said earlier.
[Laughter]
I don't want to make
any enemies right before May.
Alright, Christian,
so he's on reds ahead of you,
so this is not
too damn surprising.
We're just gonna do
our best to stay up with them.
What is Lundgaard dealing with?
They're trying to keep him calm
and remind him
with the strategy that we chose,
even though we were on the pole,
we're on those primary tires
trying to keep the young driver
from Denmark calm.
We believe the reds
will be quicker for a while,
but we're hoping
they'll fall off
and we'll be able to catch up.
Later on in the race,
they'll have to go to blacks,
and we'll be in red.
This lap.
Josef Newgarden, who gained
a lot of spots on the start
Three, two, one.
but now is starting to
fall back and saying,
"Hey, the rear tires
are absolutely going away."
- Good on the rear?
- That's great.
Things are switching up
before our eyes.
What you thought was
the right strategy
might be changing on the fly.
- Whoa.
- Alright, Pato,
we're gonna be tight
with Palou on the exit.
- How close do you like it?
- Take a look at this.
The undercut worked
brilliantly for the number five.
Beside you. Clear. Clear.
Pato O'Ward, Alex Palou,
Christian Lundgaard.
Three youngsters
in the NTT IndyCar Series
all fighting it out
at the front of this field.
This is awesome.
Palou trying everything
right now to get by O'Ward.
He goes to the outside
of turn four.
Very brave low probability move.
As close as you like
coming down into seven.
Palou pops out. Can he get
it done on the brakes?
Yes. Easily done there.
And Alex Palou goes to
the lead again in this race.
- Alright.
- Nice job getting O'Ward.
No pressure.
Up from with Palou,
the gap just continues to grow,
between Palou and O'Ward.
The gap to O'Ward is 11.4.
Palou has now led 50 laps
of this GMR Grand Prix.
The ebb and flow
of this race is incredible.
You've got a little bit
of everything.
Here comes Alexander Rossi.
He smells blood.
He wants that first podium
of the season,
first podium with the new team.
As Rossi makes his move.
Finally, the patience,
the persistence has paid off.
Lundgaard tries to respond,
but he can't.
Rossi's got him, and he's gone.
- Take care of the tires.
- Keep me behind you.
Good job.
Alex Palou,
what a way to start
the month of May.
Not only is he going
to get his fifth career victory,
but do it with authority.
Look at that.
15 seconds out in front.
Alex Palou comes onto
the front straight
here at the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway!
Alex Paulo wins
the GMR Grand Prix at Indy!
Alright. Checkered flag, man.
Great job.
Great job, everybody.
[Cheering]
- Good job, boys.
- Thank you so much.
How about Arrow McLaren,
two of their drivers
on the podium.
Good job today, buddy.
Man, that's a great start to
the month of May.
Next one is our Super Bowl.
Got some great momentum
going to that.
A really good job.
Great job for the team.
You were second,
Rossi third, Felix fifth.
Alex Palou, the winner at
Indianapolis at the Grand Prix.
[Cheers and applause]
Alex becomes the fifth
different winner this year
in as many races.
We honestly knew we had
a fast car since P1 yesterday.
- Amazing work by these guys.
- I just had to execute.
We're now with the first win
of the season.
Last year, it came too late.
So yeah, we're starting off
with the right foot.
I just wanted to come over
and be like,
I'm not mad at you for anything.
I hope you're not mad at me.
- No, I'm not mad.
- No, I'm not mad.
I'm just like, disappointed
we didn't have a good day.
Yeah, 12th was not bad
out of all that.
- Anyways.
- Yeah.
- See you here in a couple days.
- Yeah, exactly, man.
I don't know that after just
the road course at Indianapolis,
you can say
who are the favorites,
but Rahal Letterman Lanigan
should feel better
about where things are for May.
It'll live another day.
The 'stache will
live another day.
I don't think anyone
really expected
that we would show up
and put it on pole.
That was a statement.
- Good work, bro!
- Dude, good [bleep] job, man.
Great job.
You have got to take
Arrow McLaren
very, very seriously,
because Pato O'Ward
has shown up every single week.
He's not going to finish second
and third for 17 races.
Eventually, he's going to win.
I think you can't say
that Ganassi
is not among the favorites.
They have two wins this season,
so does Penske,
but Ganassi's drivers
have been more consistent.
It's been the big teams
that have been dominating.
Penske, Ganassi, Arrow McLaren,
Andretti Autosport.
You are immortal if you win
the Indianapolis 500.
This is it. This is the biggest
sporting event in the world.
♪♪
♪♪
♪♪
♪♪