Kyle Kirkwood won the IndyCar race held on the streets of Washington D.C. and especially benefited from a rare poor performance by poleman Álex Palou to delay his championship.
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Already victorious on the Arlington street circuit earlier this season, Kirkwood confirmed his ease on this type of track.
Starting second on the grid, he took the lead from poleman Palou on the first lap before controlling most of the 147 laps of the race.
McLaughlin into the wall
Like Marcus Ericsson in Markham a week earlier, the Andretti driver perfectly negotiated the traps of a new street circuit. He finally crossed the line with more than three seconds ahead of Christian Lundgaard (McLaren) after several neutralizations.
The main alert occurred during a restart about twenty laps from the finish. Less effective at the restart, Kirkwood saw Scott McLaughlin (Penske) try to slip inside the first corner. The New Zealander eventually ended up in the tire wall a little further on, allowing Kirkwood to maintain the lead.
During the final restart a few laps later, the American this time left no opportunity to his rivals and took off towards victory, congratulated on “Victory Lane” by the patriarch Mario Andretti (86 years old) himself (photo above).
Nightmare day for Palou
The day, on the other hand, turned into a nightmare for Álex Palou. Starting on pole and in a position to clinch his fifth IndyCar title as early as Washington, the Chip Ganassi Racing driver accumulated misadventures. During his first pit stop, Palou hit a tire belonging to Mick Schumacher, whose position was just in front of his. The stewards handed him a drive-through penalty that dropped him down the order.
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The difficulties continued during his second stop, with a problem fixing the front left wheel. Palou then found himself a lap behind the leaders. His race was definitively complicated when he touched the wall on lap 123 of 147. The Spaniard nevertheless managed to reach the finish, but only in 20th position.
This poor performance delays his championship and allows his pursuers to reduce their deficit in the standings. Palou will nevertheless keep an excellent chance to clinch the title next week in Milwaukee, where two races will be held on the one-mile short oval.
Grosjean in the top 10
Romain Grosjean, for his part, confirmed his good form. One week after his second place in Markham, the Frenchman from Dale Coyne Racing once again benefited from an alternate strategy to finish in the top 10.
Like last weekend, Australian Will Power (Andretti) stood on the podium alongside Kirkwood and Lundgaard, followed by his teammate Marcus Ericsson and the young Kyffin Simpson (Ganassi) and Nolan Siegel (McLaren). To complete the top 10, veterans Scott Dixon (Ganassi) and Josef Newgarden (Penske) as well as rookie Caio Collet (Foyt), best rookie ahead of Mick Schumacher (RLL), who finished eleventh under the checkered flag, are noted.
After this prestigious “Freedom 250” meeting enhanced by the presence of President Donald Trump and the First Lady, the IndyCar championship will conclude in Milwaukee next weekend and then at Laguna Seca in early September. With a 91-point lead over Kirkwood, Palou can look ahead and should claim his fifth IndyCar crown, the fourth consecutive.
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