Alex Palou fends off Scott Dixon to win IndyCar Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

Alex Palou roared into the lead in the IndyCar season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg with 26 laps to go, and on Lap 83 of 100, he held a lead of five seconds over Josef Newgarden.

But slowly Newgarden reeled Palou in, as the race leader dealt with slower cars in front of him. With just seven laps to go that lead of Palou’s was down to under half a second, and just behind Newgarden Scott Dixon joined the fray, running less than two seconds behind the leader:

That set up a frantic dash to the finish, with all three drivers vying for the victory in the season-opening race.

With six laps remaining Palou finally worked his Chip Ganassi Racing Honda around Sting Ray Robb, giving himself some breathing room. But as James Hinchcliffe wondered in the FOX Sports booth, some “manufacturer politics” came into play as Robb moved his Chevrolet to the side, allowing Newgarden in a Chevrolet to slide by him and give him a chance to run Palou down again.

But Newgarden could not pull off the comeback, and would ultimately settle for third.

Palou crossed the line first, followed by his teammate Dixon, who shaped a perfect overtake around Newgarden on the final lap to snatch P2. Newgarden came across the line third to secure the final spot on the podium.

“I’ll tell you what, it was a crazy race,” said team owner Chip Ganassi to FOX Sports following the checkered flag. “Unbelievable.”

Here are the top ten from St. Petersburg:

For Palou, it was his first win in the season opener since 2021, and for Ganassi, it was their first one-two finish since Mid Ohio in 2023.

“What an amazing job by everyone at Chip Ganassi Racing,” said Palou trackside. “It’s huge. I’m super happy. Honestly we’ve been working really, really hard. It’s been a place that we’ve struggled a lot in the past, especially me personally, so to start with a win in the 2025 season, it’s amazing.”

IndyCar returns to action at The Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix later this month.