Practice for the 109th Indianapolis 500 begins with Alex Palou, Graham Rahal, Kyle Kirkwood, Scott McLaughlin, Dario Franchitti, Marcus Ericsson and Jay Frye

Rodger Penske:

This is Roger Penske, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indie, sponsored by Penske Truck Rental.

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcast. I'm your host, Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT IndyCar Series. Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans and insiders view of the exciting world of the NTT IndyCar Series in a fast-paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport. I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as NBCSports.com, SI.com, ESPN SportsTicker, Sports Illustrated, Auto Week, and Speed Sport. So let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental as we continue our fifth season of giving IndyCar fans an inside look at the most exciting form of racing on the planet, the NTT IndyCar Series. And a big thanks to Penske Truck Rental for helping bring you the inside stories of IndyCar from the paddock, to the racetrack, to the highways and streets of America. Pit Pass Indies at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the biggest month of the racing year, the month of May, culminating with the 109th Indianapolis 500 on May 25th. The Indy 500 is more than a race. It's a cultural phenomenon that draws nearly 350,000 fans to the famed Cathedral of Speed, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental is at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from start to finish for the month of May, as Tuesday, May 13th was opening day of practice for the 109th Indianapolis 500. It got off to a rainy start, but it's the first of four days of practice leading into this weekend's qualifications that set the 33 car starting lineup for the Indy 500. Before looking ahead to the Indy 500, let's take a look back at the Sanzio Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course on Saturday, May 10th. Alex Pillow started on the pole, but he did not lead heading into the first turn on the opening lap, as Graham Rahal got a great jump to take the lead. Rahal would lead a race-high 49 laps, but could not hold off Pillow late in the race. Palou was able to size up Rahal and wait for the right moment to make his race-winning move. The Chip Ganassi racing driver was content to drive behind Rahal for most of the race, which featured an IndyCar tire requirement mandating teams had to use two sets of Firestone Blacks and two sets of Firestone Reds. Palou passed Rahal in turn seven on lap 58. He pitted on lap 65. Rahal's final set of tires were blacks. Palou saved his best set of reds for the end. The top three drivers in the race, including Pato Award of Errol McLaren and Will Power of Team Penske, used the same tire strategy. That included starting the race on scuffed reds, then blacks on the next two stints, and finishing the race on new reds. That proved to be the winning strategy. Once in the lead, Pillow was in control, even during an IndyCar rarity in 2025. A yellow flag waved for the first time in 408 laps when David Maloukis went off course in Turn 8 and stalled. It was the second yellow flag of the season and the first since laps 1-6 in the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 2nd. That set up a restart on lap 72, and despite Award's best efforts, Palou was able to keep the lead and drive to a 5.4840 second win over Award's Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. Shortly after winning his fourth race of the first five contests this season, including the last two races in a row, Palou joined me for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. As I said to you just a week ago, this is getting to be predictable, me interviewing you after a race. I believe I should probably sell additional sponsorship for the Alex Palou part of this program. But here we are once again, winner of the Sanzio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, your fourth victory in five races in IndyCar this year. The one you didn't win, you finished second. What happened there? But this is a big win. You've now won the San Diego Grand Prix three years in a row. How big a victory is this for Alex Pillow?

Alex Palou:

Huge, huge. It's been amazing. An amazing weekend. It's been a fast weekend as well, with practice one, two, and qualifying the same day. So it felt really good to get the pole. I didn't feel as good to lose the first position with Graham before the first corner or during the first corner. But yeah, an amazing race. My pace at the beginning wasn't as good as Graham. He was pulling away and I was struggling a little bit with my tires and just my overall lap times. But at the end, with the same tires, we were able to get him back.

Bruce Martin:

There were three big shocking moments in today's race. The first was you started on the pole, but you didn't lead out of turn one. Graham Rahal passed you. What happened there?

Alex Palou:

He was great. He got a great launch and then he braked very late and he forced me into deciding if I wanted to try and brake a little bit later than him and try and hold position, but maybe risking locking the front wheel like I did last year. So then getting overtaken or pushing him off, which that was not an option.

Bruce Martin:

The second shocking moment was you were able to track him down and pass him in a lot of ways. I thought you were kind of just sizing him up, waiting for the right moment. It was like a. cat ready to pounce on a mouse. Was that the approach you took? Yes and no.

Alex Palou:

At the end, yes, I was waiting. I could have tried a little bit earlier, but I wanted to wait maybe, I waited probably like two more laps when I got to him. But at the beginning of the race, like even though I was following him really close, I didn't have more pace to try and overtake him.

Bruce Martin:

And finally, the third shocking moment was for the first time in 408 laps, we had a yellow flag.

Alex Palou:

I'm sure everybody was clapping and getting happy about that.

Bruce Martin:

The fans in front of the media center were imploring the flagman to wave the yellow, and when he waved the yellow, the place erupted. You would have thought... Really? Yes. No way. It was a big moment in the race. In a lot of ways, are you surprised that in IndyCar in 2025, you can go 408 consecutive laps without a yellow flag?

Alex Palou:

It's crazy. It's crazy and I don't understand it. I still don't understand because when When you see how we're driving and how on the limit we are, it doesn't make sense that there's been no yellows. In my opinion, it's only been pure coincidence and that's not gonna ever happen again.

Bruce Martin:

At any point when Graham was leading most of the race, did you think he might be able to drive it all the way to victory or were you pretty confident that you could, when the moment mattered, you could make it happen?

Alex Palou:

No, absolutely. He had great pace. And then also I was getting chased by Devlin at the beginning and then McLaughlin. So we were in danger for a big part of the race and we didn't really have the pace until the last two stints, I would say. But yeah, I didn't think he was that straightforward that we're going to be that good at the end.

Bruce Martin:

And Dario Franchitti told me in Gasoline Alley that the way he looks at this race, this is a regular season race, the Super Bowl is in two weeks, on May 25th, 109th Indianapolis 500. Do you look at the month of May that way?

Alex Palou:

Absolutely, I do. Yeah, it's the truth. Even though it pays the same points, it's not about points. You don't want to finish second. You don't want to finish third. You only want to finish first. And yeah, you're going to risk everything to try and get the win because it's the most important race of the year.

Bruce Martin:

Do you look at the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway similar to say a trip to St. Elmo's? This is the appetizer. This race is the shrimp cocktail. The big steak comes in two weeks.

Alex Palou:

It's a spicy shrimp cocktail if it's from St. Elmo's. But yes, I look I looked at it that way. I think everybody does. And we're going to have another appetizer, maybe a first plate in a week from now with qualifying. But then the steak's going to arrive with a lot of sights.

Bruce Martin:

And you also said that you're already looking ahead, knowing this streak's going to come to an end and that you're going to be disappointed. I'm going to ask you again, if the streak ends in the Indianapolis 500, would you be crushed? I wouldn't be crushed.

Alex Palou:

I would be sad, obviously. But that would be sad even if next week was, I don't know, Iowa or, I don't know, St. Pete. Or Detroit. Or Detroit, whatever. But I'll answer again the same thing. What if we are able to still win the 500 and continue with the streak? That would be pretty special.

Bruce Martin:

But I'll wrap up with this question. As a race driver in IndyCar, how do you grapple with the fact that everything that has happened up to this point, once the Indy 500 starts, doesn't matter at all? It's the first oval race of the year. It's the biggest race on earth, that everything almost gets wiped off. Your great start, four wins in the first five races, a second place, that it's not going to matter on May 25th because that is a different race altogether.

Alex Palou:

Absolutely. And I, I understand and I agree a hundred percent. And we also take that mentality of like, once you're on track, like everybody will have four days of practice, uh, or three days of practice before qualifying. And that wipes everything that we've done until this point. Um, so we're gonna be focused only on that practice then on qualifying and then just for the biggest race. So yeah, I, I'm aware of that.

Bruce Martin:

Do you have any idea of the historical significance of what you're doing in 2025?

Alex Palou:

Yes and no. Yes, because of what I've heard you guys say, but I didn't realize. I mean, I realized because of how I feel and how the team feels, but didn't know about the numbers and stuff.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Alex Palou, we're all witnessing history. Thanks to you. Congratulations on winning the Sanzio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the road course for the third straight year. Congratulations on your 15th IndyCar victory. Good luck. Now that it's the month of May and we start the Indianapolis 500 practice on Tuesday. And thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you, Bruce. Graham Rahal led 49 laps in the 85 lap road course race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but his rear tires faded toward the end of the race. He held on for a sixth place finish. I caught up with Rahal on pit lane after the race for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. Did it just feel like it was a matter of time before he was able to pounce?

Graham Rahal:

Yeah, I mean, yeah, I mean, they're just, they're so fast. It's not just a little, it's everywhere. And even on the straightaways, they just accelerate at a different pace. You know, when they're behind you, overtake to overtake, like Kirkwood or any of those guys really couldn't gain on me. Any Ganassi car behind me was like in a, it's like they had, you know, 10 extra pounds of boost, it's wild. You know, we just gotta keep working hard to figure out what the hell they're doing, I can tell you from a driver's perspective, I had every driver come up and down pit lane telling me to take it to them today and try as best I could. I tried to make them all proud, but it is so hard right now to hold those guys off. It's like I said, there's just, they're in a different level. And we all, we got a lot of catching up to do.

Bruce Martin:

And did you have a little bit longer first gear coming out of pit lane that may have hampered the exit velocity?

Graham Rahal:

I don't know, but all weekend. I mean, last night, I literally had a nightmare about stalling. Like, I knew it was gonna be a really hard day to get it out of the pits, and unfortunately it was. You know, we didn't stall ever, but I mean, just couldn't spin the tire at all. So, definitely something we've gotta look at for next year. I don't know what other people had, but we were at max launch RPM and tried everything we could. How do you feel going into the 500? I mean, I feel good. Like, I mean, I said it last night, I feel good after the test. And obviously this is a good, you know, bump for the boys. They did a good job. Yeah, I mean, maybe just try to match him. But honestly, like, Colton passed me and then went nowhere and that just killed my tire. Like, I don't know what that was about. Like, RaceCraft 101 is you don't do that to the leaders. Like, when you're not in the hunt at all, don't mess with the leaders. And there was a couple guys that did that today. And I just don't, I just don't really understand that because where were you going to go? Like, I don't know, you know, so, uh, look, I mean, at the end of the day, I don't know what else we could have done. You know? I mean, we tried to execute what we thought was best and wasn't enough. Yeah, I mean, those Ganassi cars are just in a league of their own. Like, the grip that they have, the ability to follow so close, compared to everybody else, just... I don't know. It's not just Alex. I mean, when Scott was behind me, it's the same. They're just... I mean, I just told these guys, like, I genuinely am proud. Like, I don't think I locked up once. I don't think I put one wheel wrong. I defended as best I could, but... They're just in a league of their own. There's a different stratosphere of grip, and so, uh... You know, we tried our best, obviously. if their bank, you know, the Honda was quick today, that's the end of the engine life for us, so great job to them, that thing made it a long time for us this year. Yeah, I mean, I tried to just drive as flawlessly as I could, because I knew that was the only way to beat them, but unfortunately, like, we're just not in their league right now. I mean, that was my strategy, was... just forced the issue with him. You know, Penn Jim, I watched the video of him with Christian last year and he purposely pushed Christian wide out of one. So I wanted to do enough and get far enough by him that he couldn't do that. And if he did, it was going to be a fault to him. And ultimately, like he was clean and You know, I just knew that I had to do that to control it, because if we just let him go, that race would have been a lot more boring than what it was, you know? I mean, in the end, it was a, I don't know, from a fan's perspective, I can tell you mine, I'm going to sleep well. I worked hard, hard, hard to keep him behind me, but, you know, those guys are just in their own league. Yeah, man, I tried. Thank you.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Josef Newgarden:

Hey everyone, this is two-time Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

Bruce Martin:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Team Penske's Scott McLaughlin finished fourth in the Sanzio Grand Prix and now turns his focus to Indianapolis 500 practice and qualifications. McLaughlin won the Indy 500 pole in 2024 and is attempting to win it again this weekend. I caught up with McLaughlin after the Sanzio Grand Prix as he prepared to spend Mother's Day with his wife Carly and the couple's young daughter Lucy Violet for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. Scott McLaughlin, almost a podium finish here at the Sanzio Grand Prix. You finished fourth. Looked like a pretty fierce battle out there. How would you size up the day for the thirsty threes at Team Penske?

Scott McLaughlin:

Look, it was up and down, right? But obviously, we're We made a couple of changes across the weekend, I thought it was really good. We ended up in a good spot come qualifying and then we were able to have a really good race. Fourth was good, but I thought we could have easily got second.

Bruce Martin:

a rarity in IndyCar for 2025. We actually saw a yellow flag today. Did that surprise you and did it come at a good time for you?

Scott McLaughlin:

Yeah, it wasn't, it wasn't our fault though. It was something else. So, I mean, yeah, it did probably surprise me a little bit, but, you know, I'm thankful we were able to hold on to the fourth because I had really no push to pass left, maybe 11 seconds or something. So compared to the people around me, so yeah, it is what it is.

Bruce Martin:

Alex Pillow's dominance continues. We haven't really seen this The last time we may have saw it was Scott Dixon winning the first three races in 2020. You weren't in IndyCar yet. When you look and see what he's done so far in 2025, even as a competitor, you've got to go, wow.

Scott McLaughlin:

Yeah, I mean, he's executing at a seriously high level. And yeah, he's fast, you know, and he's using his speed. I mean, he's not making any mistakes. But look, at the same time, if we put some pressure on him, I think, you know, we can break him. But at the end of the day, you can't You can't be worried about him. I need to worry about what I'm doing to be better and to be faster and put ourselves out there. I thought we were close today. I really did, but then he sort of stretched his legs in the last few stints, so here's what it is.

Bruce Martin:

But the good news is nothing that has happened up to this point. really determines what happens here on May 25th and 109th Indianapolis 500. First oval of the season, you have to feel like in a lot of ways it's a fresh new start for everybody in IndyCar.

Scott McLaughlin:

Well, I feel better than him there, so I feel really good. I had a great open test. It's a fresh start and it's basically dog eat dog and just get after it. It's the biggest race of the season and there's no point worrying about the championship right now. Might as well just get going and put every egg in the basket.

Bruce Martin:

You also won the Indianapolis 500 poll last year, going for two in a row next weekend. How big a goal is that for you? Obviously the big goal is to win the race.

Scott McLaughlin:

Yeah, absolutely. Big goal is to win the race. But obviously, we are so focused on keeping the speed that we had last year. And yeah, I think we've got a really good shot at qualifying really well again, and then racing our way up the front again. But I learned a lot last year, and I can't wait.

Bruce Martin:

And finally, a special day for you tomorrow. It's going to be your daughter's first Mother's Day. So how exciting is that, that you as a father, your wife, and your daughter are going to get to celebrate your first Mother's Day as a family?

Scott McLaughlin:

Awesome, man. I can't wait for Carly. She's so excited as well. So it's going to be awesome to just, yeah, hang out together. We're going out for brunch tomorrow, brunch for Mother's Day, and hanging out with the little girl. So it's going to be great. Can't wait to get home. That's why I'm sort of in a hurry to get out of here.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Scott McLaughlin, congratulations on pedaling your way up to a fourth place finish. Good luck during Indianapolis 500 qualifications and even more luck in the 109th Indianapolis 500. We'll talk some more later this week, but thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you, Bruce. Appreciate it. Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Global started 21st and finished 8th. After the race, he wondered if he won the Hard Charger Award for the driver that advances the most positions in the race. But that award actually went to Renas VeeKay of Dale Coyne Racing, who started 24th and finished 9th. Regardless, Kirkwood took time out to give me this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview after the race. I'm gonna call you the hard charger. Kyle Kirkwood, you're the hard charger of the Sanzio Grand Prix. You made it all the way up to 8th place from 21st place. How tough was the race from your point of view?

Kyle Kirkwood:

Uh, well I don't know if I'm the hard charger. I am a hard charger at least. You're always a hard charger. Yeah. It was a hard race, I'm not going to lie. We gambled a little bit. Of course, we had to from the back, right? We played our strategy perfect, undercut a lot of people, and worked out very, very well in our favor, went fast when we needed to. Good day in general, right? Any time you go from 21st to 8th in an IndyCar race is pretty incredible in my eyes. Good day from the weekend that we had. We didn't get warm up. So we kind of went into this race blind, especially with tire strategy. We just didn't really know. But we played our cards right. We had a really good race. You know, I think we got mostly everything out of it. If that yellow didn't come out, we would have finished seventh. But yeah, that yellow kind of caught us out. We were on the wrong tire at the wrong time at that point. But everywhere else in the race, we were on the right tire. So it was a mostly good race. So you're one driver that wanted to see the green flag streak continue without a yellow. Yes, that's what we are anticipating. And it wasn't anything big that caused it, was it? So a bit unfortunate for me. Maybe fortunate for IndyCar, maybe excited some things up a little bit. We've needed that for a couple races, I think. And nonetheless, we lost a position from it. I'll take a loss over after gaining 13 or 14, I should say. So, good day for us.

Bruce Martin:

You gotta work with me on this analogy. Do you look at the month of May, obviously, everything's geared around the Indianapolis 500. Do you look at this month like a trip to St. Elmo's? This was the shrimp cocktail. The big steak comes in two weeks.

Kyle Kirkwood:

Man, I like the shrimp cocktail. That's my favorite part about that place. You know, this is a very small portion, if I'm being honest, it's a very small portion of the month of May. And the big stuff is what's ahead, going the other direction around this place, which we're extremely excited for. That's what we're going to focus on from this moment on is Indy 500 stuff. And we came out of that test extremely confident in our raceability, our qualifying car, our power. Honda brought a great package, it seems like, and should be a good month.

Bruce Martin:

But as a Honda driver, are you surprised that the Ganassi Hondas are just that much better than everybody else's Honda?

Kyle Kirkwood:

No, every Honda is the same. That is one thing I'm certain of. Honda does a great job building their motors, and there's no discrepancies between each, and we know that they have the same power unit as us. They're just doing things better than us right now in some ways. Street courses, I feel like we're still better than them, but it's been a lot of road courses since then, and we know that they're really good at road courses, so it'll be... Really good to get back on the oval and see what they got there and see what we got. That's where we get paid the big bucks.

Bruce Martin:

Well, I just meant more like maybe Ride Heights or just something they're doing on the car setup that is just they found a hit on a great setup that the other Honda teams haven't hit on yet.

Kyle Kirkwood:

You would be correct in saying that. Yes. I don't know what it is. Of course, if I knew what it was, I would do it. And finally, how confident are you about the 500? Extremely. I said that a second ago. Coming out of that test in late April, we were some of the fastest cars and some of the most racy cars. So we're excited to get back to it. Only a few days, right? A couple of days and we're rolling into the 500. And that's our Super Bowl. That's our main event. And that's what we look forward to every single year. You know, it comes back around.

Bruce Martin:

Kyle Kirkwood, you're always a hard charger in my book. Congratulations on getting into eighth place after starting so far back. Good luck in the Indy 500. Awesome, thank you. It was a great weekend for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, entering the Sanzio Grand Prix as all three drivers qualified in the top five on Friday, including Graham Rahal in second, rookie Louis Foster in third, and Devlin DeFrancesco in fifth. Ray Hall would finish 6th, Foster 11th, and DeFrancesco 17th, as each driver showed tremendous promise in the race. That was great news for Ray Hall-Letterman-Lanigan president Jay Fry, who used to be the IndyCar president before he was released on February 11th. Instead of running IndyCar, Fry is now in charge of the race team owned by Bobby Ray Hall, David Letterman, and Michael Lanigan. I caught up with Fry after the Sanzio Grand Prix for this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy. Greyhall letter in Lannigan, President Jay Fry. Graham Rael had a heck of a race toward the end, though. I guess longer gears, tires got to be an issue. He finished sixth, but he still led a lot of laps in the Sanzio Grand Prix. How would you size up the effort?

Jay Frye:

Well, it was, I think, overall a very good team effort the entire weekend. If you look at having three cars in the top, or in the fast six, three in the top five to start the race. The car that led the most laps today, I believe, was Graham. So, you know, overall, you know, a very solid weekend by the whole team.

Bruce Martin:

And also, when you look at a driver like Alex Pillow, he's on a remarkable run for the ages here. It's kind of hard to stop him. But all in all, how would you really look at just the way this race played out and how Rayhall-Utterman-Lanigan Racing had a very good weekend?

Jay Frye:

Yeah, no, like I just mentioned, I mean, all the things, you know, having three cars in the Firestone Fast Six, we had never done that before. So that was, you know, an amazing effort by the entire team. You know, we got, you know, Graham finishing in the top 10, which is great. Louis was right there in 11th. And Devlin did a nice job finishing 17th. So what we've had to do lately, or what we need to be doing, is building every week. So we've had a couple tough weeks. This is a really good weekend from start to finish. You know, good day on Friday, good day today. And there's something to build on here, yes.

Bruce Martin:

All three of your drivers described you a little bit like a football coach. You go in there and you give them pep talks and that really inspires them. Do you use a little bit of that? You used to play college football at the University of Missouri. Do you use some of that college football coaching technique to help fire up the troops?

Jay Frye:

Well, I think football is a good analogy to lots of different things that we do in life. So there's some of that, yeah. I mean, being a former football guy, I do. We had a team meeting a few weeks ago, and we played the movie, any given Sunday, The Inch's Speech, the Pacino thing, which to me is amazing. There's inches all around. We just got to make sure we're getting our inches.

Bruce Martin:

You used to be the president of IndyCar, but now you're the president of Rahal Letterman-Lanigan Racing. Is it a lot more fun when you're in a team environment and you can pull for drivers rather than try to make it?

Jay Frye:

even for the whole field? Yeah, well, I mean, we had a really good 10-year run at IndyCar. I really enjoyed it. Obviously got to know the entire paddock very well, so that was really cool. It's just different. You know, I obviously did this before in the NASCAR days for a long time, so it's kind of like riding a bike, you know, back on the team side. Really enjoyed being at RLL. Great group of people, great ownership. You know, again, this was a really good weekend to build on. We just got to keep building on it.

Bruce Martin:

Let's not forget about Devlin DeFrancesco and Louie Foster. They had a pretty good weekend also, so to see them develop has to be very important for you.

Jay Frye:

Yeah, I mean, obviously Louie almost hit his first top ten, finished 11th. Devlin did a good job bringing home 17th. You know, again, this weekend was a good weekend. There's something to build on it.

Bruce Martin:

And finally for you, is it a little redemptive that it happened here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

Jay Frye:

It pays the same, it's the same amount of points, and we're looking forward to getting ready to go for the 500 next week.

Bruce Martin:

All right, well, good luck in the 109th Indianapolis 500. Congratulations on a pretty good race here, and thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy. Yes, sir. Thank you, Bruce. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Josef Newgarden:

Hey everyone, this is two-time Indy 500 winner, Josef Newgarden, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

Bruce Martin:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Dario Franchitti knows about success as the former driver won three Indianapolis 500s and four NTT IndyCar Series championships before a crash in the street race at Houston in 2013 ended his racing career. Franchitti stepped up to management at Chip Ganassi Racing and works with all three drivers on the IndyCar team and the IndyNex by Firestone program. Frankini works closely with all three drivers, including six-time IndyCar Series champion in 2008, Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon, three-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou, and young driver Kiffin Simpson. I asked Frank Keady for his thoughts on Alex Pillow's outstanding streak of success that includes four wins in the first five races and the second-place finish in the one race he didn't win. Here is my exclusive interview with Frank Keady for Pit Pass Indy. Dario, Frank, Katie, you've had some great moments in your IndyCar career. You've had many great streaks, but Alex Pillow, the driver you work with at Chip Ganassi Racing, is on a tremendous streak of his own. He's won three of the first four races, four of the first five races, heading into the Indianapolis 500. You being part of Chip Ganassi Racing, how do you size up just the role that he's on right now?

Dario Franchitti:

He's driving beautifully. I mean, there's not much else to say. The team are giving him fantastic cars, obviously, great pit stops, all those things, but he is driving beautifully. It's not only quick, but it's great to watch because he's an artist behind the wheel. I enjoy watching it. He's so smooth. His style is really suiting the car, and he is finding ways all the time to find performance from the car. And it's great to watch. It's great to be a part of. I'm sure it's not so much fun for the competition, but yeah, it's great.

Bruce Martin:

Do you think one of the amazing things about his run was in today's race, Graham Rahal led a lot of laps. It just looked like Alex Pillow was sizing him up, waiting for the right moment to make the move.

Dario Franchitti:

Yeah, I think ultimately the strategies that were on with tires, the lap times were very close today for most of the field. But Alex, I think, was just sitting there. He knew where he had the advantage. And so he waited until the time was right. And he made the move. So yeah, that's one of Alex's, I think, one of his other strengths is he's able to think about the long game, think about the race as a whole, whether it's lap one, lap 50, whatever. And that's one of his big strengths.

Bruce Martin:

Now, during your IndyCar career, this race didn't exist, so you didn't start off the month of May on the IMS road course. In a lot of ways, I look at this month of May as kind of like a trip to St. Elmo's. You start off with the appetizer, the shrimp cocktail, which is this race, but the big steak comes on May 25th and 109th Indianapolis 500.

Dario Franchitti:

Yeah, I mean, this is part of the, this is a regular season, isn't it? Whereas the, I guess to use a football analogy, two weeks times the Superbowl, and it is... That's what we all care about now, is full focus on that. All these teams have been working since probably the Tuesday or the Wednesday after last year's 500 to perfect their packages for this year. Teams, engine manufacturers, you name it, everybody's been doing that. So these next two weeks are just so important for everybody. And we'll be doing everything we can, leaving no stone unturned, using every asset we've got at Chip Ganassi Racing to try and put one of our cars in victory lane.

Bruce Martin:

But you know as well as I know that everything that has happened up to this point means nothing in the Indianapolis 500. It's going to be the first oval of the season. The only thing that it does do is that this team comes in with a very big boost of momentum, but other than that, it's a whole new game at the Indianapolis 500. As you well know as a three-time Indy 500 winner,

Dario Franchitti:

I think you're absolutely right. Every race weekend, you start essentially at zero again. But the Indianapolis 500 is not an ordinary race weekend. It's two weeks of pressure. It's a different animal than the rest of the season. So yeah, you've got to go out and you've got to earn it all through practice, through qualifying, and then certainly, you know, In the race itself, everything is a preparation. You're really trying to perfect your car to put yourself in a position to compete for a win. And then you, your team, must execute on race day.

Bruce Martin:

And final question for Dario Franchitti at Chip Ganassi Racing. You've raced against the greats of the great in IndyCar history. Where do you put Alex Pallot's incredible streak in the historical perspective of what the great drivers you've raced against, including the great streaks you've had?

Dario Franchitti:

Yeah, his performance right now is quite something. Him and I have had a couple of jokes. It would have been fun to have a couple of races together, see how we got on. He mentioned we should go to the go-kart track, but I think I'm too old for the go-kart track now. It's just so impressive, isn't it? I think the constant in that is the team, is Chip Ganassi Racing, isn't it? You know, we've all, Scott, myself, Zanardi, Montoya, Vasseur, we've all had those streaks and the one constant is the Chip Ganassi team, so hats off to them.

Bruce Martin:

Well, if he wins his first Indianapolis 500 this year, it'll be monumental. Don't curse it.

Bruce Martin:

Don't curse it.

Bruce Martin:

If he wins his fourth IndyCar Series championship, he'd tie you in the championship category.

Dario Franchitti:

Those are all impressive streaks. Oh, it's really impressive. And in the short space of time that he's been in the sport, to have those stats is impressive. But I just keep needling him and keep pushing him. Just to wind him up a little bit about winning his first Indianapolis 500. Scott winning his second, Kiffin winning his first. That's what it's all about now.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Dario Franchitti, you've always been a favorite of the show. Good luck in the 109th Indianapolis 500 at Chip Ganassi Racing. Thank you for joining us on Pit Passing. Thanks, Bruce. We wrap up today's Pit Pass Indy with the driver we heard from at the beginning of today's show. It's Alex Pillow of Chip Ganassi Racing. Here is an exclusive interview I had with Pillow two weeks ago looking ahead to the 109th Indianapolis 500. As I said to you in a recent interview that we had for Pit Pass Indy, it's the best driver in IndyCar who has yet to win the Indianapolis 500. Of course, we're talking about three-time IndyCar Series champion Alex Blow, Chip Ganassi Racing. It's the month of May. It's finally here. Although we're doing this interview at Barber Motorsports Park, I imagine everybody in the back of their mind is thinking,

Alex Palou:

Hey, we're getting ready to go to the Indy 500. Absolutely, we are. Especially after the open test where you spend two days at the track, you start getting used to the race running, you do a little bit of qualifying and some more race running, and you start getting excited and all thinking about traffic and how to just get a fast race car for the 500. But yeah, it's already May. It's super exciting. You can start seeing the Speedway race flags all around, at least in my neighborhood. And yeah, I'm excited for the race to come.

Bruce Martin:

So why is this the year for Alex Pillow in the Indianapolis 500? Why, in your mind, do you believe this will be the year you win it?

Alex Palou:

I feel more confident than ever before. I think I got to experience different parts of the 500, like running up front, running in the back, having to overtake, having a fast car, having not such a fast car. So I feel more ready than ever. And I think it's enough to win. So yeah, I think that's why. And I'm hungry to try and win it.

Bruce Martin:

And from an experience level, do you have a little more knowledge and a few more tricks that you can play now that maybe you didn't have in 2021 when you were battling with Elio Castroneves and finished second to him in 2021?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, I mean, that race, I have to say, I think and I believe that I had the faster car than Elio, but he just had Yeah, more experience. He was just much better than me, reading the traffic and knowing when to overtake, when to defend. I think I have a lot more experience now. I don't know if as much as Elio, probably not. But yeah, I feel that I could have done something different.

Bruce Martin:

You're a smart driver, you know when to be aggressive and when not to be, but in that race, are you gonna be a little bolder than normal?

Alex Palou:

I mean, you have to, that race, you're not thinking about the championship at all. A third place is not good enough, a second place is not good enough, and it's only first that it counts. So yeah, obviously you don't act crazy, but I think everybody goes there to try and win the 500.

Bruce Martin:

In that particular race, does a race driver sometimes make a move that he may not be sure is gonna work, and it's just like, I gotta chance it, I gotta see if the car will go up here, and let's see if it works?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, I mean, sometimes that's what you have to do to try and move, especially on restarts, we've seen that. Yeah, hopefully all the moves that we make, we make them work.

Bruce Martin:

before the Indy 500, obviously, is the IndyCar Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. How do you like that race? How do you like that road course? And how do you like the fact that it really does kick off the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, it does. You can see it with the fans, but also just being there. Yeah, it's like the Indy 500, it's starting, it's the warm-up, let's say. And we've been really good the past couple of years, where we won the last two years, actually. So, yeah, we have great fast cars. So, obviously, I love that place. Do you believe that you are the face of IndyCar? I do not believe that, no.

Bruce Martin:

Why is that?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, maybe I'm not... as big with social media and all that stuff to be a big character and be the face of IndyCar. That's okay. And yeah, honestly, I think there's drivers that do a better job than me on being the face of IndyCar.

Bruce Martin:

Do you believe that Joseph Dugard is the face of the Indianapolis 500 right now?

Alex Palou:

Right now, yes, for sure. I mean, and he does a really good job, yeah.

Bruce Martin:

And how important is it for you to displace him as the face of the Indianapolis 500? It's a goal.

Alex Palou:

It's very important. I mean, everybody, unfortunately, has to see the champion from the previous year when they enter the track. And you don't want to see a face that it's not yours. Unfortunately, I never got to see my face there on the entry of the parking lot. But yeah, hopefully we can change that. And we can make it happen.

Bruce Martin:

But the most important face of all, if you win the 109th Indianapolis 500, your face is gonna go on the BorgWarner trophy, along with the faces of every winning driver that's ever won that race. That has to be a lifetime goal.

Alex Palou:

Absolutely, it is. I mean, it's the biggest goal, I think, that you can have, one of the biggest in motorsport. And I'm pretty sure that my face, although I'm not really handsome, would look amazing on that trophy.

Bruce Martin:

Well, you're a little more handsome than I am, but we'll let you go on that. Final question with Alex Blow here at Chip Ganassi Racing. Recently, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum acquired a lot of cars from Chip Ganassi Racing, all the great winning cars from the 2000s. How cool is it to know that that team's history is so rich that it's now on display? at one of the great racing museums in the world.

Alex Palou:

Oh, it's amazing. And the cars that I saw the other day when they got delivered at the museum, they look amazing. And it's just a big part of history, not only of IndyCar and the Speedway, but I would say motorsport in general. But it would be amazing to one day have one of our cars, my car, with my name in that museum. The museum looks amazing. I think they did an amazing remodeling and hope that everybody gets to see it.

Bruce Martin:

Well, you know, when you walk into the Indianapolis 500 with Chip Ganassi, he expects to win it. So in a lot of ways, that has to be a confidence level that makes its way all throughout the organization.

Alex Palou:

Absolutely. I mean, it's an expectation, but it's good because that means that Everybody behind in the team is pushing and is working towards that. It's a good pressure to have, because you know you're in an environment that it's capable of doing it.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Alex Velo, good luck on that goal, and hopefully we see your face on the BorgWarner Trophy here soon. Good luck on the 109th Indianapolis 500, and thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy.

Alex Palou:

Thank you, Bruce.

Bruce Martin:

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Race. We want to thank our guests, the winner of the 2025 Sanzio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske, Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Global, Jay Fry, the president of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and IndyCar great Dario Franchitti of Chip Ganassi Racing for joining us on today's podcast. Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests helped make Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental, your path to victory lane in IndyCar. On the highways, the raceways, and every pit stop in between, Penske Truck Rental keeps you moving forward. Gain ground with Penske. For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at X, previously known as Twitter, at BruceMartin, one word, uppercase B, uppercase M, underscore 500. Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rentals at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 109th Indianapolis 500. We will have regular and bonus episodes all month thanks to our friends from Penske Truck Rental and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Tickets are going fast for the 109th Indianapolis 500 on May 25th as it gets closer to selling out, so get yours today before all grandstand seats are sold. Contact the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Ticket Office at 317-492-6700 or visit IMS.com. This has been a production of Evergreen Podcast. A special thanks to our production team, executive producers are Bridget Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcast.com. Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.