Wrapping up Indy 500 Open Test with 2022 winner Marcus Ericsson, Conor Daly and three-time IndyCar Series Champion Alex Palou

Rodger Penske:

This is Roger Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy, 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 an insider's 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 Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Auto Week, and Speed Sport. So let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy. Welcome to this bonus edition of 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. PitPass Indy was at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for last week's big two-day Indy 500 Open Test. All 34 cars and drivers that will compete at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May in preparation for the 109th Indianapolis 500 were on the famed 2.5-mile oval on Wednesday, April 23rd and Thursday, April 24th. It was two solid days of testing. The combined laps for the two-day test were 3,368, with 2024 Indianapolis 500 pole winner Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske the fastest of the two-day test. McLaughlin turned a lap at 232.686 miles per hour in the number three Pennzoil Chevrolet during the two and a half hour high boost session that allowed teams to make qualification sims for the Indy 500. Today's edition of Pit Pass Indy wraps up our interviews from the Indy 500 Open Test as we head off to Birmingham for this weekend's Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park. Our first guest celebrated the victory in the 2022 Indianapolis 500. This past Tuesday night, he celebrated the Indiana Pacers' big win in the NBA playoffs as they eliminated the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 5 and won the series 4-1, advancing into the NBA's Eastern Conference Semifinals. It's Marcus Ericcson of Andretti Global who has had a chance to watch the Pacers several times this season from the front row courtside seats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Erickson also has a spectacular view in the number 28 Honda at Andretti Global as he attempts to win his second Indianapolis 500 on May 25th. Erickson tells us all about it in this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. A man rapidly becoming a Pacer super fan of the Indiana Pacers. He's also a pretty good driver in the Indianapolis 500 too. It's former Indianapolis 500 winner, Marcus Ericcson, and Ready Global. We're at Indy 500 open testing. Beautiful sunny day, temperatures in the high 70s. I can't think of a better place to spend a late April afternoon than here. Can you?

Marcus Ericsson:

No, I would agree with that. It's a beautiful day and it's great to be back here turning laps. You know, it's always exciting to come back here, especially when we get weather like this in April. You know, it's going to be a good year. It must be.

Bruce Martin:

How excited are you this year that you're going to go into the month of May at the Indianapolis 500 and achieve a better result than you did last year, which was your first year with Andretti Global?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, it's not going to be that hard, I think, because we only made it one corner last year, so. You know, it's the only way up from there. But yeah, I'm excited to be back. We had a tough month of May last year, but I think looking back at it now with some distance to it, it made us grow as a group and we came together really well as a group after that. And I think that's going to show this year we're going to be working in a different way, a more confident way. And yeah, excited to be back here and show what we can do.

Bruce Martin:

Your teammate Kyle Kirkwood won at the Acura Grand Prix at Long Beach, his second Long Beach victory in three attempts. How much did that boost the whole overall team at Andretti Global?

Marcus Ericsson:

A lot. You know, a win like that on one of the, you know... I would say Long Beach is one of the most high-level races we have on the calendar. So for us to win there, 1-2 with Kyle and Colton in qualifying, it really gives us a lot of momentum as a group. We have fast cars. We've had fast cars all three races. We just need to execute better on race day. But yeah, definitely Kyle winning there was big for us.

Bruce Martin:

It's the Indy 500 Open Test this week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. You're running around here with the Hybrid Assist Unit, which is extra weight in the rear of the car. How different does the car feel?

Marcus Ericsson:

Not a ton, to be honest. I probably expected it to be a little bit more different, but at least in those speeds we're doing now, you don't really feel a ton of difference. But maybe tomorrow when we do qualifying boosts, we'll move around a little bit more, so it'll be interesting. But yeah, it feels good so far.

Bruce Martin:

that is going to be new to this year's Indy 500 Open Test is they're going to add the qualifying boost that they normally wait till Fast Friday to put on there. How much does that change the dynamic of what this test is going to be and give you a better idea of what the speeds may be on qualifying weekend next month?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, it will be interesting to see that. I think it means you can start your work for qualifying obviously a bit earlier than usual. And it will be interesting with the hybrid to see how that affects things. Personally, I think it's good. I think it's good that we get out there and sort of get a chance to try it. And then you can look at that data and analyze it before we come back in May. So I think it's a good thing.

Bruce Martin:

You won the Indianapolis 500 in 2022. In many ways, you may should have won the Indianapolis 500 in 2023. How excited are you as a former winner every time you return here?

Marcus Ericsson:

No, it's super special to be here every time, especially as a winner. You know, it's just something about this place that's hard to describe. And especially on a day like today, it's beautiful weather out here, turning laps, seeing fans in the grandstands already for the open test. It's pretty cool. So, yeah, always a very special feeling coming here.

Bruce Martin:

Another thing that's a special feeling is, as I mentioned at the start of our interview, you've become an Indiana Pacers super fan here. You've had a couple of games on the courtside seats. that the VIPs get, and you being a former winner of the Indianapolis 500, you're certainly a VIP. Did you ever think that you would become a huge fan of an NBA team?

Marcus Ericsson:

No, definitely not. You know, growing up in Sweden, we don't really have basketball. I mean, we have it, but it's not a big sport over there, so didn't really follow it growing up. But now living here in Indy for, you know, it's my seventh year living here. It's been a while, so... Started to follow them the last couple of years more and more, and now, yeah, really enjoy going to games and supporting the team and, you know, watching them play. They're really a great team. It's great atmosphere down in Gainbridge Fieldhouse as well, so always a good time.

Bruce Martin:

What do you find more fascinating, the ability of an NBA player, what they do? It's a very physical game, and those guys are giants. But also the fans, because that place rocks.

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I mean, it is super cool to see courtside and see those guys running around and, you know, bouncing into each other and just the power they have and, you know, being so big and having that power. And it's just very impressive to see that up close. But like you said, also the arena, especially in a playoff game, it's just it's so loud. It's insane. So, yeah, a really fun experience for sure.

Bruce Martin:

But you have something those guys can't do. You can drive a race car over 230 miles an hour in the Indianapolis 500. They don't get to do that. Exactly, exactly. So, you know, we're pretty cool.

Marcus Ericsson:

I was here as well.

Bruce Martin:

Well, get ready to drink some milk because you stand a pretty good chance of winning the 109th Indianapolis 500. Marcus Ericcson, Andretti Global. Good luck in Indy 500 open testing. Good luck next week at Barber Motorsports Park. Good luck in the 109th Indianapolis 500. And thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. Next up is a driver who literally grew up at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His father, Derek Daly, competed in the Indianapolis 500 six times from 1982 to 1989, and his stepfather is Doug Bowles, the president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the president of IndyCar. It's Connor Daly of Juncos Hollinger Racing. The popular driver is from nearby Noblesville, Indiana, and is a fan favorite at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as a hometown Hoosier hero. Daly joins me for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. Our next guest knows every nook and cranny of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway because he grew up at this place. I'm sure there are a lot of times throughout the year you probably came out here and investigated what this place was all about. It's Connor Daly. Connor, when you think of what this place means to you growing up here, is it like coming home again or is it even more special than that?

Conor Daly:

Greatest place in the world? Yeah, it's, love it here. Love everything that we get to do here. I feel very lucky that obviously in this point in my life, I get to go out and drive cars here. So we're gonna keep enjoying every day. And yeah, there's, place looks great. Weather looks great. Fans, I mean, there's fans in the stands. I don't remember the last time we had fans in the stands for the test. Maybe they've done that before, but it's really cool to see, honestly.

Bruce Martin:

We started off the day with a lot of high hopes, beautiful weather, sunny day, fans out at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a test session. Got off to a slow start though. There was close to a three hour delay. Did you get a good idea what had happened?

Conor Daly:

I have no idea, honestly.

Bruce Martin:

Some type of computer snafu that caused IT issues.

Conor Daly:

Well, I mean, technology, we rely on so much these days that you gotta have it. And sadly, we don't have anyone hand counting laps and times anymore. It's, it's, you know, it's just part of the deal. So I appreciate IndyCar for honestly getting a fix because some of those things, I mean, I've had, I've had my spectrum internet go out every now and then and suddenly you got to wait like two days to get it back because they got to fix something. So we're glad that that wasn't the problem.

Bruce Martin:

But when your dad, Derek Daly, raced in the Indianapolis 500, everybody used stopwatches. So that could have been a solution, but from a safety standpoint, you need to have rapid response and everything. So yeah, and all the yellow on the side of safety.

Conor Daly:

Yeah, we always trust everyone to hear to be kind of on the side of safety. But yeah, I'm just glad once you wait that long, you kind of think, oh, there's no way we're going to get back out there. I'm just glad we got back out there.

Bruce Martin:

You're a local boy. You grew up in the Indianapolis area. You're from Noblesville, Indiana, which is northeast of here by maybe 30, 40 minute drive. The fans go crazy when you take the lead in the Indianapolis 500. And that's one of the most thrilling sounds that the fans can hear is how popular you are. Are you aware when you're in the race that the fans were reacting like that?

Conor Daly:

No, not aware at all, sadly, because I'm sure we get my get the little hairs on my arm raising up off my arm a bit. goosebumps. But I love seeing the videos afterwards. It's amazing to see. I mean, I appreciate everyone that comes out here so much. Whether you love me or hate me, we just appreciate the fact that folks are here. And usually, you know, well, it is the largest crowd in sports, so we're just thankful for that. And it's cool to see that people enjoy seeing me get to the front.

Bruce Martin:

Is your hair standing on your arm moment, Driver Introductions, when you get to hear the fans? when they announced Conor Daly.

Conor Daly:

That's a cool one. Yeah, that seems to grow a little bit bigger every year too. So, depends on who you start next to, obviously, in the rows. But, yeah, I've been enjoying several different introductions and I've loved it.

Bruce Martin:

I'm going to ask you a difficult question. Why are you so popular?

Conor Daly:

I don't know. I mean, I'm the only one from Indiana. So like this is my born and raised hometown. So I love to represent for the hometown. I feel like I've worked my butt off to be here and I continue to work my butt off to be here. I don't have some. you know, luxurious lifestyle that is, you know, that a lot of people do. I'm just literally trying to pay bills and trying to win races and trying to be successful in this sport. So, yeah, I feel very fortunate to be here and I love sharing it with the folks that support us.

Bruce Martin:

The Indianapolis 500 has fans all over the world. It's one of the greatest sporting events on earth. But to those of us who are from Indiana, it means that much more. And how do you begin to even describe that to somebody who wasn't born and raised in the state of Indiana?

Conor Daly:

Well, I mean, it's, I think once you come out here, you kind of understand it and you know, but it's, you know, what would be even cooler is, you know, it's been 85 years since someone from Indiana has won the Indy 500. So hopefully we can get it done.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Connor Daly, we know that if you won an Indianapolis 500, it'd be one of the most popular fan reactions in history. So good luck, and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Scott McLaughlin:

Hi, I'm Scott McLaughlin, driver of the number three team Penske Chevy, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rentals.

Bruce Martin:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. We wrap up today's show with the best driver in IndyCar who has yet to win the Indianapolis 500. It's three-time NTT IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, who has come close in his career, but has never crossed the finish line first on the final lap of the Indianapolis 500. Pelos started 7th and finished 28th in his rookie Indy 500 in 2020, and returned in 2021 to start 6th, lead 35 laps, and finish 2nd to Elio Castroneves in a dramatic Indy 500. In that race, Castroneves became the 4th four-time winner of the Indianapolis 500, and the first driver from outside the United States to become a four-time Indy 500 winner. In 2022, Palou started 2nd and finished 9th after leading 47 laps. In 2023, he won the pole and led 36 laps but was in a crash with Renas VeeKay leaving pit lane midway through the race. Despite that, he was able to fight his way back to a 4th place finish. Last year, Palou started 14th and finished 5th in the number 10 DHL Honda leading 1 lap. Palou, who won the NTT IndyCar Series Championship the last two seasons and has three titles overall, enters this weekend's Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix with the lead in the championship race after starting the season with two straight wins and a second place finish to Kyle Kirkwood at the most recent race, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Here is my exclusive interview with Palou for PitPass Indy. Joining us now is a three-time IndyCar Series champion, including the last two back-to-backs. But I'm going to give you a new title. The best driver in IndyCar who has yet to win an Indianapolis 500. And when you hear that, How much does that motivate you to get rid of that title?

Alex Palou:

I mean, it's good and bad, right? But yeah, for sure. It's not what we want. We want to be introduced as an Indy 500 champion, but it takes time and it's hard to win. That's why it's so important and that's what That's why it separates some drivers and makes it part of really elite and amazing drivers. So yeah, we're working towards that. We're pushing. That's all I think about. And especially now that we're right here. And I wish that it was already May. But yeah, I'm excited and hopefully we can get rid of that introduction early.

Bruce Martin:

And oh, by the way, with my long-winded introduction, I forgot to introduce you by name. It's Alex Pillow of Chip Ganassi Racing, driver of the DHL Honda. You think of all the great races that you've had and all the great accomplishments. Can you even dream of what a great accomplishment it would be to be an Indianapolis 500 winner?

Alex Palou:

I can try and get an idea, but honestly, I had an idea of what winning a championship was going to be like, and it was like 10 times better. And I had an idea of what winning two championships was going to be like, and two in a row, and it was like 20 times more. So I think and I expect from other drivers saying that it's nothing like winning a championship or a race. Yeah, hopefully one day I get to experience it. But having that said, it's tough. There's 33 other drivers right here that want to do the same, and everybody's trying to push to get more speed and just to get more comfortable with this car.

Bruce Martin:

Well the one Indy 500 you came close to experiencing that was one that's going to go down as one of the Indy 500s of all time because Elio Castroneves became the fourth four-time winner of the race. So how do you balance the disappointment of finishing second in the biggest race in the world and seeing the way he celebrated becoming a four-time Indy 500 winner.

Alex Palou:

I think it depends on how your race went. My race against Elio in 2021 was amazing. In my opinion, he just won it with a car that was a little bit slower than mine, and he just won it because he was better than me. That's it, period. In my opinion, I could have With what I knew at that time, I couldn't have done anything different. Like I did the best. So I was happy with second, obviously not happy, happy, but I was happy. And I lost against Elio Castroneves. I didn't lose against somebody else. So it could have been a lot worse. And I think the feeling of disappointment, it's always going to be there, but it's going to be there more if you think that you could have done something differently to get the first place.

Bruce Martin:

How's this for a start of the season? A win, a win, and a second. You've already gotten inside the heads of all the other drivers that you race against. They're already talking about your gap, your margin of in the championship race. So in some ways you have to feel like that's just right where I want them.

Alex Palou:

Absolutely. That's what you dream of. That's what you dream of when you're going to start a season. And that's what you want. But yeah, it's still very early on. The same way that we got a big gap and a couple of wins in a row and three podiums. Anybody else in the grid can do it. And we just need to keep on working hard. Don't get relaxed or comfortable with what we're doing and try and get more.

Bruce Martin:

Indy 500 Open Test, it's the first time that all the cars that are entered in the Indianapolis 500, it'll be the first time the Indianapolis 500 will have the hybrid assist unit as part of the car, extra weight in the rear of the car. How did the car feel to you today during the test session?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, so I was doing some qualifying, didn't do much traffic. On qualifying, it doesn't feel super different, but it feels a bit more difficult in the corners. And in traffic, actually, when I tested back in October last year with a hybrid for the first time with other drivers, it felt amazing, like it felt like it gave me a little bit more tools to try and overtake when I was like deep in traffic, like third or fourth in line. So hopefully we can see that happening throughout the race and we can have a better show to what we had these last couple of years.

Bruce Martin:

Did you feel the boost of power? Yes. Next race on the schedule, Barber Motorsports Park. You've done very well there, too. So how big of a circle have you drawn around that race?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, I mean, it's one of our or my favorite places in the calendar, especially because it was my first ever race with CGR and my first ever win in IndyCar. And it's always going to be a special place. We've always, on top of that, had really fast cars. And hopefully, we can have another win.

Bruce Martin:

And also, doesn't it remind you a little bit of the type of race courses that you came up on in Europe and in Japan?

Alex Palou:

Yeah, I would say it's probably Barber and Indy Road Course are probably, also maybe Road America, the closest to European or where I grew up racing in go-karts back at home. So yeah, that's probably why I feel a bit extra confident there.

Bruce Martin:

So we know you want to win the Indianapolis 500, and have you chosen whole milk, skim milk, or chocolate milk as the bottle of milk that Alex Pillow wants to drink when he gets to Victory Lane at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

Alex Palou:

Whole milk. Whole milk, always. I mean, it's the Indy 500. It's about traditions, and I do not think that you can go with half measures at the Indy 500. So yeah, whole milk it is.

Bruce Martin:

Yeah, I don't think we need to worry about the extra fat in the whole milk if you win the Indianapolis 500. Absolutely not.

Alex Palou:

If there was, like, double whole milk, I would just get that one.

Bruce Martin:

Cream, maybe. Yes.

Alex Palou:

We'll have him bring you a bottle of cream. Yeah, that would be too much.

Bruce Martin:

But Alex Blow, Chip Ganassi Racing, good luck in the Indy 500 Open Test, what's left of it. Good luck at Barber Motorsports Park next week, and good luck in the 109th Indianapolis 500. Thank you, Bruce. And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental. We want to thank our guest, the winner of the 2022 Indianapolis 500, Marcus Ericcson, now with Andretti Global, hometown Hoosier hero Connor Daly of June Coast Hollinger Racing, and three-time NTT IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing for joining us on today's podcast. Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help 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 Bruce Martin, one word, uppercase B, uppercase M, underscore 500. Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental is gearing up for the start of a big month of May 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 gone. 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.

Conor Daly:

you