Alex Palou has built a reputation for being blisteringly fast and keeping a cool head under pressure.
The Spaniard has clinched two titles in his relatively brief IndyCar career for Chip Ganassi Racing and is battling for his third championship.
Palou leads the standings by 49 points over Will Power with five races to go, heading into the Olympic break.
The championship leader endured a difficult weekend last time out in Toronto, but he still managed to extend his advantage.
His two fastest lap times were disallowed after he was judged to have blocked Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward in Round 1 of qualifying.
Palou would’ve advanced to the Firestone Fast 12 with the session’s fourth-fastest time but ended up ninth-fastest.
The Chip Ganassi Racing driver started the 85-lap race from 18th and finished fourth on a chaotic day in Canada.
On a critical day for the championship, Palou methodically picked his way through the field, knowing that not finishing the event would give his nearest title rivals a chance to close the gap, including the race winner, Andretti’s Colton Herta.
Alex Palou reveals strategy after a difficult day in Toronto
Palou said after the race to NBC Sports that it was vital to capitalise on others’ misjudgements after making an error at Iowa.
Palou begins: “We just were there and waiting for somebody else to make those mistakes. I did it in Iowa, so not here today. The car was great.
“It was a shame that we had to start from 18th, but the car was amazing. Super fast, super easy to drive. So, glad we’re finishing the top four. Three cars in the top five for the team. And getting happy for a little bit of two weeks of rest.”
Four of the final five races are on ovals, and despite all his success, the 27-year-old has yet to win on an oval.
Although Palou hasn’t taken victory outside of road and street courses in IndyCar, he said the amount of ovals on the horizon won’t change his mentality.
“No, absolutely not,” he added. “I mean, the goal is still the same to win as many races as possible. Race by race, there’s still a lot of races and a lot of points to play, so we need to keep doing what we’re doing. We had a great group behind.
“So, it’s going to be good to recharge a little bit the batteries now and ready to push for the last couple of races.”
Victory on an oval for Palou is likely to be on the horizon
A victory on an oval is likely a matter of time for Palou, who has delivered under pressure against more experienced drivers to take two titles.
Ovals require a different technique than the permanent courses and street circuits that the Spaniard grew up with in European racing. But he has show raw speed on an oval, taking pole position for the 107th Running of the Indy 500 in 2023.
His ice-cool aura in the car has served him well, particularly in Toronto. He bounced back from a challenging qualifying and finished inside the top five while other drivers got caught up in incidents.