Alex Palou has been formidable throughout his IndyCar career, taking three championships in the last four seasons.
The Chip Ganassi Racing driver won his third title this season after a battle with Australian Will Power over the year.
Palou has been impressive on road and street courses in IndyCar but struggled at times on ovals, failing to win a race on that type of circuit.
The Spaniard crashed in the opening race of the weekend at Iowa and suffered a tricky qualifying at the Nashville Superspeedway, before recovering to 11th place.
The Indy 500 is a very difficult race to win and by far the most prestigious on the calendar. And while Palou has driven well at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he is yet to see the chequered flag at an Indy 500 in first place.
Palou has also told the official IndyCar website that he was intimidated by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier in his career before becoming more established in the series.
Alex Palou admitted he was nervous ‘entering the gate’ at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The Indy 500 has been a difficult race to win, even some of the world’s best drivers failed to win at The Brickyard.
Double F1 world champion Fernando Alonso attempted the event three times and even got bumped out of the field during qualifying in 2019 in a difficult episode.
Palou has been quick at the Indy 500, finishing in the top five three times as well as taking pole position in 2023 for Chip Ganassi Racing.
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Yet the 27-year-old explained he used to feel nervous even when heading into The Brickyard, particularly when going through the gates.
He said: “I would say I used to get nervous entering the gate. Like the good kind of nerves. I’m not saying I lost that. I still feel those goosebumps, like I feel a little bit here in my belly like, ‘Oh, man, I’m going to be at the Speedway today.’ But I’m not afraid at all. I’m just looking forward to it.”
Alex Palou is very close to winning on an oval in IndyCar
Ovals in IndyCar create a unique aspect of the championship which is very different to road and street courses.
They require a very different driving style as it takes time to understand where the grip is and finding the groove around the lap.
The Spaniard finished second in the second race of the weekend at Iowa and Palou feels he is on the verge of taking his first win on an oval.
It comes down to fine margins and the lack of ultimate success on ovals hasn’t stopped him from winning three championships.