Alex Palou has been the class of the IndyCar field this season, winning his third championship after seeing off a challenge from Will Power at the end of the year.
The Spanish driver clinched the title at the final round of the season at the Nashville Superspeedway, taking his third success in four years.
Palou has honed his craft in IndyCar at Chip Ganassi Racing, winning his first race for the team in 2021 at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama.
This success early in his career was a significant moment as he built on it with two further wins that season, which helped Palou build momentum.
He has been very successful in his career but Palou is yet to win a race on an oval, which he isn’t pleased with despite having good pace.
Palou has been quick at the Indy 500 and he explained to NBC Sports that he feels the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is unique compared to other IndyCar venues.
Alex Palou thinks you can feel a ‘different kind of energy’ at Indianapolis
The Indianapolis 500 is a unique event on the IndyCar calendar that has a lot more build-up than other races.
Some of the world’s best have attempted to race at The Brickyard and failed to take victory, including Fernando Alonso who is unlikely to return to Indy.
Palou has performed well at the Indy 500, taking pole position for the 107th Running of the race in 2023. He also finished second two years earlier, before narrowly missing out on the victory.
He explained that Indianapolis is a special venue, and there is a different energy compared to other venues on the calendar.
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Palou said: “Oh, you will see when we get it, hopefully very soon. I love this sport a lot. I love the fans a lot, but I love the event and that track so much.
“It has a different kind of energy. You can feel it when you enter the track and during driver intros, seeing everybody there it’s super special. I cannot wait.”
Ovals can take time to adjust to for drivers from outside of North America
Ovals are almost non-existent in European racing which can make them difficult to grasp at first for drivers looking to race in IndyCar.
Former Formula 1 drivers Marcus Ericsson and Romain Grosjean have had some mixed results on ovals, although the former won the Indy 500 in 2022.
There are also a variety of ovals on the calendar with Superspeedways such as Indianapolis and tracks with less banking like the Milwaukee Mile.
This range of ovals can make life difficult as they require a different setup and a change in driving style, especially if the high line is grippy enough to battle on as that creates more overtaking.