Scott McLaughlin and reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Alex Palou had a nice give and take in a press conference last month at Iowa Speedway, a day after McLaughlin said it takes winning an oval race to be considered a true member of this competitive series.
“That wasn’t a shot at you,” McLaughlin said to Palou, who is still seeking his first race win on an oval track. “I think you’re an INDYCAR driver.”
Palou, who has won two of the past three series championships and is in a strong position to win a third in four years this season, laughed at the exchange.
“No, but I agree with you,” he said. “I’ve been saying that (winning on an oval) is something I need to do. We were close (in Race 2 at Iowa).”
In fact, Palou has proven to be one of the series’ best oval drivers since joining Chip Ganassi Racing for the start of the 2021 season. He has finished in the top 10 in 14 of the 17 circle-track races in that span, a total that’s second only to Pato O’Ward’s 15. He also has an average finish of 7.76, which is better than even McLaughlin’s 7.94 over the same number of oval races. Palou has a pair of second-place finishes on ovals, including the 2022 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge when Helio Castroneves held him off.
But this story is about McLaughlin, not Palou. The fact of the matter is, McLaughlin was able to avoid irritating Palou in that Iowa press conference because of the respect the New Zealander has earned during his time in this series.
McLaughlin has been so good with Team Penske that it’s easy to forget he arrived here at the end of the 2020 season as the truest of road racers. The champion of three consecutive Supercars Championship seasons in Australia had never turned a competitive wheel in a circular manner, but he has looked every bit the part of an INDYCAR SERIES driver, even on ovals.
Specifically, the past two-plus seasons have been spectacular for McLaughlin. He won the first race of the 2022 season in St. Petersburg, and in the 45 races since, he has six race wins, seven poles and 16 top-three finishes. Last year, he finished third in the season standings, beating both of his Team Penske teammates, Josef Newgarden and Will Power.
This season has been more of the same for McLaughlin. If not for the third-place finish he had taken away by INDYCAR for, along with Newgarden, improperly using the Push to Pass system in St. Petersburg, McLaughlin would be within striking distance of Palou in the battle for the Astor Challenge Cup.
Four of McLaughlin’s first five series race wins came on road courses – the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Portland International Raceway in 2022, then Barber Motorsports Park the past two seasons – leaving the oval to complete the cycle. He scored that win last month at Iowa, earning him the all-around stripes he so desperately sought for his NTT INDYCAR SERIES career.
“I felt like an open-wheel driver, but an INDYCAR driver is someone (who) can win on all three racetracks,” he said. “Thankfully, I’m very proud to say I’ve won on an oval now along with a road (course) and a street course. That was a proud moment for me.”
Ironically, McLaughlin nearly won his first oval event, held at Texas Motor Speedway early in his first full season, in 2021. That day, Newgarden got the better of him on the final straightaway of the final lap. McLaughlin then backed up the performance by finishing eighth in the second leg of that weekend’s doubleheader.
McLaughlin again finished second at Texas in 2022, finished second at Iowa in 2023, and he has finished third in three other oval races with a total of 10 top-five finishes. Another shining moment came in May when he won the pole for the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.
“It’s taken a lot of hard work, working hard behind the scenes to be better,” McLaughlin said. “Whether it’s (at Iowa) or with the old surface or at Texas – any of the other ovals – I feel like I’ve been really strong. (I) just (hadn’t) quite finished it off.”
McLaughlin said losing that first Texas race “hurt for a long time.”
“You sometimes think if you ever get that chance (to win) again, you know how hard it is,” he said. “Ultimately, I’m in such a good race car, a good race team. Thankfully we come (to races) with a really good oval package as a team.
“And remember, at the end of the day I have two of the world’s best oval drivers in the same (Team Penske) equipment. It’s a matter of beating them, which is tough to do.”
Newgarden has won nine of the series’ past 14 oval races, including both at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He remains the gold standard of oval racing and has won a series-leading four times in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway, the site of the next race, Saturday. Aug. 17. But don’t sleep on McLaughlin, who should be a factor in each of the five remaining races this season, four of which are on oval tracks.
McLaughlin traces his improvement to countless hours studying past races, and he listens to the instructions of spotters to gain any possible advantage. Working with 2019 Indy 500 winner Simon Pagenaud during the offseason also has paid dividends, he said.
“There’s room for improvement all the time,” McLaughlin said. “I’m nowhere near a complete driver. I just feel like I’m an INDYCAR driver now, or I’m proud to say that I am.”