An evening with Indy 500 champ Alex Palou, planet's "hottest driver"
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Reigning Indianapolis 500 champ Alex Palou spent Tuesday night taking fans through every turn in his improbable journey from a rope-tethered go-kart in Spain to victory lane.
Why it matters: The intimate evening inside the renovated Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum provided a rare peek into the mind of the most dominant driver in the game as he chases back-to-back wins.
Driving the news: The appearance was packaged with the celebration of the museum's latest acquisition: The 2025 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing car driven by Palou last May.
- "It's my winning car … I want to use it again," Palau joked before asking if he could have it back. "Having something at the museum, it's a big deal."
State of play: Palou stepped into his conversation with IndyCar's Dave Furst fresh off winning his first Grand Prix of Long Beach on Sunday.
- According to Furst — who called Palou "the hottest driver on the planet" — Palou now has 22 career wins in 88 starts at Chip Ganassi Racing, winning roughly one in every four races and finishing on the podium every other race.
By the numbers: Palou has three wins in the first five races of the 2026 IndyCar season.
- He leads the 2026 IndyCar championship standings with 205 points, 17 ahead of Kyle Kirkwood.
- Palou has won 11 of the last 22 IndyCar races dating to the start of the 2025 season for a 50% win rate.
Yes, but: Palou is staying humble, reminding the crowd that he's just a "regular guy" from Sant Antoni de Vilamajor who once considered opening a coffee shop instead of racing.
- He added that the pressure of winning the Indy 500 hasn't lessened with one win under his belt.
- "At the end of the day, I'm a racing driver. They just pay us to win. That's it," he said. "I need to do it again, otherwise Chip won't be happy."
Flashback: Palou went deep into his origin story, recapping how his family rallied around go-karting as a shared weekend activity.
- He begged to try the go-kart track between his house and school when he was 4, but couldn't reach the pedals.
- When he got a kart for his fifth birthday, his dad walked in front holding a rope to keep him from going too fast.
Zoom in: Palou also discussed passing Marcus Ericsson with 14 laps to go during last May's sold-out race, a move he'd been telegraphing as a fuel-saving tactic.
- He never lost the lead again, but he didn't let himself truly believe he'd win until three laps remained.
- "You're already planning for if he passes you back in Turn 3. And then laps go by and suddenly it's two to go, and you're like, 'Oh shit, this is happening.'"
What's next: Palou will be on track at IMS when the Indy 500 Open Test starts next week.