Palou, Malukas Shine for Honda at Texas Motor Speedway

• Late-race challenges from Alex Palou, David Malukas come up short for Honda at Texas Motor Speedway
• Scott Dixon, Romain Grosjean and Colton Herta also battle for victory in the closing laps of the PPG 375
• First oval race of 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES ends under caution when Grosjean crashes with two laps remaining

No less than five drivers from three Honda-powered teams – Alex Palou, David Malukas, Scott Dixon, Romain Grosjean and Colton Herta – contended for the victory in today’s PPG 375 at Texas Motor Speedway. 

The exciting contest saw no less than 27 lead changes among eight drivers, including Palou and Dixon from Chip Ganassi Racing; and Herta and Grosjean from Andretti Autosport.  While Dale Coyne Racing’s David Malukas never led, the second-year driver belied his relative lack of experience by running near the front throughout the 250-lap event.

But Grosjean’s crash on lap 248 of the 250-lap contest led to the race ending under caution, with Palou and Malukas finishing third and fourth, respectively, behind winner Josef Newgarden. Dixon rounded out the top five, with Herta dropping to seventh while avoiding Grosjean’s crash.

Other Honda drivers to finish in the top-10 today included Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg winner Marcus Ericsson, eighth; and Helio Castroneves in 10th. A total of five cautions involving six drivers slowed today’s contest, but all escaped apparent injury. 

PPG 375 Honda Race Results      

R – Rookie

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship (unofficial, after 2 of 17 rounds)
Chevrolet             168 points
Honda                  158 points

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Drivers’ Championship Standings (unofficial, after 2 of 17 rounds)
1. Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren                                   82 points
2. Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda        75
3. Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda                67
4. Josef Newgarden, Team Penske                                64
5. Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda                 60

Quotes
Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished third at Texas: "It was exciting! It's the first time we've had racing like that in INDYCAR for me. It was fun! It was a bit chaotic at times, and we had to save a lot of fuel. But, we got to make fewer stops because Honda and HPD gave us all the fuel mileage we needed. It was great! It's a shame that we missed [the victory] by a little bit, but the #10 car was fast and we'll come back even stronger.” 

David Malukas (#18 Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda) finished fourth: “That race was awesome! And you know what else is awesome? Texas!  This place has had a reputation recently for some not so great racing, and that race was awesome. That race was pure chaos, but beautiful chaos—that's my new word for this week. Beautiful Chaos! And we were up there with the front runners and racing with the bigger teams. I'm so happy with this team, they made a great car for us today.” 

David Salters (President and Technical Director, Honda Performance Development) on today’s race: “Proud of the tireless efforts of HPD’s women and men, proud to work with our brilliant drivers and teams to be fighting for the honors at the end of the race. The supreme super-human skill of our drivers was clearly on show today, wow! Wheel to wheel at 200+mph, inches apart, lap after lap. It was a great show for our fans today. Now, on to the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach where we can share our passion and commitment with our Honda associates, family and friends.”

Fast Facts

• Honda-powered drivers have won 13 times at Texas in Indy car competition, starting in 2004 with a 1-2 finish for Andretti Green Racing [now Andretti Autosport] teammates Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti.

• This weekend’s EXPEL 375 at Texas Motor Speedway is the first of five oval races that will be held during the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.

Next
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES now moves to Southern California for one of the signature events on the 2023 calendar, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, on Sunday, April 16.

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