On this week’s episode of The Race IndyCar Podcast Jack Benyon and co-host JR Hildebrand analyse Alex Palou beating the McLaren team he’s been linked to joining in the GMR Grand Prix on the Indy road course. Plus, with the build up now well underway, we preview the start of action at the Brickyard ahead of the Indy 500.
How will Palou winning so early in the season impact his assault on his year’s title? That's one of the key topics for debate, as is whether McLaren’s rise in performance has made Palou’s previous attempts to leave Ganassi for their rivals look more reasonable.
JR talks about what it is going to be like to miss his first Indy 500 after 12 consecutive attempts, and is also on hand to tell you how to view Tuesday to Friday’s Indy 500 practice action, without being duped by the time sheets.
He also discusses how Indy’s ride height conundrum will be affected by new aero parts, and how teams will look to manipulate and capitalise on set-ups to find an edge on the opposition.
Don't forget, if you have a question for our hosting team, you can email text and/or voice notes to be included on the podcast by sending them to podcasts@the-race.com
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Dissecting Palou's Indy GP win + Indy 500 practice pointers

Analysis, interviews and race reviews from one of the most competitive motorsport series in the world. The Race’s American Editor Jack Benyon is joined by Indy 500 regular and Indy Lights champion JR Hildebrand to dissect the main stories with the help of some of the series’ biggest names

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Less than a couple of hours after his Indianapolis 500 win, Josef Newgarden joins The Race to discuss defending his title with a spectacular move on Pato O'Ward for the win.
Newgarden discusses the move that won it, what it means given the controversy surrounding him and the team after he was disqualified at St Petersburg earlier this year, and how qualifying laid the foundations for the success.
After that, JR Hildebrand joins Jack Benyon to analyse the key moments of the race with more detail on Pato O'Ward, NASCAR star Kyle Larson and more.

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Newgarden on consecutive Indy 500 victories + O’Ward's heartbreak and Larson's rollercoaster run

Our annual Indy 500 retro special episode features special guest Kenny Brack, looking back on his landmark 1999 Indy win, 25 years ago.
Brack explains how, after failing to get on the F1 grid, he landed in the newly formed Indy Racing League, first with Galles Racing in 1998, and then with Foyt, for whom he won the IRL title and the Indy 500 the following year.
He recalls the 1999 race, what it did for his career generally (and in Sweden especially), and also packs in some other key career events like the 2003 Texas crash he was lucky to walk away from, and how his comeback in 2005 was enough for him to call time on his career. That comeback came with Rahal, a team he has joined again as a consultant in 2024 - and he explains that move, too.
Ahead of the interview, host Jack Benyon is joined by The Race's Matt Beer, to provide background on the unusual racing landscape in the US at the time of Brack's victory, when top-level single-seater racing was split between the IRL and CART (and top teams like Ganassi and Penske weren't racing at the 500).
Jack also speaks to journalist, podcaster and media ace Mattias Persson, a Swede who explains how important Brack’s win was for helping the country fall in love with motorsport again after a tough period, and how Brack helped inspired the current crop of Marcus Ericsson and Felix Rosenqvist.

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Kenny Brack on his 1999 Indy 500 win, inspiring Sweden's next stars

This episode features an interview with the winner of the fastest-ever four-lap pole run in the history of the Indianapolis 500, Scott McLaughlin.
The Team Penske driver talks about how a change of line helped unlock speed, his journey from tin-tops to single-seater superstar in just over four years, and gives some insight into his race car for Sunday’s 108th running of the Indy 500. Tune in for more from McLaughlin.
Elsewhere, co-host JR Hildebrand has been sleuthing in the paddock over the last week, identifying some of the key reasons for Chevrolet’s apparent gains over Honda and how a suspension part has been causing plenty of intrigue.
Kyle Larson’s stunning run to fifth on his Indy 500 debut and Marcus Ericsson’s fight to make the race as he was under threat from going home after a crash on Thursday as part of the ‘Bump Day’ drama are also analysed.
We’ll be back before the race day with a special annual retro episode featuring an interview with an Indy 500 winning driver on a special anniversary.
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Indy 500: Pole winner McLaughlin interviewed + qualifying analysis

Alex Palou’s Indy road course win, a host of expletive-filled spats and a look at the Indy 500 starting this week makes up this episode of The Race IndyCar Podcast.
Hosting duo JR Hildebrand and Jack Benyon look at Alex Palou starting May in the same way as last year, with a pole and a win on the Indy road course, what that means for his title rivals and how Christian Lundgaard was hard done by.
Of course, Colton Herta calling his team-mate Marcus Ericsson an “ass” and Romain Grosjean and Santino Ferrucci’s unusual wheel-banging feud are also analysed.
After that, Hildebrand explains some intricacies of how Indy 500 qualifying works, and gives his thoughts on how badly impacted reigning winner Josef Newgarden will be after some of his crew have been suspended ahead of the event.
There’s also a run through the schedule this week and some things to look for as practice unfolds.

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Another ominous Palou win + what to watch as Indy 500 practice begins

It’s a bumper episode of The Race IndyCar Podcast as Theo Pourchaire discusses his new deal with McLaren, and points leader Colton Herta is also interviewed.
Pourchaire will do all of the remaining IndyCar races for McLaren this season apart from the Indy 500, replacing David Malukas who was released after a hand injury.
Pourchaire discusses missing out on an F1 seat (so far at least), the crazy month where he went from “sitting at home” to becoming a full time IndyCar driver, how he's adapting to American culture, and more on his oval test at Gateway earlier this week.
And in our second interview, Colton Herta discusses being the IndyCar championship leader for the first time. He outlines how that’s influencing his approach, the impact of Andretti dropping to three cars for 2024, and what it was like to drive his dad’s 1998 Reynard at Laguna Seca last year.

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Dissecting Palou's Indy GP win + Indy 500 practice pointers

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