2025 Indy 500 winner Alex Pow wins: “There’s nothing like this.”
Chip Ganasi racing driver Alex Palou secured his first IndyCar victory on the oval track with a first-place finish in the 2025 Indy 500.
Marcus Erickson, who came in second for Alex Pallow on Sunday’s Indianapolis 500, and Andretti’s global teammate Kyle Kirkwood, were penalised, moving behind finishing orders for the 33 cars after post-race inspections revealed an amendment to vehicle approval.
Ericson and Kirkwood, who finished sixth on Sunday, were respectively forced to lose both the prize money they won in Sunday’s race and championship points. Each receives money and points to finish on the 31st (Erickson) and 32nd (Kirkwood) respectively. Erickson and Kirkwood’s teams were each fined $100,000, and both competition managers were suspended in upcoming races on the streets of Detroit.
Indycar said the changes made by Andretti Global are in the cover of the energy management system offered by Dallara, the company that provides NTT IndyCar series chassis. The rulebook states that these parts should be used as they are being supplied.
These penalties come after the IndyCar inspection process faces a lot of backlash. Two-time Indy 500 winner Joseph Newgarden and 2018 winner Willpower’s two-time Indy 500 winner Team Pen Ske Chevrolet were found to be using illegal changes during qualifying last week. Both New Garden and Power were allowed to compete in Sunday’s races, but they were forced to start at the back of the pack.
Was Erickson and Kirkwood’s only car?
no. 90 Callum Illott cars also failed post-race inspections. Prema Racing failed to meet the minimum end plate height and location, and therefore imposed the same penalty as Andretti Global. Illott finished 12th in the race, but is now labelled as the final finisher.
Who is Marcus Erickson?
Marcus Erikson is a 34-year-old IndyCar driver from Kumra, Sweden. He won the 2022 Indianapolis 500 and ranner-up at Josef New Garden in 2023.
Erickson is currently in his seventh season in the NTT IndyCar series and is driving for the second time with Andretti Global. He moved to Chip Ganassi Race in 2020, spending his first season playing for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports before driving towards the team for four seasons. He was a huge success with Ganassi, winning four races, including the 2022 Indy 500, and earning nine podium finishes.
After finishing second place in the 2025 Indy 500, his best finish this season is his sixth place finish in the street course race at the season opener in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Before joining the IndyCar season in 2019, Erickson spent five seasons in Formula 1, but raced for a struggling team. He raced with the Caterham F1 team in 2014 before moving on to the Shiki Sauber F1 team.
When will the next IndyCar Series race be?
The Detroit Grand Prix is scheduled for Sunday, June 1st at the Detroit Street Circuit. The 100 lap race is scheduled for 12:30 PM EST.
Both Andretti Global and Prema Racing competition managers have been suspended in this race.
Contribution: Ellen J. Flow, USA TODAY Nathan Brown, Indystar
