2024 Alpine Racing boss praises IndyCar superstar Alex Palou with a big compliment

IndyCar driver Alex Palou was hailed by Alpine Boss Oliver Oakes as he sat with Tom Clarkson for the Beyond the Grid F1 podcast. Oakes, who began his career as a racing driver and became the Alpine Team Principal in 2024 claimed that the three-time IndyCar champion would do well in Formula 1.

Clarkson asked Oakes about his racing career and whether he contemplated making a switch to the IndyCar series. The Alpine F1 boss advised that he did and named a few IndyCar drivers who’d do well in the American open-wheel racing series. He was then asked whether Palou would be quick in an F1 car and said:

“I follow a lot of IndyCar stuff now. Some drivers who've been in my team, Palou and Armstrong, who are sort of over there now racing. And Ericsson's a good mate of mine as well.” (47:20 onwards)

“I think he'd be quick, yeah. What, is he three time IndyCar champion? Yeah, I think he'd be very good, yeah”, he added when asked about Alex Palou.

Oakes is a former racing driver and the 2005 world karting champion. He raced in the lower Formula categories in the late 2000s before moving into a managerial role and setting up his own karting team in 2011. A few years later, Oakes alongside David Hayle set up the racing team Hitech GP.

Alex Palou was among the drivers who drove for Hitech GP in the junior Formula classes. He currently drives for Chip Ganassi Racing in the IndyCar series and is the current champion of the American open-wheel racing series.

Palou was set to join Arrow McLaren for the 2023 season but a contractual clause in the Chip Ganassi Racing contract prevented him from joining. It was then decided that he would join the team in 2024. The role included a full-time IndyCar seat and the reserve driver role at the McLaren F1 team with a possibility of racing in F1.

However, come the 2024 season, Palou decided to not fulfill the contractual obligations and stayed with CGR, which led to a lawsuit.

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James Hinchcliffe shared opinion on Alex Palou's F1 potential

Former IndyCar driver and Motorsport presenter James Hinchcliffe sat with the hosts of the Red Flags podcast and discussed the potential of Alex Palou moving to an F1 car. He said:

“So if you're looking at the drivers that I think could hop over and immediately be competitive in general, from IndyCar to F1, obviously (Alex) Palou. I mean, he's a three-time champion. The way he drives, the way he manages races, I think is exceptional. (25:41)

“And I think he could be quick in anything, which is interesting because he had a very average junior career over in Europe. Not a lot of people had eyes on him... He was kind of a middle of the road guy.”

Alex Palou has won three of the last four IndyCar championships, which included winning the championship in his debut season with Chip Ganassi Racing. He reportedly refused the Arrow McLaren position as both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were given long-term contracts and he didn't see a seat opening up at the F1 team in the near future.