'Fun guy' Scott McLaughlin makes IndyCar championship promise to fans

Scott McLaughlin is locked in and ready to win his first IndyCar championship in 2025. The renowned Team Penske driver has been on a consistently upward journey since debuting in the series in 2021 and comes into the upcoming season after a career-best standings finish in 2024.

McLaughlin registered multiple podium finishes last season, including a season-high three victories at Alabama, Iowa, and Milwaukee. Along with the "Thirsty threes", the nickname he has given to his No. 3 Penske team for their thirst for race wins and a good time, the New Zealand driver also took a historic pole position at the Indy 500.

Ahead of his fifth IndyCar season this year, McLaughlin made a strong case for why fans should root for him.

"I feel like I'm a fun guy. I feel like I've been right there or thereabouts. We've got a really good potential of potentially winning more races this year and I certainly believe we can win a championship and/or a (Indy) 500. Ever since I've come from Australia and New Zealand, I've had a ton of American fans jump on board the thirsty threes. Everyone appreciates that we have fun, but we are serious about our business as well," he said in an interview with Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports.

Though teammate Josef Newgarden won the iconic Indy 500 in May, McLaughlin emerged as the best and most consistent Team Penske driver over the entire season. He finished third in the championship, with teammate Will Power in fourth, and Newgarden in eighth.

Scott McLaughlin rues hurtful results that derailed his 2024 title hopes

AUTO: AUG 16 NTT IndyCar Series Bommarito Automotive Group 500 - Source: Getty

2024 was a vexing season for Scott McLaughlin on some counts. The No. 3 Chevy driver's season began with a disqualification at St. Pete and a $25,000 fine for illegal use of the push-to-pass system. He recovered considerably well but the lack of consistency troubled his title hopes.

Ahead of the 2025 season, he explained how planning can get a driver only to a certain extent and consistent results are what matter at the end of the day.

"I think you've just got to do it your own way. As much as you can plan and think about what you can do and what you can't, we all know the right path is just consistent results, with a few wins along the way. I think you need a couple wins. But consistency is key, and we all know that. But you've got to eliminate those big bad results, and we had a few of them last year, which really hurt," he said via IndyCar.

McLaughlin's IndyCar performance graph has been similar to his Supercars championship, where he consistently kept improving before winning three consecutive championships with Team Penske.