"I'll jump out and start punching this guy": Alex Palou shares his raw take on IndyCar battle against lapped driver at St. Pete

Reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou reflected on his battle with Sting Ray Robb during the St. Petersburg race. He emerged victorious in the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

Three-time IndyCar champion Palou's third title defense was off to a blistering start last weekend. The Spaniard, for the first time in his career, secured a victory in the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, finishing ahead of teammate Scott Dixon.

However, despite his eventual triumph, Palou faced a major challenge late in the race when he found himself stuck behind lapped driver Sting Ray Robb from Juncos Hollinger Racing. The battle allowed Josef Newgarden to significantly close the gap, cutting Palou’s five-second lead to less than a second.

Speaking about the incident, Alex Palou shared his thoughts on a recent episode of Conor Daly's Speed Street podcast. The 27-year-old admitted that while he remained calmer than expected, the situation nearly pushed him over the edge. He said:

"Look, I understand that he was not doing anything that was wrong. I actually was calmer than I thought I would be. Like there's been some races where I'm like 'just get that car out of the way or I'll jump out and start punching this guy in front of me right now.'"

He added:

"It was not like that. I was like, 'okay Alex. He's doing his job, it's fine.' But I saw the gap going from 5 seconds to 0.9, and I was like 'I need to pass Sting Ray right now.'"

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Alex Palou reflects on Scott Dixon's St. Pete performance without a radio

In the same episode, Alex Palou also reflected on his teammate Scott Dixon’s performance at St. Pete despite racing without a functioning radio. The six-time champion’s communication system failed during the race.

Palou expressed admiration for Dixon’s ability to manage the race under such conditions, stating:

"I learned about it after the race, and it's actually quite tough. Especially in a race like the one we had, it was three cars fighting on strategy, and you pit one lap later or one lap before, that changes the whole race."

The Spaniard acknowledged the difficulty of racing without a radio, especially in an intense race like St. Petersburg. He said:

"I think he did an amazing job. I mean, it's stuff. I wouldn't like to be in that position for sure. To imagine that race, that it was so intense between the #9, the #2 and us, not to have radio, it's quite amazing what he did."

Scott Dixon finished second ahead of Team Penske's Josef Newgarden. He remains ten points behind Alex Palou in the championship standings, with the latter having 51 points.