Scott McLaughlin "excited to have a rip around" Thermal Club ahead of 65-lap GP

The 2025 Thermal Club Grand Prix is just around the corner and ahead of the event, Team Penske's Scott McLaughlin is finding it hard to hold his horses. He is raring to go following a strong P4 outing in St. Petersburg.

Scott McLaughlin recently revealed on his X (formerly Twitter) handle that he is ready to get the ball rolling at Thermal Club. He captioned the same:

"Clubs are in the bag. Time to get locked in! Excited to have a rip around @TheThermalClub, let’s get this weekend movin!"

The 31-year-old had a solid outing in the 2025 season-opener at the St. Pete street track. He secured pole position for the 100-lap race and barely missed out on a podium finish over his Penske teammate, Josef Newgarden who ended the race in P3. Sunday's Thermal Club Grand Prix will be an event that will be run for only 65 laps. This will however be a significant addition to last year's exhibition race for the $1 Million challenge, which only comprised 20 laps.

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Scott McLaughlin reveals 'long-term' deal with Team Penske

INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Source: Getty

While Scott McLaughlin is eagerly looking forward to hitting the track at Thermal Club, ahead of the 2025 season, he made it known that he has signed a long-term deal with Team Penske.

In line with this, on 28th February, the 31-year-old Tweeted:

"We’re LIVE and ready for a big 2025! Signed a long term extension in the off-season with @Team_Penske and have been absolutely 100% focused on prep for this year. Let’s kick this season off right! STRAIGHT. TO. THE. MOON. #Thirsty3s."

McLaughlin has been competing in the highest class of open-wheel racing in America since the 2020 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. He has so far managed to secure 68 race starts and has put on board, seven wins, 19 podiums, and nine pole positions.

In the 2024 season driving the No.3 Team Penske challenger, he ended his 17-race campaign in third place in the drivers' championship. He was able to amass an impressive total of 505 points that included three wins, five pole positions, eight top-five, and 12 top-ten finishes. For Team Penske, he was the highest finisher as Will Power (two-time world champion) ended up in fourth place with Josef Newgarden (two-time world champion) a bit down the order in P8.

Keeping in view the impressive statistics that Scott McLaughlin has already amassed in his IndyCar career, he will be eyeing the coveted 2025 drivers' world championship. Last year, Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou (three-time world champion) was able to beat Colton Herta and McLaughlin to the title.