Alex Palou has claimed victory in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Starting third, he passed Pato O’Ward early in the race before getting ahead of Felix Rosenqvist through a faster pit stop. Rosenqvist finished second, five seconds behind, ahead of Scott Dixon in third. With this win, Palou retakes the lead in the championship.

Rosenqvist holds the lead at the start

After the green flag waved, Felix Rosenqvist converted his pole position by leading into Turn 1, ahead of Pato O’Ward and Alex Palou. The entire field made it through the first corner without issues. O’Ward, however, did not hold on to second place for long, as Palou passed him in Turn 1 on lap two.

After just nine laps, the first pit stops were made by drivers opting for an early three-stop strategy. Josef Newgarden, who started thirteenth, was one of them and made full use of clean air to regain track position.

Rosenqvist’s lead over Palou grew to a maximum of two seconds, but toward the end of the stint, Palou reduced the gap to under a second. Both drivers pitted on the same lap, with Rosenqvist narrowly managing to rejoin ahead of Palou.

Newgarden drops back with three-stop strategy

How much time Newgarden had gained in clean air became clear after the leaders made their first pit stops. At that point, Newgarden led the race by eleven seconds. The Penske driver had to make his second stop not long after, however, and got stuck in traffic. During an overtaking attempt on Marcus Armstrong in Turn 1, Newgarden locked up and flat-spotted his tires, costing him significant time.

The race’s only caution came on lap 57, when a piece of debris was found on track just past the fountain section. The timing worked out perfectly for those on a two-stop strategy: by pitting under yellow, the entire field could make it to the finish.

Palou passes Rosenqvist in the pits

For Rosenqvist, the caution brought bad news: the left-rear wheel on the Meyer Shank Racing car was not fitted quickly enough, costing him valuable time. Palou capitalized and emerged from the pits in the lead.

After the restart, Palou quickly built a comfortable five-second advantage. Rosenqvist had no answer to the reigning champion’s pace and had to settle for second place. After 90 laps on the streets of Long Beach, Palou took the checkered flag for his first-ever win at this iconic street circuit.

With his third victory of the season, Palou retakes the championship lead, holding a 17-point advantage over Kyle Kirkwood.

Full results of the race on Long Beach