Pato O’Ward has won Sunday’s race at the Milwaukee Mile. The Arrow McLaren driver fought his way back strongly after a botched first pit stop, putting himself in position to take the lead during the final round of pit stops. McLaughlin finished second using an alternative pit strategy, while Christian Lundgaard scored a surprising third-place finish.

Palou leads the first part of the race

When the green flag waved, polesitter Alex Palou managed to hold on to the lead ahead of Josef Newgarden, who had started second. Palou would lead the race for 34 laps before encountering traffic, allowing Newgarden to make a move for the lead.

Two laps later, the race was neutralized for the first time after Romain Grosjean spun exiting Turn 2, although he was able to continue. During the caution period, the entire field came into the pits, with Newgarden briefly making contact with Nolan Siegel’s car as he exited his pit box. This allowed Palou to retake the lead.

Rinus VeeKay and Kyle Kirkwood move to the front

Behind Palou, Rinus VeeKay and Kyle Kirkwood were making strong progress through the field. VeeKay passed Newgarden for second place on Lap 78 before also passing Palou for the lead on Lap 100. Kirkwood moved up to third during this stint, despite starting the race from the penultimate position.

On Lap 125, Palou passed VeeKay, who was stuck in traffic, to retake the lead. Two laps later, both drivers came into the pits. Palou managed to retain the lead, while a slower pit stop dropped VeeKay back to seventh, behind several competitors who had already made their stops a couple of laps earlier.

Pace cars change the flow of the race

On Lap 142, the race was neutralized for the second time. The culprit was none other than Newgarden, who lost control of his car exiting Turn 4 and made contact with the wall with his front wing.

Almost the entire field took advantage of the caution to make a pit stop, with only Scott McLaughlin and Scott Dixon staying out and moving into the top two positions. In the pits, Will Power’s Andretti Global crew performed better than Palou’s Ganassi crew, allowing Power to exit the pits ahead of Palou.

The green flag was quickly replaced by another yellow after the restart following a crash by Grosjean. Shortly after the green flag, the Dale Coyne Racing driver lost control of his car in Turn 4 and crashed into the wall.

After the restart, it took several laps before Power took the lead, while Lundgaard moved up to second ahead of McLaughlin, O’Ward and Palou. For a brief moment, it looked like Power was on course for his first win with Andretti Global, but the Australian was caught speeding during his final pit stop and lost numerous positions after being handed a drive-through penalty. This handed the lead to O’Ward, ahead of McLaughlin, Lundgaard and Palou.

Despite numerous lapped cars, O’Ward kept his cool and managed to hold on to the lead. He went on to win the race by 1,5 second over McLaughlin, scoring his second victory of the current IndyCar season.

Full results of the race on Milwaukee Mile