4 Takeaways From Pato O’Ward Victory Amid Rumored McLaren Shakeup

Mid-Ohio Sports Complex (Lexington, Ohio) — Pato O’Ward finally got to spray the champagne. O’Ward, who had not finished on the podium (top-three) all season, finally got there and in the biggest of ways as he captured his 10th career INDYCAR victory Sunday afternoon at Mid-Ohio. “I’ve got plenty [of years] under my belt to understand how things flow,” O’Ward said in his postrace news conference. “The bad luck doesn’t last forever, but the good luck also doesn’t. “Today was a simple showing of execution.” Here are my takeaways: 1. O’Ward Finally Wins Amid McLaren 1-2 Arrow McLaren celebrated its first 1-2 finish as Christian Lundgaard came in second. Lundgaard has two wins this year and has been the dominant driver on permanent road courses. But a Lundgaard mistake allowed O’Ward to get by on the outside on Lap 42 of the 90-lap race on the 2.258-mile road course and O’Ward never relinquished control of the race in a season where he has six top-five finishes in the first 10 events. The McLaren drivers had started the race 1-2, but with Lundgaard on the pole. Team principal Tony Kanaan said he got a text from McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown about the historic 1-2 finish: “It won’t be the last.” 2. Lundgaard Will Sleep Well An announcement is expected on the future lineup of Arrow McLaren, possibly as early as Monday (Scott Dixon indicated his future could be revealed Monday) and Christian Lundgaard knows he could be on the way out. But that knowledge and having a potential win slip away won’t suffocate him. “I’m going to go take a shower, I’m going to sleep and then see what comes,” Lundgaard said in his postrace news conference. How will he sleep? “I sleep great,” Lundgaard said. “I’m a big sleeper.” 3. Siegel Finally Showing Promise Fellow Arrow McLaren driver Nolan Siegel is also expected to need to find a ride, but he is doing that at the best possible time. He would have finished top-10 two weeks ago at Road America but got hit from behind by Josef Newgarden. And he finished 10th at Mid-Ohio. He is 20th in the standings but showing the potential that he was thought to have had when hired by Arrow McLaren during the 2024 season. ‘I’ve seen all the rumors, you’ve seen all the rumors. I think you know as much as I do at this point,” Siegel told me and another reporter after the race Sunday. “So it is what it is, no matter what. I have half a season left here in the [McLaren] car for sure. And I’m very excited about that half a season. I think we can put some good results in, and I’m going to enjoy driving an INDYCAR whether it’s my last eight races or I’ve got eight more years of it.” 4. Dixon A Magnet Scott Dixon seemed to be a magnet as both Alexander Rossi and Marcus Ericsson were penalized two positions for avoidable contact when they hit Dixon during the race. Dixon finished 17th in what overall was a bummer of a day at Ganassi with Alex Palou the only top-10 finisher in fifth. “Everybody was so desperate over the pit sequences, because it was super tough to pass. … So definitely a bit rough,” Dixon,” Dixon told me and another reporter after the race. “And through both incidents there, the front wing was broken.” Dixon has already announced he is leaving Chip Ganassi Racing after a 25-year run. He said he possibly could confirm Monday his new home. It is expected to be McLaren, so what did he think of McLaren going 1-2? “That team is damn strong right now, and obviously a lot of others, to be honest, too,” Dixon said. “This is a track where Alex is normally untouchable as well. As a team, for somewhat of a reason, we missed something this weekend.” 4 ½: What’s Next INDYCAR teams have the weekend off (although many will test this week at The Milwaukee Mile) and then race July 19 at Nashville Superspeedway, a 1.33-mile concrete oval. Last year, O’Ward was leading when he blew a tire and crashed. That crash was one of the reasons that Firestone developed a slightly bigger right front tire for many of the ovals this year. “We’ve got some unfinished business from last year just with that unlucky, whatever that was,” O’Ward said. “I’m excited to go back there, and we’re going to try and repeat but actually finish the race where we were.”