Power Rankings: Marcus Armstrong, Christian Rasmussen Jump In
INDYCAR
The recent stretch in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES showcased the full range of the sport's diversity with four races on four distinct track types. Each tested driver skills and team strategies, which led to some shake-ups in the Power Rankings since early May.
The Sonsio Grand Prix on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway natural road course on May 10 kicked off the stretch on a track favoring technical road course specialists. The 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on May 25 on the 2.5-mile IMS superspeedway oval is the crown jewel of the series, demanding high-speed precision and pit strategy. Next was the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear, a tight, unforgiving street course with little margin for error June 1.
Finally, last Sunday's Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at World Wide Technology Raceway emphasized short-track handling with strategic adjustments on the 1.25-mile oval.
Through it all, Alex Palou, Kyle Kirkwood and Pato O'Ward emerged as the consistent top three performers, anchoring Power Rankings amid the shake-ups beneath them.
Their ability to perform across disciplines has been astiff test Palou, Kirkwood and O'Ward have passed, as they stayed in the top three spots in the Power Rankings this week ahead of the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America Presented by AMR on Sunday, June 22 (1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network). But there are two new faces in the rankings based on their strong performances at WWTR:
↑10. Christian Rasmussen (No. 21 ECR Splenda Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR)
Rasmussen came from the back to the front twice at WWTR after starting 25th, earning a career-best third-place finish. He has two top-six finishes in the last three races.
↑9. Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda; Last Rank: NR)
Armstrong catapulted to 10th in points following his third top-10 finish in the last four races by crossing the finish line ninth at WWTR. He was the top Honda-powered qualifier at WWTR by starting sixth.
↔8. David Malukas (No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet; Last Rank: 8)
Malukas hasn't delivered headline results in the last two races, but a closer look reveals a driver performing at an elite level, just without the final box score to match. Malukas qualified second in Detroit and was positioned for a second straight top-five finish before an avoidable contact penalty left him 14th at the checkered flag. He qualified fourth at WWTR and led a race-high 67 laps. He was in serious contention for the win before brushing the Turn 4 SAFER Barrier on Lap 195, leaving him 12th. Still, the speed is undeniable, and a runner-up finish in the Indy 500, the biggest stage in the series, cemented Malukas' ability to perform up front.
↓7. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 4)
Power's season has been a roller coaster, flashing brilliance offset by costly setbacks. He was involved in a first-lap crash in the St. Petersburg season opener, finishing 26th. Power started 33rd in the '500' and managed to claw up to 16th, but still not the kind of result that matches Power's championship-winning pedigree. At WWTR, Power earned NTT P1 Award honors but crashed early in Turn 4, finishing last. Outside of those three trouble spots, Power has five top-six finishes, a clear indication that when things go right, he's still among the best in the series.
↑6. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 10)
Dixon was on the verge of dropping out of the Power Rankings but finished fourth at WWTR for his third top-five finish of the season. The six-time series champion delivered another solid result, even when the raw speed isn't always there. He's fifth in points and remains a master in execution of various fuel-saving strategies.
↔5. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 5)
Lundgaard slipped at WWTR by finishing 14th, but his overall body of work keeps him firmly in the Power Rankings and championship conversation. The Dane is fourth in points and had six top-eight finishes in the seven races before WWTR, including three straight podiums at The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and a runner-up at Barber Motorsports Park. The bigger picture proves he's not just a sneaky talent but a legitimate threat for victory at each race.
↑4. Santino Ferrucci (No. 14 Bommarito Automotive Group; Last Rank: 7)
Ferrucci is riding a wave of momentum that's making him one of the hottest NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers. He's pieced together three consecutive top-five finishes that no one on the grid can match heading to Road America. A week after Ferrucci earned his best-career finish by crossing the finish line second in Detroit, he charged from 19th to finish fifth at WWTR.
↔3. Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 3)
O'Ward is on a heater, and it's not just flashes of brilliance anymore. He's sustained high-level execution across all types of tracks. O'Ward finished runner-up to Kirkwood on Sunday night at WWTR, his second runner-up finish in the last four races and third of the season. He also finished second to Palou at The Thermal Club and the Sonsio Grand Prix. Since the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix presented by AmFirst in early May at Barber Motorsports Park, O'Ward has a fourth-place average finish, with a worst result of seventh on the streets of Detroit. He has three top-three finishes in the last four races and is second in points, 73 behind Palou.
↔2. Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27 Siemens Honda; Last Rank: 2)
Kirkwood proved he's not just a one-dimensional street course specialist by claiming his first oval win Sunday night at WWTR. His previous four victories each took place on street circuits. However, Kirkwood has achieved three of those five wins this season, including two straight. He has four top-five finishes this season and six top-10 results. The Andretti Global driver is third in points, trailing Palou by 75. Palou and Kirkwood have combined to win all eight races this season.
↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 Ridgeline Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1)
Palou began 2025 with five wins and a runner-up finish in six races. However, he slipped the last two races, finishing 25th on the streets of Detroit and eighth at WWTR. Still, Palou has outperformed everyone this season, and barring a third straight finish outside the top five, his top spot isn't seriously threatened.
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ELKHART LAKE, Wis. — Road America. America's National Park of Speed is what they like to call it. The 14-turn, 4.014-mile course presents plenty of challenges for INDYCAR drivers. It runs through a picturesque setting, including fields and a small forest situated about 90 minutes north of Milwaukee. The 27 INDYCAR drivers get practice Friday afternoon and another Saturday morning, before qualifying on Saturday afternoon. They have a brief warm-up on Sunday before the 55-lap race, which airs at 1:30 p.m. ET on FOX. But there's so much to dive into before Road America. Has Nolan Siegel squashed his beef with Scott McLaughlin? Do drivers have a special strategy for this four-mile course? And since we're in Wisconsin, will cheese be on everything? Let's get you ready for the race. Here's everything you need to know. Who's the favorite? Last year, Team Penske drivers went first, second and third. Will Power won an emotional victory (snapping a 34-race winless streak), Josef Newgarden was second and Scott McLaughlin rounded out the podium. Does this mean this will be another Penske or Chevrolet race? Chevrolet desperately needs a win, as Alex Palou (five wins) and Kirkwood (three wins) have won all the events this year in Honda-powered cars. "It was [a Chevy track] last year," Kirkwood said. "Every track's been a Honda track this year. I hope that trend doesn't go away this weekend." Can Kirkwood win three in a row? Kirkwood has won the last two races. Those were at the Detroit Grand Prix and World Wide Technology Raceway (Gateway). He's got three wins this season. "Momentum is a big thing in motorsports, and I think it's in all sports," Kirkwood said. "When you have that momentum, things come to you a little bit easier. That race [at Gateway] we didn't really take the bull by the horns. It kind of came to us with some penalties, and we just did everything right. "And then next thing you know, we cycle out into the lead. ... To me, that just feels like momentum." What about the Penske teams? The Penske drivers finished 24th, 26th and 27th last week at Gateway. Will Power suffered a flat tire and Josef Newgarden got involved in a scary wreck, where he flipped up upside-down. Then McLaughlin had a mechanical issue. "We just had some luck not go our way," McLaughlin said. "The head's still up. ... The best thing is, we had bad luck. But I'm not slow." Is McLaughlin mad at Nolan Siegel? Siegel was penalized for blocking McLaughlin at Gateway, as McLaughlin attempted to lap him. A week earlier, McLaughlin was penalized for avoidable contact with Siegel at Detroit. This all led to Siegel's profanity-filled outburst that went viral. "It gets heated all the time. I'm no angel," McLaughlin said. "I spoke to him after the race. We're all good. I just wanted to clear the air, make sure there was no beef between the two of us. "But I hadn't heard what he said on the radio before that. So I back him [from] what he said to me. He said it wasn't a retaliation of Detroit." Furthermore, McLaughlin said he did feel the penalty was warranted. "The way that he drove me down — regardless if it was me or if we had beef before that or whatever — it shouldn't have happened. "That's what I said to him as well, and he and I think he knows that. ... Luckily, we had room on the inside there. If there was grass, that could be bad. So you need to penalize people for that." How does Siegel feel? Siegel chose his words carefully. "No matter what, the penalty happened and the stewards made their decision, and I have a lot of respect for [them] and I've talked to both of them," Siegel said. "It was a mistake how I reacted." Siegel wasn't as careful with his words during the race last Sunday. He ultimately apologized for his expletive-laden tirade. "The fact is what we're doing is extremely high pressure, and there are moments that are extremely frustrating," Siegel said. "And I think ultimately, a big part of being a good race car driver is staying calm in those moments. ... It's not something that I can let happen again. "I will continue in the future to stay more calm and not press the radio button. It was a combination of a frustrating couple months. I need to not let that get to me." Did Siegel apologize to Pato O'Ward? It was the last restart of the Gateway race. Siegel was a lap down, and he restarted ahead of his Arrow McLaren teammate O'Ward. This potentially stalled O'Ward's ability to make a pass for the lead as Siegel was trying to get his lap back, fighting the leader Dixon. Siegel, O'Ward and Kyle Kirkwood — the eventual winner — were three-wide, with O'Ward getting the raw end of the deal. If O'Ward had been able to get the lead, the track position potentially would have led to an O'Ward win. Siegel said the team had told him to do his best to pass Dixon to unlap himself. So there wasn't much discussion on the issue during the week. He said he didn't even realize he was three-wide. "I was told to try to pass Dixon to get my lap back for me in the car," Siegel said. "I obviously got a bad jump on the restart, and at that point, the only thing I really could have done differently was lift a little early into Turn 1 and let Pato by. "In the moment for me, I was told the best thing for my race was to go try to chase Dixon down, and I took a lap to try to do that. "At that point, it was too late." What about the points leader? Alex Palou finished fourth here last year. At Road of America, he has two wins, two seconds and a third. The next two races at Road America and Mid-Ohio are probably opportunities for him to dominate. And that's before a double-header at Iowa, a potential place where Palou could struggle, giving other drivers a chance to make up ground. Palou had won five of the first six races and then crashed out of the Detroit Grand Prix. Last week at Gateway, he finished eighth. "Detroit, I had a lot of fun until I crashed," Palou said. "Gateway. I didn't have fun at all at any point. We were really good in practice, but then, for some reason in the race, I was not comfortable. Although the result was actually OK and the last stint was good. The rest of the race, I was struggling a lot. "It's great [to be here]. I love this place." Is there strategy at Road America? Kinda but less than on most weekends. With a track that is longer than four miles, there is more risk to run a lap or two longer or shorter than the other drivers. That could hurt a smaller team that wants to do something off-strategy while hoping it works out. But then again, for a driver who has pace, it is a clear-cut race. "This track in particular, I feel like you can race [everyone] straight up just because of how big it is, how long it is, and all the passing zones," said A.J. Foyt Racing driver Santino Ferrucci said. Anything else when it comes to this race? This is the first race at Road America with the hybrid, so teams will be learning that. And it will be hot. Temps will potentially be in the 90s for the race, and that could impact how much grip the tires have. Will the heat change things? "I don't know," Kirkwood said. "That's a great question. It sure will for overall grip, tire [wear]. Power-wise? I have no idea." Does everything sold at the track have cheese? We haven't been to every food truck and concession stand across the circuit, but this is the land of cheese and cheese heads. If any food (other than ice cream) sold doesn't have cheese on it, it should. If it doesn't, then it shouldn't even qualify as food here at Road America. Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass. recommended Get more from NTT INDYCAR SERIES Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
