Palou spent most of the race running in third place, sometimes 11 seconds behind Pato O’Ward. On lap 56, Palou passed O’Ward for the lead and held it for the last nine laps of the race. It punctuated a caution-free and mostly incident-free 65-lap race at Thermal Club.

Defending series champ Alex Palou wins after starting third, surging by the Arrow McLaren front row of Pato O'Ward and Christian Lundgaard.

Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou won the IndyCar Series season opener at The Thermal Club in California, passing Arrow McLaren driver Pato O'Ward with seven laps to go.