Pato O'Ward Sweeps 2 Milwaukee Races as Alex Palou Clinches 5th IndyCar Title
Updated
Updated · Motorsport.com · Aug 30
Pato O'Ward Sweeps 2 Milwaukee Races as Alex Palou Clinches 5th IndyCar Title
3 articles · Updated · Motorsport.com · Aug 30
Summary
O'Ward completed a same-day Milwaukee double by winning the rain-delayed opener Sunday evening, passing David Malukas on a Lap 226 restart and finishing 1.7535 seconds clear for his third victory of 2026.
The 27-year-old Arrow McLaren driver became the first IndyCar racer since Rick Mears in 1981 to win twice on the same day after Race 1 was halted for 25 hours and 40 minutes by rain.
Malukas took second for Team Penske, while Rinus VeeKay grabbed third by passing Scott McLaughlin with three laps left for his first podium since Toronto last season.
Palou finished 10th, but that was enough to secure his fifth series championship and fourth straight, matching Sebastien Bourdais's 2004-07 run.
With five titles, Palou moves to third on IndyCar's all-time list behind A.J. Foyt's seven and teammate Scott Dixon's six.