MARCH 26, 2025

(Getty Images/Formula1.com)

Oscar Piastri (No. 81 McLaren Formula 1 Team) bounced back from the disappointment of his late-race mistake at last week’s 2025 season opener in Australia by converting pole position into an assured victory during the Chinese Grand Prix, leading home teammate Lando Norris (No. 4 McLaren Formula 1 Team) for a McLaren 1-2. Piastri controlled Sunday’s 56-lap race at the Shanghai International Circuit from start to finish, never putting a foot wrong in a much calmer second race of the campaign that centered around whether drivers would complete one or two pit stops. As it transpired, the first five finishers – and the vast majority of the field – only visited the pits once, with Piastri building and managing a gap back to Norris across their two stints to take the checkered flag and kick off his challenge for the title. Norris hovered around three seconds behind Piastri in the closing stages, when he encountered a developing brake problem and was told to take no risks by the McLaren pit wall – just about ensuring the team emerged with that perfect finish. After dropping behind at the start, George Russell (No. 63 Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team) did his best to make life difficult for Norris as the afternoon wore on, briefly reclaiming second during the pit stop phase, but the McLaren man had enough pace in hand to take P2, even with his late brake dramas. Watch the Race Highlights here. (Thank you to Formula1.com)

(Photo by Joe Skibinski/Penske Entertainment)

Alex Palou ( No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing DHL Honda) once again made the impossible possible, completing a late dash from a nine-second deficit to pass pole sitter Pato O’Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) and drive away to win The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix on Sunday, staying perfect in two NTT INDYCAR SERIES races this season. Palou earned his 13th career victory, beating O’Ward to the finish by 10.1854 seconds. Christian Lundgaard finished third in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet as the team captured two of the three podium positions for the first time since May 2023. “What an amazing weekend,” said Palou, who started third. “We had a really fast car since practice, and everybody at Chip Ganassi Racing on the 10 car executed perfectly. We knew it was aggressive to start with the used reds (alternate tires), and we knew that we were looking toward the end of the race with that 10 car, and we did it.” Two events into the 17-race season, Palou leads second-place O’Ward by 39 points in the championship standings. Watch the Race Highlights here. (Thank you to INDYCAR Media)

Editor's Note: This is our dearly departed billboard, which we had at Road America for several years. Peter gifted the phrase "America's National Park of Speed" to the track, which now uses it proudly in all of its communications. -WG

Editor's Note: Click on "Next 1 Entries" at the bottom of this page to see previous issues. - WG