Bob Pockrass
FOX Motorsports Insider
It took a spectacular drive to end a potential historical finish to a sensational season.
Oh, Alex Palou is still the INDYCAR champion for 2025. But his quest to tie the series record of 10 victories in a season came to an end Sunday at The Milwaukee Mile when Christian Rasmussen, on fresher tires, passed him with 16 laps remaining to capture his first career victory in the series.
“Good on Christian,” Palou said. “He was really fast. It’s great to see him win.”
Christian Rasmussen scores his first INDYCAR win at 2025 Milwaukee Mile.
It not only was the first career win for the 2023 Indy NXT Series champion (INDYCAR’s version of AAA-baseball), but it was also the first win for Ed Carpenter Racing since 2021.
“He’s shown, on ovals especially, but everywhere really all year, he’s pretty relentless when he’s feeling it and is confident in the car,” team co-owner Ed Carpenter said.
“I think he wanted it more today than anyone else. That’s what it looked like to me.”
Palou had led 199 laps of the 250-lap race and appeared in control when a stray cloud came over the track, producing enough drizzle for the caution to come out and bunch up the field with 42 laps remaining.
The top three drivers — Palou, Scott McLaughlin and Josef Newgarden — stayed out while the rest of the field pitted for fresh tires.
Christian Rasmussen (center), Alex Palou (left) and Scott McLaughlin in victory circle on the podium during the NTT INDYCAR Series Snap-On Milwaukee Mile 250.
Rasmussen, a Denmark native known for his bold moves that can be a blessing or a curse, restarted seventh and ripped through the field, taking the lead and never looking back, crossing the finish line ahead of Palou and McLaughlin.
The 25-year-old Rasmussen said he knew if he could have tires that were fresher by more than 20 laps, that he would have a strong advantage and have the chance to rally. But by the time he got to Palou, he wasn’t sure if his tires had worn enough that he wouldn’t be able to pass the series champion.
“[Passing] Alex, … I did not know the way it was going to go, if I had sufficient to get previous him,” Rasmussen stated.
“I knew I might have sufficient to run the highest. But when I might have sufficient grip to truly get previous him, I did not know. Clearly, we did. However I used to be assured in what I used to be doing.”
Palou stated he initially was fearful about Pato O’Ward, who restarted fourth as the highest driver with brisker tires, however then he was getting studies that Rasmussen was making passes and considerably chopping into his lead.
“I knew he was going to race laborious,” Palou stated. “He at all times races laborious. He was going to move me or go to the wall.”
Christian Rasmussen will get a creampuff in his face from Scott McLaughlin on the rostrum in the course of the INDYCAR Sequence Snap-On Milwaukee Mile 250.
McLaughlin stated whereas that technique ended up as the appropriate name, it was Rasmussen who was in a position to make the technique work together with his aggressive fashion.
“That is how he races,” McLaughlin stated. “You bought to respect it. I feel he is very quick. He is very courageous. He makes some very nice split-second choices.
“As we have seen, it is bit him within the bottom a few occasions as nicely. He is studying. He is getting higher.”
Rasmussen famous he has not wrecked out of a race this season.
“I really feel like I discovered a variety of classes final 12 months of how individuals drive within the sequence,” he stated. “I’ve form of taken that and form of replicated that.
“I feel I am on the aggressive aspect, however I … really feel like we had final 12 months to form of tone that or form of get it into the appropriate spot. I really feel like we’re doing rather well with it this 12 months.”
Rasmussen grew to become the primary, first-time winner within the sequence since 2023.
“It is full credit score to him as a result of he actually made that occur,” McLaughlin stated. “The technique was the technique. … He had the arrogance to tear across the nook, rip across the outdoors of individuals, do his stuff.”
The 2025 INDYCAR season involves a detailed subsequent Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway (2 p.m. ET, FOX).
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports activities. He has spent many years masking motorsports, together with over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting Information, NASCAR Scene journal and The (Daytona Seashore) Information-Journal. Comply with him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
What did you consider this story?
really helpful
Get more from the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
