{"id":1403,"date":"2026-08-30T16:24:45","date_gmt":"2026-08-30T19:24:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/?p=1403"},"modified":"2026-08-30T16:24:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-30T19:24:46","slug":"pato-oward-overcomes-mclaren-pit-error-to-win-milwaukee-gp-2-alex-palou-edges-closer-to-title","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/indy\/pato-oward-overcomes-mclaren-pit-error-to-win-milwaukee-gp-2-alex-palou-edges-closer-to-title\/","title":{"rendered":"O&#8217;Ward overcomes McLaren pit error to win Milwaukee GP 2 as Palou edges closer to title"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Key takeaways<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>O&#8217;Ward bounces back:<\/strong> <strong>Pato O&#8217;Ward recovered from a slow early pit stop<\/strong> to claim his second victory of the 2026 season for Arrow McLaren.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Palou on the brink:<\/strong> <strong>\u00c1lex Palou finished 5th to extend his points lead<\/strong>, needing only an 18th-place finish in the upcoming Milwaukee Race 1 conclusion to seal his fifth IndyCar championship.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Power penalized late:<\/strong> <strong>Will Power lost a potential victory<\/strong> after receiving a drive-through penalty for speeding on pit entry during his final stop.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Pato O&#8217;Ward<\/strong> overcame early pit lane adversity to capture a thrilling victory in <strong>Race 2 at the Milwaukee Mile<\/strong>, holding off Scott McLaughlin in the closing laps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">O&#8217;Ward&#8217;s afternoon hit an early roadblock when a sticky right-rear tire change during the first caution dropped him deep into the pack. However, the <strong>Arrow McLaren<\/strong> driver mounted an aggressive fightback, making decisive passes during restarts\u2014including a double pass on Christian Lundgaard and Malukas\u2014before taking the lead when late-race leader <strong>Will Power<\/strong> was handed a drive-through penalty for speeding on pit lane entry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u00c1lex Palou<\/strong> edged closer to securing his fifth IndyCar Series crown. Finishing <strong>5th<\/strong>, one spot ahead of title rival <strong>Kyle Kirkwood<\/strong> in <strong>6th<\/strong>, Palou stretched his overall lead to <strong>97 points<\/strong>. The Spaniard now needs just an 18th-place result in the rescheduled <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/indy\/rain-forces-indycar-to-delay-milwaukee-race-1-restart-until-after-race-2\/\">continuation of Milwaukee Race 1<\/a> to lock up the 2026 title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The race featured several dramatic moments, including a solo crash by <strong>Josef Newgarden<\/strong> on Lap 142 and a heavy restart accident for <strong>Romain Grosjean<\/strong> on Lap 158. <strong>Christian Lundgaard<\/strong> rounded out the podium in 3rd for McLaren, with <strong>David Malukas<\/strong> taking 4th for Team Penske.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This Milwaukee result adds to a busy stretch of motorsport news, following <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/f1\/ex-f1-driver-ralf-schumacher-suffers-jet-ski-accident-requires-surgery\/&amp;authuser=3\">Ralf Schumacher requiring surgery after a jet ski crash in Germany<\/a> and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/nascar\/ryan-preece-wins-daytona-and-locks-in-nascar-cup-series-playoff-spot\/&amp;authuser=3\">Ryan Preece winning at Daytona to grab the final NASCAR playoff berth<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 2026 IndyCar Series season continues directly at the Milwaukee Mile with the delayed conclusion of Race 1. <strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/\">GRANDE PR\u00caMIO<\/a><\/strong> provides complete live coverage across all sessions. Follow all updates on our <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/news\/\">news page<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Official Milwaukee Mile Race 2 \u2013 Updated Results<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><td><strong>Pos<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Driver<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Car \/ Team<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Interval \/ Gap<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>1<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Pato O&#8217;Ward<\/strong><\/td><td>Arrow McLaren<\/td><td><strong>250 laps<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>2<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Scott McLaughlin<\/strong><\/td><td>Team Penske<\/td><td>+0.7916s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>3<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Christian Lundgaard<\/strong><\/td><td>Arrow McLaren<\/td><td>+2.7457s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>4<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>David Malukas<\/strong><\/td><td>Team Penske<\/td><td>+3.2885s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>5<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>\u00c1lex Palou<\/strong><\/td><td>Chip Ganassi Racing<\/td><td>+12.0439s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>6<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Kyle Kirkwood<\/strong><\/td><td>Andretti Global<\/td><td>+17.5310s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>7<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Rinus VeeKay<\/strong><\/td><td>Juncos Hollinger Racing<\/td><td>+18.7000s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>8<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Christian Rasmussen<\/strong><\/td><td>Ed Carpenter Racing<\/td><td>+22.7837s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>9<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Marcus Ericsson<\/strong><\/td><td>Andretti Global<\/td><td>+24.0838s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>10<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Louis Foster<\/strong><\/td><td>Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing<\/td><td>+26.8617s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>11<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Alexander Rossi<\/strong><\/td><td>Ed Carpenter Racing<\/td><td>+1 Lap<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>12<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Santino Ferrucci<\/strong><\/td><td>A.J. Foyt Enterprises<\/td><td>+1 Lap (+0.5037s)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>13<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Mick Schumacher<\/strong><\/td><td>PREMA Racing<\/td><td>+1 Lap (+2.8328s)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>14<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Will Power<\/strong><\/td><td>Team Penske<\/td><td>+1 Lap (+3.3492s)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>15<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Scott Dixon<\/strong><\/td><td>Chip Ganassi Racing<\/td><td>+1 Lap (+5.6098s)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>16<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Marcus Armstrong<\/strong><\/td><td>Meyer Shank Racing<\/td><td>+1 Lap (+21.5009s)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>17<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Nolan Siegel<\/strong><\/td><td>Arrow McLaren<\/td><td>+1 Lap (+22.1255s)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>18<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Sting Ray Robb<\/strong><\/td><td>A.J. Foyt Enterprises<\/td><td>+2 Laps<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>19<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Kyffin Simpson<\/strong><\/td><td>Chip Ganassi Racing<\/td><td>+2 Laps<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>20<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Felix Rosenqvist<\/strong><\/td><td>Meyer Shank Racing<\/td><td>+2 Laps<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>21<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Dennis Hauger<\/strong><\/td><td>Dale Coyne Racing<\/td><td>+2 Laps<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>22<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Graham Rahal<\/strong><\/td><td>Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing<\/td><td>+3 Laps<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>23<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Caio Collet<\/strong><\/td><td>A.J. Foyt Enterprises<\/td><td>+4 Laps<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>24<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Romain Grosjean<\/strong><\/td><td>Juncos Hollinger Racing<\/td><td>+95 Laps (Contact)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>25<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Josef Newgarden<\/strong><\/td><td>Team Penske<\/td><td>+99 Laps (Contact)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Frequently asked questions (FAQ)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>1. Who won Race 2 of the Milwaukee doubleheader?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Pato O&#8217;Ward<\/strong> won Race 2 driving for Arrow McLaren, marking his second victory of the 2026 IndyCar season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>2. What does \u00c1lex Palou need to win the 2026 IndyCar Championship?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u00c1lex Palou needs an <strong>18th-place finish or better<\/strong> in the remaining 160 laps of Milwaukee Race 1 to mathematically secure his fifth series championship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>3. Why did Will Power lose the lead late in Race 2?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Will Power received a <strong>drive-through penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed limit<\/strong> during his final pit stop, dropping him out of victory contention.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pato O&#8217;Ward stormed through the field to win the second leg of the Milwaukee doubleheader, while \u00c1lex Palou expanded his championship lead to 97 points.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1020313345,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"42wp_featured_image_caption":"Pato O'Ward","42wp_featured_image_credits":"IndyCar","42wp_featured_video":"","42wp_featured_image_hidden":false,"42wp_authors_list":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[8,10,110],"42wp_author":[14],"class_list":["post-1403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-indy","tag-indy","tag-mclaren","tag-pato-oward","42wp_author-daniel-balsa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1403"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1404,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1403\/revisions\/1404"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1020313345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1403"},{"taxonomy":"42wp_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/42wp_author?post=1403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}