Second Thoughts: Alex Palou, Tyler Reddick Learn With Winning Comes Skepticism

When any driver dominates a racing series, there will be talk and there will be questions. What are they doing? And is what they are doing legal? The winning car is inspected after the race, so it would be mildly surprising if a sanctioning body continuously lets something go that they find — racing series love parity and love having multiple drivers win. They don’t want predictable races. That's not to say that if a team is found with something that is in a gray area, that a new rule is written or a new interpretation of a rule is communicated to teams. That's the purposes of midweek tech bulletins. It isn't a surprise that both NASCAR and INDYCAR have dealt with dominant drivers over the last year that are now hearing questions about their performance. Alex Palou, driver of the No. 10 car for Chip Ganassi Racing, won eight of the 17 INDYCAR events last season. Tyler Reddick, driver of the No. 45 car for Michal Jordan-owned 23XI Racing, has won four of the first six NASCAR Cup events this year. With Reddick’s 23XI Racing having won (OK, settled with the terms in its favor) a lawsuit against NASCAR last December, some want to believe that they are now getting a pass in the inspection bay. Especially considering he didn’t win a race last year. [INSIDE THE GARAGE: Just How Bad do Drivers Want to Beat Former Teammates?] But this was a team that was close to winning and now with the burden of the lawsuit off the team, it certainly can focus more on performance. And if NASCAR wanted to help the winning teams in the lawsuit, then Front Row Motorsports — which also was part of the lawsuit — should have gotten some love, too (they haven’t). Even 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin mentioned the theories on his "Actions Detrimental" podcast. "NASCAR’s giving 23XI all the wins and the fast cars right now," he said. His co-host mentioned the lawsuit. "That's how you know you're doing things right is when those wild conspiracies come out," Hamlin said. "It's like, ‘Oh man, that's fantastic.’ Because you’ve got them concentrating on everything except for what actually matters." It’s not like the opponents are saying 23XI are getting any favors. RFK driver Brad Keselowski said they have found the mix of horsepower and downforce that has made them fast. Now you never totally know if the team is able to do something that has so far gotten by inspectors. But that would be true of any winner of any race. And it’s likely NASCAR will be looking closely at what the team is doing each week. And the more a team's car is torn down as the winner, the more likely NASCAR should find something if it is amiss. It isn’t just NASCAR that deals with this chatter. Will Power, driver of the No. 26 car for Andretti Global, was needling Palou on not having an in-car camera for road and street courses as they shared the stage as the second-place and third-place finishers at the INDYCAR Arlington race. Palou said: "Obviously we're trying to hide stuff." He then said if he got an in-car camera: "I'll start hiding some other stuff then." In a virtual news conference Tuesday, Power said he wasn’t indicating that Palou was hiding something. "I just wanted to see Alex Palou driving on a street or road course," Power said. "There hasn't been an on-board on his car on a street or road course. [On an] oval, Indy 500, he had one, but you can't really tell anything." Power said he just wanted to see what Palou was doing. "I just want to see the man in action, the man that's setting the pace, the guy that's the quickest guy," Power said. "I want to look at his driving. I admire it. It was more about that. I want to see what he does. "I don't think he's hiding. I was only joking. I think INDYCAR should want to see it." No matter Power's intent, Palou was quick in the news conference to address the elephant in the room as he knows what people might think because of his dominance. As somebody who has spent time in both garages/paddocks, I will say that there were fewer whispers about Palou's dominance and what the team was doing versus what would likely be said in a NASCAR garage if a driver won half the races of a season. INDYCAR is getting a new car in 2028 and that potentially will be a great equalizer. NASCAR regularly changes some rules, which also keeps drivers or teams who land on something (legal or hidden enough to skirt the rules) from keeping their advantage. [FUTURE COURSES: What City Should Be Next For New INDYCAR Race?] Both series have open garages. Teams can see what the other teams are doing. They can have people take photos if they want. Reddick and Palou can’t take too much offense to the whispers they hear about their success. Seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson heard the same thing when he rattled off Cup championship after Cup championship. This is a sport where teams always play in the gray areas of the rulebook. But to win races, it takes more than a good car. It takes execution. It takes a driver to wheel it, especially if the team does make mistakes. If Palou and Reddick are getting something through, why haven't their teammates won races, too? They both have solid drivers as teammates who shouldn't be shut out as much as they have. And beyond the garage, all sports deal with accusations of favoritism when one team starts winning. It’s part of it. For Palou and Reddick, they can’t worry about the chatter. They have another race and trophy to worry about this weekend.