Pato O’Ward won Sunday’s IndyCar race from the streets of Toronto, climbing from 10th on the grid to secure his second win of the season.
There was not a single moment that secured the Mexican driver’s victory, but rather a culmination of different events that allowed him to earn the win.
The first piece of the puzzle was an early pit stop, which saw O’Ward stop after just two laps to get rid of the unwanted soft tires.
He then caught a bit of fortune with the timing of a few caution periods, but also had to make a series of bold passes into the Turn 1 braking zone in order to climb the final few positions.
O’Ward detailed his run after the race, and described how this type of victory is one of the most satisfying.
“We had a great pit stop, the first pit stop,” said O’Ward. “It was freaking awesome. The guys were great. We pushed hard in, we pushed hard out. We undercut everybody that was on the alternate. That was the first step.
“The second step, we could have just kind of maintained there and waited for the other guys to start peeling off. I didn’t really want to do that. I started picking them off one by one.
“When we positioned ourselves, I think we were fifth in line with four cars in front of us, tried to make up bit more with the fuel. [Rinus] VeeKay was super strong. That’s why I said that I need to be behind the lead car.
“I don’t think I would have had the opportunity to overcut on VeeKay. It was just positioning myself to make it happen.
“It feels really good to earn it today. It really does.”
With his win, O’Ward closed the championship points gap to Alex Palou to 99 with just four rounds remaining in the 2025 season.
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