Williams Team Principal James Vowles has revealed that reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou was on the team’s shortlist of potential signings for the 2025 Formula 1 season.
The Spaniard, who has now clocked three Indy titles as well as this year’s Indy500 on his impressive CV, was considered by the Grove-based squad, which ultimately opted to sign his compatriot, Carlos Sainz.
Being European, Palou did have a more conventional career path towards F1, including both FIA European and Japanese Formula 3 championships, as well as the Super Formula series in Japan, a common breeding ground for many F1 drivers.
But, as Vowles explained his longstanding presence in America brought two fundamental problems for the team which rendered the possibility to sign him harder than many might think.
“Palou is super-fast,” he told Auto Motor und Sport. “We had him on our list. But there are two problems.
“With his track record, he wouldn’t be a cheap starter. I reckon he plays in the price range beyond five million dollars.
“And, he wouldn’t be helped by a test or a Friday training session.
“Palou would have to go through the same programme as an [Kimi] Antonelli or [Oliver] Bearman. They have completed up to 10,000 kilometres in old Formula 1 cars.
“That means he would have to take a year off and sacrifice himself completely to preparation. I can hardly imagine that he would want to do that given his status.”
Palou – the ‘forgotten’ man?
Palou is undeniably one of the top racing drivers in the world, and given Sainz and Fernando Alonso’s comparative lack of wins and titles in recent years, he is the most successful driver from Spain at the moment.
His stock is high in the eyes of many people, including Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur, who had previously spoken highly of him, claiming that some poor early career moves and the Covid pandemic led to his move to America sticking and inadvertently shunning him from the F1 paddock.
“Palou was in the wrong team in Formula 3. He couldn’t shine there,” he said.
“He is probably an example of the fact that results in a junior formula do not necessarily indicate how he will develop later in really fast cars.
“He switched to IndyCar. Then came Covid, and he was forgotten here with us.”
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