Power Rankings: Palou Leads Wire to Wire in Dream Season

Editor’s Note: Power Rankings is a feature after every NTT INDYCAR SERIES race in which INDYCAR.com staff writer Eric Smith ranks the top-10 current drivers in the series based on objective recent and season-long performance statistics and the subjective “eye test” of what he sees during race weekends.

Alex Palou secured his fourth NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship and capped off the 2025 season with his fourth consecutive podium finish by coming home second in the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix presented by WillScot on Aug. 31 at Nashville Superspeedway -- his 13th podium of the year.

Palou finished the season atop the Power Rankings for the second straight season. Here's how the rest of the field stacked up after Nashville in the final edition this season.

↑10. Callum Ilott (No. 90 PREMA Racing Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR)

Ilott ended his first season with PREMA Racing on a high, scoring a ninth-place finish – his fourth top-10 in the final five races. Before this late surge, his best result was 13th on July 6 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

↓9. Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 ROOT Insurance Honda; Last Rank: 7)

Armstrong (photo, above) was on track for another top-10 finish in Nashville before a late-race blocking penalty sent him to pit road. Running 10th at the time of the penalty on Lap 201 of the 225-lap race, he dropped to a disappointing 19th-place finish. Still, Armstrong ended the season with 11 top-10s, nine of them coming in his final 11 races.

↓8. Christian Rasmussen (No. 21 ECR Splenda Stevia Chevrolet; Last Rank: 5)

Rasmussen’s season ended on a sour note with a first-lap crash in Nashville, just one race after his maiden NTT INDYCAR SERIES win at the Milwaukee Mile. Still, he produced four top-10 finishes in the final seven races.

↑7. Josef Newgarden (No. 2 Astemo Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR)

Newgarden (photo, above) extended his win streak to 11 years with a much-needed victory in the season finale at his home track. It was his 32nd career win, breaking a tie for 10th all-time with Paul Tracy. He climbed from 18th to 12th in the standings with two straight top-seven finishes and five top-11 results in his last seven starts.

↑6. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 8)

Dixon qualified fifth but finished 12th in Nashville. Still, he finished third in the standings, and his pit crew won the season’s Firestone Pit Stop Performance Award as the top team on pit road. Dixon closed 2025 with 11 straight top-12 finishes.

↓5. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 3)

Despite a 25th-place finish at Nashville due to a mechanical failure, Lundgaard (photo, above) qualified third and wrapped up a career-best fifth in points. He posted four top-six finishes in his final six races, including two runner-up efforts in the last four.

↑4. Alexander Rossi (No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet; Last Rank: 6)

Rossi finished strong with three consecutive top-10 results, including two top-five finishes at Portland and Milwaukee. Before that, he had just four top 10s in 14 races. Rossi ended his first season with Ed Carpenter Racing 15th in points and surging.

↓3. Pato O’Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 2)

O’Ward's form dipped late in the season, finishing 24th or worse in two of the final three races. However, he qualified on the front row for both, including the NTT P1 Award at Nashville, where he led a race-high 116 of 225 laps before crashing out while leading due to a deflated tire. O'Ward (photo, above) ended the season second in points, with six podiums and 10 top-five finishes.

↑2. Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 DEX Imaging Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 4)

McLaughlin (photo, top) finished the season on a roll with four consecutive top-10s, including back-to-back third-place finishes to close out the year.

↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1)

Palou (photo, above) locked up his fourth title with a dominant season: eight wins in 17 starts, 1,729 laps led and eight top-five finishes in the final nine races. He ended 2025 with back-to-back runner-up finishes and also led the Power Rankings for the entire season, from St. Petersburg to Nashville. Palou and the No. 10 team are the unquestioned gold standard in the series right now.