Fresh off a commanding victory at the Grand Prix of Portland, reigning and four-time IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou and his race strategist, Barry Wanser, brushed off calls from rival drivers to overhaul IndyCar’s longstanding blue flag regulations.
The defense from the Chip Ganassi Racing pair comes in direct response to post-race frustrations voiced by podium finishers Felix Rosenqvist and Will Power, who both targeted the series' handling of backmarkers after finishing second and third, respectively.
Rosenqvist voiced sharp criticism following the race, urging IndyCar to "grow up" regarding how lapped traffic is managed after both he and Palou lost critical time stuck behind Louis Foster prior to their final pit stops. Power echoed those frustrations following his own traffic nightmare. After a radio communication issue left him out on track an extra lap on fading tires, Power was held up massively by Sting Ray Robb, losing nearly three seconds while battling the backmarker side-by-side into Turn 10.
A frustrated Power slammed the protocol, calling for driver intervention if race control refuses to act.
"It's kind of ridiculous we have a 1970's rule going on: 'But we've always done that'. Yeah, it's a little bit different now. Drives me crazy all these cars," Power said. "If IndyCar won't do anything, I think all the drivers get together and have a gentlemen's agreement. 'IndyCar: We don't make the rules, we keep the same ones since the '70s.'"
However, Wanser pushed back against the notion that the rules need updating, emphasizing that drivers battling to remain on the lead lap are fully within their rights to fight for track position.
“I think we've established with IndyCar that as long as you are battling to stay on the lead lap, even when you come a lap down, if you're not a lap down to the entire field, you're not blue flag eligible,” Wanser explained. “You have the right to be there and fight. A yellow can give you an opportunity to be back on the lead lap, then you'd be fighting for a greater position.
“That's just part of IndyCar. We've been caught behind lapped cars before. I'm sure it will happen again in the future. That's just part of how we race.”
Palou, the 29-year-old Spaniard who continues to solidify his dominant era in the series, firmly backed Wanser's sentiment. Rather than altering the rulebook to accommodate leading cars, Palou stressed that officiating consistency across all events is the only requirement that truly matters.
“I agree,” Palou said. “I think as long as we keep it consistent, it's the same for everyone. We had races where the traffic hurt us a lot and kind of allowed everybody to close the gap. We had Portland last year where that slowed down Power and (Christian) Lundgaard in front of me. I was able to close a 10-second gap.
“Yeah, as long as we keep it consistent, I'm happy. Same for everyone.”
