Another IndyCar season has come and gone, with Alex Palou crowned champion for the third time in just five seasons.
In a season full of drama and controversy, while the hybrid system made its long-awaited debut, a number of drivers displayed why they are considered the best in US open-wheel racing.
But is Palou our choice as the year's best IndyCar driver? Here we pick out our top 10 drivers of the season.
10. Rinus VeeKay
While the end of season table left Rinus VeeKay 13th in the championship standings, it was a strong year considering he was the second-highest placed driver in a car not affiliated in a technical alliance of the ‘Big Four’ consisting of Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren, Chip Ganassi Racing or Team Penske.
With Ed Carpenter Racing, the Dutchman took a significant step forward as a team leader while also helping find an increased level of consistency and pace as the group got deeper into the season.
He only had two top 10 results through the opening nine points-paying rounds, but then found form over the next eight races, which included his best finish of the season with fifth at Iowa and four additional top 10s.
His mark of seven top 10 finishes was better than the two drivers that finished ahead of him in the overall standings - Christian Lundgaard and Felix Rosenqvist (both with five) - and also stood as a career-best over his five years in North America’s premier open-wheel championship.
Despite the qualified success, Ed Carpenter Racing and Veekay parted ways at the end of the season, with the team bringing on Alexander Rossi in his place.
9. Santino Ferrucci
The combination of Santino Ferrucci and AJ Foyt Racing continuing for a second consecutive season together looked lethal at times. This year featured a technical alliance with Team Penske, which no doubt helped establish an improved baseline at various events.
Still, there was a job to be done and the execution was a match for the raised expectations. The small outfit scored an impressive 11 top 10 finishes during the year, including a pair of fourths in the double-header round at Milwaukee.
The one place there were plenty of expectations on the shoulder of the 26-year-old pilot was the Indianapolis 500, especially after his thrilling third-place finish in 2023. This year, he once again delivered a stirring qualifying performance and started sixth, but wasn’t quite as lethal in the race as he led just one lap en route to finishing eighth. It stood as his sixth top 10 in as many Indy 500 starts.
The Connecticut native also captured his first career pole at Portland after out-duelling pseudo-team-mate Power. He ended the year ninth, a personal best. It was also the first time Foyt placed a driver in the top 10 of the final standings since 2002, when Airton Dare finished ninth in the all-oval series then still known as the Indy Racing League.
8. Kyle Kirkwood
The victories may not have been there for the native of Jupiter, Florida, but there was still plenty to relish for Kyle Kirkwood in 2024 as he established a better level of consistency. The Andretti Global driver’s five top fives and 11 top 10s were a career-best over his three seasons in IndyCar. In addition to a respectable runner-up outing on the streets of Toronto, he bolstered his reputation on ovals.
Kirkwood started his mark on ovals in 2024 with a seventh in the Indy 500 and matched it in the first race of the doubleheader weekend at Iowa. An eighth in the opening race of Milwaukee’s doubleheader continued the theme, but it was Nashville where he really demonstrated his improved oval prowess.
After starting on pole, he led 67 laps and had to overcome an unfortunately-timed caution, which came out moments into the initial round of pit stops. Still, the pace was there for Kirkwood to shoot back through the field, ultimately finishing fourth.
If the results of his consistency were raised just another two spots higher on average, he very well could likely be a threat at the top three in the overall championship fight.
7. Josef Newgarden
Winning the Indy 500 salvaged what was otherwise a season to forget for Josef Newgarden.
While he throttled to what appeared to be a dominating statement win in the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, a black cloud rolled in and stripped him of victory 45 days later due to illegal use of the overtake boost.
The Tennessee native’s other victory at St Louis wasn’t without controversy, either. He was the leader for a late restart when a pile-up behind took out Penske team-mate Power, who squared the blame at Newgarden.
Even with six podiums on the year, it really was a run of feast or famine. An eighth-place finish in the championship marked Newgarden’s worst result since joining Penske in 2017.
The run of good results were hindered by eight finishes outside of the top 10, including four of 25th or worse. A two-time series champion, Newgarden’s pace was immense at times, but the mistakes, either self-inflicted in the race or qualifying, proved too much to overcome.
Although his run as the ‘Oval King’ is now being challenged by Team Penske team-mate McLaughlin and Arrow McLaren’s O’Ward, Newgarden remained a massive threat. He became the first back-to-back Indy 500 winner since Helio Castroneves in 2001-02.
6. Scott Dixon
There were flashes of Scott Dixon doing Dixon things in 2024, but there were also plenty of bizarre outcomes that ultimately left him out of a chance for a seventh series championship.
The good was undoubtedly the masterclass at Long Beach, where the Chip Ganassi Racing stalwart took advantage of an early caution to go onto an alternate strategy and delivered by hitting a massive fuel number while fending off a charging Colton Herta. He also delivered another victory in a wet and wild round in Detroit, overcoming the carnage that set off numerous cautions.
The ultimate punch to the nether regions likely happened at Mid-Ohio when a hybrid issue - in the debut of the updated power unit - struck during the pace laps in the buildup to the green flag. Even with that result, however, the New Zealander ended the year with just five podiums and seven top fives in 17 rounds - a considerable gap to Ganassi team-mate Palou. Additionally, he had an uncharacteristic five finishes of 15th or worse.
Dixon ended the year sixth in the championship standings, which marked the first time since 2016 he finished outside the top five; that year, he also finished sixth.
5. Pato O’Ward
There was no shortage of drama surrounding Arrow McLaren's Pato O’Ward in 2024. Although there were three wins after a barren 2023, he ended the year one position lower in the standings in fifth.
The Mexican was promoted to victory in St. Petersburg, after Newgarden was disqualified, but then went on to record three mediocre results of 13th or worse over the next three points-paying events. It wasn’t until the Indy 500 that things were back on track.
O’Ward pulled off a last-lap pass on Newgarden to take the lead, only to lose the race in heartbreaking fashion as Newgarden responded with a brave outside pass two corners later into Turn 3. It was an emotional loss for O’Ward, but it ignited a fire for the second half of the season that included claiming the first win of IndyCar’s hybrid era at Mid-Ohio after fending off Palou.
He also handed IndyCar one of - perhaps the - most embarrassing moments of the year by winning the opening race at Milwaukee less than 24 hours after Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles shared controversial comments regarding his popularity, which came in light of the series being beaten to going to Mexico by NASCAR. All in all, though, results were more of the same as random mechanical mishaps plagued his chances of a truly special season.
4. Will Power
The 43-year-old Aussie was back to mirroring the pace that helped him win the 2022 title. Will Power was a clear problem to deal with after three runner-up finishes in the opening four rounds, before adding three wins and another runner-up to bring a season tally of seven podiums - tying Team Penske team-mate Scott McLaughlin for most in the series.
There was a late surge for a possible third title, which was wiped away in the season finale after a seatbelt issue hindered any chance to dethrone Palou. It was more than the random faulty issue at Nashville, though. Power’s season also had plenty of snags, including clashing with McLaughlin in Toronto.
While running fourth in St. Louis, he was also the innocent bystander of an odd late restart by Newgarden, which resulted in a crash and followed with an emotional scene of showing Newgarden he was ‘No. 1’.
There was a clear chance to take the championship lead in the penultimate round at Milwaukee after Palou was hindered by a battery issue, but Power’s mid-race spin wiped it away. It was also the first time since 2008 that Power, the driver with more pole positions to his name than any other, failed to claim a top spot in qualifying.
3. Colton Herta
It was a renaissance campaign for Andretti Global’s leading man. Not only did Colton Herta rebound after two consecutive down years mired 10th in the overall standings, he did so in impressive style.
Early consistency that included two podiums in the opening four rounds was derailed after crashing out while running second in the Indy 500 and then again after a blunder in Detroit, but the California native was able to persevere with a masterful drive in Toronto and ended a 41-race winless drought that dated back to 2022.
He then went on to score four top fives over the last five rounds, including a maiden oval victory in the Nashville season finale. His two wins and six podiums put him a career-best second in the championship.
Overall, there was a lot to appreciate as Herta demonstrated a different level of maturity this past season. He shook off any doubts of his oval prowess after out-duelling O’Ward in Nashville, while also not allowing bad results to fester in a month-long slog.
If Herta can continue this level of form or even add to it, he could prove to be a handful for the rest of the paddock.
2. Scott McLaughlin
There might be no bigger ‘what could have been’ story of this past season than Scott McLaughlin.
The ex-Supercars legend took a significant step forward by capturing his maiden oval win in the opening race of the Iowa double-header, then furthered it by bagging another in the nightcap of Milwaukee’s doubleheader. He led a series-high 637 laps, with Power the next closest at 366.
McLaughlin also tied the mark with Power of a series-leading seven podiums in points-paying rounds. That number could have been higher if not for his role in Penske’s push-to-pass scandal in St Pete, which wiped away a third-place result along with team-mate Newgarden’s win.
Despite the penalty, which came 45 days later leading into the third round at Barber, McLaughlin responded by blocking out the noise and claimed one of his five poles of the year before taking an authoritative victory. McLaughlin’s three wins tied him with Power and O’Ward for most in the series in 2024.
If the podium result in St Petersburg was upheld, with how the rest of the season transpired, McLaughlin would have drawn level with Palou at season’s end with 540 points. But the Kiwi would have claimed the championship via tiebreaker by virtue of having more wins.
1. Alex Palou
Alex Palou was once again in prime form in 2024. Coming in as the defending series champion, the Chip Ganassi Racing driver went on to become the first to go back-to-back since Dario Franchitti’s three-peat from 2009-11.
This past year Palou netted two victories, six podiums and three poles in the 17 points-paying rounds, with a stellar show of finishing in the top five in 13 races. Additionally, he was untouchable in the $1 Million Challenge; leading every session, starting on pole and leading every lap in the heat race and main event in IndyCar’s non-points round at The Thermal Club.
The first of Palou’s moments on the top step of the podium outside of the exhibition race came at the Indianapolis road course. He overcame a bad start from pole and utilised his pace on in- and out-laps to find the front of the field.
The second came at Laguna Seca, where he led early before pulling off a wild pass in the Corkscrew on Herta – reminiscent of a similar move Alex Zanardi put on Herta’s father, Bryan, nearly 30 years ago. From there, the Spaniard fended off rivals on a late restart to cap a superb victory.
His excellent form prior to a battery glitch at the second Milwaukee race and an underwhelming Nashville finale meant Palou couldn't be caught and has firmly entered the discussion as one of IndyCar's true greats.
