Back in 2019, I rated Alexander Rossi as the best IndyCar driver of the season. Yes, he’d missed out on the title – indeed, he slipped to third in points at the final round – but the Andretti Autosport-Honda driver made fewer mistakes than champion Josef Newgarden, despite having the best car on fewer weekends, and despite being just as aggressive.
Since his seventh and most recent win, at Road America that year, 40 rounds of the IndyCar Series have passed by without Rossi visiting victory lane. In 2020 he scored five podiums, but his luck was so appalling elsewhere that he could still only muster ninth in the standings. Last year he slipped to 10th, with just one podium to his name.
