Alex Palou from Spain officially became IndyCar’s newest champion on Sunday at Portland International Raceway. The 27-year-old driver clinched his third championship in a row, driving the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda to another dominant season.

Palou’s incredible run includes four championships in just five years of IndyCar racing. He won eight races this season with help from his team led by manager Barry Wanser, race engineer Julian Robertson, and crew chief Ricky Davis.

Palou joins a very small group of drivers who have won three straight IndyCar championships. Only three other drivers in the 100-plus year history of IndyCar have accomplished this feat: Ted Horn (1946-1948), Dario Franchitti (2009-2011), and Sebastien Bourdais, who holds the record with four straight titles from 2004-2007.

What makes Palou’s achievement even more special is how quickly he reached this level. He has won all four of his championships in just 96 IndyCar races. As of August 10, Palou had been the points leader for 413 straight days, and that streak will continue for at least two more weeks until the next race at Milwaukee.

Palou’s championship gives Chip Ganassi Racing their 17th IndyCar title, tying them with Team Penske for the most in series history. What’s impressive is that Ganassi has won their 17 championships in just 36 years of competition, while Penske’s 17 titles came over 49 years.

Ganassi has been especially dominant since 2000, winning 13 of their 17 championships this century. The team won three titles in the 2000s, five in the 2010s, and five so far from 2020-2025.

One of the most remarkable parts of Palou’s 2025 season was that he led the championship points from the very first race to the last. His teammate Scott Dixon did the same thing in 2020, making Ganassi the only team in IndyCar history to have two different drivers lead an entire season from start to finish.

Palou made this season look easy by winning five of the first six races, including his first Indianapolis 500 victory. After just six races, he had built a huge 112-point lead over his competition. That’s the kind of advantage most drivers don’t have until 12 races into the season.

Palou’s rise to IndyCar stardom has been remarkably fast. He came to IndyCar in 2020 after racing in Japan’s Super Formula and Super GT series. He made his debut with Dale Coyne Racing and immediately impressed by finishing on the podium in his third race and qualifying seventh at the Indianapolis 500.

Chip Ganassi Racing signed Palou for 2021 to replace Felix Rosenqvist. At the time, many people didn’t expect much from the young Spanish driver. But Palou sent a message right away by winning his first race for Ganassi to open the 2021 season.

By the end of that year, Palou had won three races and finished on the podium in half of all the races. He captured his first championship in what was only his second IndyCar season.

Palou had a difficult 2022 season when contract and legal problems distracted him from racing. He dropped to fifth place in the championship that year. But once those issues were resolved with a new multi-year contract at Ganassi, he came back stronger than ever.

In 2023, Palou won five races and finished on the podium 10 times in 17 races. He won that championship by 78 points over his teammate Scott Dixon.

His 2024 championship was closer, winning only two races but staying consistent with 13 top-five finishes to beat his rivals and claim his third straight title.

Palou clinched his 2025 championship by finishing third at Portland while his main rival Pato O’Ward had mechanical problems. O’Ward started from pole position but his car lost power due to an electrical problem. By the time his team fixed a faulty wire, O’Ward was nine laps behind and finished 25th.

With one race remaining at Milwaukee, Palou has already secured his fourth championship in five years and established himself as IndyCar’s dominant driver of this era.

The IndyCar season concludes in two weeks at Milwaukee, where Palou will look to add another victory to cap off his historic season. At just 27 years old, he still has many years left to add to his championship total and possibly break Sebastien Bourdais’ record of four straight titles.

For now, Alex Palou can celebrate joining the most exclusive club in IndyCar racing as one of only four drivers ever to win three consecutive championships.