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Pato O’Ward Tops Sebring IndyCar Test as Preseason Heats Up

Carl Smith by Carl Smith
February 17, 2025
in Motorsports
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
Pato O’Ward Tops Sebring IndyCar Test as Preseason Heats Up

Pato O’Ward competes during the Music City Grand Prix Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn., Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024.

Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward flexed his muscle early in 2025, setting the fastest lap in Monday morning’s IndyCar test session at Sebring International Raceway. The young Mexican driver clocked a blistering 52.347s, leaving reigning champion Alex Palou trailing by nearly 0.15s.

After a brief delay due to a power failure in IndyCar’s medical trailer, engines finally roared to life at 9:35 a.m., kicking off the four-hour session under sunny Florida skies. O’Ward wasted no time in making a statement, posting the quickest time on Sebring’s short course while teammate Christian Lundgaard slotted into third place, just behind Palou.

“We’re back, baby,” O’Ward declared, setting the tone for Arrow McLaren’s 2025 ambitions.


O’Ward Leads, Palou Tests New Steering Wheel

Alex Palou, always a formidable force, was second fastest with a 52.495s lap, continuing his fine form from last season. The defending champion also used the session to test IndyCar’s new, larger Cosworth steering wheel, a piece of tech aimed at improving driver control and feedback.

Christian Lundgaard (52.663s) was third fastest, ensuring that Arrow McLaren had a strong presence up front, while Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Sting Ray Robb surprised many with a fourth-place finish (52.776s), showing promising speed early in testing.

Marcus Armstrong, who was initially set to run just his No. 66 Meyer Shank Racing Honda, had an unexpected double shift. With his new teammate Felix Rosenqvist sidelined due to illness, Armstrong stepped into the No. 60 car for the afternoon session, an early endurance test for the young Kiwi.


Full Monday Morning Test Results:

PositionDriverTime (Gap)Team
1Pato O’Ward52.347sArrow McLaren
2Alex Palou+0.148sChip Ganassi Racing
3Christian Lundgaard+0.316sArrow McLaren
4Sting Ray Robb+0.429sJuncos Hollinger Racing
5Marcus Armstrong+0.457sMeyer Shank Racing
6Kyle Kirkwood+0.503sAndretti Global
7David Malukas+0.547sArrow McLaren
8Scott McLaughlin+0.574sTeam Penske
9Louis Foster+0.625sRahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
10Christian Rasmussen+0.657sEd Carpenter Racing
11Marcus Ericsson+0.672sAndretti Global
12Graham Rahal+0.754sRahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
13Rinus VeeKay+0.854sEd Carpenter Racing
14Robert Shwartzman+1.048sChip Ganassi Racing

Looking Ahead: Afternoon Session & More Testing

The afternoon test session will run from 2:05 p.m. to 6:05 p.m., featuring the second group of drivers, before teams swap testing slots on Tuesday.

With Sebring’s notoriously bumpy surface mimicking street circuits like St. Petersburg and Toronto, these test runs provide valuable insight into how teams’ 2025 setups will fare on real-world road courses.

Can Arrow McLaren carry this early momentum into the full season? Will Palou’s new steering wheel give him an edge? With just a month until the season opener, the battle lines are already being drawn.

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