Winners and losers from IndyCar’s 2025 Grand Prix of Long Beach

Sometimes, a street circuit can prove chaoticand turn into a battle of attrition. On other occasions, it can run caution-free and turn into a track position challenge. 

Sunday’s race in Long Beach was clearly the latter. On a day with no crashes, perfect weather and few passing opportunities, little moments made all the difference. The timing of a pit stop or a starting tire decision can be what separates a podium from a mid-pack run. 

We’re picking at those little differences today. Here are the winners and losers from the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. 

Winner: Kyle Kirkwood 

He called his shot. 

“I said before this weekend: This is where we turn it around,” Kyle Kirkwood said after his win at Long Beach. 

Kirkwood entered Sunday sixth in the championship standings, but in need of a boost to become a clear contender. It’s safe to say winning from pole was just what his No. 27 team needed. Now the Floridian sits second in the standings, right in the mix for his first title entering IndyCar’s most important month.

Loser: Loose belt lands Newgarden in last

Josef Newgarden, Team Penske

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

Usually, when a title contender finishes deep in the field, it’s because of a crash or mechanical issue that impacts the performance of the car. But Josef Newgarden’s Long Beach run was undone by his seat belt.

The two-time champion was poised to challenge for a top-five after rallying from 15th with an aggressive undercut strategy on pit road. But on his final scheduled stop, a crewmember was seen reaching into the cockpit. That led to suspicion of loose belts, which were confirmed the following lap when Newgarden returned to pit road for an unscheduled stop.

In a caution-free race that ran without attrition, that stop was the death knell for Newgarden’s run. He re-emerged a lap down, caught the end of the tire barrier trying to push the pace and ended up last (27th) at race’s end.

Paired with a 13th-place run at the Thermal Club, Newgarden’s early results are going to leave him in a steep championship hole. It might take a third-straight Indianapolis 500 win to push the Tennessean back into the title conversation.

Winner: Alex Palou just keeps succeeding

Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

If the two-time defending champ Alex Palou keeps this up, Newgarden’s results might not matter – or anyone else’s for that matter. 

After winning the opening two races, IndyCar’s current dominator was the antagonist for Kirkwood on Sunday. He pushed the Andretti star and managed to get right to his rear wing after final stops, but ultimately settled for second when Kirkwood pulled away in the closing laps.

IndyCar is a series prone to unpredictability given the challenge of the cars and circuits, along with the potential for an untimely caution to send anyone’s day awry. But Palou has an average finish of 1.33 through three races, and already sits nearly a full race’s point allotment ahead of anyone other than Kirkwood entering the Month of May. 

If he can get through Barber and Indy without issue, Palou’s going to be tough to catch through the summer. 

Loser: Colton Herta comes up short

Colton Herta, Andretti Global

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

For all the trouble he had, Sunday seemed like a promising day for California’s own Colton Herta in Long Beach. He’d slapped the wall in Saturday’s group qualifying round and had to run without a prep lap after trouble in the Fast 6 qualifying round, but rolled into race day with a second-place start. 

That proved to be the high point for Herta’s day. He clattered into Jacob Abel in the morning warmup, got caught out by the strategy and an inconsistent car in Sunday’s race, and wound up sixth when the checkered flag flew. 

Is that bad? No. But considering his front row-sharing teammate Kyle Kirkwood took the victory from pole, it’s fair to say the result was a little underwhelming. Maybe IndyCar’s win predictor will stop jinxing him moving forward.

Winner: Driver’s Eye lives up to the hype

FOX Sports and the Racing Force Group brought the Driver’s Eye camera to IndyCar for the first time throughout the weekend in Long Beach. The unique setup, which sees a tiny camera placed in between the driver’s head and the shell of their helmet, has previously been seen in Formula 1 and NASCAR. 

It’s the latest in an ever-evolving string of cockpit camera setups used to bring fans closer to the action. And it’s hard to imagine it getting much closer than this.

Loser: Nolan Siegel struggles through sickness

Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

No one had a longer Sunday afternoon than Arrow McLaren’s young prospect. Nolan Siegel qualified among his teammates in 11th, but started suffering from food poisoning on Saturday night. He battled through the illness to compete in the race, but was relegated to 20th after making an extra stop for what he felt was a broken left-rear in the early stages.

Here’s the kicker, though – the car doesn’t appear to have been broken. Instead, it was rubber build up on the left rear tire that led a promising weekend astray. 

Winner: Alternate strategy pays off

Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

For the second-straight race, California heat and sunshine made IndyCar’s softer, alternate tire a pain to endure rather than a preferred tire for a late surge. So many in the field elected to start on the tires and pit quickly after the mandatory two-lap stint to be done with them. 

But six drivers opted to take a risk and start on the primary tire, slotting a soft tire run into the race’s middle stints. And it worked out to each competitor’s benefit. 

Christian Lundgaard led the group, going from 12th to the podium in third. Scott Dixon rose from 14th to eighth despite a slow stop along the way. Kyffin Simpson rallied from 17th to 10th, Sting Ray Robb finished one spot ahead of him in ninth after rolling off 19th. Even Robert Shwartzman (24th to 18th) and Santino Ferrucci (27th to 11th) ended up far better off despite starting deep in the field. 

Sometimes it pays to gamble.

Loser: Jacob Abel’s day goes wrong early

Jacob Abel, Dale Coyne Racing

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

Jacob Abel entered Sunday’s race starting 26th out of 27 cars. He ended it there, too. But the route to that point wasn’t a fun one. 

The Kentucky native’s Dale Coyne Racing crew was put in a bad spot after he suffered extensive damage in the morning warmup crash with Herta. Abel was present for the start of the race, but struggled for pace and ended up two laps down 34 seconds behind the next car at day’s end. Only Newgarden’s woes kept him from a last-place finish.

Winner: FOX Sports nails driver intros

Through the opening stages of IndyCar’s new partnership with FOX Sports, elements of the broadcast have been evolving and improving with feedback from each round. In the second race the cartoon caricatures were eliminated. With the third, driver introductions were switched to a full-screen presentation with the driver introducing themselves next to their liveries. 

At a time when schemes can change week-to-week, this was a nice touch that should make it easier for fans to follow each driver in the race.

Photos from Long Beach – Race