Having missed out on pole by only 0.0024s in Qualifying, Pato O’Ward made no mistake in the race on Sunday in Mid-Ohio, as he beat polesitter Alex Palou by nearly half a second to claim his second victory of the season, but first on-track since Iowa in 2022.  

Hailing the win as a “long time coming,” Pato was delighted to reward his fans and the Arrow McLaren team with a return to victory lane. It was the Mexican’s second win this year, but he was only awarded first place in St. Petersburg after a post-race disqualification for Josef Newgarden, which came over a month later.  

“I always say that Pato fans are the best,” Pato said. “I am very grateful, it’s a very fulfilling feeling. Going to all of these different markets, seeing a lot of papaya walking around and a lot of No. 5 jerseys, seeing people excited, that is why we do this. 

“It’s definitely been frustrating lately because we haven’t given them a reason to go crazy, and I think the Indy 500 was the closest we’ve been. It feels really special to see such a group of people behind me – good or bad weekends – and that is very special.” 

This is why we do this🧡 gave it absolutely everything. Such a special feeling that nothing else can match. @ArrowMcLaren pic.twitter.com/NHQEaqHj4l

— Pato O'Ward (@PatricioOWard) July 8, 2024

Starting from second, Pato spent significant periods of the race hanging onto Palou’s rear wing. The Spanish driver was able to build up a 5.5 second advantage over us at one stage, but Pato began taking chunks out of his lead following the first round of stops, cutting it down to 3.5 seconds on Lap 45 and down to 0.4 seconds ahead of his second stop on Lap 54.  

A slow stop from Palou and the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing team allowed Pato to storm into first, sparking a late battle for the lead where Pato had to fend off Palou multiple times in the closing stages. Despite running into traffic, Pato managed to retain the lead at the Checkered Flag to clinch his sixth career victory in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.  

“We really pushed it [today], I was pushing so hard,” Pato told Motorsport.com. “Watching Palou trying to run away with it in the first stint, I said ‘no way, no way.’ For some reason, they are so quick on the Firestone Primary tires, the Ganassi cars – they're in a different stratosphere – but I knew as soon as we got the Firestone Alternate tires on, that was my chance to close the gap and ultimately beat him. 

“I knew that was the objective and just tried to keep him at a somewhat manageable distance. I'm super stoked. I'm so proud of the team. All my No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet teammates have been working so hard. It feels like we've had heartbreak after heartbreak after heartbreak. 

“It feels so good to give this to them. I know they're as happy as I am today, and we earned it. No one gave it to us. We had to earn it.” 

Pato’s win over Palou in Mid-Ohio promoted him to third in the championship standings, 70 points behind Palou with eight rounds to go.  

“I'll tell you exactly what I was saying in my head,” Pato said of his battle with the Chip Ganassi Racing driver. “Coming out of (Turn) 13, I saw him launching from the box, and then I said, ‘I got his ***.’ I think that's probably what gave us the opportunity. Who knows? It's hard to say how it would have played out in the other scenario. 

“But yeah, we beat him on the same strategy, same everything, which makes it feel that much sweeter because that No. 10 car has been the car to beat, and it still is the car to beat. They've been very, very strong. It’s a very strong driver with an extremely strong team, and that's who we're chasing at the moment.” 

Pato’s win was the first by any team in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ new hybrid engine era, which began in Mid-Ohio. By some quirk of fate, Arrow McLaren’s landmark win comes nearly 15 years after Lewis Hamilton won the first race of F1’s own-hybrid engine era for McLaren at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2009.  

Speaking in the press conference after the race, Pato reserved special praise for Gavin Ward, who joined Arrow McLaren two years ago in July 2022 as Director of Trackside Engineering, before being promoted to Team Principal in October 2023.   

“I don't know if St. Pete would be considered a proper first win for him,” said Pato. “I was hoping to deliver him a proper first win on the two-year anniversary of him actually joining the team. Gavin has got a lot of passion for what he does, for racing and for building a very strong race team. It made me so happy seeing their faces on the podium, I could tell that they knew I’d driven my *** off.  

“There's nothing like having a team of people behind you who truly trust in you 100%, who know that when you do have that chance, you will make it happen for them. That's always been what I strive for and what I want to give to them. For Gavin specifically, it probably feels as strong for him as it feels for me because, really, our last win, my last win, not counting St. Pete, was Iowa.  

“Gavin was present then, but it was shortly after he joined the team, so this is truly the first one we've all been able to really live. He has got a whole group of people behind him who trust in him and where he's taking this team. He's definitely brought a different view to how we approach certain things, but it's not going to change in one day. It takes time, it takes money, just like everything, but we’re here to win.”