The Trackside Report

March 14, 2025 | IndyCar News

 The NNT IndyCar Series schedule released on June 12, 2024, revealed a revamped look for the 2025 season. The series announced that it would be making a return trip to the 19-turn 3.067-mile Thermal Club, an exclusive motorsport facility just southeast of Palm Springs, CA for The Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix on March 23.

 Last year’s Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge won by Alex Palou marked the first IndyCar “All-Star” event since the Marlboro Challenge that ran from 1987 to 1992, and 16 years since its last non-championship points race in Surfers Paradise, Australia for the Nikon 300.

 Entering The Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix for this season, Alex Palou is looking to pick up where he left off last March – with a dominating victory. Last year’s main event saw Alex Palou lead all 20 laps in his No. 10 Ridgeline Lubricants Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing, over second-place finisher Scott McLaughlin in the No. 3 Xpel Team Penske Chevrolet by a convincing 5.7929 seconds.

 Given Alex Palou’s performance last year in the Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge, and his teams well-played strategic win at the season-opening race of 2025 at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding, it is safe to claim that Alex Palou will be a hands-down favorite to challenge for his second straight victory of the new season, and make a compelling claim on defending his 2024 championship title.

 “What an amazing job by everybody. They gave me everything we needed this weekend to win. I told you yesterday we had a really, really fast car,” Palou said to FOX Sports TV. “It’s about knowing the positives of starting off the year strong and now heading to some tracks that we know we’ve been really quick at in the past.”

 Will Power is looking to rebound in Thermal from a disastrous start to his 2025 campaign. In the season-opening race at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding, Power made contact on the opening lap in turn three with Nolan Siegel’s No. 6 NTT Data Arrow McLaren Chevrolet and resulted in an early exit for the Australian native. Now sitting in the 26th position in the points standings, Power has a long road ahead if he’s going to challenge for his third series championship. Not to mention in a contract year at Team Penske.

 The action at The Thermal Club will all start on Friday, March 21 at 6:30pm EST with practice 1 airing on FS1. Practice 2 will air on Saturday, March 22 at 1:00pm EST, followed by qualifying at 5:00pm EST all on FS1.