Palou Open to Le Mans Debut After Rolex 24 Return

Alex Palou says he’s open to participating in the 24 Hours of Le Mans if the “right opportunity” presents itself amid a busy NTT IndyCar Series schedule, following his return to the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Palou made his return to IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition in last weekend’s Daytona curtain-raiser, joining Chip Ganassi Racing’s full-timers Renger van der Zande and Sebastien Bourdais as well as Scott Dixon in the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R.

The two-time IndyCar champion, who also drives for Ganassi in that series, set the car’s fastest race lap before it dropped out of the race with what the team called a “mechanical powertrain issue” a little over halfway through the race.

While Palou is not currently scheduled to contest any more sports car races with Ganassi this season, an opportunity could come for him to join the team for the FIA World Endurance Championship blue riband event at Le Mans if the team earns a second entry.

This is because the existing WeatherTech Championship crew of van der Zande, Bourdais and Dixon would likely be retained for the second CGR Cadillac, while Action Express Racing is expected to have its own Cadillac for Pipo Derani, Jack Aitken and Tom Blomqvist, via its auto-invite for winning the WeatherTech Championship GTP title.

“It’s on the checklist, for sure, as Daytona was,” Palou told Sportscar365. “If the right opportunity comes, every driver would want to do it, and I am no different. 

“But the IndyCar drivers usually miss the test day, and we only have one week off in between [the IndyCar rounds at Road America and Laguna Seca]. It’s tough to put it in the calendar.

“I remember last year Dixon, [Simon] Pagenaud and some others [racing at Le Mans] were on the same flight going to Europe, I was just going to rest. A 24-hour race just drains you, and if you have to go directly back to the U.S. to do another race, it’s tough. 

“But if the right opportunity comes, you can’t say no. Le Mans is the endurance race.”

Palou was welcomed back to the Ganassi squad for Daytona following his debut in the race in 2022 at the wheel of a Cadillac DPi, but sat out the 2023 race as the team elected to run three-driver lineups in the first year of the GTP era.

The Spanish driver is not expected to make any further IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup outings this year, but didn’t rule out the possibility of doing other long-distance races in future if, like Daytona, they fall outside of the IndyCar calendar.

“If it’s the case if it’s after the [IndyCar] season, it’s perfect for us,” said Palou. “The only issue is when it’s inside the calendar, It’s tough to give 100 percent in either category.

“We have 18 race weekends in IndyCar, and my job is to perform there, so you cannot go crazy with the calendar. But if [in future] there’s a good chance because the calendar permits it, I always welcome more races.”