Kyle Kirkwood weathers wing damage to win in Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix

INDIANAPOLIS — IndyCar fans clamoring to see some new faces drive in victory circle this season are going have to wait yet another week.

No, newly crowned Indianapolis 500 champion Alex Palou didn’t win his sixth race of the season at Detroit. Kyle Kirkwood won his second. They are the only two drivers to win this year.

Kirkwood weathered damage to his front wing to pull away from Santino Ferrucci to win the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix on the city’s downtown streets on Sunday afternoon.

“This AWS Honda was on rails all weekend long,” Kirkwood said. “There were some challenges out there, that’s for sure. We had to pass our way back through a handful of times, and it was definitely not a walk in the park, especially with that front-wing damage at the end. We did lose a little bit of performance, but the car actually felt fine.

“Epic pit stops. Epic strategy. We were definitely the fastest.”

Kirkwood clipped his left front wing as he passed Kyffin Simpson for third place on lap 78. The damage didn’t slow Kirkwood down as he passed Ferrucci for the lead one lap later.

The Andretti driver led the last 21 laps, surviving a late restart after the race was red-flagged to repair a barrier after a scary crash between Felix Rosenqvist and Louis Foster.

“The car was flawless, and on restarts, man, the car just came alive,” Kirkwood said. “I was actually super comfortable after that red flag came out. I was like, ‘This is going to work out in our favor here.’”

Ferrucci came in second for his best career finish in the IndyCar Series, while Kirkwood’s teammate, Colton Herta, crossed third for his first podium of the year.

Palou was aiming for his sixth win in seven races this season, but Indy 500 runner-up David Malukas hit him on lap 72 sending the No. 10 Honda into the turn one wall. Palou finished 25th — his worst result since coming in 27th at Road America in 2022. Malukas was penalized for avoidable contact.

The series will take a week off before racing on their second oval of the season on June 15 at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis.