#patooward

Pato O’Ward can attack a street circuit like the walls are just background noise.

Detroit does not let that last forever.

The first laps can look sharp. The car rotates. The brakes bite. The rear tires hold just long enough to make every move look possible. Then the surface starts collecting the bill.

One slide becomes heat. One late brake turns into a wider exit. One restart fight leaves the tires angry before the stint even begins.

That is where O’Ward’s Detroit test gets interesting.

He has the nerve to send it. He has the racecraft to make traffic nervous. But Detroit asks for something less glamorous: knowing when not to punish the tire.

Speed wins moments.

Pato O’Ward can make Indianapolis feel electric.

That has never been the issue.

The issue is what happens after the first bite leaves the tires. One rear slide becomes two. One corner exit gets messy. One aggressive lap turns into a bill that comes due five laps later.

That is where the Brickyard gets cruel.

O’Ward has the nerve, the pace and the fan energy to make every restart feel alive. But Indianapolis does not reward emotion for long. The road course asks for patience. The oval asks for timing. Both ask the same thing in different ways: can the No. 5 still be dangerous when the tires are tired?

That is the next step.

Not less fire.

Smarter fire.

Phoenix Raceway Pre-Unser Open Test Press Conference Unfolds With Palou And O'Ward #IndyCar, #UnserOpenTest, #PhoenixRaceway, #AlexPalou, #PatoOWard, #NTTIndyCarSeries, #FourPeatChase, #OvalTesting, #2026Season, #MotorsportsJournal, #IndyCarOnFOX, #INDYCAR