Pato O’Ward, the Arrow McLaren driver, had a stellar performance at World Wide Technology Raceway, finishing in second place after a thrilling race filled with multiple restarts and crashes. The race, which was scheduled for prime time by the official broadcasters, garnered significant attention and success, with O’Ward now advocating for more such prime-time slots for the sport.
The event at WWRT marked the first-ever IndyCar race scheduled for a prime-time slot on a Sunday night. With 260 laps of intense competition, the race saw 14 different leaders and a record-tying 254 passes for position. The viewership peaked at 1.066 million, resulting in a remarkable 95.7% increase in TV audience compared to previous races.
In a conversation with fellow IndyCar driver Conor Daly on his YouTube channel, O’Ward expressed his excitement leading up to the race. He highlighted the appeal of night racing and suggested that the new IndyCar broadcasters should consider more evening or night slots to showcase premier open-wheel racing.
“I was so excited to come back this year, and like man, prime time Sunday night, under the lights, night racing is the best racing. It just looks cool, it’s awesome and the scheduling is so nice like Sunday morning. I don’t know what you did, but I woke up, I had brunch, and I had a massive meal. I was I was ready to go, I love that stuff, and I think hopefully this actually pushes the series and maybe also pushes Fox to open up some more prime time segments Sunday nights for some, badass racing, like imagine the season finale Nashville that’d be sick man,” said O’Ward.
Currently, O’Ward holds the second position in the championship standings with 262 points, showcasing his consistent performance throughout the season.
In a recent turn of events, O’Ward initially criticized Team Penske for their disqualifications on May 18, where two of their three entries were found in violation of regulations. He stated that the rule breach appeared intentional rather than accidental and voiced support for drivers like Jacob Abel, who were negatively affected by the situation. Despite his strong opinions during the controversy, O’Ward later commended Team Penske for their exceptional handling of the Indy 500, praising the organization for organizing a successful and sold-out event.
“I always come back here with a big smile. It’s what an unbelievable event congratulations to the Penske organization for another very successful Indy500. I mean total sellout. That’s the first one I’ve ever been a part of. That’s been a total sellout. It was insane. Really was. So we’ve talked with other people about how tricky this year’s race was,” said O’Ward.
Looking ahead, O’Ward is set to compete at the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America on June 22 in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, continuing his pursuit of success in the IndyCar series.
