Monaco, September 26 – As a kid in Sant Antoni de Vilamajor, a village near Barcelona, Alex Palou would pass by a rental gokart track on his way to school. One day, his parents took him there for a spin-and it was love at first lap. Not so many years later, at the age of 24, Alex has fulfilled his dream by becoming the 2021 NTT Indycar series champion for Chip Ganassi Racing. This result has been achieved thanks to his outstanding driving skills and constant support by a strong management. The man behind Alex’s dream is Salvatore Gandolfo, an Italian entrepreneur who founded Monaco Increase Management with the aim of helping young drivers through all stages of their career in motorsports. Under MIM direction, Palou’s career took on new momentum and he finished third in his rookie year in Japan’s Super Formula, with only a mechanical problem preventing him from clinching the title at the last round. In the same year, 2019, young Alex had had his first taste of the Indycar series by testing for Dale Coyne Racing ad Mid-Ohio. Early in 2020, it was announced that Alex would drive for DCR in his rookie year in the prestigious American series. His strong performance and results – including a podium finish in just his third race – earned him a multi-year contract with all-winning Chip Ganassi Racing team. In 2021, Alex won three races and was runner-up in the Indianapolis 500. His consistency through the season and the backing of MIM from Monaco enabled him to enter the final round in Long Beach with a 35-point margin over the second placed driver. Starting from 10th on the grid, Alex mostly focused on having a clean race with no trouble, yet his pace brought him to a final 4th place finish and an overall point tally of 549. This result made him the first Spanish driver to win the Indycar series and one of the youngest championship winners ever.
- Alex Palou: “Winning the championship today is a dream come true. And it’s so important to have the right people around you to help your career like MIM did. Salvatore has been a source of inspiration for me, including when I had to pick a new logo for my helmet and I chose the Gorilla… I believe that consistency has been the key to this season, winning races when we could, taking second places when the win was out of reach and so on. Now I am already looking forward to the next season and I want to be here for many years to come!”
- Salvatore Gandolfo, MIM founder and CEO: “What Alex has achieved in his second Indycar season is simply outstanding. I have always thought of him as a very talented driver and a straightforward guy with a brilliant future ahead of him. At Monaco Increase Management, we helped him find his way through a slightly different trajectory than most young drivers follow today, enabling him to shine in Japan before moving to the United States. Now all the hard work is paying off and we look forward to be together for a long time ahead!”
