IndyCar driver Pato O’Ward is having a strong season, currently second in the overall standings to Álex Palou after a seventh-place finish in the 2025 Detroit Grand Prix on Sunday, June 1.
But despite gaining ground on Palou, O’Ward had a negative appraisal of his Detroit Grand Prix experience.
O’Ward was asked about his performance Sunday, and he took a blowtorch to the entire race in Detroit.
“It’s been a very frustrating weekend,” he said. “You guys know I don’t sugarcoat things. I hate this place. It sucks. It’s a horrible track.”
Detroit’s is the shortest among all street courses on the IndyCar calendar, and several drivers have complained about bumpy and narrow conditions since the race returned downtown from Belle Isle in 2023. But no racer has been as candid as O’Ward so far this year.
“I really miss Belle Isle,” he said. “You get to really appreciate what an IndyCar can do at Belle Isle, and here you’re just Mickey Mousing around the whole time.”
The 2023 and 2024 editions of the Detroit Grand Prix, the first two to return downtown since 1988, had crashes on the opening lap that highlighted the chaos of the track. The 2025 Grand Prix avoided that fate on the first turn but did have a big crash at Turn 3 on Lap 84 (out of 100) that took Louis Foster and Felix Rosenqvist out of the race.
Kyle Kirkwood won Sunday’s race, and IndyCar announced the race will return to downtown Detroit though 2028, with an option for three more years through 2031.
You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: IndyCar driver Pato O’Ward rips new Detroit Grand Prix: ‘I hate this place. It sucks.’
Reporting by Christian Romo, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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