The Arrow McLaren SP driver overtook Josef Newgarden late in the second of the two races in the series on Sunday’s 1.44-mile Texas Oval to take the first win of his IndyCar career and the first for the team previously known as Schmidt Peterson Motorsports was known that the partnership with McLaren was formalized ahead of the 2020 season.
It was also the 29th IndyCar win for the McLaren brand, over 40 years after Johnny Rutherford won both rounds of a double headed ball at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1979.
After O’Ward took pole position at the start of the IndyCar season at Barber Motorsports Park, Brown promised the Mexican a run in the F1 test for young drivers in Abu Dhabi in December if he could win a race that season.
Brown reiterated that he would keep his end of business alive on Twitter, writing, “A deal is a deal @patriciooward – what a win! See you in Abu Dhabi later this year!”
O’Ward, who previously drove in Formula 2 and Super Formula for a short-lived period as Red Bull Junior in 2019, said that while he was excited about the opportunity to test a current spec F1 McLaren, he didn’t was able to fish for a seat in the team that currently has Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo on their driver list.
“My heart is with IndyCar,” said O’Ward, who became the first Mexican winner of the series since Adrian Fernandez in Fontana in 2004.
“It’s just a great race and it’s so, so competitive.
“I think there is nothing more difficult in the world for a driver. I think a lot of drivers who have come to IndyCar from Formula 1 can agree with me….
Patricio O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet celebrates in the winning streak
Photo by: Phillip Abbott / Motorsport Images
“You know what? Formula 1 is the pinnacle of technology. Everyone wants to go there.
“If the opportunity ever presented itself [if] Zak said, “There’s a place available, I want you to be on my team.” I’d be pretty foolish not to take it because it would just be a crazy opportunity. They don’t come often.
“Right now I’m focusing on the job I have at IndyCar. I want to make the best of it. “
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