For the third consecutive race in the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season, the checkered flag waved without a single full-course caution. At the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, just like in the two rounds before, the race ran green from start to finish — a rarity on tight street circuits known for chaos and attrition.
According to Alex Palou, there might be a reason behind this new pattern: drivers are now allowed to restart their cars on track without automatic intervention, which means fewer situations result in full-course cautions.
“Now we can start the car on track again,” Palou explained during the post-race press conference.
“I think that’s helping a lot. Otherwise we would have had like two or three full-course yellows today.”
It’s not just Long Beach. As noted during the conference, this marks the first time since 2020 that IndyCar has seen two consecutive caution-free races — and now, with three in a row, it’s becoming a storyline of its own.
Street courses like Long Beach traditionally come with their fair share of incidents, often triggered by tight corners, walls, and traffic buildup. But on Sunday, despite occasional contact and moments of heavy traffic, the field managed to stay green the entire way.
From a fan perspective, caution-free races can be a double-edged sword: while they highlight driver discipline and uninterrupted racing, they also reduce the unpredictability and strategy shakeups that yellow flags can bring.
Still, for Palou and his fellow competitors, the trend seems to be a sign of improved driver control and series evolution — with a little help from updated procedures.
Whether the trend continues remains to be seen. But after three green-flag races in a row — including one on the tight streets of Long Beach — IndyCar may be entering a new era of cleaner, more controlled racing.
Philipp Kraus
