Alex Palou would 'love to meet' similarly dominant Curt Cignetti

If one were in search of a racing counterpart to Curt Cignetti's 16-0, national championship-winning season as the head coach of the Indiana Hoosiers this season, Alex Palou's 2025 NTT IndyCar Series campaign might be the most apt comparison.

Palou won his fourth IndyCar championship and third consecutive in 2025 by dusting the IndyCar field to the tune of eight wins, 14 top-five finishes and 778 laps led in 17 races. He won the title by 196 points over second-place Pato O'Ward. 

Palou and Cignetti can both be counted as legends in Indiana lore. Not only has Palou won four championships in a sport beloved by the Hoosier state, but he also won the 2025 Indianapolis 500. Cignetti, of course, has turned a historically bad IU football program into a juggernaut, compiling a 27-2 record over two years in Bloomington. 

If you wish to Google either Cignetti or Palou, you'll get the same answer: they win. 

Alex Palou would love to meet Curt Cignetti

Palou saw a college football game for the first time this season, watching Cignetti's Indiana squad decimate UCLA 56-6. 

Likewise, Palou won nearly half the races on the 2025 IndyCar schedule, and like Cignetti, went about his dominance in business-like fashion. 

"Obviously, the flip that he's been able to do in two years, it's been impressive," Palou said. "And you can see that he doesn't show emotions."

"It just feels like he has that mentality of just minute-by-minute, play-by-play, and then we see what the outcome is. I would love to meet him and see really what he thinks and what his methodologies are."

At the end of the day, there might not be much for either Palou or Cignetti to glean from each other, given that Cignetti has completed a CFB turnaround at warp speed and how Palou has been able to crush his fellow drivers on the track. 

Palou will go for his fourth consecutive IndyCar championship in 2026. 

Quotes provided by IndyCar Media.