Black box ends O'Ward's IndyCar title hunt in Portland

A faulty wire in a black box within Pato O’Ward’s No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevy closed the door on his slim title hopes on Sunday in Portland.

The Mexican’s car slowed on lap 22 of the 110-lap contest as a complete loss of power slowed his march. O’Ward led the field to the green flag and was far enough ahead of championship leader Alex Palou to keep the title fight alive going into the next race, but with the wire that saw its shielding worn away and the electrical short it caused, O’Ward crawled to a stop on pit lane – before reaching his team – and lost seven laps while the problem was found and solved.

Palou, a winner of eight races this season, was well on his way to making his fourth championship happen, but the untimely electronics issue for O’Ward – a winner of three races and the only driver capable of challenging the Spaniard – ended his promising run and guaranteed another crown for Palou with Chip Ganassi Racing.

“It’s one of those things you don’t have an explanation for,” said Arrow McLaren team principal Tony Kanaan. “It’s nobody’s fault. Sometimes you need a little luck to survive those situations. Great job from the team. All we can do is keep trying and keep pushing.”