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On the outside, Alex Palou is the friendly family man who hasn't changed a bit since he found fame and moderate fortune (and plenty of success) in IndyCar.
Behind the scenes, he and his team have caused enough controversy for 30 documentaries and left a trail of torn-up contracts and disappointed teams in his wake.
It might not feel like it at the moment but we're watching one of racing's incredible stories playing out in front of us, especially as, whatever happens off track, he looks invincible on it - ensuring he stays relevant through his incredible results.
If you're new to the story, in 2022 Palou announced he was leaving Chip Ganassi Racing to join Arrow McLaren, but Ganassi asserted he had a contract and a settlement out of court kept Palou at Ganassi for 2023 but left him clear to be McLaren's Formula 1 reserve.
After testing with McLaren in 2023, Palou had signed a contract with the team only to later decide he didn’t want to join its IndyCar squad. He informed McLaren he'd be staying at Ganassi, which triggered a legal case in a UK commercial court with McLaren that is still ongoing, with the team aiming to recoup some of the losses it claims it incurred in 'losing' Palou.
Now, in the wake of his third title in four years, it appears Alex Palou is in IndyCar to stay. In June, The Race revealed that Palou had a get-out clause in his Ganassi contract for 2025 if an F1 team comes calling, but he says he is "not knocking on doors" to get to F1 in the immediate future.
He has been linked to the Sauber team that's being taken over by Audi but only through wild speculation, and The Race does not believe Palou is in contention for that seat - which at the moment incumbent Valtteri Bottas is favourite to retain.
"It's not a secret that I did a lot of stuff to try to get into F1 in the past that didn't help in my career in IndyCar, and that created a lot of drama around my name and my team," Palou said in an exclusive interview with The Race IndyCar Podcast.
"I tried that. It didn't work, learned a lot from that on track and off track.
“So I'm actually happy of what happened, of what I learned, what I was able to get from that as a driver and as a person.
“But I'm not sad. Honestly, I'm super privileged to, not only almost have had a chance to go there, but, like, have been able to win championships while I was trying to get into F1.
"I'm happy here. I'm not knocking on doors. I know also, I'm 27, I'm not 17, where maybe there could be a chance in the near future. I'm not sad about it.
"I'm actually super excited that I have the opportunity in front of me to try and win an Indy 500 now and ovals and more championships. So I'm all good.
"There's many talented drivers that could go to F1 in our grid and do very well. And hopefully they have a chance soon, and I'll be the number one fan. Cheering for them."
The more cynical among you might cut in at this point and say something along the lines of 'of course he's going to say that while no one in F1 wants him, but if a team came calling he'd snap the chance up'.
Perhaps that's true and, if he did, at least this time there'd be no obvious arguments given the escape clause in his contract.
The Race immediately asks whether Palou does think the whole process he has gone through has made him a better driver, a better person, both, or neither.
"It's tough to say, but for sure, having to be constantly asked about what I've done with this contract..." he says, interjecting with a "no, no, no, it's part of myself," when The Race jokingly apologises for asking one of those questions.
"Every day I'm asked about that in normal media, on social media, friends, family, teams, like it was the only topic I had to talk about during 2022 and it was my fault. It was not somebody else's fault.
"So it made me, I think, tough. It made me think about the decisions a lot more as well. And it made me be, I would say, a little bit stronger under pressure.
"It made me focus on what is really important, which is to win; to take care of my family, but on track to just win and all the rest doesn't really matter.
"It's part of what I am today, and the success I had."
It’s really hard to get across what it's like working with Palou. Because when you look at some of the cut-throat decisions he and/or his management have taken, leaving a trail of disappointed and aggrieved people behind, it's almost impossible to believe that's the same Palou The Race knows.
Those dealings paint the picture of a ruthless, self-important ladder climber hellbent on his own success whatever the cost.
But that's not the Alex Palou you get to see in person.
When you see him and speak to him he's laidback, funny, gives you all of his time and focus in that moment and makes you feel really important. There's always a smile and a feeling that whatever you have written/said about him, positive or negative, it's water under the bridge and he values your contribution. He's a professional, and treats you as one, too.
He's also happy spending time away from the circus, and always has family with him at the track. That's increased this year with the arrival of his first child last December, and it's clear his daughter had a big impact on making him an even more dominant force.
He tells the story of being angry after his crash at Iowa - probably the first IndyCar crash of his own making since signing for Ganassi in 2021. He was really angry after it. As angry as Palou can be anyway; he was probably still smiling and signing autographs etc.
But ready to vent in his motorhome, he opened the door to find his daughter smiling at him and the frustration melted away.
"I'm very happy I did back-to-back [championships] in the first year that she was born," says Palou.
"I don't know obviously, because I don't have the experience, but I would say it's the toughest, because you go from not being a dad to now needing to take care, not only of myself and my wife, but also of another human being that it's in our hands.
"So it's been a big learning curve, but it helped me prioritise. It helped me focus on like, 'Hey man, you better work out now that you have two hours [while] the baby's asleep, and you better make it work and make it a proper workout!'
"Before it was like, 'Oh, I have all day. I have an hour, and it'll be enough'.
"That's been pushing me a lot, and also it's been helping me when I had bad days, just to go home and see that the baby doesn't care and that she only wants to see you and she only wants to maybe play a little bit with you or just smile.
"It makes you realise what is important, which is family and just being happy and enjoying this amazing life that I'm able to be in. I love every single part of it, and hopefully I can be a good dad, for her."
Of course, it's easy to focus on the court cases or Palou becoming a dad because those are the things that are new/most obvious this season. But you can't skip past and not acknowledge this is his third title in four years with the same team.
Even though we're constantly told this is the most competitive single-seater series in the world, it might be on a race-to-race basis, but certainly not year-to-year.
The Race has spent a lot of time in this campaign assessing Colton Herta, Will Power and Scott McLaughlin's travails - all three have made errors and had things go against them.
But Palou has had the same does of misfortune (if not the errors). The fact that he is able to produce the consistency he does is in huge part down to his #10 crew. Strategy and pitstops are pivotal if you're going to finish 14 of 17 races in the top five.
Scott Dixon is in the same team and hasn't had this level of success in 2024, so that in a nutshell explains the relationship between Palou and his team.
They are the perfect match on track, and have constantly backed him up amid whatever furore is happening off it.
The lazy observations about how Palou isn't good on ovals, because he hasn't won on one yet, may continue. Even though he still had the sixth-best average finish - despite that Iowa crash - which put him ahead of Herta and Power.
He had an amazing chance to win an Indianapolis 500 which is quickly forgotten, when Rinus VeeKay inadvertently smashed him into the pitwall last year after Palou had taken pole.
Sure, drivers who aren't good on ovals score Indy 500 poles, don't they?
Anyway, it's been another fascinating year of juxtaposition, with the happy, friendly and welcoming at-track presence rivalled by what has happened behind the scenes.
Palou will have to cope with the lawsuit through 2025 as well, although a court date won't come until after October 1, 2025, so he could be a four-time champion by then.
A sum total of zero people would be surprised by that.
