Pato O’Ward refocused after 2022 IndyCar season that started ‘with so much noise’

As 32 engines crank up at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this week, the 2022 NTT IndyCar season somehow has gotten quieter for Pato O’Ward and his Arrow McLaren SP team.

O’Ward will enter this week’s Indy 500 test coming off a fifth-place finish in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach after a 2022 season that started with two disappointing finishes and a plethora of potential distractions.

Slightly over a month ago, O’Ward went public with news that he was testing the IndyCar free agent market. The revelation came just days after McLaren announced a Formula One testing contract with Colton Herta. O’Ward, who shares the same F1 aspirations as his Rolex 24-winning teammate, initially seemed miffed by the news.

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But he put that all aside at Long Beach, overcoming mediocre practice and qualifying sessions for an inspired drive in his No. 5 Dallara-Chevrolet after starting 11th on the street course difficult for passing.

“I definitely had as a goal in Long Beach to try to turn around our championship,” O’Ward told NBC Sports in an interview last Friday. “We started just rough, and things were going wrong, and there was so much noise, and I said, ‘You know what? We will turn it around in Long Beach, and we will start our claw back into the championship hunt because there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be in the championship hunt this year.’

“We were last year (finishing third in points), and I think we can do it again this year. Right after Long Beach, I was very satisfied. Obviously, we’re there to win and for more, but in terms of where we were, you can’t just want to swallow the world