Pato O'Ward gives his honest opinion on drawbacks of new IndyCar hybrid technology

Pato O'Ward, the Arrow McLaren racing driver, has given his take on the problems that are being created because of the new hybrid technology in IndyCar. In line with this, he has touched upon quite a few things at the Barber Motorsports Park.

The new hybrid technology was introduced in 2024. It is a low-voltage system (48V) that integrates with the 2.2-liter twin-turbo V6 engine.

The new technology has led to the addition of weight on IndyCars, and Pato O'Ward feels that it has become difficult to throw the car around during Grand Prix weekends.

"You know being able to throw it around, you can still kind of do it, but the window has narrowed down a lot. You can piss it off a lot quicker, so yeah you definitely feel the added weight, the tires feel the added weight. It is definitely something that you have to change quite a bit on the car." O'Ward said.

In the last few years, the highest class of America's open-wheel racing has gone through various changes in terms of its different aspects.

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Pato O'Ward all-set to start Barber race from P8

While Pato O'Ward has shed light on the drawbacks of the new hybrid system in IndyCar, he has also talked about his qualifying session for the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix. The 25-year-old is all set to start the fast-approaching Grand Prix from P8 on the grid.

In line with this, he had the following to say in his post-qualifying interview.

"In Practice 2, I had that mishap in Turn 17 and we didn't get a lot of running in, so we were playing a bit of a guessing game going into Qualifying. We just missed it there by a little bit, but considering the fact that we didn't have a lot of running in, I'm not displeased with it. Obviously, we want to be a bit further up front but I think it's all to play for tomorrow." O'Ward said via Arrow McLaren.

Pato O'Ward is coming off a P13 finish in Round 3 of the 2025 IndyCar season. He is currently in sixth place in the drivers' standings with 80 points (1 pole position, 1 top-five, and 1 top-ten finish).

Keeping in view the up-and-down run he has had so far this year, the upcoming race is of huge significance for him. Especially considering that his teammate Christian Lundgaard (P3 with 96 points) is currently the lead driver at Arrow McLaren.

During the ongoing race weekend, the Barber Motorsports Park has seen quite a few drivers going off-track because of its technical nature. In line with this, at the start of the race, O'Ward will be required to get off to a strong yet safe start to avoid any unnecessary damage to his car.