A group of brothers is how Barry Wanser, strategist for Alex Palou, describes the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing team. It’s a group that guided Palou to his fifth NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship and fourth consecutive title this season.

Wanser believes its success goes beyond the numbers. The team has spent the past several seasons learning what makes Palou tick and, more importantly, what he needs to perform at his best.

It’s a recipe everyone tries to replicate but can’t. So, how does this team continue this dominance?

Wanser (photo, top, with Palou) has worked with the No. 10 car since 2004 and has led its race weekend strategy since team owner Chip Ganassi moved to Scott Dixon’s timing stand in 2018. He helped Dan Wheldon win six races and Dario Franchitti win 13 races and three consecutive championships.

Barry Wanser Alex Palou

Wanser (photo, above) sees something different in Palou that makes him stand out. He sees a driver who understands what he needs from a race car, communicates that to his engineers and adapts when circumstances change.

“It’s the relationship he’s been able to form with the team,” Wanser said. “Specifically with his race engineer, Julian Robertson. That ability that they have to extract and make changes to really get the extra performance out of the car that Alex needs to get the fuel mileage with a lap time to take care of the tires to then go perform at the highest level. Everyone says we’ve made it look easy and stuff. It’s by far not easy.”

Wanser admits Palou’s understanding of the car is just as important. On road and street courses, he knows what the car needs to perform on both the primary and alternate Firestone Firehawk tires. On ovals, he understands the differences between a car built for qualifying and one built for racing.

“Trying to get those done and understand that with the very short amount of practice that we actually get is a challenge,” Wanser said. “That’s something that he’s been able to adapt to in the last few years, especially the oval performance and what it takes.”

A team can give a driver a great car. Engineers can provide the tools, and strategists can make the calls. The driver still must put everything together, and Palou has consistently done that while developing a relationship with the people around him that allows the entire group to function at its highest level.

That was particularly important during the 2026 season. The No. 10 team dealt with strategy missteps, pit-lane speeding, contact with other teams’ equipment and bad pit stops. Each created an opportunity for the championship to slip away.

The team kept recovering.

“It’s really easy to get it wrong, so it’s very hard what we do,” Wanser said. “But for all of Chip Ganassi Racing, the engineers have just really done an incredible job. Everywhere we go, the cars have unloaded very strong, and then it’s up to the individual race engineers with their drivers to extract that extra performance out of the cars, make those changes.”

Palou has 25 career victories, including six in the 2026 season. Wanser believes Palou’s ability to take information, process it and turn it into performance is a major part of that success. Another part is harder to quantify.

Trust.

Palou, Robertson, Wanser and the rest of the No. 10 crew have developed an understanding since Palou joined Chip Ganassi Racing in 2021. They communicate quickly and honestly, which matters in a series where there is little room for error.

Wanser understands that dynamic better than most. He retired from his full-time role as senior manager of racing operations at Chip Ganassi Racing after last season but remained Palou’s strategist. The decision was part of a four- or five-year plan he developed with Ganassi and managing director Mike Hull to mentor Blair Julian and Mike LeGallic and prepare them for greater responsibilities at the Indianapolis shop and at the track.

Barry Wanser

Wanser (photo, above, white shirt) and his wife, Laurie, moved from Indiana to Florida during last year’s offseason. He and Palou began the 2026 season in Wanser’s new home state on the streets of St. Petersburg, where they won the season opener.

“I take a lot of pride knowing that my family’s plan to move to Florida last year was set in motion four years prior,” Wanser said. “The last time to mentor people, get other people in place, and that’s what you want rather than just say, ‘Hey, the end of this year, I’m going to be moving.’

“So, obviously with what I do on race day, it’s a big part of still the performance of the team. To be able to still be able to do that is an amazing situation for me.

“I’ve been here 29 years, and I’ve been on the 10-car pit stand since 2004. It would be a lot of experience that would just walk away, and I don’t want that.”

Those 29 years have taught Wanser that success is never one person.

Wanser is quick to point out that Ganassi and Palou deserve a higher level of credit, but everyone on the team has a role in allowing the driver to perform at his best. The strategist is simply the person responsible for making the final call.

“For us on the stand, it’s easy,” Wanser said. “I get too much credit as a strategist because it’s not just me. I manage the process. I learned that from Chip many years ago. Yes, ultimately you make the final decision. But generally, we’re constantly talking about strategy, and nine times out of 10, we’re all in agreement what we’re going to do. But sometimes we’re not, and I have to decide.”

That dynamic may be the best explanation for Palou’s remarkable run. His talent is undeniable, but he is surrounded by people he trusts. He listens, communicates and understands what the car needs. Then he goes out and executes at a level that can make one of the most difficult jobs in motorsports look easy.

“We’re a group of brothers,” Wanser said. “We’re having fun. If you say something dumb, you’re going to be made fun of. No one’s off-limits, like myself included. We just have fun.

“If things aren’t going right, we blame each other, kind of thing. But in a fun way, not in an accusing way. Literally, we just roll with it. Everyone knows they’re trying to do the best they can, and we’re having a lot of fun.

“We have no idea how long this amazing amount of success will continue, but we’re just enjoying every bit of it and having fun along the way here.”