What to know about Alex Palou, as Ganassi, McLaren claim to have IndyCar champ signed for '23

In easily the most dizzying dose of IndyCar Silly Season news to date, Alex Palou announced Tuesday night he's leaving Chip Ganassi Racing for the McLaren Racing family for the 2023 season just hours after Ganassi announced it had exercised its team option for the defending champ for next year.

Here's what we know:

Alex Palou alleges team misconduct in release announcing '23 ride

In a thread of tweets Tuesday evening, Palou responded to CGR's earlier release regarding its team option on him for 2023, stating that the release was made "without my approval" and with a quote that did not come from him. In light of the recent events, he stated, he would be leaving the IndyCar team at the end of the year.

"I have recently learned from the media that this afternoon without my approval, Chip Ganassi Racing issued a press release announcing that I would be driving with CGR in 2023. Even more surprising was that CGR's release included a 'quote' which did not come from me," Palou wrote. "I did not approve that press release, and I did not author or approve that quote. As I have recently informed CGR, for personal reasons, I do not intend to continue with the team after 2022.

"This evening's unfortunate events aside, I have great respect for the CGR team and look forward to finishing this season strongly together."

McLaren announces Palou signing after driver's tweets

Four minutes after the end of Palou's Twitter thread, McLaren Racing sent out a press release announcing Palou's signing for 2023, following the end of the 2022 IndyCar season. As part of his deal, the release stated, Palou would join Colton Herta and Pato O'Ward in the McLaren F1 team's TPC (testing of a previous car) program, which Herta just finished participating in earlier Tuesday.

More: Colton Herta on two-day McLaren F1 test: 'I do think I'm fast enough'

As a test driver in that program, Palou will wield McLaren's 2021 car in a test session so the F1 team could evaluate him for a future opportunity -- which the team will have in a year or less. McLaren F1 team principal Andreas Seidl said Tuesday the team would begin determining when prospective drivers would run at least two Free Practice 1 sessions following the series' four-week break Aug. 28.

Most importantly, the McLaren release did not state where Palou would be driving in 2023, still officially with an IndyCar seat and two Formula E seats open, as well as the potential for an open seat in Formula 1, should McLaren and/or Daniel Ricciardo decide to part ways at the end of this year -- which McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown implied was on the table in May.

"Palou will join McLaren following the conclusion of his 2022 IndyCar season," the McLaren release said. "McLaren Racing will confirm its full driver lineups across all of its racing series in due course."

Regarding the news, Brown wrote on Twitter: "Delighted to bring Alex Palou into the McLaren Racing family! As the IndyCar champion, Alex is a fantastic addition to the already phenomenal talent we have in our driver roster. Bring on 2023!"

Ganassi responds to Palou, McLaren's statements

In a text to IndyStar, Chip Ganassi Racing team manager Mike Hull said that despite Palou's assertions that he won't be driving for CGR in IndyCar in 2023 and McLaren's announcement, Palou is signed with CGR for next season.

"Our release today says it already," Hull wrote. "Alex Palou is under contract with the team through 2023."

Additionally, a team PR rep told IndyStar: "We can confirm that Alex Palou is under contract with the team through 2023."

Ganassi executes team option on Palou for '23

At 3:31 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, Chip Ganassi racing sent a release announcing it had picked up an option on Palou the team had written into the sides' contract when the Spaniard was signed in the fall of 2020, allegedly locking him down for the 2023 campaign. Last month at Detroit, rumors had begun to circulate that Palou was on Brown's wish list for his expanding IndyCar program, but the driver said little as to what his contract did and didn't stipulate. What he would offer, though, was this:

>> He was happy where he was

>> Wasn't actively looking for a new ride

>> Content with the money he was currently making

>> Wasn't eyeing a future F1 opportunity

Since then, Ganassi had stated his IndyCar team would be "status quo" for 2023, appearing to slash all rumors that Palou or even Scott Dixon would be leaving for AMSP at the end of the year. Tuesday's original release appeared to only further solidify that statement.

"Alex's track record speaks for itself," Ganassi said in the release. "He's a proven champion and one of the most formidable drivers in the world. We are very excited to continue working together."

The release also attributed this quote to Palou regarding the news he'd be driving for Ganassi in 2023 -- a quote he said did not come from and was not approved by him: "It's a great feeling knowing I'll be back with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team welcomed me with open arms from day one, and I'm excited to continue working with Chip, Mike Hull the folks on the No. 10 NTT DATA Honda  and everyone within the organization. The goals remain the same, and we will continue to work relentlessly towards achieving them."

Palou alters management rep

Since he entered the IndyCar scene, Palou has been represented by a management firm based in Monaco named "Monaco Increase Management." Though MIM as a company represented Palou on all his deals, former IndyCar driver Roger Yasukawa came over from Palou's days in Super Formula with Team Goh to help advise him in his dealings.

Though Yasukawa told IndyStar on Tuesday that he never had any official "terms" with MIM, he's listed on the company's website as an "on-track advisor". In his bio, it states Yasakawa will "represent Monaco Increase Management on the IndyCar racing scene alongside Palou."

But with this latest development, Yasukawa told IndyStar he's no longer working alongside Palou in an official capacity, stating that he and MIM could not come to terms, leaving him to "step out from any negotiations on behalf of Alex." To clarify, he stated, "I'll continue to support Alex on a personal basis and obviously remain close friends but all the management aspect is being handled by MIM."

According to the company's website, MIM represents three racing drivers across the world, including Formula 3's David Vidales, Porsche Formula E's Pascal Wehrlein and Palou. The company is run by its founder and CEO Salvatore Gandolfo, who previously served as CEO of the Spanish racing team Campos Racing, which Palou drove for from 2014-15 including his time in GP3 and Formula 2.

McLaren's version of musical chairs

If Palou does drive within McLaren's family of four racing series in 2023, it now has a plethora of options for various rides it needs to fill. The only thing we can say with certainty is that Alexander Rossi will be driving for AMSP in IndyCar in 2023 -- though we don't even yet know which car number.

Days before the 500, AMSP announced it had signed O'Ward to a multi-year deal through 2025, theoretically locking him into IndyCar for that period, but in being part of the TPC program, it wouldn't be hard to imagine Brown making the switch for O'Ward if he were to stand out above the rest of its F1 options alongside Lando Norris.

Last month, McLaren Racing announced it had signed Felix Rosenqvist to a multi-year deal for one of its many open rides following the end of his second IndyCar season in the No. 7 Chevy. Presumably, the news meant the Swede would drive in IndyCar or Formula E -- whichever Brown deemed the best option for McLaren. Before his four seasons in IndyCar, Rosenqvist was a race-winning driver in Formula E and is the only driver to have won in both series.

Last week, Brown said he was pretty far down the road on one of his two Formula E seats, meaning Rosenqvist, should he land in Formula E, would team up alongside this 'driver to be named later.'

Though Ricciardo has an F1 deal with McLaren through the 2023 season, Brown stated in May that there were "mechanisms" by which they not continue in their current situation -- implying either, or perhaps both sides, had an out written into the deal. In short, those comments from Brown imply that by no means is the Australian driver locked into his F1 ride for next year.

Add in Palou, as well as Herta, who holds an IndyCar deal with Andretti Autosport through the end of 2023 but who Michael Andretti could be hard-pressed to keep from an F1 opportunity, and you have a who's who of drivers from around the world waiting for Brown to piece his puzzle together.

To recap, that's :

• Pato O'Ward

• Felix Rosenqvist

• Alex Palou

• Daniel Ricciardo

• Potential mystery Formula E driver

• Colton Herta (maybe)

Potentially landing within:

• 2 IndyCar seats

• 2 Formula E seats

• 1 Formula 1 seat

All to be decided in a matter of months -- if not weeks.

And if you've gotten this far and find yourself scratching your head with more questions than answers, then I promise you -- you're not alone.

Email IndyStar motor sports reporter Nathan Brown at nlbrown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter: @By_NathanBrown.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IndyCar: What are the futures of Alex Palou, McLaren and Ganassi