(BSS/AFP) - Christian Rasmussen reeled in Alex Palou with a bold late charge to win the Milwaukee Mile 250 on Sunday, capturing his first IndyCar victory and denying the Spaniard another slice of series history.

Spain`s Palou had already sealed his third consecutive IndyCar season crown and fourth in five campaigns with a third place finish in Portland two weeks ago.

The Chip Ganassi Racing driver`s eight wins this season include the Indianapolis 500, but Rasmussen`s triumph in the penultimate race of the season means Palou can`t match the one-season IndyCar win record of 10 -- achieved by A.J. Foyt in 1964 and Al Unser Sr. in 1970.

Rasmussen was among several drivers taking on fresh tires on a late caution for light rain.

The Ed Carpenter Racing driver then aggressively fought his way up from sixth place and powered past Palou -- who had opted not to pit for fresh tires -- for the lead with 15 laps remaining.

Having wrestled his way by the Spaniard on the front straight, Rasmussen surged ahead to win by 1.9sec.

Team Penske`s Scott McLaughlin was third and Rasmussen`s Ed Carpenter teammate Alexander Rossi fourth.

Rasmussen, a 25-year-old from Denmark in his second full IndyCar season, gave Ed Carpenter Racing their first IndyCar win since Rinus VeeKay triumphed on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway course in May 2021.

Palou is just the fourth driver in IndyCar history to win three consecutive season titles after American Ted Horn, France`s Sebastien Bourdais and Scotland`s Dario Franchitti.

With four titles total, Palou ranks third on the all-time IndyCar list behind the record 10 won by A.J. Foyt and the six taken by New Zealand`s Scott Dixon.