All Eyes on 2026: An INDYCAR SERIES Season Loaded With Intrigue

The calendar has flipped to a new year, which means the start of a new NTT INDYCAR SERIES season is approaching. A refresher of what’s to come is helpful.

From the driver and team changes to the addition of two new events (and a return to another venue), the competitive North America motorsports series is loaded with plenty of intrigue.

Questions abound, such as:

How does Will Power fare with his first new team since 2009?

The same question can be asked of David Malukas, who joins formidable teammates Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin at Team Penske.

Among the newcomers, will Mick Schumacher, the son of the Formula One legend, be the leading candidate for Rookie of the Year? Maybe that title will go to Dennis Hauger, last year’s INDY NXT by Firestone champion.

The following are additional topics to ponder:

Changes Aplenty on Team Side

Power’s move to Andretti Global’s Honda program is the highest of the high-profile offseason moves, and his first test with the team – Wednesday at Phoenix Raceway – kicks off his new era. Just how quickly the two-time series champion and 2018 Indianapolis 500 winner gets up to speed alongside Kyle Kirkwood and Marcus Ericsson will be fascinating to watch. Power might make his presence felt immediately as he has one of the best records on the street circuit in St. Petersburg, Fla., the site of the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on Sunday, March 1. He has won two races and a series-leading nine poles.

How quickly Malukas transitions to Team Penske’s No. 12 Chevrolet and meshes with his experienced teammates will also be fascinating to watch. Malukas has been on the fast track to INDYCAR stardom since battling Kirkwood for the 2021 INDY NXT by Firestone championship. Malukas is still searching for his first NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory after 61 starts, but no one will be surprised if it comes this year.

Rinus VeeKay’s move to Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Chevrolet program also will be closely monitored. VeeKay, a one-time series race winner, finished 14th in last year’s standings with Dale Coyne Racing, highlighted by a second-place finish in the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto.

As of this writing, the series’ last full-time seat to be filled is on Dale Coyne’s team. The selected driver will be paired with Hauger, who has had promising offseason tests.

Also to be announced are a handful of team leadership positions, including some race strategists. These positions are massively important on race weekends, and there have been significant turnover within the paddock since last season ended.

Rookie Battle Should Be Exciting

Schumacher has the most recognizable name, but the top two drivers from last year’s INDY NXT by Firestone standings will be fun to watch take the next step.

Hauger and Caio Collet (AJ Foyt Racing) combined to win nine of last year’s 14 races in INDY NXT by Firestone. Hauger captured the title by 72 points.

Hauger’s DCR teammate has not been announced yet. Collet will race alongside the always exciting Santino Ferrucci on A.J. Foyt’s team.

Schumacher is part of a three-driver group led by Graham Rahal and Louis Foster, last year’s Rookie of the Year winner. Schumacher tested RLL’s Honda last fall on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course; his first opportunity to experience an oval is expected to come early next month.

Everyone Still Chasing Champion Alex Palou

Until proven otherwise, the championship runs through Alex Palou and Chip Ganassi Racing, the winners of the past three (and four of the past five) seasons.

Palou made an incredible run at history last year, becoming just the eighth driver to score at least eight series race wins in a season (Mario Andretti achieved that mark twice). Palou also scored his first victory in the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, and he ended the season with the largest advantage in this format (196 points).

Palou will be bidding to become only the second INDYCAR driver to win four consecutive season championships. Sebastien Bourdais won four straight from 2004 through 2007.

Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward finished second in the standings with a pair of race wins. Kirkwood had the second-highest race win total with three.

Power, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, Ed Carpenter Racing’s Christian Rasmussen and Team Penske’s Newgarden also won races last year.

O’Ward and Kirkwood (fourth last year) are among the top candidates to dethrone Palou. The questions are, is Arrow McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard (fifth last year) capable of taking another big step after a breakout season in his first year with the organizational led by Zak Brown and Tony Kanaan? Can Dixon, who finished third in points last year, finally match Foyt’s all-time record of seven titles? And is a rebound in order for Team Penske after its drivers finished ninth, 10th and 12th in last year’s standings? There’s a lot there to play out.

A Reconfigured Schedule

Buckle up, race fans. This season begins on the gas.

There will be four races in March for the first time in the sport’s history, a five-week stretch that will open FOX’s season-long presentation (all 17 races will again air on the network). The second of those races will be at Phoenix Raceway, the historic 1-mile oval where the series last visited in 2018 (Newgarden won). The Good Ranchers 250 will be held on Saturday, March 7 as part of NASCAR’s annual weekend in the desert.

The season’s third race will be the first held on the streets of Arlington, Texas. The Java House Grand Prix of Arlington will be staged on an interesting 2.73-mile circuit alongside the stadiums of the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers on Sunday, March 15.

INDYCAR’s other new addition is a street race in the Toronto suburb of Markham, Ontario. The creation of the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham was necessitated by the FIFA World Cup requiring event blackouts in the Canadian city. Exhibition Place had been used for the race for nearly 40 years. This year’s race on a 12-turn, 2.19-mile circuit will be Sunday, Aug. 16.

The World Cup final on Sunday, July 19 will serve as a massive television lead-in to FOX’s telecast of INDYCAR’s oval race at Nashville Superspeedway. That will be one of two prime-time oval races under the lights, the other coming at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday, June 7.

The annual highlight of the season will be the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Sunday, May 24. Indianapolis Motor Speedway President J. Douglas Boles is hopeful a second consecutive grandstand sellout is achieved.

INDYCAR’s season will end on Sunday, Sept. 6 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, which will be hosting its first season finale since 2023 and the 13th time in the sport’s history. That race will come quickly, so settle in for the ride.

2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SCHEDULE