The 2026 IndyCar season kicks off with a triple-header. After Alex Palou’s St. Petersburg masterclass, the paddock headed to Phoenix for the second race of the season.
The oval returned to the calendar after an eight-year hiatus, with a majority of the drivers on the grid unfamiliar with the layout, and an exciting race awaited. Here are the key takeaways from the Phoenix 250.
Alex Palou’s milestone streak ends in Phoenix
Alex Palou enjoyed a 622-day stint as the championship leader, but that streak came to an end on the tenth lap of the race in Phoenix
The Spaniard took a strategic gamble on the streets of St. Pete’s, which played out perfectly as he secured the first win of the season. He entered the following weekend on a high and placed his Chip Ganassi Racing car in 11th after qualifying.
During the opening laps of the race, Palou swiftly worked his way through the field and by the Lap 10 restart, he was up to fourth. However, Graham Rahal began threatening that position after the restart. Seemingly unbeknownst to Palou, Rinus VeeKay was also running behind. As Palou neared Turn 3, he started to drift higher. VeeKay attempted an overtake on the outside lane. However, during the move, he clipped Palou’s rear, sending the four-time champion into the wall.
With Palou’s suspension damaged, he had to retire from the race early. While VeeKay was able to keep his car running, he had to pit for repairs, dropping him four laps behind the leader.
The crash soured Palou’s celebrations of his 100th IndyCar start and his race ended prematurely on Lap 22.
Team Penske back on top
After a season to forget in 2025, Team Penske bounced back during St. Pete’s, as Scott McLaughlin took the team’s first pole position of the season. McLaughlin brought home the first podium of the season for the team too with a second-place finish. Heading into Phoenix, Newgarden was the overall favourite for the race, but it was David Malukas who took pole position for the race, with Newgarden securing a Penske front row.
With cautions thrown into the race, Newgarden and Malukas went wheel-to-wheel in a fight for the victory. Christian Rasmussen brushed the wall, providing an opening for the Penske pair to pass, with Newgarden surging past Kyle Kirkwood to seal the race victory with seven laps to spare. The victory was significant for the team as Newgarden snatched the championship lead. Malukas rounded out the race in third. While it may have been disappointing for the 24-year-old to miss out on his first race victory, he was able to grab his fourth career podium, an incredible feat in itself. It was the Andretti driver of Kyle Kirkwood that split the par by finishing in an impressive second.
While McLaughlin had a quiet weekend, he stayed out of trouble and avoided mistakes, meaning the New Zealander finished the race in an amicable seventh position.
Mick Schumacher makes an impression in Phoenix
Mick Schumacher’s IndyCar career hadn’t gotten off to the best start. The German was involved in a Turn 4 crash during the opening lap of St. Pete’s. Santino Ferrucci and Sting Ray-Robb had already collided, but Schumacher’s tyres locked, leaving him as a mere passenger in his Rahal Letterman Lanigan. His car ended up on top of Ferrucci’s and brought a premature end to his race.
However, the following week, Schumacher came out on track with vengeance, with the rookie eager to impress in Phoenix. He did just that during qualifying, as Schumacher was the first driver on the track, where he put an impressive lap on the board that secured him fourth position. This is a significant achievement for Schumacher, as he hasn’t raced on an oval before and was only 2 mph slower than Malukas’ pole time.
Schumacher dropped positions throughout the race and finished in 17th overall. This was due in part to a poor pit stop that saw one of the team’s wheel guns fail, delaying him significantly. However, the German’s first performance provides a glimpse into what he can achieve during the rest of the season.
Will Power struggles to adapt to the Andretti life
Will Power’s move to Andretti caused heads to turn in the paddock, with the news dominating the headlines as the New Zealander departed Team Penske after a 17-year tenure.
However, Power’s ambitions of kick-starting a strong campaign in 2026 came crumbling down during the St. Pete’s race weekend. A crash at the Turn 10 barriers in practice was later replicated in the race, causing terminal damage to the No.26.
Hoping to bounce back in Phoenix, Power took to the oval where he set off with a strong push lap. However, during his second lap, Andretti snapped around and hit the Turn 3 wall. The crash meant Power started down in 24th position.
After cautions were thrown into the race, Power led the pack with 46 laps to go. But what could’ve been a positive outcome turned into a disaster after contact with Christian Rasmussen.
The Dane was eager to pass Power to take the lead of the lap and made an ambitious attempt to overtake at Turn 2. The Andretti driver aimed to eliminate the threat and squeezed his nose higher on the track. This, in turn, caught the nose of Rasmussen, where the damage obtained from the incident left Power limping back to the pit lane, where he retired. While Power has had some tough times adapting to Andretti’s life with two DNFs to his name, the New Zealander grabbed the fastest lap of the race in Phoenix.
With Arlington on the 13th-15th of March, the drivers will be tested on the new street circuit based in Texas. Who will come out on top?
Feature Image: IndyCar Media Centre