Click for more.
Two-time IndyCar series champion Josef Newgarden earned his first victory of the season and 33rd of his career by closing down and passing race leader Kyle Kirkwood with seven laps remaining to win the Good Ranchers 250 on Saturday at Phoenix Raceway. Newgarden, starting second, drove to a 1.7937-second victory in the No. 2 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet over the No. 27 JM Bullion/Gold.com of Andretti Global driver Kirkwood.*
“I’m very surprised,” Newgarden said. “In the middle of the race, I don’t know that I was fully believing that we had the capability to win. We just kept working through it, and I’m like, Look, if we get another opportunity, we’re going to be aggressive, we’re going to be on the offense.”
NTT P1 Award winner David Malukas finished third in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet as Roger Penske’s team marked its 60th anniversary season with two podium positions. Pato O’Ward finished fourth in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, with Marcus Armstrong rounding out the top five in the No. 66 ROOT Insurance Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian.
IndyCar’s first race in Phoenix since 2018 – Newgarden and Team Penske also won that event – had non-stop action throughout the field. There were 565 on-track passes, an IndyCar record at the 1-mile desert oval. A blend of tire strategy and skillful maneuvering in traffic delivered the victory to Newgarden, who also won the season-ending race last August at Nashville Superspeedway to avoid a winless 2025.
Newgarden was the first driver other than four-time series champion Alex Palou to lead the standings since June 2024. Two-time Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Newgarden leads Kirkwood, 78-73, after two races as he tries to win the series crown for the first time since 2019.
Kirkwood made his last stop on Lap 192 and was running fourth behind teammate Will Power, Christian Rasmussen and O’Ward on Lap 207. Power and Rasmussen were in a vicious duel for the lead, with the left front wing end plate of Rasmussen’s No. 21 ECR Splenda Stevia Chevrolet making contact with the right rear tire of Power’s No. 26 TWG AI Honda exiting Turn 2.
That impact faux pas cut Power’s tire, triggering the final caution period of the race and ending his chances of an improbable victory after starting last in the 25-car field. Rasmussen’s car also was damaged.
During that final caution period, Newgarden and a handful of other drivers near the front entered pit lane for fresh Firestone Firehawk tires, as tire grip was a far bigger strategic factor in this race than fuel management. Rasmussen, Kirkwood, Malukas and Armstrong were among the drivers who decided to stay on track, opting for track position over traction.
Rasmussen led at the final restart of the 250-lap race on Lap 218, but his damaged car was no match for Kirkwood, who drove past Rasmussen to lead on Lap 242. Rasmussen faded in the last eight laps with car damage and worn tires, placing 14th after thrilling the large crowd with many passes to get to the front five times for 69 laps.
“We were the class of the field today – best car out there,” Rasmussen said. “It’s so frustrating because we should have won the race today.”
Kirkwood led Newgarden by six-tenths of a second when he took the lead, but Newgarden’s tire advantage was obvious within less than a lap. Newgarden gnawed into Kirkwood’s lead and drove under Kirkwood in Turn 4 for the lead for good just two laps later, on Lap 244.
“We thought about it, but we were talking about it, and the pits opened,” Kirkwood said about the possibility of pitting during the late caution. “(Staying out) was the right thing to do at the time.”
Palou placed 24th, completing just 21 laps in No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, after side-by-side contact with the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet of Rinus VeeKay led to a trip into the so-called SAFER Barrier. It was Palou’s worst finish since he placed 25th last June in Detroit after contact eliminated him from that street race. So much for Palou’s dominance at the season opener in St. Petersburg. This applies to engine supplier Honda as well. As we said at the time, “Kirkwood and McLaughlin made their final stops at the end of Laps 65 and 68, respectively, both taking the softer but faster Firestone Firehawk alternate tires. That tire choice assumed that Palou could be caught after he took the lead on Lap 70, but Kirkwood never got closer than 5.5 seconds in his pursuit. However all was not grim for the other engine supplier, five of the top ten finishers used Chevrolet engines. As Palou running Brand Honda noted “It’s a long season in front of us.”
*Read AutoInformed.com on Ganassi Racing’s Palou Rules 2026 NTT IndyCar Start)
- Good Ranchers 250 Highlights Click HERE.
- Good Ranchers 250 Race Results Click HERE.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
IndyCar Phoenix – Newgarden Wins Good Ranchers 250
Click for more.
Two-time IndyCar series champion Josef Newgarden earned his first victory of the season and 33rd of his career by closing down and passing race leader Kyle Kirkwood with seven laps remaining to win the Good Ranchers 250 on Saturday at Phoenix Raceway. Newgarden, starting second, drove to a 1.7937-second victory in the No. 2 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet over the No. 27 JM Bullion/Gold.com of Andretti Global driver Kirkwood.*
“I’m very surprised,” Newgarden said. “In the middle of the race, I don’t know that I was fully believing that we had the capability to win. We just kept working through it, and I’m like, Look, if we get another opportunity, we’re going to be aggressive, we’re going to be on the offense.”
NTT P1 Award winner David Malukas finished third in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet as Roger Penske’s team marked its 60th anniversary season with two podium positions. Pato O’Ward finished fourth in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, with Marcus Armstrong rounding out the top five in the No. 66 ROOT Insurance Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian.
IndyCar’s first race in Phoenix since 2018 – Newgarden and Team Penske also won that event – had non-stop action throughout the field. There were 565 on-track passes, an IndyCar record at the 1-mile desert oval. A blend of tire strategy and skillful maneuvering in traffic delivered the victory to Newgarden, who also won the season-ending race last August at Nashville Superspeedway to avoid a winless 2025.
Newgarden was the first driver other than four-time series champion Alex Palou to lead the standings since June 2024. Two-time Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Newgarden leads Kirkwood, 78-73, after two races as he tries to win the series crown for the first time since 2019.
Kirkwood made his last stop on Lap 192 and was running fourth behind teammate Will Power, Christian Rasmussen and O’Ward on Lap 207. Power and Rasmussen were in a vicious duel for the lead, with the left front wing end plate of Rasmussen’s No. 21 ECR Splenda Stevia Chevrolet making contact with the right rear tire of Power’s No. 26 TWG AI Honda exiting Turn 2.
That impact faux pas cut Power’s tire, triggering the final caution period of the race and ending his chances of an improbable victory after starting last in the 25-car field. Rasmussen’s car also was damaged.
During that final caution period, Newgarden and a handful of other drivers near the front entered pit lane for fresh Firestone Firehawk tires, as tire grip was a far bigger strategic factor in this race than fuel management. Rasmussen, Kirkwood, Malukas and Armstrong were among the drivers who decided to stay on track, opting for track position over traction.
Rasmussen led at the final restart of the 250-lap race on Lap 218, but his damaged car was no match for Kirkwood, who drove past Rasmussen to lead on Lap 242. Rasmussen faded in the last eight laps with car damage and worn tires, placing 14th after thrilling the large crowd with many passes to get to the front five times for 69 laps.
“We were the class of the field today – best car out there,” Rasmussen said. “It’s so frustrating because we should have won the race today.”
Kirkwood led Newgarden by six-tenths of a second when he took the lead, but Newgarden’s tire advantage was obvious within less than a lap. Newgarden gnawed into Kirkwood’s lead and drove under Kirkwood in Turn 4 for the lead for good just two laps later, on Lap 244.
“We thought about it, but we were talking about it, and the pits opened,” Kirkwood said about the possibility of pitting during the late caution. “(Staying out) was the right thing to do at the time.”
Palou placed 24th, completing just 21 laps in No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, after side-by-side contact with the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet of Rinus VeeKay led to a trip into the so-called SAFER Barrier. It was Palou’s worst finish since he placed 25th last June in Detroit after contact eliminated him from that street race. So much for Palou’s dominance at the season opener in St. Petersburg. This applies to engine supplier Honda as well. As we said at the time, “Kirkwood and McLaughlin made their final stops at the end of Laps 65 and 68, respectively, both taking the softer but faster Firestone Firehawk alternate tires. That tire choice assumed that Palou could be caught after he took the lead on Lap 70, but Kirkwood never got closer than 5.5 seconds in his pursuit. However all was not grim for the other engine supplier, five of the top ten finishers used Chevrolet engines. As Palou running Brand Honda noted “It’s a long season in front of us.”
*Read AutoInformed.com on Ganassi Racing’s Palou Rules 2026 NTT IndyCar Start)
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.