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Alex Palou opened the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series* season with a dominant victory in the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg with a 12.49 second lead over the No. 3 DEX Team Penske Chevrolet of NTT P1 Award winner Scott McLaughlin. Palou, starting fourth, ultimately pulled away at a dazzling rate over the closing laps to win by the largest margin in the 23 editions of St. Petersburg. The reigning event winner Palou, from Spain, took his 20th career victory in just his 99th start. [SEE: Race Results and Qualifying Results]
“This team keeps on improving, keeps on making new changes, and they just keep on raising the bar,” Palou said. “It’s pretty impressive. It’s a long season in front of us, but what a great way to start the season.”
“Our Chevy was fast, but it’s just a mixed bag on what tire you start on,” Scott McLaughlin said. “Maybe we come back here again, and maybe you start on reds (alternate) and just get them out of the way. Overall, made the passes we needed to make at the right times, and I thought we maximized our day.”
This was the first race where revised IndyCar rules mandated the use of at least two sets of the softer Firestone Firehawk alternate tire with red sidewalls, thereby adding an additional strategic factor into racing blend.
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The new strategic factor in the race came on Laps 36 and 37. Team Penske called leader McLaughlin to the pits at the end of Lap 35, with Marcus Ericsson assuming the lead from second in the No. 28 Delaware Life Honda. Andretti Global summoned Ericsson to the pits at the end of Lap 36, with Palou taking the top spot.
However, instead of calling Palou to the pits on the next lap, Wanser and Palou decided to stay out until the end of Lap 38 on their original set of alternate tires in a classic “overcut” strategy. It succeeded.
Palou blended back on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary street circuit in front of McLaughlin and Ericsson. Once the rest of the leaders cycled through their pit stops, Palou found himself out front by Lap 42. He would only vacate the top spot during pit stop cycles to finish the race, leading 59 of the 100 laps. [See final laps here]
There was a bit of tension when Palou made his final pit stop at the end of Lap 67 with a 14-second lead on McLaughlin. Palou had used the required two sets of Firestone alternate tires in his first two stints and longtime strategist Barry Wanser opted for the harder, but slower, Firestone primary tires for his final run to the finish.
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.”
The next NTT IndyCar Series race is the Good Ranchers 250 on Saturday, March 7 at Phoenix Raceway, part of the “Desert Double” weekend at the 1-mile oval that also features a NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday.
*AutoInformed on
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.
Ganassi Racing’s Palou Rules 2026 NTT IndyCar Start
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Alex Palou opened the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series* season with a dominant victory in the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg with a 12.49 second lead over the No. 3 DEX Team Penske Chevrolet of NTT P1 Award winner Scott McLaughlin. Palou, starting fourth, ultimately pulled away at a dazzling rate over the closing laps to win by the largest margin in the 23 editions of St. Petersburg. The reigning event winner Palou, from Spain, took his 20th career victory in just his 99th start. [SEE: Race Results and Qualifying Results]
“This team keeps on improving, keeps on making new changes, and they just keep on raising the bar,” Palou said. “It’s pretty impressive. It’s a long season in front of us, but what a great way to start the season.”
“Our Chevy was fast, but it’s just a mixed bag on what tire you start on,” Scott McLaughlin said. “Maybe we come back here again, and maybe you start on reds (alternate) and just get them out of the way. Overall, made the passes we needed to make at the right times, and I thought we maximized our day.”
This was the first race where revised IndyCar rules mandated the use of at least two sets of the softer Firestone Firehawk alternate tire with red sidewalls, thereby adding an additional strategic factor into racing blend.
Click for more.
The new strategic factor in the race came on Laps 36 and 37. Team Penske called leader McLaughlin to the pits at the end of Lap 35, with Marcus Ericsson assuming the lead from second in the No. 28 Delaware Life Honda. Andretti Global summoned Ericsson to the pits at the end of Lap 36, with Palou taking the top spot.
However, instead of calling Palou to the pits on the next lap, Wanser and Palou decided to stay out until the end of Lap 38 on their original set of alternate tires in a classic “overcut” strategy. It succeeded.
Palou blended back on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary street circuit in front of McLaughlin and Ericsson. Once the rest of the leaders cycled through their pit stops, Palou found himself out front by Lap 42. He would only vacate the top spot during pit stop cycles to finish the race, leading 59 of the 100 laps. [See final laps here]
There was a bit of tension when Palou made his final pit stop at the end of Lap 67 with a 14-second lead on McLaughlin. Palou had used the required two sets of Firestone alternate tires in his first two stints and longtime strategist Barry Wanser opted for the harder, but slower, Firestone primary tires for his final run to the finish.
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.”
The next NTT IndyCar Series race is the Good Ranchers 250 on Saturday, March 7 at Phoenix Raceway, part of the “Desert Double” weekend at the 1-mile oval that also features a NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday.
*AutoInformed on
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.