WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca (Monterey, Calif.) — One last go for INDYCAR in 2026.
In a year filled with new street courses at Arlington, Markham (Ontario) and Washington, the 2026 INDYCAR season will end at a historic racing venue and one where INDYCAR has competed the last five years. The 2.238-mile, 11-turn Laguna Seca permanent road course is one of the most scenic on the circuit and features the famous corkscrew.
Alex Palou has clinched the title, his fourth consecutive and fifth in five years. But there’s plenty of reason to watch the finale, with FOX coverage beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.
Here’s what to know about this weekend:
What’s The Biggest Fight In The Points?
Pato O’Ward hopes that he can finish the year second in points.
The biggest one is the fight for second. Christian Lundgaard has a two-point lead on Kyle Kirkwood, four points on Pato O’Ward and 23 points on David Malukas.
If O’Ward can get to second, it would be the result of a rally that included a sweep of The Milwaukee Mile doubleheader last weekend.
“I go into Laguna with a proper shot at being second in the championship again, which I did last year,” O’Ward said after the sweep.
“I love that opportunity. I’d love to end it like that and kind of just pick it back up because … the rest of the year, I felt a little bit like a lost puppy.”
What Drivers Are In Their Last Race With Their Teams?
Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist will be on the move in 2027.
At least five drivers have been announced as not returning to their teams. That list is led by Scott Dixon, who has earned six titles and 58 victories at Chip Ganassi Racing, where he first raced in 2002. He will head to Arrow McLaren next year.
Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist will leave Meyer Shank Racing, also for McLaren.
Out at McLaren are Lundgaard — yes, the driver who is second in the standings — and Nolan Siegel.
Mick Schumacher also knows he won’t be back at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, as the team has sold one of its charters. He said he knows where he is headed, and while the signs point to replacing Rosenqvist, no announcement has been made.
There are six other drivers whose fates have not yet been cemented (at least publicly) for 2027: A.J. Foyt Racing’s Caio Collet and Santino Ferrucci; Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Rinus VeeKay and Sting Ray Robb; Dale Coyne Racing’s Romain Grosjean and Dennis Hauger.
Will Scott Dixon Win This Year?
It’s likely that Scott Dixon will end this season without a win.
It doesn’t look like it. Dixon has won every year in each of the last 21 years but is winless in 2026.
“Every weekend we’re trying to win,” Dixon told me and other reporters last week. “It’s been a rough year. It’s been frustrating. … It’s been one of those years where anything can slightly miss, we do.”
Just How Big Is The Drop Of The Corkscrew?
The drop of the first portion is 59 feet over 450 feet of track length. The total drop is 109 feet, or just more than 10 stories.
New Name For The Corkscrew?
Alex Palou’s paint scheme at Laguna Seca will pay tribute to the late Alex Zanardi.
The track is naming the corkscrew after Alex Zanardi, a two-time champion who made a wild pass in that section in 1996. Zanardi lost both his legs in an accident in 2001 and earned a Paralympics gold medal in handcycling. He died in May.
Palou will carry a paint scheme in tribute to Zanardi this weekend.
What About Indy NXT?
The Indy NXT championship is coming down to the wire as they enter a doubleheader weekend with the first race Saturday and the season finale Sunday. Nikita Johnson leads Enzo Fittipaldi by three points, while Tymek Kucharczyk is 29 points behind.
More than likely, it will come down to Johnson and Fittipaldi and who runs better than the other this weekend.
The two drivers told me Thursday that they just plan to race the best they can on Saturday and Sunday.
Johnson: “I’m racing myself this weekend. I can’t control what they’re going to control. … The only thing I can control is myself. I’m going to try to put it on the pole and maximize the points I can.”
Fittipaldi: “At the end, I’m just going out there and doing my best. I’m racing everyone. … Qualifying is going to be the key part of the weekend.”
WHAT YOU SHOULD READ NEXT
Carve out a place for Alex Palou on INDYCAR’s Mount Rushmore? Well, not so fast.
Read the full article here
