2026 Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix

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Barber Beckons as NTT IndyCar Series Seeks Fourth Different Winner in Four Races

The NTT IndyCar SERIES arrives at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend for the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix powered by AmFirst, the fourth race of 2026 and the fourth in the past 29 days. The 17-turn, 2.3-mile permanent road course in Birmingham, Alabama, hosts the series for the 16th time, and if the first three rounds of the season are any indication, another compelling chapter in what has been an uncommonly wide-open championship battle is in store.

The race is 90 laps and 207 miles, with green flag scheduled for 12:17 p.m. CT Sunday on FOX. Will Buxton will call the action alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe, with Georgia Henneberry, Kevin Lee and Jack Harvey reporting from pit lane. The INDYCAR Radio Network's Mark Jaynes and Davey Hamilton will anchor radio coverage on SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation 218 and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.

Kyle Kirkwood carries the points lead into Birmingham for the first time in his career, a reward for his dominant victory in the Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on March 15. The No. 27 JM Bullion / Gold.com Andretti Global Honda driver holds a 26-point advantage over four-time series champion Alex Palou, with the top eight separated by fewer than 50 points — a remarkable compression that underscores just how fiercely contested this season has been. After three races, Palou, Josef Newgarden and Kirkwood have each claimed a victory, and few would be surprised to see a fourth name added to that list Sunday afternoon.

The Captain's Table, Revisited

Barber has historically been kind to Team Penske, which owns eight wins at the circuit — more than any other organization. But the Chevrolet squad finds itself in transition, and Sunday's race will provide a clearer picture of where the three-car operation stands on a flowing road course.

Scott McLaughlin, winner of the 2023 and 2024 races, arrives having finished on the podium in St. Petersburg and Arlington. The No. 3 Odyssey Battery Team Penske Chevrolet driver is fifth in points with 85, just 41 behind Kirkwood. Josef Newgarden, a three-time winner at Barber, took his 33rd career victory at Phoenix and sits third in the standings with 93 points. David Malukas, who has made a seamless transition to the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, is sixth with 84.

Power's Road Course Debut with Andretti

Few storylines entering the weekend are as intriguing as Will Power's first road course appearance in the No. 26 TWG AI Andretti Global Honda. The two-time Barber winner — who also holds a record four NTT P1 Awards at the circuit — spent 18 seasons at Team Penske before making the move to Andretti Global in the offseason. Through three races on two street courses and an oval, Power has shown flashes of his usual front-running speed, but this weekend represents the first true test of where Andretti stands in Power's comfort zone.

"It's the first time I've driven this thing on a road course, like a fast-flowing road course," Power said Tuesday. "I'm very interested to see where we stack up, if there's any work to be done."

Despite the uncertainty, Power's confidence is evident. He finished third at Arlington, a result that reinforced his belief that Andretti has the ingredients to compete for a championship. He sits 11th in the standings with 59 points, still within striking distance given how many points remain on the table.

"I cannot pick a weakness of theirs," Power said of the Chip Ganassi Racing/Palou combination, which remains the benchmark against which all challengers are measuring themselves. "To beat them, you definitely are going to have to be putting it together every weekend. You cannot make a mistake."

Power also paid tribute to the late George Barber, the founder of the facility who passed away earlier this year. "His passion for putting on an amazing event, or just the presentation of that track — you got to walk through that museum," Power said. "We were lucky to have George Barber put on that event for us from the beginning."

Palou Seeks More Ground at a Familiar Venue

For Palou, Barber has been a profitable venue. The No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda driver won here in 2021 and again in 2025, claiming the NTT P1 Award last year with a time of 1 minute, 7.2918 seconds. His dominant wire-to-wire performance in the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg — which became his 20th career INDYCAR SERIES victory — demonstrated once again that the Spaniard remains the standard against which the rest of the field is measured. Palou is second in points with 100, 26 behind Kirkwood.

"He is consistently there no matter what track," Power said of his rival. "He's just a standout."

Pato O'Ward, winner at Barber in 2022 and third in the championship with 93 points, will be another to watch. O'Ward's No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet has shown consistent race pace through the opening rounds, and his history at the circuit gives him a legitimate shot at a second Birmingham victory.

Dixon Still Searching for His Barber Win

No narrative at Barber this weekend is as bittersweet as that of Scott Dixon. The six-time champion has nine podiums in 15 starts at the circuit — including six runner-up finishes — yet the top step of the podium has eluded him every time. Dixon will attempt his 360th consecutive NTT IndyCar Series start Sunday, the longest streak in series history, and there is no shortage of motivation to finally break through in Alabama. The No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda driver sits 12th in the standings with 59 points, the same total as Power, and badly needs a strong result to remain relevant in the championship conversation.

Dixon is one of three drivers — alongside Power and Graham Rahal — to have competed in every NTT INDYCAR SERIES race at Barber Motorsports Park, a distinction that speaks to the endurance all three have shown throughout their careers. Rahal's No. 15 Fifth Third Bank Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda is entered alongside teammates Louis Foster and rookie contender Mick Schumacher.

Rookies on a New Stage

Three NTT INDYCAR SERIES Rookie of the Year candidates — Caio Collet, Dennis Hauger and Schumacher — will make their first IndyCar starts at Barber this weekend. Hauger, driving the No. 19 Ault Block Chain Dale Coyne Racing Honda, has the advantage of having won the INDY NXT by Firestone race at the track in 2025, giving him more familiarity with the circuit's 17 turns and significant elevation changes than most first-timers.

Marcus Armstrong, while well past his rookie season, will attempt to make his 50th NTT INDYCAR SERIES start in the No. 66 SiriusXM Meyer Shank Racing Honda — a milestone for the New Zealander who has shown steady improvement throughout his IndyCar career.

What to Watch

The tire picture at Barber adds a layer of strategy that will be critical Sunday. Each team receives five sets of primary (hard) and five sets of alternate (soft) Firestone tires for the weekend, with teams required to use at least one set of each during the race. The interaction between tire compound choice and Barber's abrasive surface — combined with push-to-pass allocations of 200 seconds with a 20-second maximum single duration — will give engineers and strategists plenty of room to differentiate their approaches.

Practice 1 gets the weekend underway Friday at 2:35 p.m. Central on FS2, with a split-group format allowing teams a first look at setup direction on the 2.3-mile circuit. Practice 2 follows Saturday morning at 10:05 a.m. Central on FS1, ahead of three rounds of knockout qualifying for the NTT P1 Award at 1:35 p.m. Central. Sunday's warmup runs from 9:05 to 9:35 a.m. Central on FS1 before the main event.

March Madness, it turns out, isn't limited to basketball.