2026 Bommarito Automotive Group 500

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Under the Lights Again: Palou, Newgarden and an Unknown Quantity Headline 10th Annual Bommarito Automotive Group 500

The Race

World Wide Technology Raceway's role as one of the NTT IndyCar Series' signature oval venues has been firmly established, and Sunday night's 10th Annual Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline will only deepen that reputation. The green flag flies at 8:25 p.m. local time over the 1.25-mile oval in Madison, Illinois for 260 laps and 325 miles of racing — the 18th IndyCar race at the facility and the second consecutive year it has served as a prime-time Sunday night event on FOX. Coverage begins at 9 p.m. ET, with Will Buxton handling play-by-play alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Georgia Henneberry, Kevin Lee and Jack Harvey are the pit reporters.

Championship at the Crossroads

Alex Palou has been the story of the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series season, and nothing about his situation heading into Madison demands a change in that narrative. His No. 10 HRC Chip Ganassi Racing Honda has reached victory lane four times across eight races — at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix — and he enters the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 leading the championship by 62 points over Kyle Kirkwood. David Malukas is third at 248 points, Christian Lundgaard fourth at 226 and Pato O'Ward fifth at 220.

Five drivers have won in 2026, with Josef Newgarden claiming the oval opener at Phoenix Raceway, Kirkwood taking the Java House Grand Prix of Arlington, Lundgaard winning the Sonsio Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Felix Rosenqvist holding off Malukas in the closest finish in Indianapolis 500 history. But the season has been Palou's in a way no other driver can match, and for those chasing him, the calculus is growing urgent.

O'Ward, aboard the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, has been a consistent top-five presence in 2026 without a podium to validate it. With five podium finishes at World Wide Technology Raceway — including a runner-up result last year — but still without a win at the circuit, he arrived at Tuesday's pre-race news conference clear-eyed about what it will take to stay relevant in the title fight. "We need to raise our game, we need to stay focused, and we need to make sure that we not only are maximizing weekends, but when those are maximized weekends, they've got to be wins and podiums, because otherwise, I really do think we have no shot," he said.

The Favorites

No driver in the field has a stronger claim to World Wide Technology Raceway than Josef Newgarden — but he arrives at this one carrying a left foot injury sustained in a crash during the Indianapolis 500. The No. 2 Astemo Team Penske Chevrolet driver has been cleared to race, and given that the physical demands of a smooth short oval are considerably lighter than those of a bumpy street circuit, the timing of this particular race on the calendar may work in his favor. His five wins at WWTR — in 2017, the second of two races in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2024 — and 624 laps led at the circuit make him the most formidable force the track has known. O'Ward, for one, isn't discounting him. "I think Newgarden, I know he's injured, but this circuit should be much better than getting through Detroit, so I expect him to be a force," he said.

Defending champion Kyle Kirkwood will bid to become the first driver to win back-to-back at World Wide Technology Raceway since Newgarden's 2021-22 consecutive victories. The No. 27 Sam's Club Andretti Global Honda driver claimed his first win at the circuit in 2025 in a race that produced 607 total passes, including a WWTR-record 263 for position. Second in the championship and 62 points out of the lead, Kirkwood has clear motivation beyond defending hardware.

Palou, despite having no wins at WWTR on his resume, arrives as the season's dominant force. Chip Ganassi Racing has four victories at the facility — from Alex Zanardi (1998), Juan Pablo Montoya (2000) and Scott Dixon in both the first of 2020's twin-bill and 2023 — and Dixon himself remains a threat. The No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda driver has led 422 laps at WWTR and holds two wins, with his most recent in 2023 coming after starting 16th.

Will Power (No. 26 TWG AI Andretti Global Honda), who won here in 2018 and holds the track's one-lap qualifying record at 189.709 mph, has led 450 laps at WWTR — second only to Newgarden among active drivers. Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 DEX Team Penske Chevrolet) has never won at the oval but has two podiums at the circuit and led 130 laps in his career there, making him a consistent factor when Penske is quick.

New Aero, New Tires, New Questions

The 10th Annual Bommarito Automotive Group 500 arrives with meaningful technical unknowns in tow. The race will feature a revised aerodynamic configuration and a new Firestone tire compound, leaving teams with a single day of practice, qualifying and high-line running to find their footing before Sunday's 260-lap test. Each team will receive 10 new sets of Firestone Firehawk tires for the weekend, with an additional set going to those who participate in the high-line session before Final Practice. Hybrid energy deployment is unlimited in terms of activation, capped at a maximum output of 150 kilojoules per lap.

O'Ward acknowledged heading to Madison with genuine uncertainty about how the package will perform. "We've got new tires. Honestly, we didn't even test, so I don't know what to expect from this," he said. The hope across the paddock is that the changes will only enhance a racing product that set a WWTR record with 263 passes for position last year.

A Venue With Deep Roots

The 10th Annual Bommarito Automotive Group 500 is the milestone it sounds like. Paul Tracy won the first IndyCar race at the Madison oval in 1997, and the circuit has produced winners from across the sport's landscape in the years since. Team Penske has won nine times at WWTR, a record no other organization approaches. Three drivers have converted a pole position into a victory at the track: Montoya (2000), Gil de Ferran (2002) and Helio Castroneves (2003) — all from Penske cars.

Sixteen of the 25 entered drivers have led laps in past IndyCar races at World Wide Technology Raceway, with Newgarden, Power and Dixon accounting for the majority of that history. Among active championship contenders, Malukas (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet) has led 82 laps at the track and Lundgaard has yet to lead a lap there, adding to the intrigue of how the points standings might look come Monday morning.

New to This Stage

Three Rookie of the Year candidates will make their first IndyCar starts at World Wide Technology Raceway this weekend. Caio Collet (No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet) of São Paulo, Brazil, Dennis Hauger (No. 19 Ault Block Chain Dale Coyne Racing Honda) of Aurskog, Norway and Mick Schumacher (No. 47 ENVE Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda) of Gland, Switzerland each arrive at the oval without any previous laps to draw on. For a circuit where experience counts and tire management on the new compound will be at a premium, the learning curve figures to be steep.