Samwise IndyCar Newsletter
Wednesday, July 22, 2026
Palou’s Record-Breaking Pace Casts Shadow Over History Books
Alex Palou’s fifth win of the 2026 season extended a run of dominance that is quietly rewriting IndyCar’s record books. The reigning champion has won 44.8 percent of the last 29 races and finished inside the top five in 79.3 percent of them — a consistency rate no active driver approaches. His fourth consecutive championship would tie Sébastien Bourdais’ modern record; a fifth overall would move him to third on the all-time list, behind only A.J. Foyt (seven titles) and Scott Dixon (six). At 29, Palou’s 24 career victories are already 18th all-time, tied with Ted Horn and Bobby Rahal, with six races remaining.
Sources: IndyCar.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Portland Is Next — And It May Be Palou’s Most Dangerous Stop
Alex Palou heads into IndyCar’s summer break with two weeks to recover before the OnlyBulls Grand Prix of Portland — a circuit where the champion has history firmly on his side. Palou has two career victories at Portland International Raceway, and has won three times at Laguna Seca, including each of the past two seasons. With an 83-point advantage and six races remaining, his stretch run passes directly through two of his historically strongest circuits. A Portland win could push a fourth consecutive title beyond realistic reach for anyone chasing him. The IndyCar field returns to Portland International Raceway on August 9.
Sources: IndyCar.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
McLaren Swapped the Oval Improver for the Oval Doubters
Arrow McLaren’s decision to replace Christian Lundgaard with Scott Dixon and Felix Rosenqvist for 2027 was framed as a bet on experience. Nashville Superspeedway exposed the gamble’s fine print. The oval weakness used to justify dropping Lundgaard now arguably belongs to his replacements: Dixon has one oval win since 2021, a fuel-mileage race at Gateway, while Rosenqvist has zero oval podiums in eight IndyCar seasons, his sole Indy 500 win aside. Meanwhile, Alex Palou — once dismissed for oval struggles — has three oval wins across the past two seasons, tied for the series lead. McLaren replaced the improver with the doubters.
Sources: Beyond the Flag Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Lundgaard’s Nashville Struggles Hand Critics Fresh Ammunition
Christian Lundgaard arrived at Nashville Superspeedway with his Arrow McLaren future already in doubt. He left looking like a driver who had given critics fresh ammunition. Qualifying 19th — before a nine-place grid penalty for an unapproved engine change dropped him to 24th — Lundgaard briefly ran as high as third in the early stages by staying out during the first caution. The strategy backfired spectacularly: on the ensuing restart he dropped 10 positions in just two laps, eventually finishing 16th. Motorsport analysts say the result reinforces perceptions that Lundgaard cannot match the oval specialists — not the message he needed as his contract winds down.
Sources: Motorsport.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Rahal’s Nashville Ordeal: Crash, Suspension Failure, Early Retirement
Graham Rahal’s Nashville was, in the words of one post-race analysis, “one of his worst weekends.” A fuel pressure failure had already cost him qualifying time. The ordeal deepened in final practice when Rahal crashed the No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda and found a failure in the right-rear upright — producing sensations he said he had never experienced in his entire career. The team repaired the car for the race, but Rahal was never comfortable. He retired after 209 laps and was classified 19th — the unhappy bookend to one of the more miserable weekends in recent team memory.
Sources: Motorsport.com Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Drivers' Championship
1. Alex Palou — 457 pts
2. David Malukas — 374 pts
3. Kyle Kirkwood — 370 pts
4. Christian Lundgaard — 353 pts
5. Pato O’Ward — 336 pts
6. Josef Newgarden — 310 pts
7. Felix Rosenqvist — 296 pts
8. Scott McLaughlin — 295 pts
9. Marcus Ericsson — 250 pts
10. Rinus VeeKay — 237 pts
11. Scott Dixon — 236 pts
12. Graham Rahal — 229 pts
13. Marcus Armstrong — 225 pts
14. Will Power — 220 pts
15. Kyffin Simpson — 216 pts
16. Alexander Rossi — 197 pts
17. Santino Ferrucci — 196 pts
18. Louis Foster — 173 pts
19. Nolan Siegel — 164 pts
20. Dennis Hauger R — 157 pts
21. Romain Grosjean — 155 pts
22. Christian Rasmussen — 151 pts
23. Caio Collet R — 137 pts
24. Mick Schumacher R — 132 pts
25. Sting Ray Robb — 123 pts
Engine Manufacturer
1. Honda — 892 pts
2. Chevrolet — 868 pts
Curated by JD · samwise.agency