Kyle Kirkwood doesn’t need to look at the standings to know what he needs to do to challenge for the 2026 INDYCAR title.
He cut 42 points off of Alex Palou’s lead, thanks to winning the Freedom 250 and Palou’s 20th-place finish. But he still left Washington a distant 91 points behind.
Palou would need a total collapse over the final three races to not win his fifth title. There’s a doubleheader at Milwaukee this weekend and then the season finale the following week at Laguna Seca.
“I’m just going to go out there and try and win every single race and see where it goes from there,” Kirkwood said in his post-race news conference. “It’s starting to pan out.
“I can’t control what Palou does. Maybe, in very small circumstances, you can. In the sense of where he finished today or where he was going to finish today, there is no controlling that because you’re in the lead. We just had a very fortunate day in the points championship.”
Kyle Kirkwood is committed to trying to win every race that he can.
Eying his fourth consecutive title, Palou just needs to finish eighth in each of the final three races to win the title (and that would require Kirkwood to win each of the last three races plus the pole plus lead the most laps). He has three finishes of worse than eighth in the first 15 races this season.
“Never super comfortable until it’s done, right?” Palou told me and another reporter after the race. “Obviously, today sucks more for this race than the championship. The good amount of points that we had [allowed] us to have days like at this time so we are able to give attention to Milwaukee and attempt to win it.”
Washington match into the Kirkwood wheelhouse as a result of it was a brand new road course. He additionally won the most recent new street race at Arlington.
Palou’s day in Washington bought off poorly from the beginning when the Chip Ganassi Racing driver misplaced the result in Kirkwood firstly of the race.
Then on his first pit cease, Palou by chance hit the tire that was set out for a Mick Schumacher cease. He later tapped the wall, bending a toe hyperlink. The hyperlink finally broke about 20 laps later and he hit the wall, needing repairs to complete the race.
“After I smacked Mick’s tire, it clearly was not on goal, and that put us on the again foot,” Palou mentioned.
Alex Palou’s unhealthy day at D.C. in all probability will not cease him from profitable the 2026 INDYCAR title.
At first of the yr, Kirkwood and Andretti International have been in transition with new management and with the addition of veteran driver Will Energy.
The influence of Energy and new workforce principal Ron Ruzewski (one of many Penske executives launched final yr amid the qualifying attenuator controversy) is clear, as Andretti has appeared like one of many stronger groups late within the season.
“Ron, from each facet, has helped this workforce,” Kirkwood informed me after the race. “It’s confirmed. And fairly actually, he confirmed us it’s the little issues that rely. Whether or not it’s pit stops, it’s improvement, it’s us as drivers. … There is no such thing as a big-ticket merchandise. There by no means is.
“And he’ll let you know that. It’s the little issues that matter and that’s what we’ve been doing so much higher this season.”
They most probably gained’t catch Palou proper now, however they will set the stage for championships sooner or later.
“If we have been sitting right here 40 factors out or one thing like that, it could be a unique dialog,” Ruzewski mentioned within the winner’s information convention. “It is nonetheless 90 factors out. I feel to echo what Kyle mentioned, we simply need to go on the market at this level and attempt to put numbers up on the board.
“That being mentioned, the most effective factor we are able to do is put all three of our vehicles in entrance of Palou. That is actually what we’re making an attempt to do, is not only have Kyle win races however have Marcus [Ericsson] and Will on the rostrum or in entrance of Palou. That is the one manner we now have an opportunity. If we are able to get all three on the rostrum each week, that is what we’ll attempt to do each week.”
Shifting Up
Kyffin Simpson continues to point out enchancment every year.
Arguably one of the spectacular enhancements on the INDYCAR facet this yr has been Kyffin Simpson, who completed twenty first within the standings as a rookie in 2024 after which seventeenth final yr.
Regardless of a wreck in qualifying Saturday, he completed fifth at Washington and sits thirteenth within the standings, only one spot behind teammate Scott Dixon.
“This monitor simply sort of grew on me increasingly,” Simpson informed FOX Sports activities after the race. “I saved having increasingly enjoyable with it and had an thrilling race.”
The identical might in all probability be mentioned for his season.
Zilisch’s Double Bother?
Connor Zilisch is saying no to the double … for now.
Rick Hendrick mentioned “by no means say by no means,” however he has no plans to associate with an INDYCAR workforce for new hire (as of 2028) Connor Zilisch to compete within the Indianapolis 500. Hendrick had partnered with Arrow McLaren for Kyle Larson’s two makes an attempt on the Indy-Charlotte double.
“I am carried out with that,” Hendrick mentioned throughout a digital information convention. “I’ve realized to by no means say by no means, however it could take a number of convincing for me to try this once more.”
Zilisch has indicated his willingness to do it. There’s at all times the likelihood Trackhouse might attempt to associate with somebody subsequent yr, however Zilisch indicated he is centered on Cup.
“It’s one thing down the street that I’ve at all times dreamed of,” Zilisch mentioned. “However on the finish of the day, I have to give attention to what I am doing on Sundays right here earlier than I actually give attention to stepping outdoors my consolation zone.”
In The Information
NASCAR will head again to Chicagoland (pictured) however won’t race on the streets of Chicago in 2027.
— NASCAR won’t have an occasion on the streets of Chicago in 2027. After racing there from 2023-2025, NASCAR has not landed on the funding it desires for the occasion. It’s going to race once more at its Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet.
—The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Sequence could have a factors race at Bowman Grey Stadium subsequent yr, with the occasion slated for Aug. 20. The sequence additionally will make a return two weeks later to Canadian Tire Motorpsorts Park (Mosport).
— Regan Smith will drive the Kaulig Racing No. 25 RAM truck at Bristol. He can even race it at Charlotte.
— Shell will introduce an up to date one hundred pc renewable gas combine for INDYCAR in 2027. It’s a 70 p.c discount in greenhouse gasoline emissions in comparison with the renewable gas commonplace common gasoline baseline. It will likely be sourced in Indiana and produced in Illinois.
Clinched
Within the truck season finale and the Cup’s next-to-last regular-season race at New Hampshire, a number of drivers clinched spots within the Chase.
Cup: Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Chris Buescher, Carson Hocevar, William Byron and Daniel Suarez clinched to hitch Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Ty Gibbs, Tyler Reddick, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell and Chase Elliott.
Truck: Grant Enfinger, Daniel Hemric, Ben Rhodes and Tyler Ankrum clinched spots within the Chase, becoming a member of the six who already had clinched. These six are Layne Riggs, Kayden Honeycutt, Chandler Smith, Christian Eckes, Ty Majeski and Gio Ruggiero.
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They Mentioned It
“Perhaps it should get within the Toowoomba Chronicle. They could put it in, an image of me shaking President Trump’s hand. It is fairly loopy.”
— Will Energy
