The 2026 Sonsio Grand Prix has the potential to be remembered for a lot of things. First of all, the fact that Alex Palou did not win it may end up being a headline in itself, if he goes on to completely dominate the NTT IndyCar Series this season.
It could also end up being quite the turning point in the careers of several drivers, most notably Christian Lundgaard. Yes, Lundgaard won the 2023 race in Toronto; but that was on a weaker team (especially at the time). Lundgaard switched teams for the 2025 season, moving from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing over to Arrow McLaren. He had a decent season last year, finishing fifth in the championship with six podiums and five more Top-Ten finishes. But he did not win a race. This season has gotten off to a more inconsistent start (13th at Phoenix and 20th at Long Beach), but Saturday’s win on the IMS road course may give Lundgaard and his entire No. 7 team the jump start they need to really make this a special season. When he hunted down David Malukas and passed his with a great move on Lap 68 – there was no doubt who was going to win. Though they are totally different tracks, there is no telling what kind of boost of confidence that gives Lundgaard going into the 500.
Saturday could have been a defining moment for other drivers like Marcus Ericsson. After a nice start to the season, Ericsson suddenly finds himself desperate for a good finish. He didn’t get it Saturday, when he finished twenty-second. Now he enters practice for the Indianapolis 500 in desperation mode. That usually doesn’t turn out well.
Unfortunately, Saturday’s race could also me remembered as one of Race Control’s biggest bungles. Around Lap 20 Alexander Rossi had what he described as a hybrid issue, and his car came to a stop on the main straightaway near the Yard of Bricks. Race Control decided to treat that as a local yellow, as Rossi sat helplessly in harm’s way with cars whizzing past him at around 170 mph. They ultimately threw a full-course yellow, a full two laps later, after Rossi was pleading to the flag stand to do so. To say he was agitated is putting it mildly, and I don’t blame him. More on that later.
TV Coverage: I’d like to say I rushed home Sunday and watched the replay before writing this. I did not. But I can say two things that my brother texted to me on Saturday. One is that they apparently held the start of the race as a UFL spring football game was ending up. Had ABC been covering it, they would have just thrown the first few laps over to ESPNNews. Kudos to FOX for holding the start.
He also said that FOX did a very nice tribute to Alex Zanardi. I’m glad that happened, even though FOX was not technically obligated to do so since Zanardi never raced at IMS or this version of IndyCar. But since IndyCar combined the IRL, CART, USAC and AAA records a few years ago – it’s fitting that they did this Good for them!
Throw the Caution: This has been one of my soapbox items for the past several years, and we saw it play out again on Saturday. Fortunately there were no dire consequences. A few years ago, IndyCar adopted a policy of holding the yellow flag on what they deem as minor incidents, so that everyone has a chance to pit. Their thought is that they don’t want a front-runner’s race to be ruined by a random caution flag closing the pits. My thought is; that’s part of racing. Too bad!
Races don’t take place in a sterile environment where strategies are allowed to play out. If a car makes contact with a wall or anything, or if a mechanical issue leaves them on the racing surface, Race Control should throw the caution flag first and ask questions later. How can they ascertain something is minor from watching a few monitors?
Alexander Rossi was furious on Saturday and rightfully so. He felt uncomfortable with cars zooming by just a couple of feet away, and I don’t blame him. Have you seen clips from the 1971 Indianapolis 500? Mark Donohue lost a gear in his McLaren coming out of Turn Four. He parked on the inside of the track and race officials left the car there. Later on, Mike Mosely lost control of his car and plowed right into the Donohue car, and fire erupted from the now-mangled sheet metal. Donohue’s car was not even on the racing surface, but an errant car found it anyway. Rossi’s car was on the racing surface next to the inside wall. How long were they going to leave him there before common sense took over and they threw the full-course yellow.
Race Control has been lucky so far that no driver left in peril has been injured…or worse. But how many warnings do they need before deciding this practice of staying green to allow the pits to stay open is ill-advised. They are playing with fire, but someday they are going to get burned. They should not wait until a driver is seriously or fatally injured before deciding maybe this isn’t such a good idea.
Ill-timed yellows are a part of racing and they always will be. They can’t be controlled by the drivers that cause them or by Race Control trying to preserve racing strategies. As several cars up front were pitting, I remarked to Susan that Alex Palou was taking a chance by staying out. As Townsend Bell would say, he was putting himself into the danger zone. Where’s the danger if Race Control is going to protect his lead. As it worked out, the race became a better show for fans. As it was, Palou still worked his way back for a Top-Five finish; but fans got treated to someone different in Victory Lane. Had Race Control gotten there wish, Rossi would have sat there in danger for several laps, while Palou cycled around and was allowed to pit, maintaining his lead, and winning his fourth consecutive victory in this event. [yawn]
Rubbing His Nose in It: Many fans were not happy with the way Will Power’s exit from Team Penske was handled. They dangled him along for months. By the time they decided it might be a good idea to keep Power around, he had already agreed to terms with Dan Towriss, owner of Andretti Global. Fans on social media were saying that Power should take the Verizon sponsorship with him. You knew that wasn’t going to happen, but many were hoping that Penske would give up the No. 12. That didn’t happen either.
It didn’t bother me too much when David Malukas climbed into the same day-glo pink, white and yellow livery that Power ran last year. That was Power’s first year in that livery and he didn’t really identify much with it.
But I did have a problem this past weekend, when Malukas was in the silver Verizon scheme hat Power ran from 2016 to 2020, including his 2018 win in the Indianapolis 500. Every time I saw the car this weekend, I had to remind myself that it wasn’t Power in the car, but Malukas. Power ran that scheme more than any other during his time with Team Penske. When you also throw in the fact that his one 500 win came in that car, it is no wonder I had trouble shaking the memories of Power, when I saw the car.
I don’t fault Malukas. He drives what he is told to drive. But considering Will Power is still an active driver, and for a while had to look back and see the familiar livery in his mirrors – I thought it came across as an intentional jab at Power for leaving the team for a rival. If it was up t me, I think I would have found another way to pay a tribute.to Team Penske’s 60th year in motorsports.
Credit is Due: I have been somewhat critical of Louis Foster this season. After showing flashes of brilliance as a rookie, Foster had done absolutely nothing in 2026.
When he qualified in the Firestone Fast Six on Saturday morning, My first thought was it was something of a fluke, and he would squander the opportunity to finish mid-pack at best. I was wrong, and will freely admit it. Foster drove a great race for a second-year driver, and showed that he does belong on the current grid. I was beginning to wonder.
Pit Stop Follies: Once again, the pit stop bogeyman bit another Andretti driver. This time t was Kyle Kirkwood, who happens to be the only driver in a position to beat Alex Palou in the points. It was Kirkwood’s last stop of the day, and problems with the wheel nut surfaced and probably cost Kirkwood another ten seconds in the pits, which probably cost him three positions. Kirkwood finished a disappointing ninth, and about ten seconds behind Scott Dixon in sixth place. In a tight points battle, that can make a difference.
If this was a one-time thing, the Andretti team would’ve been given a pass. But this seems to be a weekly occurrence where one, two or all three cars are affected by bungles in the Andretti Global pits.
They may need to do what the Rahal team did and hire a specialist to head up all of their pit crews.
Trending Upward: Speaking of Rahal and giving credit, I have not held back in my criticism of the Rahal team in the past few years. But give them credit, Graham Rahal just earned his second podium in three races, Louis Foster turned in a stellar performance Saturday to give them two cars in the Top-Seven, and Mick Schumacher is, well…he’s learning. The real test will come this week, when we see how much (if any) their speedway package has improved. But I’m happy to see Gaham and the team turn things around, after all of their offseason hires.
Drive of the Day: Some may think my pick for Drive of the Day is a little odd, but I’m giving it to the series points leader, Alex Palou. Yes, his team got a little greedy and kept him out while all of his rivals were pitting – and t bit him. He was leading when he finally pitted on Lap 24, and came out in eighteenth. I assumed he was buried and would probably finish around fifteenth. But he didn’t panic and made some gutsy moves to work himself back into contention, finish eighth and actually increase his lead in the points. More importantly, he earned the Oilpressure.com Drive of the Day.
All in All: Saturday’s Sonsio Grand Prix was probably the most enjoyable of all the IndyCar races I’ve been to on the IMS Road Course, and I’ve been to very one of them, except for when we weren’t allowed to attend due to COVID. The weather was perfect, having Qualifying on Saturday morning put a little more urgency into the day and it was a very good and entertaining race. Sometimes this race kicks off the Month of May with a dud, but not this year. I don’t suspect a lot of drama in qualifying, with only thirty-three cars jockeying for position – but it should still be fun. But if Saturday’s race was an indicator of what the 500 will look like, we are in for a good one.
In Closing: It was a fun weekend with plenty to go. I will close with more of Susan’s photos from the weekend. Thanks to those that followed along ths weekend. Don’t forget that I am posting every day in May, so check things out here every day throughout the month, through Memorial Day.
George Phillips
