In a unique setting for NASCAR and IndyCar, the two series shared the same track over the course of the weekend at Phoenix Raceway. Two different styles, three different levels of chaos took place in the Valley of the Sun.
But which product stole the show? Thomas Dunn and Wyatt Watson contextualize that and more on this week’s 2-Headed Monster.
IndyCar Wowed in Its Phoenix Return
Both series were highly entertaining in the weekend doubleheader in their own unique ways.
NASCAR made its impression with the return of 750 horsepower at Phoenix as well as doubling down on a Goodyear tire that kept teams on their toes all race long, not knowing how long the tire would last.
While the Cup Series has come a long way to get to the point of fun, entertaining racing at Phoenix, the NTT IndyCar Series had to enter Phoenix with a fresh playbook for its hybrid iteration of their Dallara DW12 chassis, which had taken several different evolutions since the last race held at the track in 2018.
Aside from sharing an oval weekend with NASCAR’s top two series, the IndyCar event at Phoenix marked a return to a historical open wheel racing track that was first added to the schedule in 1979 (versus NASCAR in 1988).
So what stood out for IndyCar versus NASCAR?
First, the race opened with the shocker of points leader Alex Palou getting pinched into the wall going into the dogleg, ending the Spaniard’s day in 24th and putting an end to his 600-plus day reign as the points leader.
If that wasn’t a big enough moment, Christian Rasmussen, who almost got involved in a wreck early with Tow Mater enthusiast Dennis Hauger in the first caution of the race, put on a fresh set of Firestones and set out to the front much like he did at Milwaukee in his first IndyCar win last season.
Rasmussen put on a clinic all race long, making daring passes and showing that this car can put on a show at over 180 mph.
However, even though he made his way to the front multiple times through every pit stop sequence, he and Will Power tangled for what would’ve certainly been the winning pass and a sure-fire win for the Dane, barring another incident late in the race.
Alas, the drama would unfold for the two in a crash that eventually ruined the strong performance for Rasmussen after holding onto his squirrely car for 20 laps over Kyle Kirkwood until the car gave up the ghost.
Compare it to the constant flat tires, stage racing, long caution periods, and slower pace of the Cup Series cars (180 mph vs 110 mph in the corners). IndyCar provided incredible moments for its championship and its racing product in a race that took less than 2 hours to complete. It packed a heavy punch for the roughly 30,000 fans in attendance in what would be the biggest crowd at Phoenix in decades for the series.
IndyCar brought more than its A-game to Phoenix and showed that the concept of a doubleheader weekend can be achieved with both series. It’ll be exciting to see how the two series work together to make it happen again next season. -Wyatt Watson
NASCAR Elevated Its Game
It was a hell of a weekend for both series. IndyCar deserves its flowers and Phoenix Raceway earns the praise for NASCAR and IndyCar coming together to put a show for multiple sets of race fans.
I’ll roll with NASCAR here, and really this is more of a function of the TV coverage. The Cup Series race had a reasonable amount of passing, you just didn’t see it unless you were on the HBO Max driver cameras.
Additionally, this was the first race where you could see the effects of NASCAR’s change to the 750 HP package, and what resulted was a race that had the most passes for the lead at Phoenix since 2013.
Tires mattered as teams played with air pressures, even with an avalanche of flat tires at times, with drivers like eventual race winner Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell able to work their way through traffic. Moreover, even guys who had trouble mid race like William Byron and Shane van Gisbergen were able to salvage their days. In the past with the old package, that was more of a luxury than an opportunity, which makes last Sunday’s race a welcome sight as the series continues a strong start to 2026.
You just didn’t get to see a ton of it.
Despite some of the disjointedness during the Cup race, overall the series put out the best product at Phoenix in almost a decade.
The Arizona desert isn’t going to breed barnburners, but relative to expectation, this was a good race that should make the fanbase pleased.
In the end, both series did a great job in promoting themselves for the better. Drivers crossed over and interacted with one another on Saturday and Sunday, and in general, it didn’t seem like a massive inconvenience for many.
We’ll see how many of these doubleheaders take place going forward, but you couldn’t go wrong with the racing in Phoenix. NASCAR and IndyCar gave a breadth of racing that all fans could enjoy. -Thomas Dunn
Thomas is in his second year covering NASCAR at Frontstretch. A Bay Area NASCAR fan for over 15+ years, he found his love for the sport through Jeff Gordon. He helps manage the 2-Headed Monster Column.
Thomas has enjoyed several trips to Sonoma Raceway in his time and currently covers college athletics in the Bay Area, writing about the California Golden Bears and doing play by play broadcasting.
Wyatt Watson has followed motorsports closely since 2007. He joined Frontstretch as a journalist in February 2023 after serving in the United States Navy for five years as an Electronic Technician Navigation working on submarines. Wyatt is one of Frontstretch's primary IndyCar correspondents, providing exclusive video content on site. He hosts Frontstretch's Through the Gears podcast and occasionally The Pit Straight.You can find Wyatt's written work in columns such as Friday Faceoff and 2-Headed Monsteras well as exclusive IndyCar features. Wyatt also contributes to Frontstretch's social media team, posting unique and engaging content for Frontstretch.
Wyatt Watson can be found on X @WyattWRacing
The IndyCars ran a real “race”!!!! Why doesn’t FOX have TV timeouts during IndyCar telecasts?
QUIET! Don’t give them any ideas!! lol
Oops! Sorry! But inquisitive minds want to know if TV timeouts might just be NA$CAR’s attempt at more demo derby restarts?
Hey, off subject. Rany lajoie just had 4th child. It’s initials are EEL not kidding .
Something fishy about that?
Indycar didn’t have scheduled cautions because “reasons”, ergo Indycar had the superior product. I enjoy racing, not “reality” TV, with manufactured drama.
After watching both races, I felt the Indy race more exciting, even though the NASCAR race was better than previous NASCAR races there. I don’t think it really is a debate as both were good and made for a great double header weekend.
I think having the opposite series drivers in the TV was more of a distraction, but it was cool to see them sitting in the stands supporting the other series.
Stage racing stinks; but even with the stages NASCAR put on a better show. More cars, more passing, etc.