There are six more races on the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series season, and a frantic stretch is about to start with the OnlyBulls Grand Prix of Portland next.
The 1.967-mile Portland International Raceway, with its flat terrain and 12-turn layout, is the second-to-last permanent road course for the year, and the series only stop in the Pacific Northwest.
Four-time season champion Alex Palou won IndyCar’s last race at Nashville Superspeedway, and carries the victory into one of his best circuits, in hopes of stretching his 83-point advantage in the standings.
Once the green flag falls, IndyCar begins five straight weekends of action to culminate with the season finale at WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca.
Last Year
Will Power won for the third time at Portland last season, in what was also his final triumph with Team Penske. While celebrations were ongoing, the questions remained on his contract status for the forthcoming offseason. It wasn’t long until the thrill of the win was overtaken by the news that he was not going to return to the team he’d driven for since 2009.
His No. 26 Andretti Global Honda hasn’t matched the speed that was common with Penske, but perhaps the experience and recent track success pay off for him this weekend. If it does, it will be Andretti’s first win on a permanent road course since Alexander Rossi in 2022 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Road Course Dominance
With recent reports that Christian Lundgaard is looking like he will swap with Scott Dixon at Chip Ganassi Racing, the Dane is heading to a perfect place to bounce back after a dismal 16th at Nashville Superspeedway. He is fourth in the championship, and his lack of performance on the ovals, with a best of 10th at Gateway, basically ruins his shot at upsetting Palou.
All that he can do is maximize his points at the two remaining road courses (Laguna Seca is the other), and the two new street events. He finished second at this race last year.
O’Ward Back-To-Back
Lundgaard’s Arrow McLaren teammate Pato O’Ward beat him at the last road course at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Qualifying helped O’Ward get into contention early, and that will be a must at Portland because the race tends to stretch out after the field makes it through turn one cleanly.
Sitting 17 points behind Lundgaard in fifth in the standings, O’Ward is slowly working up the ladder after consistently finishing in the top five in the first half of the year, but no podiums. A win and seventh in the last two races, while not stellar, is helping him overcome Lundgaard’s points edge and he will look to jump one spot by the end of Sunday’s bout.
Palou Reigns
It’s very likely Palou wins this weekend. After claiming victory at Nashville in dominating fashion with 97 laps led and holding off the best IndyCar oval driver in Josef Newgarden, Palou is easily in control of his fourth title in a row.
What’s scary for the paddock is Portland is one of his better tracks. He’s pulled into the winner’s circle twice, in 2021 and 2023, and podiumed the last two times. If Lundgaard doesn’t hammer down the power as he has on road courses all year, Palou will be tough to beat.
Fight For Second
Just like the last three years, the battle in the championship isn’t really up front, but who is going to wrestle across the finish line in second. Right now, David Malukas has a four-point edge over Kyle Kirkwood (while both are 83 and 87 points behind Palou, respectively). Malukas is still winless in his maiden venture with Team Penske, but has one more podium than Kirkwood, while the Andretti Global driver won at the inaugural Arlington Grand Prix.
A third at Nashville helped Malukas leap back around Kirkwood but they are still close, as they have been most of the season.
Portland isn’t a great track for either driver, though, with Malukas earning an eighth for his best, and Kirkwood two 10ths. If Lundgaard performs great based on his history, then both could drop down again behind the Dane, before leaping him once more at the Milwaukee doubleheaders.
What Else?
Time to start the Dixon win-streak watch, as he is winless in 2026. The six-time champion has won at least once in 21 straight seasons, but is going to a track he remarkably has never won. From 2021 to 2023, he finished third three straight times, but 28th and 11th the last two times there.
Marcus Ericsson signed a new deal with Andretti, keeping him in place with the No. 28 for one more year. Portland hasn’t been kind to him; a sixth in his first season with Andretti was his career best, but with ink to paper, he will look to prove his value.
Mick Schumacher earned his first IndyCar top 10, surprisingly at the Nashville oval, instead of a road or street course. It appears he is out of a Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing ride after his car’s charter was sold to Dreyer Reinbold Racing, so using that momentum from Nashville to carry on his positive results will help him for next year.
Lastly, Malukas and Caio Collet have been handed six-place grid penalties for unapproved engine changes, meaning they will start six spots back from where they qualify on Saturday.
Frontstretch Predictions
This is a toss-up between Palou and Lundgaard. Both can easily excel, but what would be nice is the two lock up in an epic battle all race long, and give fans flashbacks to the classic finishes seen at Portland, like the Andrettis’ Father’s Day finish and the three-wide 1997 dash to the checkers.
I’m leaning Lundgaard because he has been almost perfect on road courses all year and that continues. But Palou is there on his tail. Malukas gets third in the ride that won in 2025.
- Lundgaard
- Palou
- Malukas
The IndyCar OnlyBulls Grand Prix of Portland at Portland International Raceway gets underway on Sunday (Aug. 9) at 4 p.m. ET on FOX
Tom is an IndyCar writer at Frontstretch, joining in March 2023. Besides writing the IndyCar Previews and frequent editions of Inside IndyCar, he will hop on as a fill-in guest on the Open Wheel podcast The Pit Straight. A native Hoosier, he calls Fort Wayne home. Follow Tom on Twitter @TomBlackburn42.