Josef Newgarden wins the strategy game in Phoenix

The most recent winner of an oval race, Josef Newgarden, has started the season the same way he finished it in Nashville last August, with a victory in only the second round of the championship at the Phoenix oval. Starting from the outside of the front row, the American had settled into the upper end of the top five for most of the race, but during the final caution, with 42 laps remaining in the 250-lap race, he decided to pit, as did the Arrow driver. McLaren by Pato O'Ward.

While the Mexican driver managed to climb back to fourth, Newgarden did even better, overtaking him and then catching leader Kyle Kirkwood (Andretti Global) with seven laps to go. The Floridian employed an alternative strategy to take the lead in the final laps and ultimately finished second, securing second place in the championship behind Newgarden. David Malukas (Team Penske), starting from pole position for the first time in his career, finished third.

The man who dominated the race, Christian Rasmussen (ECR), looked extremely well-positioned to win his second consecutive short oval race after Milwaukee last year. Unfortunately, contact with Will Power brought out the caution with 42 laps remaining, and although the Dane managed to maintain the lead at the restart despite contact with the wall, he ultimately had to concede defeat. Hitting the outside wall a second time, he finished fourteenth.

WILL POWER AND CHRISTIAN RASMUSSEN COLLIDE FOR THE LEAD! 😲 pic.twitter.com/W1dirFCwMR

—NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) March 7, 2026

Three-time defending champion and championship leader after his victory in St. Petersburg, Álex Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing) completed only 22 laps before crashing into the wall following contact with Rinus VeeKay (Juncos Hollinger Racing). Romain Grosjean (Dale Coyne Racing), the situation is even more dire as the French driver was unable to complete a single lap due to a mechanical problem on his car before the warm-up lap.

The next IndyCar event is next Sunday with a race on a new street circuit in Arlington, Texas.

IndyCar 2026 – Phoenix
The result of the race

ALSO READ > VIDEO – Alex Palou crashes at the start of the race in Phoenix