I am just catching up ona few happenings in the Indycar world during an offseason that hasn’t really been off.

Last week a new street race in Dallas was announced for 2026. I understand- the desire of the series to race in that area. NTT’s headquarters are there. But I find it aggravating that the race will be less than an hour from Texas Motor Speedway, which can’t find a date suitable for IndyCar.

The event will be run around AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys. I suppose the good news is that it won’t be on tight city streets where passing is nearly impossible. Parking lots allow for more flexibility in track layout. The bad news is it will be an unremarkable setting for a course.

Will this new race the 18th race or will a current race be cut? We already lost an oval t=race this year for the 2025 Thermal Club event. Which race would be cut if the series plans to stay at 17 races? My guess would be the second race at Iowa. I hope not, since the series needs at least six oval races a year.

Where will Dallas land on the schedule? I hope it is a spring race, before temperatures get too hot in the area. We will have to see how this plays out, but if the series wants to add new venues, I think they should look for more ovals.

Filling the Seats

As of today, there are seven seats still open on the 2025 Indycar grid, although one is believed to be spoken for. PREMA is thought to have Robert Schwartzman in its second car, but no official announcement has been made yet.

The other six- two each at Coyne, Rahal, and Juncos, are still up for grabs. Rinus VeeKay is the top free agent right now, but teams may be too far along with other drivers to add him into the mix. I think VeeKay is worth considering.

Testing

Felipe Drugovich and Jamie Chadwick tested at Barber Monday. Drugovich tested for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Chadwick had her first IndyCar experience in an Andretti Global car.

Chadwick used the session to assess her readiness to race in the series, and she feels she needs to gain more upper body strength. Rahal constantly tests drivers to keep in mind for the future. Chadwick may get to do a race next year, but with the charter system in place, she would have to compete with the PREMA cars for the final spot in the field.

IndyCar teams will have a single car test at IMS October 10 and 11. One car from each team, 11 total, will participate. The focus of the test is the hybrid unit.