Tag: Rinus VeeKay

2026 IndyCar Season Review

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Two words sum up the 2026 IndyCar season- Alex Palou. Palou cruised to his fourth straight series title and his fifth title in six years. Fans may get tired of his winning all the time, but they need to appreciate incredible talent we are witnessing. Sebastien Bourdais won four titles in a row from2004-2008. It may be another 20, years before we see such a feat again.

In 2025 Palou won four of the first five races; in 2026 the Spaniard too three of the first five events. Palou took the lead in the standings for good after winning at Long Beach. Josef Newgarden and Kyle Kirkwood each led the standings for brief periods.

Palou won the title by 86 points over Kirkwood. In 2025 he beat Pato O’Ward by 196 points. I don’t think he is getting nervous about how close the competition is getting.

While Palou piled up points, Kirkwood was in a three-way battle most of the season with David Malukas and Christiam Lundgaard for second place. The three swapped second place after every race, it seemed. None of the three could string together a series of good results, allowing the defending champion to pull further ahead each week.

The Racing Slips a Bit

Overall, the races in 2026 were not as good as they were in 2025. There were a few exceptions. like the Indianapolis 500, but the road and street courses seemed mainly uncompetitive.

I’m not sure if there were changes to downforce settings or if the hybrid unit is affecting the races, but I hope a solution can be found for 2027 so that we can enjoy the final year of the DW12 era.

Ovals and Rain

With the exception of Phoenix, rain impacted every oval race. The 500 went t5o caution then red for rain, Gateway was halted just past halfway, Nashville was postponed until the following day and the race distance change to an unsatisfying length, and the first Milwaukee race turned out to be the second Milwaukee race. The Saturday event stopped after 90 laps and finished Sunday late afternoon.

I have never seen a season with as many rain issues as we saw in 2026. I expect a completely dry oval season in 2027.

Steeping Up Their Game

The team and driver I was most impressed with in 2026 was Juncos Hollinger Racing and Rinus VeeKay. JHR had a lower tier team. In 2025 Conor Daly finished 18th in the standings in the number 76.

VeeKay, a driver who many thought had potential but had not displayed it consistently, had lingered in the middle of the pack with ECR and in 2025 with Dale Coyne.

VeeKay rose to 10th in the standings. He achieved the team’s second podium in history, with four results in the top five and four more in the top 10. VeeKay made three appearances in the Fast Six qualifying in the second half of the season.

Why a larger team didn’t sign him for 2027 defies logic. If VeeKay and the team have more consistency next season, I can see the driver from the Netherlands moving to one of the Big Four teams.

Things that Ended and Things that Somehow Didn’t Start

2026 saw two long term streaks end which involved two future Hall of Fame drivers. Scott Dixon did not win a race this year. he had won at least one race every season for 21 straight years. Will, Power also failed to add to his winning streak run of 12 consecutive seasons. I think Power will get to victory circle in 2027, but I am not so sure that Dixon will with his new team at McLaren.

Dixon also ended a 25-year run with Chip Ganassi racing. The New Zealander still sits second in career wins with 59. I would love to see him get number 60 before he retires.

Scott McLaughlin also ended a streak of 35 races without a win on Sunday at laguna Seca.

One thing that almost everyone was sure would happen in 2026 was David Malukas getting his first IndyCar victory. He moved from A. J. Foyt Racing to Team Penske. Malukas came close, losing the Indianapolis 500 in the closest finish in history. Malukas had three other second place results. He faded to fifth in the fin al standings.

Notes and Top Races

Palou won six times in 2026. He has won 14 of the 35 races over the last two years.

Eight different drivers won this season, which is about average for an IndyCar year. Seven drivers won races in 2025.

Best races: Indianapolis 500, Road America, Markham. This is the first time in the history of the coveted Pit Window Best Races Awards that a street course has made the list.

Thanks to you all for following along this season. Your support has been overwhelming. I am on track to have record readership for this humble little spot in Cyberspace.

There is more to come, soplease check back often during the offseason.

O’Ward Doubles Up in Milwaukee

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Just as David Malukas lit the torch to burn the broom, Pato O’Ward snuffed out the flame and drove past Malukas on the final restart to win both races at the Milwaukee Mile on Sunday.

I just watched the replay of Race 1 (second race of the day). here are some quick thoughts.

The history books had a huge rewrite after the race.

The sense of urgency to complete the race, enhanced by sprinkles of rain at the beginning, made for some great moves and some exciting passing.

The completion oof Race 1 from Saturday quickly became an event dominated by Malukas, who clearly had the fastest car. But on the restart with 24 laps to go, an engine hiccup in the Verizon car allowed O’Ward to get past him and win by more than a second.

Malukas now has six second place finishes in his career without a victory. The consensus going into 2026 was that Malukas would surely win a race in his first year with Team Penske. I hope he takes solace in the fact that Simon Pagenaud did not win a race in his first year with Penske either. Pagenaud turned out to be oretty good.

O’Ward is the seventh driver to win two races in one day, and the first since Rick Mears, who won twice at Atlanta in 1981. Other drivers who have achieved this rare feat are Johnny Rutherford, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, Mario Andretti, and Dan Gurney. That is not a bad club to be as member of.

More history came at the end of the final race of the day as Alex Palou won his fifth IndyCar title in six years and his fourth in a row. Palou joins Serbastien Bourdais as the only driver to win four consecutive championships. Only A. J. Foyt (7) and Scott Dixon (6) have more titles than Palou, But the Spaniard is just 29 years old, three years younger than Foyt was when he won his fifth title.

A third bit of history which FOX gave just a scant whiff of notice to was Rinus VeeKay finishing third for Juncos Hollinger Racing. I believe this is the first podium for the team, and deserved more than showing the team celebrating as they went off the air.

VeeKay was one of Sunday’s best drivers. He fell out of contention in the afternoon race after a slow pit stop. VeeKay had been in the top five most of that race. In the nightcap the driver from the Netherlands took third place from Scott McLaughlin with a brilliant move just three laps from the checkered flag.

FOX- A Tired Crew?

I don’t know, but I can assume that the FOX crew was just as tired as everyone else was by the end of the day Sunday. I though the telecast of the suspended race was one of their worst of the season.

The pit stop timer was an on again, off again thing, missing at the crucial stops of the le4aders. Many teams did a remarkable job of completing stops with no time elapsed.

I didn’t understand their obsession with Josef Newgarden, lingering in the bottom half of the top 10. We didn’t need to see his onboard camera for several laps. There was also an inset of 15th place Kyle Kirkwood which was unnecessary.

I look for an improved show from a refreshed broadcast team next Sunday.

I will have a full weekend wrap up tomorrow.

VeeKay Signs with Juncos for 2026

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Rinus VeeKay will drive for Juncos Hollinger Racing in 2026. VeeKay drove for Juncos in Pro Mazda. Juncos is VeeKay’s third team in three years.

He began his IndyCar career in202 with Ed Carpenter Racing, where he won his only race, the 2021 Sonsio Grand prix on the iMS road course.

In 2025 VeeKay drove for Dale Coyne Racing, finishing 14th in the season standings.

The Dutch driver has finished each season between 12th and 14th in each of his sixth season in the series.

Until this past season, VeeKay has been an outstanding qualifier at the Indianapolis 500, with three consecutive front row starts, along with rolling off 4th and 7th. He has three top 10 finishes in the 500.

Juncos Hollinger team principalo Dave O’Neill said about signing VeeKay, “At Juncos Hollinger Racing, we’re fully focused on building a program capable of sustained high performance in the years ahead,” said Dave O’Neill, Juncos Hollinger Racing team principal.

“We have exciting plans across every area of the team – on and off the track – and bringing Rinus onboard is a major step in that direction.”

It’s Been a Week

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The IndyCar series is not going quietly into its winter hibernation quietly. Five major stories broke between Tuesday and Wednesday. Here is a recap of all that happened.

Rinus VeeKay announced that he had declined an renewal offer from Dale Coyne Racing. VeeKay had a solid year in car 18, finishing 14th in points. He had two top fives and seven top 10s for an entry that in 2024 finished 25th in the standings with several different drivers and missed the Indianapolis 500.

I don’t think VeeKay would have left if there was not something better awaiting him. Speculation is that he will replace David malukas in car4 at A. j. Foyt Racing. But firs twe need to hear that Malukas will be somewhere else next year.

The VeeKay news served as Tuesday’s appetizer. Shortly thereafter, Will Power announced he was leaving Team Penske after 17 years. There will likely never be another driver spending 17 years with the same team, let alone the same sponsor. The outpouring of love and respect from fans and the paddock for Power was great to see. It took me several years to warm up to him, but I came to respect him as a person and admire him as a driver.

Power is a generational talent along with the likes of Scott Dixon. Dixon grabbed more of the spotlight because of his numerous wins and championships, but Power belongs in the same conversation. It is hard to argue against 45 race wins and 71 poles.

Colton Herta grabbed the spotlight next when Cadillac F1 named him as their test driver beginning in 2026. Herta will also drive full time in F2 in order to gain the Superlicense points he needs to drive in F1. I always enjoyed watching Herta in IndyCar, and his absence leaves a huge talent void on the grid. Herta is pursuing his dream to drive in F1,and I hope he gets the opportunity in a coupleof years.

Andretti Global wasted little time replacing Herta, signing Will Power to a multi year deal. Power gives the team a second Indianapolis 500 winner, and Power’s addition actually makes the team stronger. Power wiull push Kyle Kirkwood to new heights.

Yesterday morning IndyCar and Green Savoree Promotions held a news conference to introduce the new home of the former Toronto race in Markham, Ontario, Markham is a suburb of Toronto, scheduled for August 14-16, 2026. Exhibition Place is not available because of the World Cup taking place in June and July. The track had been getting squeezed by development, and I wasn’t sure how much longer IndyCar would be able to race there.

The venue has a five year deal with the series. It will feature another two sided pit lane, the third one for street courses. Detroit and the new race at Arlington, Texas also use that set up.

The track layout of the 2.12 mile, 12 turn circuit is more expansive than the two other relatively new circuits at Detroit and Texas.

The schedule as of today:

3/1: St. Petersburg

3/15: Arlington

4/19: Long Beach

5/9: Sonsio Grand Prix

5/24: Indy 500

5/31: Detroit

8/16: Markham

Ten more dates need to be determined. I expect at least two more venues new to the recent era schedule.

Quick Thoughts- Toronto

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Pato O’Ward won the race by stopping. His Arrow McLaren team called him in to ditch the alternate tires on the early caution on lap 3. The strategy put him in position to take the lead on lap 57, then assume it again on lap 62 after everyone else cycled through their final stops. O’Ward dodged the colliding cars of David Malukas and Felix Rosenqvist on lap 88. I thought he may have had slight contact with one of them.

O’Ward has won two of the last three races and has cut Alex Palou’s lead in the championship to 99 points with four races to go.

The 90 lap race was one of the best of the year. Three cautions in the first 30 laps scrambled pit strategies and made it a thinking man’s race, but in between the yellows, fans saw some excellent racing. There were many battles throughout the field. I don’t recall ever seeing Toronto as racy as it was today.

New Faces on the Podium

Rinus VeeKay returned to the podium for the first time in three years. He finished second after O’Ward won the pit stop battle. The result isvindication for VeeKay, who could not find a ride until just before the season began. It is also a win for Dale Coyne Racing. DCR cars usually hover near the Leaders’ Circle cut line, but VeeKay has the 18 solidly in 11th place. VeeKay has recorded seven top 10s and two top fives in 2025.

Kyfffin Simpson has come close, but today he finally earned the elusive podium. Simpson drove from 13th to third as he held off Colton Herta, who had fresher tires. Simpson has had a solid season. He is 14th in points in his sophomore campaign.

A Tale of Two Seasons

From the opener at St. Pete through the Indianapolis 500, IndyCar races were as uninteresting as I ever remember, There were few cautions, and they all occurred very early in the races. The racing was processional, and drama came only when there was a pit stop miscue.

At Detroit, someone finally remembered to turn on the IndyCar racing switch. The last seven races have been amazing. Timely and untimely cautions, incredible racing for position, and victories in doubt until the end have produced a great summer of action.

There are sadly just four races left for 2025, and let’s hope the trend continues.

FOX

While the network pulled out all the stops for the Indianapolis 500, I am finding their broadcasts a bit tedious. Today a they were once again in commercial when a major crash happened, important pit stops were missed, and not much mention was made of O’Ward’s near miss at the end.

Towards the end of the race there was a one lap break between commercials.

The last two weekends we have seen a tiny peek at a pit stop timer. I saw it once today. If you have it, use it consistently. I would rather the pit stop timer overused than the current overuse of onboard cameras. I wnt to see side by side racing, not the view from a cockpit.

Notes

Finally, a good result for Marcus Ericsson. Ericsson finished fifth, between teammates Herta and Kyle Kirkwood. The 2023 500 winner has had a tough year with disqualifications and unfortunate happenings on track.

Tam Penske’s dismal season continues. Scott McLaughlin left the pits with the left rear wheel not mounted properly and crashed in turn 3 on the out lap. It is the third time this season he has been the first car out of the race. Josef Newgarden once again got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, as he ended up underneath the car of Jacob Abel. Will Power finished 11th, but he had several incidents of contact throughout the day.

David Malukas salvaged a top 10 after a disastrous final pit stop and a collision with two laps to go. Malukas began to exit the pits before the right rear tire had been secured. He stopped and the crew pulled him back, but the time lost nearly ruined the day.

Kirkwood thought that he threw away the pole yesterday. Today he may have thrown away a win. Team strategy had him in a good spot to contend, but he was spun coming in for his last stop and had to fight his way back to sixth. While he regained third place in the standings Kirkwood is 173 points behind Palou.

Results

Thanks for following along this weekend. One more race this month, then a short break.

Quick Thoughts- Children’s of Alabama Grand Prix

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Lets’ start with the positives.

Alex Palou put on a clinic today. He drove a masterful race, aided by great pit strategy, and perfect pit execution. Palou has won three of the first four races and finished second in the fourth. He enters the IMS races with a 61 point lead over Christian Lundgaard.

Lundgaard has suddenly become the leader at Arrow McLaren. His second place today is his third straight podium finish. I would not count him out of standing on the top step of the platform one time before June. Lundgaard is the only driver with a shot at possibly catching Palou.

If Rinus VeeKay isn’t a unanimous pick for Driver of the Day, there just wasn’t a winner today. The Netherlands driver backed up his Fast Six from Saturday with a fourth place finish, one spot higher than where he started the race. He has done well at Barber, but to drive a Dale Coyne Racing machine to such heights is an accomplishment.

VeeKay finished just 0.33 of a second behind third place Scott McLaughlin.

Today’s race saw some of the best racing of the year with some battles in the top 10.

The best news of the weekend- I heard that Barber will be run in April in 2026, where it rightly belongs.

Now for the rest of the day:

FOX showed more improvement during the broadcast, but some key items are still lacking. I don’t know why there is still no pit timer. There were several bad pit stops, which they covered, but how much time was lost? I would like to know. This information will be essential during the Indianapolis 500 in three weeks.

Once again there was no pass for the lead, or even a fight for the top spot. While there were some great battles, it was evident that passing is very difficult. Is the hybrid really holding back the racing that much? I would hate to see a processional 500 like we had in the late 2000s.

All four races in 2025 have had a sameness to them. They have been mostly processional with pit strategies being the one intriguing thing about them. That is great for the hard core fan, but it isn’t going to lure new fans in. Perhaps it’s the lack of yellows, 339 consecutive laps of green flag, which is another thing altogether, or perhaps it is the drag of the hybrid.

Thanks for following along this weekend. Tomorrow I start covering the month of May. It’s hard to believe there is another race in just six days.

Results

Grid Complete; VeeKay Signs with Coyne

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A long anticipated announcement came this morning as Rinus VeeKay signed with Dale Coyne Racing for the entire 2025 season. VeeKay will drive car 18 and will team with rookie Jacob Abel in caqr 51,

The announcement from Dale Coyne Racing:

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Dale Coyne Racing Signs Rinus VeeKay For the Full 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Season

Plainfield, Illinois – February 14, 2025 – Dale Coyne Racing signs NTT INDYCAR SERIES veteran Rinus VeeKay for the full 2025 season. VeeKay will drive car 18 as a teammate to Jacob Abel in the 51.

The announcement from Dale Cotne Racing:

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Dale Coyne Racing Signs Rinus VeeKay For the Full 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Season

Plainfield, Illinois – February 14, 2025 – Dale Coyne Racing signs NTT INDYCAR SERIES veteran Rinus VeeKay for the full 2025 season.

VeeKay last year driving for ECR

After a year in which multiple drivers piloted the two Dale Coyne Racing entries, the team is happy to announce its second full-time driver for the No. 18 entry.

“We are excited about getting back to full-time drivers for 2025. The stability allows us to grow as a team, and that’s important to me. For that to be accomplished, having a proven veteran in one of our entries helps tremendously, and that’s one of the many reasons we have decided to go with VeeKay to complete the 2025 grid. We are excited for him to join the team and get started with us at the Sebring test coming up next week in preparation for the full NTT INDYCAR SERIES season,” said team owner Dale Coyne.

Rinus VeeKay, hailing from the Netherlands, is another graduate of the junior open-wheel series programs, a champion of the 2018 USF Pro 2000 Championship, and vice champion in the INDY NXT by Firestone Championship on his quest to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Upon reaching the top rung of the ladder, VeeKay continued to shine, earning Rookie of the Year honors in 2020 and securing his maiden victory at the 2021 INDYCAR Grand Prix at IMS. Along with this win, VeeKay has achieved nine top-five finishes and two pole positions. He has shown blistering speed in Indianapolis 500 qualifying, with an impressive average starting position of 3.8, including three front-row starts in his five attempts at the historic race.
VeeKay gained the attention of team owner Dale Coyne after finishing first in class at the October IMS oval test and third overall in the No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing entry.

“Very exciting news. I am happy to announce my partnership with Dale Coyne Racing for the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season,” said VeeKay. “It makes me proud to see my name among the drivers competing in this fantastic series for a sixth consecutive year. After a difficult start to my offseason, I am delighted to end the winter with this news.”

VeeKay will join the team at the Sebring test next week in preparation for his first race with Dale Coyne Racing at the Streets of St. Petersburg on March 2.

Test Day 2- Midday

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Photo: A New look for the ECR 20 car

First session times:

Rinus VeeKay is testing for Dale Coyne Racing today. He talked about the difficulty of finding a full time ride for 2025 at this late date.

“…there’s a few seats, but there’s no not really. There’s not really paying seats. So for me, it’s my priority to ride full time next year, and I think no matter what, so at least you have this opportunity now to show you how I work and show the engineers how I work, and what my feedback is. They seem pretty aggressive this morning. “

It was strange seeing Alexander rossi in a different driving suit.

Cars are back on track. I am going mout to watch for a while. I will have a wrap up later today.

VeeKay leads Warm Up

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Photo by Kyle McInnes

In a wild warmup session in which Aj Foyt Racing suffered setbacks, Rinus VeeKay of Ed Carpenter racing led the field. Pole sitter Alex Palou was fourth fastest.

Sting ray Robb spun in turns5/6 and made contact wi9th the tire barrier, causing extensive damage. Santino Ferrucci received a five minute stop and hold penalty for impeding Romain Grosjean. Ferrucci/Grosjean confrontations are a continuing thing, and Indycar needs to step in. This will not end well.

Results