Josef Newgarden leads the IndyCar Championship after winning his first race of the season in Phoenix. The Nashville native took the championship lead after Palou led it for 29 consecutive races. In addition to leading the championship, Newgarden holds two consecutive oval-race wins, taking victory lane at Nashville in 2025.
The Penske driver claimed the lead by hunting down Kyle Kirkwood, overtaking the driver with only seven laps remaining on the short oval track. Newgarden admitted that he “didn’t know how today was going to go” when speaking to the media after the race. However, the 35-year-old commented on how the No. 2 car team executed at a super high level.“
Newgarden shared, “What a day. I didn’t know how today was going to go. I don’t think any of us did. We were trying to make our best guess as how do we build a new car, approach this. I think we came in with a good mentality.“
“At the end of the day I think the team just executed. They executed at a super high level. That is what it takes to win these races. I am not going to sit here and say we were the best today. I don’t think we were. We have work to do leaving here. We’re never shy to admit that when we’re somewhere. I think we try and be realistic about where we’re at. We executed at a super high level. Everyone was on it. The timing stand did a great job, made the right calls, great pit stops. When we needed to be fast, we were fast. Really proud of the execution.“
Newgarden starting 2026 right
After a disappointing 2025, Newgarden and Team Penske are having a great start to the 2026 season after climbing from P23 to P7 in St. Pete. The American driver noted that when the No. 2 team does everything right, “the pieces will fall into place.”
Newgarden continued, “Just like St. Petersburg, we had a really tough start there. We executed on race day. We’ve been talking about this, this is what we need to do, we need to be better every time we show up, do our jobs to the best of our ability, I think the pieces will fall into place. So far it’s definitely been a decent start. We got to keep it up.“
With the high line taking form, Newgarden noted how the race “just turned it into certainly a show“. With drivers taking risks at Phoenix Raceway, the Team Penske driver noted that key decisions toward the end of the race could change the outcome.
“Last thing I’ll say is it was a good race. I didn’t know what we were going to get. That second lane really started to open up. People were exploring. There were some really good cars out there. Guys were doing some amazing things in the middle of the race, even the beginning. It just turned it into certainly a show, something you could pick apart. You could choose your battle at the end, what you want to do. It was fun to be a part of that.“
Championship contention for Newgarden
With Newgarden taking the championship lead, eyes are on him as a championship contender. However, with only two races completed in the 2026 IndyCar season, there is still room for others to contend for the championship.
When asked if he was in contention for the IndyCar Championship, Newgarden answered, “That is a factual statement. We are leading the championship. Palou had his mishap early. Two races, it’s a very small sample size. Not surprised to see that everything got shuffled up there.“
The two-time IndyCar Champion always believed that the he could reach any goals set with Team Penske, sharing, “Look, I don’t recall a time being at Team Penske where I didn’t believe we could achieve any goals we marked out.”
“If you go, Hey, look, for us winning the Indy 500 is most important, then how do we excel at every other track and win the championship. I’ve never come into a year with this team and thought I don’t know that we can excel this year, I just don’t know that we can get there. I never believed that. I’ve always seen the potential with this team.
Taking the IndyCar championship “one day at a time”
Although Newgarden has seen Team Penske at various stages, he is taking it “one step at a time”, possibly contending for the IndyCar championship after Phoenix. However, if everyone continues to execute, the American does not “see why we can’t be in the fight.“
“It looks a little different now. But that potential was always there in the past and we could deliver on it. I think we can deliver on it this year. It’s an everyday process. We’re going to take it one step at a time. Doesn’t mean there’s not going to be some turbulence. I think if we do our jobs and control what’s in our control, I don’t see why we can’t be in the fight.“
Different type of win than 2018
Newgarden won the last time the Phoenix Raceway hosted an IndyCar race in 2018. However, the two-time IndyCar champion noted that today’s race in Phoenix was different from others.
When asked about his win in 2018, Newgarden shared, “I think we just had a great day. Typically, when you see me in Victory Lane, it’s probably ’cause I had the best car on the day. I got to say I was not a believer midway through the race. But when I needed that car to be good, it was really good. I mean, it’s not like I was doing something magical. It was right where I needed it to be.“
Nonetheless, Newgarden noted that his team made the “right calls” toward the end. With the team’s collective hard work, they won the race and took the lead in the IndyCar championship in Phoenix.
“That was just down to working on it, kind of going the wrong way, then coming back the right way and having the right calls, having the right support. That’s what should happen. When you show up, you’re prepared, you do your job, put yourself in position and you execute. You should be able to win races. I think we did that today.”
