By Bruce Martin,Contributor,Dan Mullan
Copyright forbes
Nashville Superspeedway was the site of the final IndyCar race of the season in 2024 and 2025. Next year, it’s switched to July 19 with the championship of The World Cup as the lead-in on FOX.
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One of the largest sporting events on Earth will serve as the lead-in for FOX’s telecast of the IndyCar race at Nashville Superspeedway on July 19. The World Cup Final will crown the champion of the international soccer tournament that captures the sporting world’s attention during the day. FOX will televise the World Cup in 2026.
The NTT IndyCar Series race at Nashville will follow with a Sunday night prime time telecast, also on FOX.
That is one of the major highlights to the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series schedule that was released at 10 a.m. Eastern Time on September 16.
Lionel Messi of Argentina lifts the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Winner’s Trophy following the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Final match between Argentina and France at Lusail Stadium on December 18, 2022 in Lusail City, Qatar. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
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The 17-race schedule also features the Grand Prix of Arlington on March 15 and IndyCar’s return to Phoenix International Raceway as the Saturday race of an IndyCar/NASCAR Weekend on March 7.
The IndyCar Race Weekend at The Milwaukee Mile will switch to a doubleheader format next season after a single race in 2025. It was also a doubleheader in 2024.
To make room for the dramatic shuffling of the schedule, the season-finale returns to WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca in Monterey, California on September 6.
Another prime time telecast will be featured at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis on Sunday, June 7.
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The popular race in Ontario switches from Exhibition Place in downtown Toronto to the northeast suburb of Markham, Ontario on August 16.
Oh, by the way, the 110th Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is set for Sunday, May 24, 2025, on Memorial Day Weekend.
Races that were rumored to be on the 2026 schedule including a proposed race at Mexico City and a street race in Washington, D.C. are not on the final schedule released on September 16.
Dropped from the schedule is Iowa Speedway, which had a splashy return in 2022 thanks to heavy marketing and promotion from sponsor Hy-Vee. The summertime combination of doubleheader races with major entertainment drew impressive crowds from 2022 to 2024.
But when Hy-Vee dramatically scaled back its sports marketing budget and was no longer the title sponsor for the Iowa race, the IndyCar race weekend in 2025 had a major drop in ticket sales, leading IndyCar to leave it off the schedule in 2026.
FOX Continues As Exclusive Home Of All 17 Races
For the second year in a row, all 17 races on the schedule will be televised on FOX.
In the first year of a multiyear partnership with FOX Sports, viewership of the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series season was up 27 percent from the previous season, generating the fastest growth curve of any major sport.
Will Buxton, the voice of IndyCar on FOX.
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An average of 1.36 million viewers watched the 17-race schedule that led to the history-making championship of Alex Palou, the first three-peat series title winner in 14 years.
“Our growth is industry-leading and will only accelerate faster as we continue our powerful partnership with FOX Sports and increase investment in our events,” Penske Entertainment Corp. President and CEO Mark Miles said. “The 2026 NTT IndyCar Series schedule provides a dynamic showcase for our sport and its stars, blending fan-favorite race weekends with incredible showcases at exciting new venues. We cannot wait for 2026.”
Fast Start To The 2026 Season
In the past, fans and competitors have complained of long gaps in the schedule to start the season. For the first time in the sport’s history, North America’s premier open-wheel series will compete on four dates during March.
The 2026 season opens Sunday, March 1 on the Streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding. It is the 16th time and fifth consecutive year IndyCar has opened the season on the sun-splashed streets of St. Pete.
The field gets set for the start of the Phoenix 150 USAC Indy Car race at Phoenix International Raceway on March 17, 1974. Al Unser (No. 15) starts from the pole flanked by Johnny Rutherford (No. 3) with Bobby Unser (No. 48 and Lloyd Ruby (No. 9) making up the second row. 19th starter Mike Mosley went on to win the race, the second of his Indy Car racing career. (Photo by ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images)
ISC Archives/CQ-Roll Call Group via Getty Images
Following the launch of the 2026 season on Florida’s Gulf Coast, the IndyCar arrives at Phoenix Raceway as part of a buzzworthy weekend alongside NASCAR. The Saturday, March 7 race will be the 65th time the IndyCar Series has raced on the historic oval and the first on the track’s reconfigured “dogleg” layout. The weekend will provide a joint showcase with NASCAR in partnership with FOX Sports.
“We’re going to kickstart the season in fitting fashion, with four races in five weeks,” IndyCar President J. Douglas Boles said. “Our joint weekend in partnership with NASCAR and FOX at Phoenix Raceway will be can’t-miss for motorsport fans across the country and a truly special celebration of fast, fearless racing across the motorsport landscape.”
The IndyCar Series first raced at Phoenix in 1964. Past winners include a legendary list of champions such as A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser, Al Unser, Gordon Johncock, Johnny Rutherford, Tom Sneva, Bobby Rahal, Rick Mears, Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon and Josef Newgarden.
The Eyes Of Texas Are Upon IndyCar
A week later, the IndyCar races on the new 14-turn, 2.73-mile Streets of Arlington circuit for the inaugural IndyCar Grand Prix of Arlington. A tentpole event during the 2026 championship, the weekend is a first-of-its-kind venture uniting three championship organizations: IndyCar, the Dallas Cowboys and REV Entertainment, the official events partner of the Texas Rangers.
The Sunday, March 15 race will anchor an action-packed all-star lineup of entertainment and engaging fan activations in what is expected to be racing’s next can’t-miss global spectacle.
Racing helmets featuring IndyCar Grand Prix of Arlington partners Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (left) and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFL.
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Two weeks later, the month of March finishes on the series’ first natural terrain road course of 2026 with a return to beautiful Barber Motorsports Park for round four of the championship, Sunday, March 29. This is the 16th race for the series on the picturesque and physically demanding track.
The schedule resumes Sunday, April 19 on the palm tree-lined Streets of Long Beach for the iconic Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. It will be the 42nd time the IndyCar Series has raced on the iconic Southern California streets as the event enters its sixth decade.
In 2025, a modern event record of more than 200,000 fans attended California’s “200 mph beach party” at the IndyCar’s longest-running street circuit event on the calendar.
The Month Of May At Indianapolis
A few weeks later, the series moves into the traditional Month of May calendar at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
May at IMS begins with a race on the road course Saturday, May 9 before attention shifts to the famed 2.5-mile oval for two days of qualifying Saturday-Sunday, May 16-17 building toward the 110th edition of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” – the world’s largest single-day sporting event – on Sunday, May 24.
Alex Palou celebrates after winning the 109th Running Of The Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 25, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
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IndyCar’s Summer Stretch
IndyCar’s traditional post-Memorial Day weekend visit to the Streets of Detroit starts a summer stretch of intense on-track action through the Fourth of July holiday.
The Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear is scheduled for Sunday, May 31, with racing on the 1.645-mile street circuit for the fourth straight year. The layout on the city’s vibrant and challenging streets has become a fan favorite and has featured the most on-track passes on a street course in nearly three years.
A week later, it’s back to Sunday prime-time oval racing at World Wide Technology Raceway for the 10th Annual Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline Sunday, June 7. The 2025 night race featured an event record 14 different leaders and tied the event record with 254 on-track passes for position.
A return to tradition-rich Road America and the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America Presented by AMR is scheduled for Sunday, June 21. Last year’s race on the picturesque circuit in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, had a race-record nine different leaders and the second-most passing numbers on record at the track.
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will continue the series’ tradition of a Fourth of July trackside celebration by hosting the NTT IndyCar Series on Sunday, July 5. The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio matches Long Beach as it hosts IndyCar Series racing for the 42nd year in 2026.
Prime-time Oval Racing Follows FIFA World Cup 26™ Final
The FIFA World Cup™ Final on FOX will provide a massive lead-in and showcase as the series begins the final six races of the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series championship.
Following FOX’s full telecast of the FIFA World Cup™ Final and Trophy ceremony Sunday, July 19, the NTT IndyCar Series will take the green flag at Nashville Superspeedway. The expected start time of the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix will take the series’ stars and wheel-to-wheel action to a checkered flag finish under the lights on the 1.33-mile concrete oval.
Next year’s race also will provide more thrilling action, with the race length set for 400 miles on the unique and demanding track.
Alex Palou (top) battles Pato O’Ward at Nashville Superspeedway on August 31, 2025.
IndyCar Photo
August And The Championship Stretch
The season’s schedule continues into August featuring a flurry of four races beginning at the hard-charging Portland International Raceway and the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland on Sunday, Aug. 9. It will be the 32nd IndyCar weekend in the scenic Pacific Northwest city.
A week later, IndyCar returns to Canada to race on the new Streets of Markham layout Sunday, Aug. 16. Recently announced, the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham continues the series’ rich history of exciting wheel-to-wheel racing in the Toronto area. Major investments from the city are creating a 12-turn, 2.19-mile layout, which will include a double-sided pit lane, a high-speed straight and technically challenging sectors.
Markham, as part of the young and diverse York Region of Ontario, is experiencing significant growth at a population of more than 1.25 million. The 2026 race will mark the 38th year the series has competed in Ontario and 40th IndyCar Series race in the province.
A popular doubleheader at the famed Milwaukee Mile will mark a crucial championship stretch Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 29-30. In recent years, the 250-lap races have featured the most on-track passes on record at the oldest continuously operated motor speedway in the world.
The Championship Finale
The climactic ending of the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series championship and the presentation of the Astor Challenge Cup returns to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for the IndyCar Grand Prix of Monterey on Sunday, Sept. 6. The historic venue is known for its challenging corners, unique and demanding elevation changes and the world-famous Corkscrew. It is more impressive than ever, having benefited from significant investment and fan-focused renovations through the leadership of “Friends of Laguna Seca,” a local non-profit that now manages the venue.
Scott Dixon races through the famed “Corkscrew” in the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey on July 25, 2025 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. (Photo by Larry Placido/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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“Once again IndyCar will have the most challenging schedule in all of motorsports with its nearly even mix of ovals, road courses and street circuits,” Boles said. “This championship format and diverse schedule tests driver and team adaptability and truly celebrates the most complete driver and team at the end of the season.”
Start times for the 2026 events will be announced at a later date. The 2026 schedule for INDY NXT by Firestone, INDYCAR’s developmental series, will be announced in the coming days.
The 2026 NTT IndyCar Series schedule has a new long and has been shuffled around with some popular additions to the schedule and a few surprises along the way.
2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SCHEDULE
Date Venue Television
Sunday, March 1 — Streets of St. Petersburg — FOX
Saturday, March 7 — Phoenix Raceway — FOX
Sunday, March 15 — Streets of Arlington — FOX
Sunday, March 29 — Barber Motorsports Park — FOX
Sunday, April 19 — Streets of Long Beach — FOX
Saturday, May 9 — Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course — FOX
Sunday, May 24 — The 110th Indianapolis 500 — FOX
Sunday, May 31 — Streets of Detroit — FOX
Sunday, June 7 — World Wide Technology Raceway — FOX
Sunday, June 21 — Road America — FOX
Sunday, July 5 — Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course — FOX
Sunday, July 19 — Nashville Superspeedway — FOX
Sunday, Aug. 9 — Portland International Raceway — FOX
Sunday, Aug. 16 — Streets of Markham — FOX
Saturday, Aug. 29 — Milwaukee Mile Race 1 — FOX
Sunday, Aug. 30 — Milwaukee Mile Race 2 — FOX
Sunday, Sept. 6 — WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca — FOX
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