IndyCar
OPINION: INDYCAR Engine Grid Penalty Needs To Go!
INDIANAPOLIS, IN (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – Two weeks in-a-row one of the dumbest rules in all of sports reared its ugly head before the stars and cars of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES even took to the racetrack.
Here is the official rule:
- Rule 16.2.3.2 – A fifth (5th) Engine is eligible to earn Engine Manufacturer points if a Full Season Entrant has completed the Full Season Entrant Engine Mileage with its first four (4) Engines. Otherwise, a fifth (5th) or more Engine does not earn Engine Manufacturer points and will be considered an Unapproved Engine change-out.
What the hell does it mean? It means that when an INDYCAR engine or related part fails and the engine has to be changed, the driver and the team suffer, not the guys who built the engine!
Last weekend at Nashville the NTT INDYCAR SERIES held their inaugural Music City Grand Prix and just as the green flag waved on a start to a fantastic weekend, INDYCAR threw some water on their own party by announcing a grid penalty for the Championship points leader, Alex Palou, going into the event.
Palou was docked six-positions for an unapproved engine change following a team test two weeks ago at Portland International Raceway.
The penalty for such a change, according to the rulebook, comes at the series next event.
So instead of talking about young guns Alex Palou and Pato O’Ward battling for the Championship with past Champions Scott Dixon and Josef Newgarden as they were racing over a freaking bridge in Nashville, Friday’s storylines started with Palou’s grid penalty. Talk about a buzzkill!
This week it was Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden getting docked six spots and the world finding out right before the cars hit the track for the INDYCAR/NASCAR doubleheader weekend. Ugh!
So instead of talking about how awesome it is for the two biggest racing series in America to be sharing the world’s greatest racetrack on the same weekend, we’re talking about grid penalties…..again! Are you kidding me?
As one might imagine, the drivers aren’t thrilled with the rule either.
“Obviously with Alex getting a penalty, those penalties are pretty tough, one that was totally out of his control,” said six-time Series Champion Scott Dixon last week in Nashville. “That was definitely a bummer.”
“If I got a penalty for changing an engine, I definitely wouldn’t like it,” said Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta.
My issue is not the rule, it’s the penalty. What the hell in this day and age does a driver and a team have to do with the assembly and lifespan of an INDYCAR engine? The driver doesn’t build it, install it, work on it, or even start it! So why penalize him?
This rule should penalize the engine manufacturer, but as it is currently written, it could have a big impact on the championship. Was that the intent of the rule when it was written in the rulebook? I’m thinking not.
The intent of the rule was to lower costs. Years ago engine manufacturers would spend money on development between races like Bachelorette Parties on open top busses in Nashville or a drunken sailor on leave.
I remember one driver telling me back in the CART days he logged 1000-miles in testing at Fontana two weeks before the season championship. The motor he got for Championship weekend was designed to last for only that weekend. Fortunately those days are gone, and this rule has helped to curb the wild spending.
Why penalize the driver and possibly give his championship competitors an edge going into a race weekend? My suggestion – points deduction in the manufacturer’s championship.
A manufacturer’s championship points deduction is more appropriate. They’re the ones building the engine, not the driver. Sure, when you only have two engine manufacturers you don’t want to piss them off but, again, why penalize the driver and possibly affect Championship points in the process?
I won’t lie. Last week in Nashville, I was hoping Palou would post the fastest qualifying time and his closest competitor, Pato O’Ward, would post the second fastest. Then INDYCAR would apply their asinine penalty and move Palou back and hand the pole to O’Ward. Imagine those Championship implications. It didn’t happen, which is fortunate for INDYCAR.
I felt the same way this weekend. I wanted Newgarden to win the pole so bad, but the racing gods wouldn’t give me that satisfaction.
Some reading this might say the starting position doesn’t have anything to do with the points a driver earns in a race. Yes, the finish determines how many points a driver scores for the event, but you shouldn’t be penalized 6-spots for something totally out of your control.
I am imploring Series Owner Roger Penske, Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles and Series President Jay Frye to change the rule and eliminate the grid penalty to the driver for 2022.
Let’s start each and every race weekend talking about the racing, not the rules!!!!
MONTEREY, CA (September 6, 2026) – Alex Palou and Chip Ganassi Racing are celebrating their 2026 NTT IndyCar Series Championship following the season finale at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
Palou started eighth and finished second in Sunday’s race after clinching the title following last week’s 10th place finish in the second race at The Milwaukee Mile.
“One for the thumb,” said Team Owner Chip Ganassi, referring to Palou’s fifth championship ring in an obvious homage to a familiar football refrain around Pittsburgh.
“Incredible,” Palou said. “I owe everything to this team. So proud of this team. It is great to have another championship and ready for the next one.”
Palou’s title is his fourth straight, matching a feat for the team from 1996-1999.
“I’ve been saying it for years now, I cannot still believe the position I am,” said Palou. “The opportunity to start every single year with the chances and the best team around me and best partners to fight for wins and championships.”
Palou finished the season with 6-wins, 8-poles, 7-podiums, 12-Top 5’s, 15-Top 10’s and 631 laps led.
“Last year was magical,” reflected Palou. “I thought it could not be repeated. We did not repeat it, unfortunately, but we were close. We were like really, really close. Obviously last year we were able to win the 500 and the championship. If I didn’t compare it to last year, this year was just insane. Was so fun.”
CGR Team Manager Barry Wanser, who has been with the team for over 25-years, talked about what makes Palou a special talent.
“I just think his ability to constantly learn and take advantage of the resources that we have at Chip Ganassi Racing,” said Wanser, who credited the men and women behind the scenes at CGR. “Alex can’t perform as well as he does without such a great team behind him. The engineering department certainly has knocked it out of the park again with some great cars. Certainly in the pits has been amazing this year. Alex is just impressive. Very awesome.”
Ganassi, whose team ran off four straight title with Jimmy Vasser (1996), the late Alex Zanardi (’97 & ’98) and Juan Montoya (’99), refuses to take credit for the team’s success, which starts with the team mantra, ‘One team, One goal’.
“When I started the team, I wanted to have a team that I would want to drive for,” explained Ganassi. “That’s kind of always the way I looked at it. It takes a lot of people to make this stuff happen. It’s one team. We all work together. We’re all trying to win. It’s open book with us all the time across the board with all the drivers, all the teams.”
Palou’s four titles in a row by a driver match the only other driver to do it, Sebastien Bourdais.
“We’re in the midst of a generational thing here, a generational driver,” said Ganassi. “Four in a row has been done before, but five out of six hasn’t been done before. That’s something that’s kind of unprecedented. We’re in the midst of that right now. It’s not over!”
MONTEREY, CA (September 6, 2026) – Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 DEX Imaging Chevrolet are back in Victory Lane following a dominating performance at the Mission Foods Monterey Grand Prix at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
McLaughlin, who started on the pole position, ended a 2-year win drought leading 87 of 90-laps en route to his 8th-career NTT IndyCar Series victory.
“Really proud to get our first win together on a road course where the last couple years we probably struggled at the most,” said McLaughlin of his new engineer Raul Prados. “What a great way to end the season. We have a lot of hard work to do over the off-season to come back stronger, combat against the 10 (Alex Palou).”
Palou started second in the No. 10 DHL Lightning Bolt Chip Ganassi Racing Honda that paid tribute to CGR Champion and Alum, the late Alex Zanardi, who passed away earlier this year. Palou settled in behind McLaughlin but couldn’t match the pace or tire wear of the No. 3.
“We started on used alternates and we kind of survived, but then we went on an another used alternates,” said Palou, who finished eighth. “We, like, killed ourselves there.”
Despite the eighth place finish Palou, who clinched his fifth Series Championship in six years last week at Milwaukee, says he is as lucky as they come.
“Obviously last year we were able to win the 500 and the championship,” explained Palou. “If I didn’t compare it to last year, this year was just insane.”
Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood finished second in the No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda to clinch second place in the Series Championship.
“We played it a little bit safer than I might have hoped for the last race of the season, but we had to for the championship,” explained Kirkwood. “We made all the decisions based on that. Probably could have had a go at Scottie at the end on the first few laps on reds. The number one goal was to make the tires last. That’s what we did. Came home with a second, which is something to be proud of.”
Ed Carpenter Racing’s Alexander Rossi came home third in the No. 20 Java House ECR Chevrolet. The podium finish ended a drought as well for Rossi and was his first in two years at ECR.
“It’s no secret that this has been a pretty terrible year for myself and the whole ECR team with the litany of issue, some out of our control, some in our control,” said Rossi. “Really ever since the Indy GP, there’s been a huge amount of emphasis and effort behind the scenes to kind of dig out of that hole. This is a great result to kind of reward that effort, just rebuild the confidence in everyone that we’re capable of doing this.”
Despite finishing last in the 25-car field due to the incident with Robb, Hauger hung on to win series Rookie of the Year honors. He finished with 228 points, 15 ahead of Mick Schumacher of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in the rookie race.
The 2027 NTT IndyCar Series season opens Sunday, March 7 with the Firestone Grand Prix on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.
MONTEREY, CA (September 5, 2026) – Scott McLaughlin is on the pole position for Sunday’s NTT IndyCar Series Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey after blasting to a quick lap of 1-minute, 9.1363-seconds in the No. 3 DEX Imaging Chevy in Firestone Fast Six qualifying at the picturesque permanent road course.
“I felt like from the jump this weekend, we’ve come with a philosophy we’ve been working on the last, I don’t know, four months or something like that, basically since our Mid-Ohio test,” explained McLaughlin. “Been feeling better and better. Put it all together today.”
McLaughlin edged Alex Palou, whose lap of 1-minute, 9.1540-seconds in the No. 10 DHL Lightning Bolt Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, was a mere o.o177-seconds off the top spot.
“It’s so tough to put a lap together, especially at this place,” said Palou. “I think it’s so great to see that we’re all so close. I’m sure that Scott feels like he could have got another 10th if he puts like a perfect lap. I feel the same way.”
Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist clocked in third fastest at 1:09.1931 in the No. 60 SiriusXM Nickelback Honda.
“Good qualifying for us,” said Rosenqvist. “We’ve been in the top three in every session, so I think we would have been disappointed if we didn’t end up in the top three. Always tough to get through with all of the sand and traffic. I missed it a bit in the corkscrew, so maybe there was a pole in there. I’m not sure.”
Ed Carpenter Racing’s Alexander Rossi lines up fourth after a fast lap of 1:09:3247 in the No. 20 Java House Chevrolet.
“The No. 20 Java House Chevrolet has been through a lot this season so it’s nice to get a decent qualifying on the books before the year comes to a close,” said Rossi. ““Road courses have been a big struggle for us, really all season. At a test we had a couple of months ago, we really understood something we hadn’t prior to that and have just been building off of it.”
Arrow McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard will start fifth and Team Penske’s David Malukas will start sixth as Chevrolet took four of the Fast Six qualifying spots en route to it’s 250-career IndyCar Series pole.
Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Kyffin Simpson will start 9th in the No. 8 Sunoco and Scott Dixon will start 17th in the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda. The race will be the last for Dixon at CGR after 25-years with the team.
Live coverage of the 95-lap race starts at 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday on FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX One and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls.
One for the thumb! Alex Palou celebrating 5th IndyCar Championship; Chip Ganassi’s 18th
Scott McLaughlin dominates IndyCar Monterey Grand Prix
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One for the thumb! Alex Palou celebrating 5th IndyCar Championship; Chip Ganassi’s 18th
Palou quickest in first Markham practice
