Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou entered IndyCar's de facto "summer break" after scoring his third career oval win in the series' first Monday oval race since 2016 at Nashville Superspeedway, allowing him to extend what was already a sizable championship lead.
With six races remaining on the 18-race 2026 NTT IndyCar Series calendar, all scheduled to take place within the next 29 days, the driver of the No. 10 Honda owns an 83-point lead as he seeks to win a fifth championship in six years and fourth in a row.
The fact that Palou's closest title threat is Team Penske's David Malukas, who has never actually won a race, should serve to benefit the 24-time race winner as he seeks to add to his legacy with another championship.
Now he's already gotten an additional boost, in relation to the driver of the No. 12 Chevrolet, heading into Portland International Raceway,
David Malukas penalized before Portland race
Engine issues for Chevrolet have been one of the underlying themes during the 2026 season, and for the second consecutive race, the No. 12 team has been issued a pre-race grid penalty due to an unapproved engine change. In fact, the team actually made two unapproved engine changes during the Nashville race weekend.
The nine-position grid penalty at Nashville ultimately didn't end up making a difference for Malukas, who did not make a qualifying run after crashing in practice. He still recovered to finish on the podium allowing him to jump back up to second in points behind Palou.
His grid penalty for this weekend's 110-lap OnlyBulls Grand Prix of Portland around the 12-turn, 1.967-mile (3.166-kilometer) natural terrain road course in Portland, Oregon is set to be a six-place drop, meaning he can start no higher than seventh.
Malukas was eighth in Friday's opening practice session. Palou, a two-time winner at Portland who clinched the title at the track a year ago, topped the speed chart.
The No. 4 A.J. Foyt Enterprises entry of Caio Collet was also issued a six-place grid drop for Sunday afternoon's race, after making one unapproved Chevrolet engine entry.
The OnlyBulls Grand Prix of Portland is set to be shown live on Fox from Portland International Raceway starting at 4:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 9. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss the first of six races over the next month to conclude the 2026 IndyCar season!
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