While four-time and three-time reigning NTT IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou was busy doing Alex Palou things, obliterating the rest of the 25-car field by 12-plus seconds following a six-month offseason during which all anybody else could talk about was closing the gap to the driver who has now led the championship standings for 28 consecutive races going back to June 2024, it was New York Giants quarterback Jameis Winston – and more specifically, his son – who stole the show.
Winston, who won the 2013-14 BCS National Championship Game with the Florida State Seminoles and just completed his 11th season in the NFL after being selected No. 1 overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2015, is known for his charismatic personality and his one-of-a-kind ability to liven up any media interaction he takes part in.
That was certainly true both before the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, when he gave Dale Coyne Racing rookie and third-place starter Dennis Hauger an electric pep talk on pit road, and during the race, when he was interviewed by Fox Sports' Georgia Hennebury.
Jameis Winston, son Taurus steal the show during IndyCar opener
The 32-year-old Bessemer, Alabama native waved the green flag to get the 2026 season underway, and he was interviewed about three quarters of the way through the 100-lap race around the 14-turn, 1.8-mile (2.897-kilometer) temporary street circuit in St. Petersburg, Florida.
He had with him his younger son Taurus, who just turned five years old in December, and it turned into an interaction lasting more than two full minutes, with Jameis expressing his amazement at the NTT IndyCar Series and his son expressing that same amazement from the perspective of a five-year-old.
"I'm actually a race car fan," Taurus said. "I never came to a race, and I've been studying cars by drawing them."
Jameis spoke about his son's love of cars and racing, and his son elaborated by talking about making race cars out of LEGO trucks.
"Also, I change trucks, LEGO trucks, that aren't made out of LEGOs into race car trucks," Taurus continued.
WHAT AN AMAZING INTERVIEW. Sounds like @Jaboowins and his son are having a pretty great time at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. pic.twitter.com/w8fkAlpRnI
— INDYCAR on FOX (@IndyCarOnFOX) March 1, 2026
Jameis noted that he and his son plan to attend more races throughout the series' first 18-race season since 2014.
While there were the expected "why are we interviewing Jameis Winston during an IndyCar race?" comments and complaints from your run-of-the-mill keyboard warriors on social media (who, by the way, also complained about commercials, Palou dominating, the Fox Sports broadcast, you name it...), it was a wholesome moment to say the least.
The second race on the 2026 IndyCar schedule is the Good Ranchers 250, which is set to be shown live on Fox from Phoenix Raceway starting at 3:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 7. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and catch all of the action from Phoenix's first IndyCar race since 2018!