TEAM CHEVY INDYCAR RACE ADVANCE – Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix

CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix
2.3-mile, 17-turn Barber Motorsports Park natural terrain road course
Birmingham, Alabama

Race Advance

March 27-29, 2026

DETROIT (March 25, 2026) – This year’s edition of the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, is the fourth round of the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. The teams and drivers have travelled from Florida to Arizona, through Texas and ending up in Alabama for a fourth race in March; the first time in over 50 years. A trio of drivers representing three teams has visited victory lane to start the season, leaving the top eight drivers within 50 points of the championship lead, including Team Chevy drivers Josef Newgarden (Team Penske), Pato O’Ward (Arrow McLaren), Scott McLaughlin (Team Penske), David Malukas (Team Penske) and Christian Lundgaard (Arrow McLaren).

Chevrolet at Barber Motorsports Park

Chevrolet-powered drivers have won nine of the 13 NTT INDYCAR SERIES races held on the 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012, with Josef Newgarden (three) and Scott McLaughlin (two) having multiple wins. Six drivers representing four teams have won on the county club-style track, with Team Penske’s six wins leading the way.
Eight drivers have won 10 poles at Barber Motorsports Park, with Helio Castroneves and Will Power leading the way with two each. Team Penske (7), Andretti Global (1), Arrow McLaren (1), and ECR (1) are the teams with pole wins at Barber Motorsports Park.
Newgarden and Power each have four podiums, leading Team Chevy’s 10 drivers, who have combined for 21 of the 39 podiums (since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012) by drivers wearing a Bow Tie.
Chevrolet-powered drivers have led 699 of 1141 possible laps since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012, with Newgarden’s 141 laps and Team Penske’s 455 laps leading the way.
O’Ward, in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, has the quickest qualifying and race laps set in 2021.
Qualifying Lap – 65.5019 seconds (126.409mph)
Race Lap – 66.8162 seconds (123.918mph)

Notable Numbers

3 – the number of new street circuits the NTT INDYCAR SERIES will visit this year, the first of which is the 2.73-mile, 14-turn Arlington street circuit
5.0 – the average starting position of David Malukas (Team Penske), the best of the entire field across three races
6 – the number of different countries represented by Team Chevy drivers – United States (6) – Denmark (2) – Brazil (1) – Mexico (1) – Netherlands (1) – New Zealand (1)
9 – the number of wins by current Team Chevy teams, Arrow McLaren and ECR
12 – the number of drivers representing Team Chevy at the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix
13 – the number of driver championships won by Chevrolet all-time
33 – the number of wins by Josef Newgarden, the winningest Team Chevy driver all-time
40 – the number of different drivers that have won INDYCAR races while powered by Chevrolet
42 – the number of different tracks that Chevrolet-powered cars have won
42 – the number of drivers that have an earned pole for Team Chevy, after David Malukas added his name to the list at Phoenix Raceway
61.3% – the percentage of laps led by Team Chevy drivers at Barber Motorsports Park since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012
69.2% – the percentage of wins by Team Chevy drivers at Barber Motorsports Park since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012
76.9% – the percentage of earned poles by Team Chevy drivers at Barber Motorsports Park since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6
125 – the number of Bowtie-backed wins by Team Penske since their first at Pocono Raceway by Rick Mears in 1987
128 – the number of wins by Chevrolet since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012
143 – the number of earned poles by Chevrolet-powered teams since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012
238 – the number of wins by Chevrolet-powered cars in INDYCAR all-time
247 – the number of earned poles by Chevrolet-powered cars in INDYCAR all-time
364 – the number of podiums by Chevrolet-powered teams since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012
680 – the number of podiums by Chevrolet-powered cars in INDYCAR all-time
880 – the number of acres making up the multiple-purpose Barber Motorsports Park
230,000 – the number of square feet in the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum
1,328,000 – the average number of viewers across the first three races of the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES, the most during the first three races since 2008

What They’re Saying:

A.J. Foyt Racing

Caio Collet, No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia Chevrolet:

This race will be your first INDYCAR race on a permanent road course. Your thoughts on that?

“I’m really looking forward to it. Permanent road courses are where I’ve spent most of my career, so it feels a bit more natural for me. INDYCAR is obviously a different challenge with but I’m excited to apply the experience that I’m gaining and keep building race by race.”

What do you like about Barber Motorsports Park?

“Barber is an amazing track. It’s very technical, super smooth, and has a great flow to it. The elevation changes make it even more challenging, and it really rewards precision. It’s one of those tracks where you need to be hooked up every lap.”

Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet:

Do you like the Barber Motorsports Park?

“I think it’s a really fun track, very historic, quite entertaining. Personally, I prefer the fact that it’s got a lot of high risk, high reward corners. It’s a proper race track, long undulations, all types of corners, so that just makes it more interesting for a driver and it makes it more fun.”

There’s always talk about the G-forces at the track. How do you deal with them there?

“To be honest with you, it’s not as bad as some other tracks. So, it’s probably mid-range as far as physicality goes.”

Arrow McLaren

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:

“Barber is a favorite on the calendar, and it’s a circuit I really enjoy because of how rewarding it is. Overall, we’re off to a solid start with three top-fives, but obviously, I want to take that next step and fight for a win.”

Nolan Siegel, No. 6 SmartStop Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:

“I’m excited to get back to Barber. We had a really good weekend here last year with strong qualifying and race results, so I want to build on that. The team has been putting a lot of work based on what we’ve learned through three races, and I’m feeling confident we can make progress this weekend.”

Christian Lundgaard, No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:

“It’s been a decent start to the year, but we’re certainly not satisfied. I want to keep pushing forward, and Barber’s a great place to do so. I like Barber a lot, and we were able work our way up to P2 there last year. The goal this weekend is to get off to a good start, qualify well and then race at the front.”

Tune-In Guide

Friday

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice #1 – 3:30pm (ET)/2:30pm (CT)/1:30pm (MT)/12:30pm (PT) – FS2/ INDYCAR Radio Network/SIRIUSXM 218

Saturday

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice #2 – 11am (ET)/10am (CT)/9am (MT)/8am (PT) –FS1/ INDYCAR Radio Network/SIRIUSXM 218
NTT INDYCAR SERIES Qualifying – 2:30pm (ET)/1:30pm (CT)/12:30pm (MT)/11:30am (PT) – FS1/ INDYCAR Radio Network/SIRIUSXM 218

Sunday

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Warm Up – 10am (ET)/9am (CT)/8am (MT)/7am (PT) –FS1/ INDYCAR Radio Network/SIRIUSXM 218
Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix (90 laps) – 1pm (ET)/noon (CT)/11am (MT)/10am (PT) – FOX/INDYCAR Radio Network/SIRIUSXM 218

Chevrolet History at Barber Motorsports Park

Chevrolet Wins – 9

2024 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske

2023 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske

2022 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren

2018 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske

2017 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske

2016 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske

2015 – Josef Newgarden – ECR

2013 – Ryan Hunter-Reay – Andretti Global

2012 – Will Power – Team Penske

Chevrolet Poles – 10

2024 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske

2022 – Rinus VeeKay – ECR

2021 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren

2018 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske

2017 – Will Power – Team Penske

2016 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske

2015 – Helio Castroneves – Team Penske

2014 – Will Power – Team Penske

2013 – Ryan Hunter-Reay – Andretti Global

2012 – Helio Castroneves – Team Penske

Chevrolet Podiums: 21

Driver Podiums: Josef Newgarden (4), Will Power (4), Scott McLaughlin (3), Scott Dixon (2), Helio Castroneves (2), Simon Pagenaud (2), Ryan Hunter-Reay (1), Christian Lundgaard (1), Pato O’Ward (1), Rinus VeeKay (1)

Team Podiums: Team Penske (13), ECR (3), Arrow McLaren (2), Chip Ganassi Racing (2), Andretti Global (1)

Chevrolet Laps Led: 699

Driver Laps Led: Josef Newgarden (141), Will Power (114), Simon Pagenaud (87), Helio Castroneves (73), Rinus VeeKay (58), Pato O’Ward (52), Santino Ferrucci (14), Sebastian Saavedra (11), Sebastien Bourdais (6), Scott Dixon (3), James Hinchcliffe (1)

Team Laps Led: Team Penske (455), ECR (104), Andretti Global (54), Arrow McLaren (52), KV Racing Technology (13), A.J. Foyt Racing (18), Chip Ganassi Racing (3),

Manufacturer History at Phoenix International Raceway

Wins (with competition)

9 – Chevrolet (2024, 2023, 2022, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2013, 2012)

4 – Honda (2025, 2021, 2019, 2014)

Poles (with competition)

10 – Chevrolet (2024, 2022, 2021, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012)

3 – Honda (2025, 2023, 2019)

Historical Chevrolet in the INDYCAR SERIES information

  • INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturer Championships (since 1979)
  • Chevrolet-Powered Wins in the Twin-Turbo 2.2L V6 Era (2012-present)
  • Chevrolet-Powered Wins – All-Time

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future.

GM Motorsports, including the Cadillac Formula 1® Team develops and proves advanced technologies in the most demanding environments, accelerating innovation in performance, safety, efficiency, and electrification for its production vehicles. Cadillac Racing is one of the leading manufacturers in the IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championships (WEC). Chevrolet competes in single seaters in the US INDYCAR series, and in NASCAR with multiple team partners and drivers. Corvette customer teams compete in GT series across the globe including IMSA and WEC. Learn more at GM.com.

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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

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