By: Spencer Neff
July 24, 2025
After finishing up the street course portion of the calendar, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES now heads to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey.
WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, California hosts its 29th race since its inaugural event in 1983.
Before the first laps are turned on the 2.238-mile, 11-turn circuit, here’s a look at the major storylines for the weekend.
Headlines
Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward strategically moved from 10th on the grid to win Sunday’s Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto for his second win of the season.
O’Ward, who trails Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou by 99 points with four races to go, has a best finish of fifth (2023) in four starts here.
Palou and Ganassi have dominated Laguna Seca as of late. CGR has won the last three races there, with Colton Herta of Andretti Global winning the two previous races.
O’Ward and the Chevrolet drivers will be looking to upend Honda’s five-race win streak since the 2019 return of Laguna Seca.
Chevrolet’s last victory at Laguna Seca was in 1993 with Paul Tracy winning for Team Penske.
In the battle for Rookie of the Year, PREMA Racing’s Robert Shwartzman owns the tiebreaker over Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Louis Foster with Dale Coyne Racing’s Jacob Abel 64 points back in third.
Foster won both INDY NXT races in 2024, with Abel finishing third and 11th. Shwartzman has not raced here.
Java House Grand Prix of Monterey Fast Facts
Race weekend: Friday, July 25-Sunday, July 27
Track: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, an 11-turn, 2.238-mile permanent road course in Monterey, California
Race distance: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Java House Grand Prix of Monterey: 95 laps / 212.61 miles | INDY NXT by Firestone: INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 & 2: 35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes (each race)
Push to Pass parameters: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation. | INDY NXT by Firestone: A maximum of 50 activations total or 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation.
Hybrid energy deployment parameters: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Unlimited activation with a maximum deployment of 415 kilojoules (kJ) per lap.
Firestone tire allotment: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Five sets primary, five sets alternate to be used during the event weekend. Teams must use one set of primary and one new set of alternate tires unless wet conditions are declared. One additional set is available for the weekend’s first session to teams fielding a rookie driver. | INDY NXT by Firestone: Four new sets to be used during the event weekend. Two carryover sets from the Mid-Ohio event may be used during Friday’s practice sessions.
X: @WeatherTechRcwy, @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #JavaHouseGP, #INDYCAR
Instagram: @weathertechraceway, @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #JavaHouseGP, #INDYCAR
Threads: @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT
Facebook: @WeatherTechRaceway, @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #JavaHouseGP, #INDYCAR
TikTok: @INDYCAR, #JavaHouseGP, #INDYCAR
YouTube: @INDYCAR
Event website: www.weathertechraceway.com
INDYCAR website: www.indycar.com
INDY NXT by Firestone website: www.indynxt.com
2024 race winners:
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda)
INDY NXT by Firestone
Race 1: Louis Foster (No. 26 Andretti Global)
Race 2: Louis Foster (No. 26 Andretti Global)
2024 NTT P1 Award winner (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda), 1:07.1465, 119.988 mph
2024 INDY NXT by Firestone pole winners:
Race 1: Louis Foster (No. 26 Andretti Global), 1:12.1760, 111.627 mph
Race 2: Louis Foster (No. 26 Andretti Global), 1:12.4444, 111.214 mph
Qualifying records:
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Christian Lundgaard, 1:06.4610, 121.226 mph, Sept. 9, 2023
INDY NXT by Firestone
Christian Rasmussen, 1:11.7225, 112.333 mph, Sept. 9, 2023
FOX Sports telecasts: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Practice 1, 5 p.m. ET Friday, FS2 (live); Practice 2, 11:30 a.m. ET Saturday, FS1 (live); Qualifying, 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday, FS1 (live); Java House Grand Prix of Monterey 3 p.m. ET, Sunday, FOX (live). Will Buxton is the play-by-play announcer for FOX’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Georgia Henneberry, Kevin Lee and Jack Harvey are the pit reporters. A Spanish-language telecast of the race will be available on FOX Deportes. | INDY NXT by Firestone: Practice 1, 4 p.m. ET Friday, FS2 (live); Practice 2, 6:35 p.m. ET Friday, FS2; Qualifying, 1 p.m. ET Saturday, FS1 (live); Race 1, 4:30 p.m. ET Saturday, FS2 (live); Race 2, 1 p.m. ET Sunday, FS1 (live). Kevin Lee is the play-by-play announcer for FOX Sports’ coverage of INDY NXT by Firestone alongside analyst Jack Harvey. Georgia Henneberry is the pit reporter.
INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside driver analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query and Alex Wollf are the turn announcers. Jonathan Grace, Dan Rusanowski and DJ Clark are the pit reporters. The Java House Grand Prix of Monterey race (2:30 p.m. ET Sunday) can be heard live on network affiliates nationwide. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES race, INDY NXT by Firestone races (4:25 p.m. ET Saturday and 12:55 p.m. ET Sunday), NTT P1 Award Qualifying (2:30 p.m. ET Saturday) and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES practices also air live on SiriusXM 218, www.indycar.com/leaderboard and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.
At-track schedule (all times local):
Friday, July 25
1-1:25 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone practice 1, FS2 (Live)
2-3:20 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice 1 (45 minutes for all cars, followed by two groups for 10 minutes each), FS2 (Live)
3:35-4 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone practice 2, FS2 (Live)
Saturday, July 26
8:30-9:30 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice 2 (45 minutes limited guarantee), FS1 (Live)
10-10:30 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Qualifying (Two groups, 12-minutes each / Fastest lap determines the lineup for Race 1, second fastest lap determines the lineup for Race 2), FS1 (Live)
11:35 a.m. – Java House Grand Prix of Monterey NTT P1 Award qualifying (three rounds of knockout qualifying), FS1 (Live)
1:31 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 “Drivers Start Your Engines”
1:36 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 (35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes), FS2
Sunday, July 27
9:02-9:27 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES final practice, FS2 (Live)
10:01 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 2 “Drivers Start Your Engines”
10:06 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 2 (35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes), FS1 (Live)
Noon – FOX on air
12:15 p.m. – Java House Grand Prix of Monterey “Drivers, start your engines”
12:22 p.m. – Java House Grand Prix of Monterey (95 laps/212.61 miles), FOX (Live)
Header Image By Chris Jones/INDYCAR, Fast Facts by INDYCAR
IndyCar1909.com 