By: Spencer Neff
July 2, 2026
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES will spend the holiday weekend of America’s Semiquincentennial at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.
Sunday’s 90-lap race on the 2.258-mile, 13-turn road course in Lexington, Ohio will be the 43rd race on this course since its 1980 debut and its 21st in the last 20 years (2020 doubleheader). Before on-track action commences, here’s a look at the major storylines throughout the series.
Headlines
Two weeks ago, Arrow McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard took advantage of Marcus Armstrong’s engine failure with four laps to go, passing the Meyer Shank Racing driver with four laps to go and winning the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America.
Lundgaard has won twice this season (IMS Road Course) and finished second at Barber Motorsports Park on March 29, the other permanent road courses the NTT INDYCAR SERIES has visited in 2026. In four previous starts at Mid-Ohio, Lundgaard has three Top 10 finishes, including a third-place finish last year after starting in second.
NTT INDYCAR SERIES points leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing heads into the season’s 11th race with a 62-point lead over Team Penske’s David Malukas.
Palou won at Mid-Ohio in 2023 and has started on the [pole in the first two races of the hybrid era at Mid-Ohio.
Each of those years, he finished second, including a frustrating 2025 loss where a slight bobble with five laps to go allowed teammate Scott Dixon to earn a record-extending seventh victory at Mid-Ohio. A pole this weekend also would extend his current streak to six.
The “Silly Season” rumor mill has begun to swirl in recent weeks following Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist’s announcement of a departure from Meyer Shank Racing after the season.
Rosenqvist has been linked to a potential reunion with Arrow McLaren, where he drove from 2021-2023.
Earlier this week, it also came to light that Dixon will move to Arrow McLaren and occupy the No. 7 currently driven by Lundgaard.
On Thursday morning, Chip Ganassi Racing announced that Dixon will not return to the organization in 2027.
Note: The IndyCar1909 Twitter account was hacked recently. Please follow Spencer for updates during this time.
The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid Fast Facts
Race weekend: Friday, July 3-Sunday, July 5
Track: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, a 13-turn, 2.258-mile permanent road course in Lexington, Ohio
Race distance: 90 laps / 203.22 miles
Push to Pass parameters: 200 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation
Hybrid energy deployment parameters:: Unlimited activation with a maximum deployment of 310 kilojoules (kj) per lap.
Firestone tire allotment: 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.
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Instagram: @officialmidohio, @INDYCAR, #Honda200, #INDYCAR
Threads: @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT
Facebook: @MidOhioSportsCarCourse, @INDYCAR, #INDYCAR
TikTok: @INDYCAR, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCAR
YouTube: @INDYCAR
Event website: http://www.midohio.com
INDYCAR website: http://www.IndyCar.com
2025 race winners:
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda)
2025 NTT P1 Award winner:
Alex Palou (No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) 1:05.0215, 125.027 mph
Qualifying lap record:
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Simon Pagenaud, 1:03.8700, 127.271 mph, July 30, 2016
FOX Sports telecasts: NTT INDYCAR SERIES:
Practice 1, 3 p.m. ET Friday, FS2 (live);
Practice 2, 10 a.m. ET Saturday, FS1 (live);
Qualifying, 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday, FS1 (live);
Warmup, 9 a.m. ET Sunday, FS1 (live);
Race, 12:30 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 will be available on FOX Deportes.
INDYCAR Radio Powered by OnlyBulls broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside
analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query, Nick Yeoman and Michael Young are the turn announcers.
Alex Wollf, Ryan Myrehn and DJ Clark are the pit reporters. The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
Presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid race (noon ET Sunday) and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES
practices and qualifying sessions air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation 218,
indycar.com/leaderboard and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. All INDY NXT by
Firestone practices, qualifying sessions and races are available on SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation
218, indycar.com/leaderboard and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.
At-track schedule (all times local):
FRIDAY, JULY 3
3:05-4:25 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 1, FS2 (live)
SATURDAY, JULY 4
10:05-11:25 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 2 , FS1 (live)
2:35-4 p.m. – Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award (Three rounds of knockout qualifying), FS1 (live)
SUNDAY, JULY 5
9:05-9:35 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Warmup, FS1 (live)
10:01 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio Race 2 command to start engines
10:08 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio Race 2 (30 laps/50 minutes), FS1 (live)
11:57 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Driver Introductions
12:30 p.m. – FOX on air
12:45 p.m. – The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid command to start engines
12:52 p.m. – The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid (90 laps/203.22 miles), FOX (live)
Header Image By Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR
IndyCar1909.com 