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Java House Grand Prix of Arlington 
Arlington, TX - March 15, 2026

JOSEF NEWGARDEN No. 2 PPG CHEVROLET

START: 11TH 
FINISH: 15TH 
POINTS: 4TH (-34)
 

RACE RUNDOWN: Josef Newgarden and the No. 2 PPG Chevrolet team fought through a weekend full of obstacles to finish 15th in the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday afternoon. A Saturday morning practice incident in a low-speed section of the new circuit ultimately resulted in the No. 2 team bringing out a backup car after a hole was found in the tub portion of the chassis following the contact. After extensive repairs and a loss of valuable track time, Newgarden did a masterful job in transferring to the second round of qualifying on Saturday afternoon before slotting into the 11th position on the qualifying grid. Newgarden and team elected to start the 70-lap event on the red, alternate Firestone tires and were able to break into the top 10 before making their first pit stop of the day on Lap 22. Upon leaving pit lane and blending back into traffic, Newgarden and teammate David Malukas made slight contact that resulted in a loss of several positions for the two-time Indianapolis 500 champion. An issue on the team's second pit stop of the day further reduced the team's ability to make their way back to the front of the field over the remaining laps. Newgarden remains fourth in the point standings heading to Barber Motorsports Park, a road course where he owns three victories.

NEWGARDEN'S THOUGHTS: “Just a tough day. I'm really proud of the team. We had a hard-fought weekend. We had to rebuild a new PPG Chevy and sticking with it in the race and doing everything we can to maximize the day. Unfortunately, just had one too many things go sideways and only have P15 to show for it. Tough result, but I'm really proud of the team for working hard and trying to maximize what was in our control. We'll just have to leave and sturdy today and the performance loss that we're seeing and try and make for the future.”

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN No. 3 DEX CHEVROLET

START: 25TH 
FINISH: 11TH  
POINTS: 5TH (-42)
 

RACE RUNDOWN: Scott McLaughlin and the No. 3 DEX Chevrolet team set out to pass the most cars in Sunday's Java House Grand Prix of Arlington after starting from the rear of the field. They did just that in taking home the Josten's Hard Charger of the Race Award with an 11th-place finish. From the start of the first practice session it was evident that the DEX Chevy had considerable pace as McLaughlin set the fast time on Friday afternoon. The seven-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES winner continued his strong showing early in the Saturday time trials before a slight mishap on his first run on the alternate Firestone tires resulted in him making heavy contact with outside wall. He was credited with the 25th qualifying position. McLaughlin wasted little time in carving his way through the field, eventually making it up to the sixth position during the first pit cycle before making his first stop of the day on Lap 22. Unfortunately for McLaughlin and crew, it was during the pit cycles that he lost precious time on track while stuck behind other competitors. He and race strategist Tim Cindric continued to work different strategies throughout the race, nearly pulling off a top 10 finish before crossing the finish line in the 11th position.

MCLAUGHLIN'S THOUGHTS: “The DEX Chevy had great pace today. I put us on our back foot in qualifying but the guys rallied and put forth a solid effort. Today wasn't a huge points hit and now we go to Barber which everyone knows is a place that I love. Have to give a tip of the hat to Penske Entertainment for what they put together here in Arlington. This was a spectacle of an event.”

DAVID MALUKAS No. 12 VERIZON CHEVROLET

START: 9TH  
FINISH: 6TH  
POINTS: 6TH (-44)
 

RACE RUNDOWN: David Malukas and the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet team continued their solid start to their first season together after finishing sixth in the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday afternoon. Malukas led the Team Penske qualifying effort for the second race in a row, rolling off from the ninth position when the green flag flew. Electing to start on the alternate Firestone tires, Malukas quickly picked up two positions on the start before giving them back up following contact from the rear by the No. 21 of Christian Rasmussen at the end of the first lap. On Lap 23, Malukas and teammate Josef Newgarden came together at the blend line while Newgarden was exiting pit lane. Malukas was able to continue without incident while Newgarden lost considerable track position. From there, the Verizon Chevy team alternated Firestone primary and alternate tires on the final two pit stops of the day as Malukas chased down the No. 5 of Pato O'Ward late in the event. In just their second race together, Malukas nearly scored a second consecutive top five finish as he sits solidly in the sixth position in the standings. 
 

MALUKAS' THOUGHTS: "The No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet was awesome today. I think we had a good strategy. It was unfortunate in the beginning. On the race start, we gained a few positions and got ahead of all of the primary tires. Then we entered the exit of turn four and Rasmussen hit us in the back and knocked us out of gear. We lost those two positions and got stuck behind primaries again. Then from there, we did a fantastic strategy play to make the most of what we could to get a P6 behind the Andretti cars. It would have been interesting to see if we hadn't had that issue at the start because our pace was so much quicker than some of those guys. It would have been interesting to see what we could have done with that front pack, with fuel saving and, what else could have happened, and maybe an incredible result. Really happy with the car and the guys. Good day."

The fourth round of the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season will take place at the picturesque Barber Motorsports Park just outside of Birmingham, AL on Sunday, March 29.