INDIANAPOLIS, IN. – Congratulations goes out to Kyle Kirkwood and the whole No. 27 Sam’s Club Andretti Global Honda crew for collecting their 2nd win of the season at the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington DC on Sunday.
Here are my 5 Takeaways from Washington D.C. :
5.) The setting made it unlike anything INDYCAR has done before.
Racing around the National Mall and Washington’s iconic monuments gave the event a uniquely American spectacle. It was the first motor race on the National Mall, and even the podium finishers described the experience as surreal.
4.) The race delivered plenty of chaos.
Six caution periods interrupted the 250-mile event, with multiple incidents—including major crashes involving David Malukas (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet) , Sting Ray Robb (No. 77 Goodheart Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet) and Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet). The cautions repeatedly reshuffled strategy and kept the field on edge.
3.) Andretti owned the podium.
Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Velo Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) finished second, while Kirkwood’s teammate Will Power (No. 26 TWG Andretti Global Honda) recovered from 12th on the grid to finish third. Marcus Ericsson (No. 28 Acura Andretti Global Honda) made it three Andretti cars in the top four after an impressive charge from deep in the field.
2.) The championship battle tightened significantly.
Alex Palou (No. 10 Open AI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) entered as the points leader but had a nightmare race, finishing 20th and two laps down after a penalty and crash. Kirkwood’s win cut substantially into Palou’s advantage, leaving Kirkwood 91 points back with three races remaining.
1.) Kyle Kirkwood was the star of the show.
Kirkwood dominated for Andretti Global, leading 128 of 147 laps and earning his second win of the 2026 season. It was also his seventh career INDYCAR victory.
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