Today’s question: What NTT INDYCAR SERIES or INDY NXT by Firestone milestone are you most eager to see be achieved in the 2026 season?

Will Power

Curt Cavin: There is no more spice to the upcoming season than Will Power (photo, above, right) competing against his former team. While that energy will debut in the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, an event Power excelled at with Team Penske, the biggest dose will come at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where Roger Penske’s organization has won the Indianapolis 500 on a record 20 occasions, including with Power in 2018. But here’s the thing: Power has never won the pole for the “500,” which is unthinkable given his record 71 poles across the entire series. What if he could win that first Indy pole this year with Andretti Global, beating out a Team Penske driver with the last run of the session? That would be a rich moment on so many levels. Sign me up for it!

Eric Smith: Mine is whether Alex Palou (photo, top) can win his fourth consecutive championship. That’s a feat accomplished only once in series history, when Sebastien Bourdais claimed four straight titles from 2004-07. Palou already owns four championships in a five-year span and enters the upcoming season as the clear favorite after earning eight wins in 17 races last year. In sports, staying on top is often harder than the climb to the summit. Once you’re there, everyone is chasing you, studying your methods and trying to replicate your success. Do you stay the course, or do you take calculated risks to remain ahead -- knowing those risks could backfire -- as the rest of the field closes in? Palou remains humble, fully aware that every reign eventually ends. The question is: Does that happen in 2026?

Alex Palou

Arni Sribhen: Only 23 drivers have won 20 or more races in INDYCAR SERIES history. I expect another driver could join them in 2026. Alex Palou (photo, above) has already won 19 INDYCAR SERIES races despite joining the NTT INDYCAR SERIES in 2020. Winning eight races in a year will do that, but for him to be on the cusp of a special statistic entering his seventh season says a lot. He’s already reaching a level that has him mentioned with the greats of the sport. How high he can climb, not only in 2026 but in the future, will always be something to watch.

Scott Dixon

Paul Kelly: Scott Dixon (photo, above) only needs to lead 23 laps in the 2026 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge to reach 700 laps led in the “500” in his career, extending his race record. Think about that: Leading 700 laps is equal to leading every lap of 3.5 Indy 500s. That’s insane. I have a copy of every Indy 500 Media Guide dating back to 1998, when I started working for the company. In 2004, the year after Dixon’s “500” debut in which he led 15 laps, he was 122nd on the all-time Indy 500 laps led list. I didn’t think any driver would have a prayer of catching the record of 644 laps led by Al Unser, as there was no active driver at the time who had led even 200 laps at the Speedway. And here we are, 22 years later, with Dixon poised to reach a mind-boggling milestone of 700. He’s due, too, as he failed to lead a lap in last year’s race, only the seventh time in 23 starts he hasn’t been out front. I’m sure Dixon is far more concerned about getting his face on the Borg-Warner Trophy for a second time than reaching 700 laps led. Maybe he can combine both to paint a beautiful sunset in the twilight of his Hall of Fame career?