6 key INDYCAR questions for Indy and beyond: Can anyone catch Alex Palou?

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— Five consecutive weekends on track: Barber (May 4), Indianapolis road course (May 10), Indy 500 qualifying (May 17-18), Indianapolis 500 (May 25) and Detroit (June 1).

— One week off and then back-to-back weekends at St. Louis (June 15) and Road America (June 22)

— One week off and then four consecutive weekends at Mid-Ohio (July 6), Iowa doubleheader (July 12-13), Toronto (July 20) and Laguna Seca (July 27).

— And then a weekend off before the season ends with three races in four weeks: Portland (Aug. 10), weekend off, Milwaukee (Aug. 24) and Nashville (Aug. 31).

So get ready for your fill of INDYCAR racing. And there will be cars on the track Wednesday and Thursday this week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Indianapolis 500 testing.

With the upcoming racing and the Indy 500 testing in mind, here are six questions for the coming weeks:

1. Will anyone catch Alex Palou?

Kyle Kirkwood won Long Beach and went from being 48 points behind Alex Palou in the standings to 34 points — thanks to the fact Palou finished second. The key for Palou will be how much of a lead he can build in the next two weeks and then how he manages the ovals (two of the following three races) as he still seeks his first win on an oval. Only Kirkwood and Christian Lundgaard are within one race of points (max is 54 in a race) of Palou.

2. Will Team Penske mount a comeback?

It hasn’t been a strong start for Team Penske but there have been promising glimpses. Josef Newgarden finished second at St. Pete, Scott McLaughlin got the pole at St. Pete and Will Power improved 23 spots in the last two races from his qualifying positions. But there have been frustrating moments, such as Newgarden’s belts coming loose at Long Beach, McLaughlin’s wreck and hybrid issues at Thermal and Power’s opening-lap wreck at St. Petersburg. The team needs to qualify better, as the drivers have an average starting position of 13.4. Good thing Indianapolis, where the team is traditionally strong, is right around the corner.

3. Who will be nervous after the test?

There are 34 cars entered for the Indy 500 and that means one driver will miss the field. There are seven drivers who are doing one-offs: Marco Andretti (Andretti), Ed Carpenter (Ed Carpenter Racing), Helio Castroneves (Meyer Shank), Jack Harvey (Dreyer Reinbold), Ryan Hunter-Reay (Dreyer Reinbold), Kyle Larson (Arrow McLaren), and Takuma Sato (Rahal Letterman Lanigan). All of them should be in solid cars. And if they are all fast, who among the full-time drivers might struggle?

4. How will Larson’s second attempt at the double be different?

Kyle Larson is in his second year attempting the double, and as long as there is no rain on race day, this one should turn out better. He should be relatively comfortable in the car from the start. But he still has way fewer reps than his competition. At least INDYCAR has now set the parameters for what Tony Kanaan has to do to be allowed to replace Larson. Last year, there seemed to be confusion about what was required for a substitute driver to get in the car.

5. Should you care about the hybrid at Indy?

This will be the first time the hybrid engine will be used at Indianapolis. It shouldn’t be a huge issue, but you never know. The best thing will be if it isn’t talked about and drivers can go 100 percent, especially late in the race, with the ability to make the passes that have created the greatest spectacle in racing.

6. When will the 2026 schedule be announced?

Last year, the schedule was announced in mid-June, along with the start of the deal with FOX Sports. One of the main focuses needs to be the topic that started this piece — the long breaks amid the races in the first two months of the season. That should be fixed with St. Pete and the new race in Texas (Arlington) happening on back-to-back weekends or having just one week in between. If Mexico City gets added, that is a potential April race (although it would possibly replace Thermal). 

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.

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