The 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar is close to completion, but a few pivotal details remain unsettled. Sources say much of the first half of the season — including the opening nine races — is already locked in. The uncertainty centers on the season finale and the possibility of adding a new international or U.S. street race.
Penske Entertainment is in active talks to move Laguna Seca from its current slot as the season finale to an earlier date. The reasoning has not been made public, but sources suggest the series is targeting one or both late-July weekends for other events, which would require shifting Laguna Seca elsewhere on the calendar.
Hopes of adding Mexico City to the schedule — a long-standing ambition for Penske Entertainment — continue to face hurdles. Negotiations with the track’s promoter have reportedly become difficult, with the promoter raising both the rental fee and the percentage of ticket sales it seeks. Talks remain ongoing, but no deal has been finalized.
Another option under discussion is a street race in Washington, D.C., potentially tied to the federal government’s celebrations of the nation’s 250th birthday in summer 2026. Fox and Penske Entertainment officials have held recent talks about the possibility.
Industry sources suggest that Mexico City and Washington, D.C. are being considered as an either/or proposition rather than both appearing on the 2026 schedule. The timing and feasibility of either event appear to be the main factors holding up finalization of the calendar.
Until those decisions are made, the finishing touches on INDYCAR’s 2026 schedule remain in flux.
