IndyCar will introduce a new street circuit in 2026 with the Grand Prix of Arlington in Texas as the championship returns to the Lone Star State.
The series has had a long history in Texas, most recently on the oval at Texas Motor Speedway which dropped off the calendar after the 2023 season.
IndyCar’s new circuit will be 2.73 miles long and may require a compromised setup with a 0.9-mile-long back straight and a series of slower speed turns.
Alex Palou is eagerly anticipating the race in Arlington’s addition to the calendar. He has even told The Red Flags Podcast that it could be one of the best events of the year, with Palou sensing the Grand Prix of Arlington could be another Indy 500 for the series.
Alex Palou feels Arlington could be IndyCar’s second Indy 500 due to the circuit and its facilities
Arlington may have the potential to be a success and create good racing with opportunities for overtaking into Turn 1 plus Turn 10 at the end of the back straight.
The long straight may force teams to run a lower downforce set-up to be able to overtake over the race distance.
This could make the track in Dallas a unique prospect for IndyCar drivers as other street circuits such as St. Petersburg and Toronto are more technical.
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Palou explained that the circuit and its hospitality areas could make IndyCar’s race in Arlington a success and the series’ best event outside of the Indy 500.
He said: “I’m looking forward to this one, man. If you look at how the track is looking. It’s pretty cool. Also how they want to put the hospitalities looking to the track and the cars going underneath the tunnel.
“I think the level of this GP is going to be right here, and it’s going to be probably our second-best event of the year. I’m looking forward to that.
“I’m looking forward to also this event, raising all other events because they will be like, Man, we need to raise our level. I think this can be our second Indy 500. It’s never going to be, but I mean, our second biggest event.”
The IndyCar event in Arlington has had a mixed reaction
Some people wanted IndyCar to return to the oval at Texas Motor Speedway but despite that circuit producing good racing, crowd numbers were low.
The Grand Prix of Arlington will need to be promoted well ahead of its debut to hit the ground running and be a success.
Former IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe feels that the reaction to the event on the streets of Arlington has been annoying.
Other street circuits such as Long Beach and Toronto have been a success as they focused on making a good race track as a priority.