Top Two Title Fighters Lead Historic Opening Practice in D.C.

It almost felt like destiny that one of the most highly anticipated on-track sessions in INDYCAR SERIES history would end up with the two best drivers of this season taking the top two spots on the speed chart.

Kyle Kirkwood, second in points this season, edged championship rival and series points leader Alex Palou in the opening practice Saturday morning for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., the first-ever motor race on the streets of the nation’s capital.

SEE: Practice Results

Andretti Global driver Kirkwood was quickest overall in the 64-minute session, divided into three groups, with a top lap of 57.3744 seconds in the No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda on the seven-turn, 1.7-mile circuit that winds around various landmarks and the National Mall, all in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol Building.

Four-time series champion Palou was second at 57.6123 in the No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Palou leads Kirkwood by 133 points – a gap of more than two races’ worth of points -- with four races remaining as he zeroes in on his record-tying fourth consecutive Astor Challenge Cup as series champion.

“Yeah, really fun,” Palou said. “Incredible to see the Capitol Hill, exit of (Turn) 7, just incredible experience. Yeah, so far super happy. Looking forward to seeing what we can do in practice two.”

The second practice starts at 1 p.m. ET, with NTT P1 Award qualifying set for 5 p.m. ET. Both sessions will air on FS2, FOX One and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls.

In the opening practice, rookie Dennis Hauger was an impressive third at 57.7381 in the No. 19 Ault Block Chain Honda, continuing a recent upswing for Dale Coyne Racing. His teammate, Romain Grosjean, finished second last Sunday in the new street race at Markham, Ontario.

David Malukas, third in the series standings, ended up fourth at 57.7457 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. Markham winner Marcus Ericsson rounded out the top five at 57.8009 in the No. 28 Acura Honda of Andretti Global.

Honda-powered drivers took four of the top five spots, continuing the manufacturer’s dominance on temporary circuits this season. A Honda engine has powered the winner of all five previous street races in 2026, and Honda-powered drivers have swept the three podium finishing positions in the last four street races this season. Palou has won three of the five races on temporary circuits this year.

All 25 drivers in the field grasped with two considerable challenges in the historic first session – changing grip conditions due to morning rain and the bumps associated with racing on a brand-new street circuit.

INDYCAR officials declared the start of the session wet due to morning rain that ended before practice began, and every driver started on Firestone Firehawk rain tires. But the track began to dry quickly, and Arrow McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard was the first driver to enter the pits for a swap to faster slick Firestone Firehawk tires about 25 minutes into the session.

Every other driver followed, and times dropped nearly four seconds on the faster rubber.

Still, there were challenges to tackle on the drying surface, especially a few bumps in the braking zones.

“Very bumpy, huge bumps heading into Turn 2 and Turn 6,” Palou said. “Massive bumps that are going to spice things up. I think it's actually going to create good racing just because it's quite tough to go over there and have good braking and also have good traction when the bumps are on exits.”

A few drivers found the limits of the layout, clipping the unforgiving concrete barriers lining the entirety of the pristine new circuit. Lundgaard, Andretti Global’s Will Power and ECR’s Christian Rasmussen all made light barrier contact with the right rear of their respective machines and were forced to pit for quick repairs.

Live coverage of the 147-lap race starts at 11:30 a.m. ET Sunday on FOX, FOX One and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls. At 250 miles, it’s the second-longest race on a temporary circuit in INDYCAR SERIES history.