Behind the dominant Álex Palou, Scott McLaughlin claimed an impressive second-place finish at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg after securing the first pole position of the season.

Qualifying third, Dennis Hauger delivered a stunning IndyCar debut in St. Petersburg. This is the inside story.

It’s hard to have a good weekend when Palou is on track. But what teams and drivers stood out, and who fell short of the 2026 debut they were hoping for? Let’s take a look at some of this past weekend’s winners and losers.

DIVEBOMB unpacks the key events and stories from the opening weekend of the 2026 Indy NXT season.

St. Petersburg marked a new IndyCar season but the headlines were taken by the same Álex Palou, who's 2025 form showed no sign of stopping in the Florida streets. DIVEBOMB IndyCar Correspondent, Dan Jones, graded all 25 drivers' performances during the St. Petersburg weekend.

Álex Palou started his quest for an IndyCar four-peat with an emphatic win in St. Pete. So is he really still getting better again?

After a self-described year of frustration and disappointment in 2025, Marcus Ericsson's 2026 season could not have gotten off to much of a better start after qualifying second for IndyCar's season opener on the Streets of St. Petersburg.

Scott McLaughlin and Penske secured the first pole of the IndyCar season at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, as the New Zealander successfully defended his pole position of a year ago.

As he looks to rebound from a disappointing 2025 season, “execution” is very much the watchword for Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin heading into the new campaign.

With Doug Boles at the helm, IndyCar continues to make significant moves towards a more promising future.

Romain Grosjean marked his return from a year absent in IndyCar with a steady run to 13th place in the opening practice session for this weekend's Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, in his first session back at Dale Coyne Racing.

Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin has finished quickest in an incident-marred opening practice session of the 2026 IndyCar season on the streets of St. Petersburg.

INDYCAR. IS. BACK. Dan previews IndyCar's action at St. Petersburg, Race 1 of 18 in the 2026 IndyCar season.

Written by Archie O’Reilly, Edited by Morgan Holiday Credit: James Black The start of the IndyCar season on the streets of St. Petersburg...

Dan takes you through the winners and losers from IndyCar's season opener on the Streets of St. Petersburg.

Written by Archie O’Reilly Credit: Joe Skibinski After an off-season of major promotional efforts got FOX Sports’ broadcast partnership...

Scott Dixon was 'pretty pissed off' after a radio issue prevented him from winning the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

Written by Archie O’Reilly Credit: James Black “Makes it look easy, doesn’t he?” said Chip Ganassi. “He doesn’t sweat.” Well, Á lex Palou...

Written by Jackson Lambros, Edited by Meghana Sree Credit: Chris Jones Alex Palou kicked off the 2025 IndyCar Series with a victorious...

Written by Archie O’Reilly Credit: James Black Ahead of his fourth year in IndyCar after making the full-time switch from V8 Supercars as...