O'Ward's same-day double at the Milwaukee Mile
Pato O'Ward completed a same-day sweep of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES doubleheader at the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wisconsin, taking both the rain-delayed conclusion of Saturday's race and the scheduled second event on Aug. 30, 2026. After rain stopped Saturday's race on lap 90, officials resumed it Sunday morning, ran Race 2 at noon, and finished Race 1 at 5 p.m. with O'Ward in front. It was the first time since Rick Mears won two races in one day at Atlanta in 1981 that an INDYCAR driver swept a same-day double.
Palou secures a fifth title, fourth in a row
Alex Palou, driving the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, clinched his fifth NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers' championship and fourth consecutive title, becoming the first driver in series history to win five championships in six years. He tied the four-straight championship record with one race remaining in the 2026 season. Palou finished fifth in Race 2 and 10th in the resumed Race 1, results that were more than sufficient after a strong start in which he passed Josef Newgarden and pulled away. "It's tough to put into words. ... It's been incredible," Palou said in his post-race news conference.
How the second race was decided
O'Ward inherited the lead in the closing stage after David Malukas, who had the race in check in the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet, suffered an engine issue on the final restart with 24 laps to go and faded to second. Scott McLaughlin, Christian Rasmussen, Christian Lundgaard and Josef Newgarden rounded out the top five in Race 2, while Rinus VeeKay, who had worked from last to the top 10 on Saturday, finished third.
Title contenders fall short
Malukas, McLaughlin and Kyle Kirkwood were the only drivers still mathematically in contention after the resumed first race, but Kirkwood's sixth- and 15th-place finishes in the two races eliminated him from the chase. Malukas, visibly frustrated after his second consecutive runner-up result, said, "We had the car; we did everything right. We're just cursed. I literally believe I have some sort of curse." Both he and McLaughlin drive Chevrolet-powered entries that reported engine issues on restarts and out of the pits.
O'Ward's turnaround and season standing
The Arrow McLaren driver's double victory gave him three wins on the season and his third at the Milwaukee Mile, and moved him from fifth to fourth in the championship standings. "I've dreamt of weekends like this before," O'Ward said in his FOX Sports interview. "I'm just so happy that we were able to get back in our oval form because we've been slacking all year." The weekend capped a 2026 campaign in which he had recorded only one prior podium, a win at Mid-Ohio.
Final race ahead
With the Milwaukee doubleheader in the books and one round still on the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar, the championship has already been settled in Palou's favor, leaving the remaining race as the next verifiable milestone of the season.
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