ARLINGTON
Kyle Kirkwood passed four-time IndyCar champion Àlex Palou in the race’s dwindling laps and never let go of the lead as he earned his first victory of the season and sixth of his career in the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday.
Kirkwood and his Andretti Global teammates took three of the top four spots. Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing was second, followed by Will Power and pole-sitter Marcus Ericsson.
Kirkwood, who took over the series points lead through three races, said his move with 15 of the 70 laps left came in a “dire straits situation” on the 2.7-mile street course in the Arlington entertainment district around Globe Life Field and AT&T Stadium.
“I was like, this is probably the only place I can pass him, and … I can surprise him,” Kirkwood said. “So there’s some urgency, but at the same time, we were a lot quicker than him. And he’s someone that’s very trustworthy to race against, and if you do some of those late lunges, you can trust that he’s going to not drive you to the wall like maybe some other drivers will.”
Kirkwood had some trouble in pit lane throughout the race and had to keep his composure despite the setbacks.
“We had the pace to overcome it, so I wasn’t worried,” he said. “I wanted to keep [the pit crew] calm, not get them fired up, because we still had three stops to do. Of course, we had issues. We didn’t need to look back and see exactly what was happening on the rear right, but it seemed like there was an issue with the tire coming off and the tire going on.
“We’ve been one of the fastest on pit lane. I think we were the fastest of the three stops at Phoenix. So we have a fast pit crew. I’ve got a lot of confidence in them. It was just not a good day on pit lane, and we’ll definitely have a fix for it in the coming weeks.”
Kyle Kirkwood exits his Andretti Honda and pumps his fists after winning the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
Kirkwood came into the race in second place in the IndyCar standings behind Josef Newgarden as he aims for his first championship after taking fourth place in 2025. He now leads the series for the first time in his career after picking up the win.
Kirkwood’s teammate Power talked about the type of driver Kirkwood is.
Kyle Kirkwood slides through Turn 14 during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
“He does his homework. He’s the real deal, man,” Power said. “He won in every single [discipline] from go-karting all the way up. He’s won every single championship. So this guy is very good, very good, incredible. But he doesn’t do it just through natural ability. He works hard. I think he’ll be tough to beat this year in a championship.”
Kirkwood didn’t want to get ahead of himself but hopes he’s a top contender to unseat Palou, the reigning Indianapolis 500 champion who has won three straight titles and four overall.
From left, second-place finisher Alex Palou, winner Kyle Kirkwood and third-place finisher Will Power celebrate after the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
“Three races in, I don’t want to focus too much on the championship,” Kirkwood said. “I want to focus on the next race in front of us and just maximizing our performance. There’s a lot of work to do. Of course, we want to be the biggest threat; every driver does. We’re currently the biggest threat to him and the entire rest of the field. But we need to continue that, because we’ve got a lot of races.”
Power and Palou were effusive in their praise of the Arlington event and the track.
The Ganassi Honda driven by Alex Palou makes its way around Turn 14 during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
“The track looked amazing. Just looked like a big event,” Power said. “This is setting a new standard of what our events should look like.
Palou said: “My expectations were high, but this has exceeded by 10 times this event. … Obviously, there’s always stuff that you can improve. There’s bumps that you can avoid having, there’s small stuff that you can improve year by year, but this is by far the best street course race that I’ve been part of, and it’s really fun. It’s really fun to see so many people in the stands. The energy was incredible, and I cannot wait to be back here next year.”
Affectionately called the “king of the streets” on the Fox broadcast, Kingwood has claimed five of his six victories in street races. He called racing around the Dallas Cowboys’ and Texas Rangers’ staidums “incredible.”
Kyle Kirkwood (27) exits his Andretti Honda after winning the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
“It’s incredible to race in such a central location to two of the biggest sports teams in the world, right?” he said. “It’s been an incredible event. This event was done right. The track was built properly, with the fencing, the walls. The branding looked good and looked clean.
“It looked exactly how a premier motor sports race should look like at a street course, right? And just the venue in general. … I can see this being one of our marquee events outside of the [Indianapolis] 500 in a very short period of time.”
No official attendance figures were available Sunday. Organizers had said they expected about 80,000 people to attend over the three days of events starting Friday.
The next race in the IndyCar series will be at 1 p.m. March 29 in the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama.
Race officials post the yellow flag after a driver hit a wall during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
A crew member for Will Power (26) works on tires for the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
The pit crew for Kyffin Simpson (8) works on adjusting his cockpit during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
The pit crew works on the Andretti car driven by Will Power (26) during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Fans watch the race on several jumbotrons placed around AT&T Stadium, Globe Life Field and the race track during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
The crew of Nolan Siegel (6) prepares his car on pit row before the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Drivers negotiate a turn during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
The safety team removes the ECR Chevrolet driven by Christian Rasmussen (21) from the track during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
IndyCar driver Sting Ray Robb (77) stops for the national anthem before the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Driver Dennis Hauger (19) enjoys the shade before the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Marcus Ericsson (28) runs close to the wall during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
The Dale Coyne Racing car driven by Dennis Hauger (19) makes a pit stop during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Scott Dixon (9) gets a briefing on pit row before the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Fans watch the race from Globe Life Field during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
The pit crew waits for the Andretti car driven by Will Power (26) during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
A pit crew member waits to make a tire change on an Andretti car driven by Will Power (26) during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington on Sunday, March, 15, 2026, in Arlington. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram 
Drivers negotiate the horseshoe on AT&T Stadium’s parking lot at the intersection of Collins Street and Randol Mill Road during the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, March, 15, 2026. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
This story was originally published March 15, 2026 at 3:39 PM.
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Lawrence Dow is a digital sports reporter from Philadelphia. He graduated with a master’s degree in journalism from USC. He’s passionate about movies and is always looking for a great book. He covers the Texas Rangers and other sports.