A.J. Foyt Racing adds reserve driver to its expanded development lineup
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio
The modernization of A.J. Foyt Racing now includes the organization’s first reserve driver.
British racing driver Toby Sowery has been appointed the Reserve Driver for AJ Foyt Racing for the 2026 NTT INDYCAR Series season. (Photo courtesy of A.J. Foyt Racing)
Brit Toby Sowery has joined the team founded by open-wheel icon A.J. Foyt Jr. of Houston for the remainder of the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series season. Sowery is the latest addition to an expanded driver development roster overseen by Team President Larry Foyt at a time of increasing competition and technical demand within the series.
“My dad, A. J. Foyt, built this team’s name on grit, risk and winning, and I’m honored he trusts me to carry it forward,” said Larry Foyt, 49, a graduate of TCU in Fort Worth who was appointed Team President in March 2015. “We’re not here to protect the legacy, we’re here to re-ignite it. With Santino (Ferrucci) and very promising rookie Caio Collet leading the charge, this team is pushing forward with purpose.
“Toby Sowery will be pivotal to what we’re building; his versatility, voice and background will help develop our next generation while opening the door to a new wave of partners and fans.”
Sowery joins the team with a proven and versatile racing background, having competed across INDYCAR, IMSA and international endurance competition. His achievements include a class victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona alongside multiple podium finishes at the highest level.
As reserve driver, Sowery will support the team across testing, simulator development and race operations, providing experienced technical feedback while maintaining full race readiness throughout the season.
“I’m really proud to be joining A.J. Foyt Racing for 2026,” said Sowery, a 29-year-old native of Melbourn, United Kingdom. “When I first met Larry last year, it was clear we shared the same core values, integrity, accountability and doing things the right way.
“There’s a clear vision for where the team is going, and that’s something I wanted to be part of. The way A.J. approached his career with his creativity, adaptability and always pushing forward, is something I really respect. I’ll be ready when the opportunity comes.”
Foyt Racing’s fulltime INDYCAR drivers _ the aforementioned Ferrucci and Collet _ are operating under a technical alliance with Team Penske that extends for the next two years. That alliance sent David Malukas from Foyt Racing in 2025 to his current fulltime seat with Roger Penske’s juggernaut.
Ferrucci, a 27-year-old resident of Dallas, drives the No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet. Ferrucci finished eighth _ his first top-10 of the season_ at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala., on March 29. Collet, a 24-year-old native of Brazil and driver of the No. 4 Combitrans Amazona Chevrolet, was the top-finishing rookie (12th) in the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington, Texas, on March 15.
Collet joined Foyt’s Waller, Texas-based organization after finishing second in the 2025 INDY NXT by Firestone series standings.
Foyt Racing’s return to INDYCAR’s developmental series paid an immediate dividend when rookie Allesandro de Tullio earned his first career INDY NXT victory at Barber Motorsports Park on March 29. Pole-sitter de Tullio wheeled his No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing entry to victory by 0.3635-seconds over the No. 28 Susan G. Komen car of Andretti Global’s Max Taylor.
De Tullio delivered Foyt Racing’s first victory in the series since Ed Carpenter won the inaugural Freedom 100 in May 2003 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. That was Foyt’s last full-time season in INDY NXT before returning this year in partnership with HMD Motorsports.
De Tullio is a 19-year-old of Argentinian-American descent living in Miami. De Tullio completed his first full season in USF Pro 2000 in 2025, finishing fourth in the standings. De Tullio’s first-year INDY NXT teammate is Nicholas Monteiro, a 20-year-old American of Brazilian descent and native of Pembroke Pines, Fla. Monteiro competed in the USF Pro 2000 Championship from 2023 to 2025.
Foyt Racing is looking to end a frustrating INDYCAR winless streak that dates to Japanese ace Takuma Sato’s victory in the 2013 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
“Santino’s come close for us,” Foyt said, “and he’s always in the hunt at the Indy 500. If we put a good car under him I know he can do the job. Caio will be an exciting rookie for us and we’re really looking forward to seeing what he can do. But yeah, that’s the goal. We want to get back to Victory Lane because it’s been too long.”
Sowery plans to be in Southern California this weekend for the 51st Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The 90-lap/177.12-mile race will be broadcast on FOX Sunday afternoon starting at 5:30 p.m. (EDT).
Will Power is starting to find his comfort zone at Andretti Global.
Power led Friday’s opening practice for the 51st Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach with a lap of 1-minute, 7.6053-seconds/104.797 mph in the No. 26 TWG AI Honda. That was nearly two-tenths of a second ahead of his closest pursuer, former teammate Scott McLaughlin, second at 1:07.7914-seconds/104.509 mph in the No. 3 AAA Travel Team Penske Chevrolet on the 1.968-mile/11-turn temporary street circuit.
SEE: Practice Results
“On the reds (Firestone Firehawk alternate tires), the car was very good,” said Power, a two-time winner of INDYCAR’s premier street race. “We still have things to improve but looking good.”
A 45-year-old native of Australia, Power moved to Andretti Global after 16 full-time seasons at Team Penske that featured two NTT IndyCar Series championships and victory in the 2018 Indianapolis 500.
Power has suffered through an inconsistent start with Andretti Global, adjusting to the different methods the team employs to set-up its cars _ especially brakes _ compared to Team Penske. Power is 13th in the championship standings after four races but produced his best finish of the season, third, at the last street race, the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington, Texas, on March 15.
Up next is the second practice at 1:30 p.m. (EDT) Saturday (FS2, FOX One, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls), followed by NTT P1 Award qualifying at 6:30 p.m. (FS1, FOX One, FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls).
“As you’ve seen over the years, the Andretti cars are really good here,” said Power, who completed 23 laps during the practice. “I think the one lap in qualifying will be very interesting. Hard to say that would suit us or not.”
Andretti Global has won six of the past 14 street races in the series, with Kyle Kirkwood winning five of them. Two of those victories have been scored in this event, both from Kirkwood in 2023 and 2025.
The team continued to flex its street circuit muscle on a sun-splashed Southern California Friday, as series point-leader Kirkwood joined Power in the top-three with a best lap of 1:07.9861-seconds/104.210 mph in the No. 27 JM Bullion/Gold.com Honda.
Four-time/reigning series champion Alex Palou of Spain was fourth at 1:08.0030-seconds/104.184 mph in the No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Marcus Armstrong of New Zealand completed the top-five at 1:08.1215-seconds/104.002 mph in the No. 66 Remax Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian.
Sweden’s Marcus Ericsson punctuated Andretti Global’s strength at Long Beach and on street circuits as the team’s third driver in the top-six, stopping the clocks at 1:08.1932-seconds/103.893 mph in the No. 28 Allegra Honda.
Pato O’Ward was ninth after logging 20 laps, including his best circuit of 1:08.3226-seconds/103.696 mph in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. “We’ve approached this weekend different to years past, and I’m pretty happy with where the car is at currently,” said O’Ward, a 26-year-old native of Mexico with family ties to San Antonio, Texas. “We’re going to keep making it better and hopefully get a strong weekend out of it.”
Meanwhile, McLaughlin’s practice effort proved problematic. The Kiwi was second-quickest overall but ended his afternoon by sliding sideways into the tire barrier in Turn 9 shortly before the checkered flag fell on his group. McLaughlin was uninjured, and the No. 3 Chevy suffered moderate damage.
Expansion of Firestone Fast Six single-car qualifying, including an updated format, has been confirmed by INDYCAR for the remaining four street circuit events of the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series season. The updates will begin on Saturday at the 51st Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
Single-car, single-lap qualifying runs in the Firestone Fast Six made its debut Saturday, March 14, at the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington, Texas. The format followed the traditional INDYCAR “knockout” format of Segments 1 and 2, which narrowed the field to six remaining qualifiers.
Moving forward, the adjustments to single-car Firestone Fast Six format will include choice of qualifying order based on Segment 2 results. The fastest qualifier from Segment 2 will be the first to choose which position they would like to make their Fast Six qualifying run with subsequent choices made for the remaining positions based upon the order of Segment 2 results.
Also revised is lining up at pit-out following tire declaration. Once the qualifying order is determined, teams will make their tire selection _ primary or alternate Firestone Firehawk rubber _ prior to lining up in single-file and in order of their qualifying run, at pit-out to await their qualifying attempt.
During Firestone Fast Six single-car qualifying, drivers will leave pit lane and get an opportunity for one lap _ starting and ending at the alternate start/finish line. Once the car enters pit lane following that driver’s attempt, the next car will be released for its attempt. As in the Streets of Arlington event, tire allotments and tire rules will remain unchanged.
Single-car Firestone Fast Six qualifying also will be scheduled for the three remaining street circuit events after Long Beach _ at Downtown Detroit; Markham, Ontario, Canada and Washington, D.C. The move to single-car Fast Six qualifying is designed to create a greater opportunity to spotlight and translate the challenge and expertise required by INDYCAR teams and drivers competing for top positions on the starting grid.
“The debut of single-car Firestone Fast Six qualifying in Arlington was extremely popular and well- received,” INDYCAR President J. Douglas Boles said. “Following the event, we reached out to stakeholders to help evaluate the format and look into ways to improve an already exciting session. This slight update will provide the fastest from the top-12 an earned advantage of choosing when they would like their run in the Fast Six, while tire selection before lining up at pit-out will save time and more closely equalize the session.
“With continued input from teams, drivers and our partners at FOX Sports, we believe these updates will further highlight the close competition and perfection it takes to start at the front of the grid.”
As in Arlington, if the Firestone Fast Six single-car qualifying segment is impacted by weather or conditions that cause significant track surface change from one attempt to another, INDYCAR will have the following options:
_ Revert to standard Firestone Fast Six qualifying procedures, which features all competitors vying for the NTT P1 Award in the standard timed window.
_ Use the results from Segment 2 to set the race’s starting lineup.
Following the 2026 season, INDYCAR will again evaluate the updated qualifying format to determine its use and implementation in 2027.
Coverage of INDYCAR qualifying from Long Beach is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. (EDT) Saturday on FS1, FOX One, the FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls.
NTT IndyCar Series Point Standings _ 1, Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, 156; 2, Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, 154; 3, Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren, 121; 4, David Malukas, Team Penske, 116; 5, Josef Newgarden, Team Penske, 113; 6, Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren, 106; 7, Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, 99; 8, Marcus Ericsson, Andretti Global, 99; 9, Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank Racing, 98; 10, Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, 85;
11, Alexander Rossi, Ed Carpenter Racing, 83; 12, Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 83; 13, Will Power, Andretti Global, 77; 14, Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, 65; 15, Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Racing, 62; 16, Rinus VeeKay, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 62; 17, Dennis Hauger, Dale Coyne Racing, 57; 18, Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, 55; 19, Romain Grosjean, Dale Coyne Racing, 51; 20, Caio Collet, A.J. Foyt Racing, 51;
21, Louis Foster, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 46; 22, Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, 44; 23, Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren, 38; 24, Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 35; 25, Mick Schumacher, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 31.
FOX SPORTS’ 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES BROADCAST SCHEDULE/(RACE WINNER)
Note _ All times Eastern
Sunday, March 1 _ Streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., (Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing)
Saturday, March 7 _ Phoenix Raceway, Avondale, Ariz., (Josef Newgarden, Team Penske)
Sunday, March 15 _ Streets of Arlington, Texas, (Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global)
Sunday, March 29 _ Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala., (Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing)
Sunday, April 19 _ Streets of Long Beach, Calif., 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 9 _ Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road-Course, 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 24 _ 110th Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Oval, 10 a.m.
Sunday, May 31 _ Streets of Detroit, 12:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 7 _ World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, Ill., 9 p.m.
Sunday, June 21 _ Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., 2 p.m.
Sunday, July 5 _ Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, 12:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 19 _ Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn., TBA
Sunday, Aug. 9 _ Portland (Ore.) International Raceway, 4 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 16 _ Streets of Markham, Canada, Noon
Sunday, Aug. 23 _ Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., TBA
Saturday, Aug. 29 _ The Milwaukee Mile Race 1, West Allis, Wis., 2:30 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 30 _ The Milwaukee Mile Race 2, West Allis, Wis., 1 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 6 _ WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., 2:30 p.m.
Note _ Dates and times subject to change.
2026 INDYCAR NXT BY FIRESTONE SCHEDULE/(RACE-WINNER)
Sunday, March 1 _ Streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., (Nikita Johnson, Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR)
Sunday, March 15 _ Streets of Arlington, Texas, (Max Taylor, Andretti Global)
Saturday, March 28 _ Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala., (Nikita Johnson, Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR)
Sunday, March 29 _ Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala., (Alessandro de Tullio, A.J. Foyt Racing)
Friday, May 8 _ Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road-Course Race 1
Saturday, May 9 _ Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road-Course Race 2
Sunday, May 31 _ Streets of Detroit
Sunday, June 7 _ World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, Ill.
Saturday, June 20 _ Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., Race 1
Sunday, June 21 _ Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., Race 2
Saturday, July 4 _ Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, Race 1
Sunday, July 5 _ Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, Race 2
Sunday, July 19 _ Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn.
Sunday, Aug. 9 _ Portland (Ore.) International Raceway
Sunday, Aug. 30 _ The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, Wis.
Saturday, Sept. 5 _ Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Race 1
Sunday, Sept. 6 _ Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Race 2
