Bobby Travis · NASCAR/IndyCar-Korrespondent
The 2016 Indy 500 winner takes the wheel of the Dallara IR-28 on the legendary 2.5-mile oval first, before reigning champion Alex Palou takes over for Honda the following day.
Alexander Rossi will be the first driver to test the new Dallara IR-28 chassis on the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Wednesday, September 9, 2026. After the systems check on the road course in August, focus now shifts to speed, aerodynamics, and handling where it matters most for IndyCar, on the track of the Indy 500.
Two Manufacturers, Two Test Days
Rossi takes the wheel Wednesday as Chevrolet's representative; reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou will run the program for Honda a day later. This split appears deliberate: both manufacturers want to gather their own data on the new chassis before the IR-28 replaces the aging DW12 starting in 2028.
For Rossi, it's already his second encounter with the new car. In August, he and Palou evaluated Indianapolis' 2.439-mile road course. That first test focused primarily on basic systems checks, a shakedown without performance emphasis.
First Time in Speedway Trim
On the oval, the program looks completely different. The car runs for the first time in its specialized low-downforce configuration, the Speedway aero kit designed for speeds beyond 230 mph (over 370 km/h). Where the road course test checked systems, the oval test centers on actual performance metrics at these high speeds.
The distinction is crucial. A chassis can work flawlessly on a road course yet demand entirely different answers on a high-speed oval. That's exactly why setup for Indianapolis takes top priority. No other race on the calendar commands the spotlight like the Indy 500.
Rossi on the Significance of the Oval
Rossi made clear before the test that this second testing phase pursues a different program with different objectives than the first on the road course. The oval is the most important place this car will ever run, Rossi said, and he welcomed being part of this early development phase.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway even opened the Turn 2 Viewing Mounds for the test so fans can follow the new car's first high-speed laps trackside, a sign of how much weight the series places on this development milestone. With Palou's run Thursday for Honda, it should become clear how closely both manufacturers already align on their IR-28 interpretation and how much fine-tuning remains before the 2028 debut.
