Three races into the 2026 IndyCar season, and there have been three different points leaders: Alex Palou, Josef Newgarden, and now Kyle Kirkwood -- all three winners early in the new year.
Kirkwood passed Palou with 15 laps to go in the Grand Prix of Arlington and never looked back, earning his sixth career win. He now leads the four-time and defending IndyCar champion by 26 points in the standings, putting Andretti on top.
Newgarden, who entered this race with the lead, has fallen to third in the standings, 33 points back. He is tied with Pato O'Ward, who opened the year with a trio of top five finishes.
2026 IndyCar points after Arlington (Race 3 of 18)
| Pos. | Driver | Points |
| 1 | Kyle Kirkwood | 126 |
| 2 | Alex Palou | 100 |
| 3 | Josef Newgarden | 93 |
| 4 | Pato O'Ward | 93 |
| 5 | Scott McLaughlin | 85 |
| 6 | David Malukas | 84 |
| 7 | Christian Lundgaard | 80 |
| 8 | Marcus Ericsson | 77 |
| 9 | Marcus Armstrong | 70 |
| 10 | Alexander Rossi | 64 |
| 11 | Will Power | 59 |
| 12 | Scott Dixon | 59 |
| 13 | Dennis Hauger (R) | 50 |
| 14 | Felix Rosenqvist | 47 |
| 15 | Rinus VeeKay | 46 |
| 16 | Graham Rahal | 46 |
| 17 | Kyffin Simpson | 46 |
| 18 | Caio Collet (R) | 42 |
| 19 | Louis Foster | 41 |
| 20 | Santino Ferrucci | 38 |
| 21 | Romain Grosjean | 36 |
| 22 | Christian Rasmussen | 33 |
| 23 | Sting Ray Robb | 27 |
| 24 | Nolan Siegel | 26 |
| 25 | Mick Schumacher | 25 |
