Monday, October 5, 2026
  • -
    days
  • -
    hours
  • -
    minutes
  • -
    seconds

Final Indy 500-Monaco Weekend Coined 2 First-Time Winners

The Indy 500 and Monaco Grand Prix will no longer be held on the same weekend in 2026.

Stephanie Lecocq/Reuters via Imagn Images

Want more from Front Office Sports
in your search results?

Add Front Office Sports on Google

The Indy 500 and Monaco Grand Prix shared the same weekend for the final time—and two former teammates stood on the top of their respective podiums for the first time.

McLaren’s Lando Norris took home the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday morning. Norris’s win and teammate Oscar Piastri’s third-place finish helped Team Papaya extend their constructors’ championship lead to 172. That lead is larger than the total point count accumulated by second-place Mercedes, which failed to score Sunday.

Norris also cut Piastri’s lead in the constructors’ championship to three points.

Hours later, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Álex Palou, McLaren’s 2023 reserve driver, won the Indy 500, two years after he took home pole position at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Palou has won three of the last four IndyCar drivers’ championships and sits at No. 1 this year.

The two races will no longer be on the same weekend starting in 2026, as the Monaco GP will be moved to the first full weekend in June.

Failed Double

For the second year in a row, Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson failed to complete The Double—which is when drivers finish both the Indy 500 and NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte on the same day, a total of 1,100 miles.

After the weather halted his attempt last year, crashes stopped him this year. Larson crashed on Lap 91 at the Indy 500 and Lap 246 of the Coca-Cola 600.

It may be Larson’s final time to attempt The Double, and he told Front Office Sports Today on Friday that he had initially planned a two-year window to attempt the historic feat.

“The Double is a tough undertaking,” Larson said Sunday. “The window of time is just too tight.”

Monaco Misses Again

F1 enforced a rule at the Monaco GP that required teams to make two tire changes—one more than the usual race—in an effort to spice up what’s been a lackluster race in recent years. But it didn’t do much.

A year after the race featured just four overtakes, there was only one legal overtake in the 2025 Monaco GP, according to ESPN. The race, which has been renewed by F1 until 2031, was criticized by most drivers, including four-time World Champion Max Verstappen.

“You can’t race here anyway, so it doesn’t matter what you do. One stop, 10 stops. Even at the end, I was in the lead, but my tires were completely gone, and you still can’t pass. We were almost doing Mario Kart,” Verstappen said.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was one of the leaders calling for changes in the track’s layout.

“The cars are so big now that you just don’t have a chance to get alongside. … There just needs to be one area where you can have an overtake and everybody knows that coming here the race was pretty much done on Saturday,” Horner said.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Sign up for
The Memo Newsletter

Get the biggest stories and best analysis on the business of sports delivered to your inbox twice every weekday and twice on weekends.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Mark Walter’s F1 Team Still Has Zero Points After Azerbaijan GP

The Cadillac team, which began racing this year, is in 11th place.
Formula One F1 - Miami Grand Prix - Miami International Autodrome, Miami, Florida, United States - May 3, 2026 Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli in action during the race
Exclusive

Dolphins Owner Nearing Deal to Sell 20% Stake in Miami F1 Race

Stephen Ross has owned the Miami Grand Prix since 2021.

F1 Plans 2027 Middle East Return Despite Iran War

F1’s first two 2027 races are scheduled for Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
Formula One F1 - Hungarian Grand Prix - Hungaroring, Budapest, Hungary - July 26, 2026 Red Bull's Isack Hadjar in action during the race REUTERS/Marton Monus

F1 Will Shift Season Finale to Europe if Middle East War Continues

F1 also confirmed that the final race will not be in the U.S.
podcast thumbnail mobile
Front Office Sports Today

A Conversation with Gronk about Sports Betting, Tom Brady & More

0:00

Featured Today

How the Baseball Cap Became a ‘Behemoth’

The hat has become essential for athletes, fans, and the sports-agnostic.
Morishita-Sato-homerun-celebration-at-Meiji-Jingu-Baseball-Staidum-2025
September 28, 2026

Japanese Baseball Is Fighting Back Against MLB Talent Drain

Nippon Professional Baseball is reimagining how to be a global juggernaut.
Aug 9, 2026; Bedminster, New Jersey, USA; President Donald Trump walks out of the clubhouse during the final round of the LIV Golf New York tournament at Trump National Bedminster.
September 25, 2026

Trump’s Year of Sports Gets Busier With CFB, Presidents Cup

The impact of Trump’s attendance varies across each sporting event.
A Bar of Their Own
September 25, 2026

Women’s Sports Bars: Novelty Has Worn Off, ‘That’s a Good Thing’

They’re leveling up, but sustainability remains the first consideration.
Hot & Social/Mets
September 18, 2026

Sports Teams Are Playing a New Role: Matchmaker

The latest promotion at the stadium? Love.
Apr 7, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) warms up before a game against the Utah Mammoth at Delta Center.
First at FOS
October 5, 2026

NHL ‘Hot for Hockey’ Audio Shorts Campaign Is Done

The league says it was meant to be a one-week-only campaign.
Feb 9, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; A LIV Golf sign is observed prior to the second round of the LIV Golf Las Vegas tournament at Las Vegas Country Club.
October 5, 2026

LIV Readies for Next Phase of Bankruptcy

The Chapter 11 case is playing out in New Jersey.
Sponsored

Beyond the Scorecard: How Dow Is Putting Purpose at the Center of Women’s Golf

Discover how Dow and the LPGA are building a partnership with lasting impact.
October 4, 2026

NFL ‘Looking Into’ Contentious Trey McBride–Ref Incident

The NFLPA called it “unacceptable.”
October 3, 2026

NFL Unsportsmanlike Conduct Fines Way Down in Week 3

Only 5 players were fined, compared to 13 after Week 2.
Sep 27, 2026; Rio De Janeiro, BRA; A tifo featuring images of
First at FOS
October 2, 2026

NFL, NFLPA Yet to Hold Real Talks on More Games Abroad

The CBA requires consultation with the union.
Feb 9, 2026; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York at the Super Bowl LX host committee handoff press conference at Moscone Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
October 2, 2026

NFL Suspends Jed York 6 Games After Prostitution Sting Arrest

The 49ers owner was also fined $500,000.