The Inside Line

In this edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes dive into the two major news topics of the week: David Malukas landing a ride at Team Penske and IndyCar releasing its 2026 schedule. On Malukas, Nathan and Joey discuss the fact that Malukas didn’t appear to have been Team Penske’s ‘Plan A’ for the No. 12 car in 2026, having offered Will Power a one-year deal to stay, and they theorize whether he’s ready and what to expect from the 23-year-old next season. Then, the two dive into the good and bad parts of IndyCar’s slate for next season, giving both their favorite parts and where Penske Entertainment still has work left to do in the years ahead.

In this edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes discuss the riveting end to the 2025 IndyCar season that was the finale at Nashville Superspeedway. First, the pair highlight the ways in which so many drivers’ days either ended poorly or were adversely affected to open the door for a much-needed season-ending win for Josef Newgarden. The pair discuss Newgarden’s interesting words in his post-race press conference about what this offseason may have in store for him, and they also break down David Malukas’ race-ending crash and how and why he came together with Louis Foster. They then run down the championship standings and note standout or notable finishers after the dust settled in Nashville, and then Nathan and Joey finally break down where exactly the 2026 IndyCar schedule is in this closing stage, including the pros and cons around Canada’s race shifting to a new location, the ways in which the fates of races in Mexico City and Washington D.C. may be intertwined and what else to expect on the calendar for 2026.

In this episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes discuss the rapid-fire moves of these past couple days on the IndyCar Silly Season landscape and how they came to be. The pair kickoff the episode diving into Will Power’s decision to leave Team Penske after 17 years and the behind-the-scenes moves – and lack of them – that ultimately led Power feeling like it was his time to move on. And then they move into how the futures of Will Power and Colton Herta ultimately became intertwined as Herta was proposed the opportunity by TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss to take a chance on his dreams and leave IndyCar for a test and development opportunity with Cadillac F1 and a likely F2 ride in pursuit of his childhood F1 dreams. Nathan and Joey talk about what’s next for them in 2026, and then they cap the episode setting the stage for where the Silly Season landscape stands with those major dominos having fallen.

In the latest episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes talk through Christian Rasmussen’s breakthrough victory at The Milwaukee Mile while also diving deep into the hot-button topics off the track. The pair first discuss the breaks that gave the ECR driver a chance to pounce late and then debate Alex Palou’s team decision not to pit for new tires in the final caution and note the way in which Rasmussen in many ways could end up the breakout driver of the year. Browns and Barnes then get into and discuss Nathan’s stories on Red Bull’s interest in Alex Palou and the prospects of Colton Herta heading to Formula 2 and what’s real, fiction and rumor behind those. They cap the podcast with an update on where they think soon-to-be free agent Will Power stands in what could be his final race for Team Penske.

In this episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes start things off highlighting the novelty of Will Power’s win Sunday at Portland, what impact it may have on his future at Team Penske and what that future could (and should) look like. The pair then discuss the way in which Alex Palou clinched his fourth IndyCar title Sunday and the historic pace of the start to his career. They then break-down and opine on the controversial crash between Christian Rasmussen and Conor Daly, the lack of a call from race control why many drivers in the paddock are frustrated with the current state of race control. Nathan finishes off the podcast with updates on progress for 2026 races at Toronto and Mexico City and why the latter doesn’t appear to be as much of a ‘sure thing’ as immediately believed.

In this episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes kick-off their post-Laguna Seca episode taking a look at the historical implications of Alex Palou snagging his eighth win of 2025, where that stands in history and where he could end up once the season ends. The pair also explain how Palou can go about clinching his 4th title in 5 years at IndyCar’s next round at Portland and how Pato O’Ward can stay alive, too. Brown and Barnes discuss an analyze the much-talked-about perceived miscues from race control involving a pair of on-track incidents that didn’t see yellow flags for 90 seconds during Sunday’s race, and then they dive into the Silly Season topics of the moment: whether Will Power will (or should) be replaced at Team Penske by David Malukas for 2026 and what Colton Herta’s chances are to secure a super license and give decisionmakers at Cadillac F1 a choice on whether to hand him a ride for the team’s debut season in 2026.

In this week's edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes discuss the ways Toronto race winner Pato O'Ward and championship leader Alex Palou diverged, creating the potential for a title race down the stretch. Nathan and Joey also dove deep into the former's 2026 schedule sleuthing story from earlier in the week, and Nathan discusses how he expects many of the puzzle pieces to fit together.

IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown an co-host Joey Barnes break down the on- and off-track successes and failures around IndyCar's Iowa Speedway doubleheader weekend in this episode of "The Inside Line." The pair first touch on the ways in which Pato O'Ward and Alex Palou bided their time en route to race wins and how Josef Newgarden and Team Penske saw them slip through their fingertips. Nathan and Joey then dove head first into the elephant in the room: the mostly empty grandstands and the underwhelming TV numbers and discussed why IndyCar's annual stop at Iowa has fallen so far in interest, who's to blame, what could be done to save it and ultimately what it's fate may be.

In this week's edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes dive into all the on and off-track drama in the wake of IndyCar's race at Mid-Ohio. They start the episode taking a look at the moves and decisions that led to the exciting end-of-the-race battle between Scott Dixon and Alex Palou, and the two discuss whether Dixon has a shot at challenging A.J. Foyt's all-time IndyCar wins record. Then, they break down the oddity that has been this season for Team Penske and the streaks and themes that have made it one of the program's worst ever in its 50-plus years in the sport. The pair also dive into the chatter around Josef Newgarden, why his post-qualifying media interaction became the story it did and do their best to clarify sentiments and assumptions around their own (as well as paddock-wide) reporting and story-writing involving Josef and Team Penske at-large over the last couple years. They end this week's episode looking ahead to this weekend's Iowa Speedway doubleheader and why many in the paddock believe it will be more of the same of the lackluster passing opportunities of a year ago.

On this week's edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes break down the strategy that fed into Alex Palou's sixth win of 2025. The pair then rank their top teams in the sport through the season's halfway point and debate where they'd have a winless Team Penske. Brown and Barnes also dive into the big topics of the week, including IndyCar's new car announcement, Arrow McLaren's hiring of Kyle Moyer and why the ratings fell off as much as they did after a strong post-Indy 500 run.

In this episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes breakdown how Kyle Kirkwood earned his third win of the season at World Wide Technology Raceway and what proved to be his race-winning pass on runner-up Pato O’Ward. The pair also discuss Team Penske’s miserable race and where the team’s first win of the year will come — if at all. They also discuss the race’s ratings and what they mean and who they think could pick up their next career-first win in IndyCar.

In this week’s episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes discuss Andretti Global’s dominant Detroit Grand Prix weekend that led to Kyle Kirkwood’s second win of 2025. The pair also dig into the ins and outs of Santino Ferrucci’s post-race tech inspection penalty, Zak Brown’s comments about needed changes in IndyCar, the TV ratings and what they mean and look at who might still be alive for a championship push other than Alex Palou.

In this week’s edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes break down everything that was in this year’s Indy 500, from Alex Palou’s late-race win — and the pass that made it so on Marcus Ericsson — to other standout performances and disappointing ones throughout the field. The pair also dive into the post-race penalties and what they believe IndyCar would’ve done had Ericsson won with an illegally modified car, as well as the Fox broadcast and IndyCar’s massive ratings win from it.

In the latest edition of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes breakdown the latest Team Penske-related drama since Indy 500 qualifying and discuss why ultimately Roger Penske made the major decision he did to fire his entire IndyCar leadership team. Later, Nathan and Joey work their way through their field and hand out their picks for Sunday’s Indy 500 and debate whether Josef Newgarden can still make history from 32nd on the grid.

In this episode of ‘The Inside Line’, IndyStar’s motorsports insider Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes tackle the story of the day, the week and the month: Team Penske’s illegal attenuator modifications, and the impact they’ve had on the paddock. Nathan and Joey first lay out the facts and timeline before dishing out takes on the IndyCar’s tech inspection process, the penalties and the effects this should have on Team Penske and IndyCar moving forward. The pair also touch on the incredible story that was brand-new team Prema and rookie Robert Shwartzman taking pole for the Indy 500.

In this week’s edition of ‘The Inside Line’, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and his co-host Joey Barnes dissect Alex Palou’s fourth victory in five starts in the 2025 IndyCar season on the IMS road course. The pair talk through the impact of IndyCar’s new tire rules and how they both shook up the field and how they might impact races beyond the Sonsio Grand Prix if they’re adopted. Then, Nathan and Joey shift into a breakdown of what they’re watching as Indy 500 practice gets underway on Tuesday and list the teams and drivers they think are in most need of a pick-me-up from the everything the 500 and the lead-up to it offer in looking at the rest of the season and the various history on the line in the 109th Indy 500.

In this week’s edition of ‘The Inside Line’, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and his co-host Joey Barnes dive into the major on and off-track storylines lingering after yet another Alex Palou victory in 2025, this time at Barber Motorsports Park. The pair theorize who – and if anyone – can still make a run at Palou to challenge for the 2025 drivers’ championship and what that run ultimately would have to look like. They also give their picks for a “best of the rest” Driver of the Day, outside of Palou, before turning the conversation to the dialogue around the quality of IndyCar’s on-track product and what combination of the hybrid, Palou’s dominance or other factors are to blame. The pair also touch on a surprise penalty in the Indy NXT paddock at Barber that left more questions than answers. Also, be sure to listen for the code words that will allow you to win a pair of Indy 500 Snake Pit VIP tickets from IndyStar.

In this episode of The Inside Line, IndyStar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes comb through the timing sheets from the two days of the Indy 500 Open Test and talk through their initial takeaways from how the field is shaping up for the Month of May, including: the latest edition of the Honda vs. Chevy battle, the early front-running teams and drivers, who looked rather pedestrian during testing and who they’re keeping an eye on for possible Bump Day considerations.

In this episode of The Inside Line, IndyCar motorsports reporter Nathan Brown and co-host Joey Barnes discuss Kyle Kirkwood’s win from pole in the Long Beach Grand Prix and how Andretti Global’s execution – and lack of it from competitors – led to the first race of the year not won by Alex Palou. The pair also discuss how tire strategy and wear continue to play an elevated role in how races have played out in 2025, and later, they dive into the plusses and minuses of several deserving IndyCar-centric driver candidates for Cadillac F1’s open seats. They end this episode with live reactions to IndyCar’s disappointing TV rating for Long Beach.

In this episode of The Inside Line, Nathan Brown and Joey Barnes discuss the ins and outs of IndyCar’s weekend at The Thermal Club, starting with how Alex Palou and Chip Ganassi Racing turned in another race-winning performance and how tire deg and strategy played such a big role in IndyCar’s first points-paying race at the track. Later, the pair discuss the fallout from IndyCar’s lackluster TV rating and try to dive into why the series saw such a drop-off in audience, what could’ve been done to combat the low level of interest around Thermal and where IndyCar goes from here as it targets and prioritizes growth this spring and this year with Fox.