Entering the third year of its technical alliance with Team Penske, AJ Foyt Racing hopes to convert promising progress into strong results this season. After collecting three podium finishes last year with David Malukas and Santino Ferrucci, the team expects Ferrucci to be a contender for race victories – with his main focus on the Indianapolis 500. Rookie teammate Caio Collet has set his sights on another target: winning the Rookie of the Year title.
Among the three full-season rookies in IndyCar this year (Collet, Mick Schumacher and Dennis Hauger), Collet’s résumé may look the least impressive on paper. His best results came in the Indy NXT Series, where he finished third in 2024 and runner-up in 2025. Nevertheless, the Brazilian believes he has a strong shot at the rookie title – partly thanks to the most competitive equipment.
“It’s definitely a priority together with the team to win the Rookie of the Year title,” said Collet. “It’s really tough, my fellow rookies are two really good drivers. They’ll be trying the same thing as me. But I think we have a really good chance and a lot of potential. The key to the Rookie of the Year title is definitely consistency. That’s what you need to win any championship – especially the rookie one.”
Santino Ferrucci will begin his fourth season with AJ Foyt Racing this March. After benefiting significantly from the alliance with Team Penske in 2024, his performance dipped last year despite scoring two podium finishes. One possible factor was Penske’s focus on promoting its protégé, David Malukas. Now that Malukas has made the move to the main Penske team, Ferrucci enters 2026 as the undisputed team leader at AJ Foyt Racing.
“I think we’re way further ahead than we’ve ever been as a team,” concluded Ferrucci. “We’ve had no turnover as far as staff, crew, or engineering goes, so it’s pretty impressive. Building on that going into the season is going to be a big deal for us. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be fighting for a top-five spot in the championship, given our consistency and the preparation this winter. I think our odds to win the 500 are higher than they’ve ever been.”
