VeeKay leaving Portland optimistic after fourth-place finish

There comes a point where punching above your weight class, which Rinus VeeKay has been doing throughout 2026, needs a bit of recalibration.

It’s one thing if VeeKay and the lesser-known Juncos Hollinger Racing team had one or two remarkable results among IndyCar’s giants; in those instances, the Dutchman would deserve to be hailed for ably fighting against the series’ heavyweights.

But when it starts to become the new norm, which is the case for VeeKay and JHR’s No. 76 Chevy after securing four top-six finishes in the last seven races, including a team-best sixth at the Indianapolis 500 and a trio of fourth-place finishes at WWTR, Mid-Ohio, and Portland, it’s worth asking whether they’re punching above or if they’ve ascended to a new height.

The only drivers ahead of VeeKay in the Drivers’ championship belong to Chip Ganassi Racing, Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren, and Team Penske, and he’s got one Andretti driver and two Ganassi pilots behind him in the standings where he currently holds 10th.

VeeKay’s the only driver outside of the Big 4 teams to fight among their storied squads, and it’s by no means a fluke. It’s here where the wildest and most unexpected story of the season continues to be written as the 25-year-old, in his first year with JHR, has elevated the team to places it’s never known.

”Yeah, we had a really good day,” VeeKay said. “Starting up front helps. Saves you from taking a lot of risks that cannot pay off. I think we just had a very stellar day. We had a good idea on strategy, and we kept calm and did what we wanted to do at the start. Kept out of trouble. A really good job by the pit crew to get me ahead of both Marcus Ericsson and Kyle Kirkwood at the end. Really happy to have a result like this with AM/PM on the car as well, and great to put Chevy up there.”

His name might be getting a lot of attention right now as IndyCar’s silly season rages on, but it’s also worth asking whether VeeKay — essentially operating as a one-car team with no chassis setup help from a comparable teammate — has found a perfect home where he’s the lead driver and can go higher with a competitive upgrade in the sister No. 77 Chevy.

“I think we just figured out our road course car,” he said, referencing the recent tests that have unlocked prodigious speed. “My testing in Mid-Ohio, I think that really just made a huge difference for our program, and we found some things that really need to change, especially after a really tough weekend in Road America.

“I think we ​are starting to figure things out, this far into the season​. Also, we have a double header coming up in Milwaukee, so we're really, really excited for that. But first, two new street courses. Yeah, it should be a lot of fun.”