Will Power Tells OutKick Why Andretti Could Soon Be The Team To Beat In IndyCar

Every new NTT IndyCar season is going to bring its share of storylines, and in 2026, none of these stories will be as big as Will Power's move from Team Penske to Andretti Global.

The Australian driver spent 17 years as part of Team Penske, a tenure that saw him win a pair of series IndyCar championships, an Indianapolis 500 win, dozens of race wins, and more pole positions than any other driver in the sport's history.

Which is why it was pretty shocking at the end of the 2025 season; it looked like his time there was winding down, and that became official when David Malukas took his spot in the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet.

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However, Power moved into another coveted ride in the No. 26 Honda for Andretti Global.

"I did have a lot of options as I was coming up to the end," Power said. "There wasn't much to think about when you know this opportunity presented itself."

That opportunity was the chance to slot into the No. 26 when its previous driver, Colton Herta, joined Cadillac's F1 team as a test driver and landed a ride in F2.

But, as Power was making these decisions about his future, he still had a job to do at Penske, which was having an unusually rough season that saw them arrive in Portland with three races to go in the season completely winless.

However, it was Power who got them in Victory Lane, and it was an experience unlike any of his other 44 career wins.

"It was tremendous," Power said. "Like you said, it was a real dry spell, and I don't think that team had really experienced that in my time there. So, when I won that race, and I was done with the press conference and everything and walked back to where the team was packing up, I'd never seen them all stop and applaud, you know, just because they hadn't won a race all year."

Power said that the moment was a reality check for the organization, which notched another win two races later when Josef Newgarden won in Nashville.

He mentioned his appreciation for everything that team owner and racing legend Roger Penske has done for him, but said he always wondered what would happen if he moved on to another team.

"I would have loved to have finished the career there, but I also always wondered how I would fare in a different team, and now I'm going to see."

Will Power has gotten his feet wet with Andretti global in several tests, including one at Sebring International Raceway earlier this month. (Photo by Michael L. Levitt/Lumen via Getty Images)

'I Actually Think They'll Be The Best Team In The Next Three Years'

There are some similarities between Team Penske and Andretti Global. Obviously, both take their names from racing royalty and will see Power race alongside some wildly talented teammates. He's moving on from sharing garages with Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin to working with Marcus Ericsson and Kyle Kirkwood.

But there are far more differences between the two, from the engine manufacturer to the resources, to the way the teammates race each other. 

"I think it's a different culture (at Andretti)," Power said. "Penske was very cutthroat between the teammates. They certainly push each other… race each other hard on track, where here I think you definitely look after your teammate a little bit more when you're racing them than you did at Penske. 

"But they're tough competitors," he continued. "They want to win. They want to beat me as well. That's, you know, part of the game. But together, we need to raise the bar of our team."

And this is an organization that Power thinks could become the team to beat in the very near future.

"I think they're capable of winning a championship and, whether that comes this year or next year or, sort of, in the next three years, but I actually think they'll be the best team in the next three years."

IndyCar driver Will Power took his first crack at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in January, with he and his teammates finishing second in the GTD Pro class. (Photo by Brandon Badraoui/Lumen via Getty Images)

An Offseason Of Firsts

The work has already begun for Power, who has had a pretty different offseason in a few ways.

Obviously, he's getting up to speed on his new team, but he also competed in the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, serving as one of the drivers of the No. 75 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO for 75 Express, finishing second in the GTD Pro class.

He also checked out Andretti's Formula E operation in Miami back in January, and said he even had some discussions about getting a spin in an all-electric single-seater.

"I think the new (Formula E) car would be a real beast," he said. "Like a really fast car. So, yeah, I would like to try that."

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Of course, the IndyCar duties are coming first with the series set to get underway in St. Petersburg on Sunday. That's followed by a return to Phoenix, and then the first-ever Grand Prix of Arlington the week after that.

Which begs the question, will Power have one of his biggest supporters — rapper and hypeman extraordinaire Flavor Flav — on hand for any of it?

"I actually haven't called him for a while," Power said. "I need to get him to come to a race. Maybe he should come to Arlington. I should call him to come to Arlington. That's a big event."

Flavor Flav on hand or not, expect to see Power continue to show why he's one of the best to ever do it, regardless of the team, as the IndyCar season gets underway.