Marcus Armstrong sat ringside at UFC 320 last Saturday, Oct. 4, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, witnessing a championship doubleheader.
If the New Zealand native (photo, top) continues his racing trends, he could emerge as a championship contender himself in the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.
Armstrong, 25, earned 2023 series Rookie of the Year honors despite competing in only 12 of 17 races. Driving exclusively on road and street circuits for Chip Ganassi Racing, he recorded five top-10 finishes, led five laps and finished 20th in the overall standings.
He stepped into a full-time role with CGR in 2024 and showed progress, posting four top-five finishes, eight top-10s and four laps led, culminating in 14th place in the championship.
However, ahead of the 2025 season, CGR scaled back from five to three full-time entries due to the new charter system mandating a maximum of three charters per team, leaving Armstrong without a seat.
That changed in late September 2024 when Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian announced Armstrong would drive the No. 66 Honda in 2025. Fortunately for Armstrong, MSR formed a technical alliance with CGR, offering continuity in personnel and systems.
That paid off.
Armstrong (photo, above) delivered his strongest season yet in 2025: two top-five finishes, 11 top-10s, 28 laps led and ending the year a career-best eighth in the standings.
His results were especially impressive considering the No. 66 had struggled in previous seasons, finishing 20th in 2024 with a rotation of Tom Blomqvist, Helio Castroneves and David Malukas. Castroneves drove the entry to 18th and 19th in the standings in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
Despite his results, Armstrong entered the summer stretch of the season without a contract for 2026, similar to the situation facing two-time series champion Will Power. After opening the year with eight top-10 finishes in the first 12 races, questions loomed about Armstrong’s future.
What more could he do?
“Pressure is a privilege,” Armstrong said. “I honestly didn’t mind that. It’s one of those things where you don’t necessarily love it, but it forces you to do what you’re capable of. I don’t mind it at all.
“No doubt in the future, there will be that pressure on me again, and I’ve just got to go out there and perform and forget it.”
The questions were answered Aug. 18 when MSR removed the immediate uncertainty, announcing Armstrong would return for the 2026 season. Securing a deal earlier than expected gave Armstrong added confidence entering the offseason.
“That was done pretty early (in Silly Season),” he said. “That’s kind of cool. It was nice to get everything firmed up so we can focus on the important stuff.”
The important stuff could lead to another MSR surge. This past season was the first time since the team joined the series in 2017 that both cars finished in the top 10 in points, with Felix Rosenqvist coming home sixth in the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda.
The Ohio-based team also set season standards with the number of races led (10), times led (11), top-10 finishes (22) and top-five finishes (six).
“It’s great working with all the Meyer Shank guys,” Armstrong said. “It’s been smooth sailing. We had a strong season and kept improving. There’s still a lot we need to tidy up, clean up, drive better, this and that. But that’s exciting. There’s more potential there.”