Note: Eric Smith of INDYCAR.com takes a fun look before each NTT INDYCAR SERIES race at drivers who enter the weekend with an inside line to victory lane and drivers who could surprise with a strong result.

Heading into Sunday’s Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix powered by AmFirst, the stage is set for a compelling Honda vs. Chevrolet showdown. While Honda has opened the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERES season with a perfect 3-for-3 record, led by victories from Alex Palou and Kyle Kirkwood, Chevrolet has dominated Barber Motorsports Park in recent years, winning each of the past three races at the technical, 2.3-mile, 17-turn track.

Barber has historically favored Chevrolet-powered teams, with Team Penske and Arrow McLaren showing strong setups and benefiting from Chevy’s low-end torque and optimized engine mapping to provide more acceleration out of the track’s tight, twisty corners.

However, Honda teams – especially Chip Ganassi Racing and Andretti Global – have closed the gap in both outright speed and tire management so far this season, which suggest the manufacturer could break Chevy’s streak.

Can Chevy extend its Barber dominance, or will Honda continue its 2025 roll?

Here are the favorites and sleepers who could win Sunday’s 90-lap race (1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).

Favorites

Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 Good Ranchers Team Penske Chevrolet)

McLaughlin eyes a hat trick at Barber Motorsports Park following 2023 and 2024 victories. He had five top-seven finishes in six natural road course starts last season and has a pair of top-six finishes in three races this season.

Pato O’Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet)

O’Ward, the NTT P1 Award winner in 2021 at Barber, developed an early tire puncture during that race. That sparked an unscheduled pit stop. If that didn’t occur, the Mexican star had a great shot at victory. Instead, he dropped to fourth at the finish. The Arrow McLaren driver got revenge with a victory in 2022. He finished fourth in 2023 but only 13th last year. O’Ward rebounded this season to earn the pole position at The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix in March, led the most laps (51 of 65) and finished second.

Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda)

Dixon has never won at Barber Motorsports Park (0-for-14), but the six-time series champion does have six runner-up finishes and nine podium results in 14 tries. He finished third, fifth, seventh and 15th, respectively, in his last four starts.

Alex Palou (No. 10 HRC Chip Ganassi Racing Honda)

Palou won in 2021, was runner-up in 2022 and finished fifth his last two tries at Barber Motorsports Park. The two-time defending series champion also has 13 top-five finishes in his last 15 natural road course starts, including seven wins, one of which was March 23 at The Thermal Club. He has three top-two finishes to begin the 2025 season.

Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet)

In 14 Barber Motorsports Park starts, Power has 11 top-five finishes, including consecutive wins in 2011 and 2012. He was runner-up in 2021 and 2024, fourth in 2022 and third in 2023. Could that signal victory Sunday? Power won at natural road circuits Road America and Portland last season, and was also runner-up on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. He charged from 21st to finish sixth at The Thermal Club. In Long Beach, he came from 13th to finish fifth.

Sleepers

Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet)

The Dane is quick on natural road courses, including a sixth-place finish the last two years at Barber. He had nine top-seven finishes in his last 13 natural road course starts with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and was third in his first natural road course start with Arrow McLaren in March at The Thermal Club after qualifying second. Lundgaard enters on the heels of two consecutive third-place finishes this season.

Santino Ferrucci (No. 14 AJ FOYT RACING/SEXTON PROPERTIES Chevrolet)

Ferrucci impressed with a seventh-place finish at Barber last season. He had four top-10 finishes in six natural road course starts in 2024, which also includes an NTT P1 Award at Portland International Raceway.

Graham Rahal (No. 15 Hendrickson International Honda)

Rahal has an 11.9 average finish in 14 Barber starts, including a pair of runner-up finishes in 2015 and 2016. He had four top-11 finishes in six natural road course starts last season and three in the last four years on this track. He finished 11th at the Thermal Club in March.

Felix Rosenqvist (No. 60 SiriusXM Honda)

Rosenqvist will make his 100th career start Sunday at a track he finished fourth last season, the spot he sits in points entering this weekend. He finished fifth March 23 at The Thermal Club and placed fourth in the last race, on the streets of Long Beach.

Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda)

This has been a strong track for Armstrong, who has finished 11th and ninth, respectively, in his two previous starts – both with Chip Ganassi Racing. He finished seventh this season at the Thermal Club for his new team, Meyer Shank Racing.