Leading Andretti Duo Looks To Pull Away from Pack in Motor City

Fox Sports

2 days ago

INDYCAR
Andretti Global rookie Lochie Hughes has delivered one of the most consistent starts to an INDY NXT by Firestone season in recent memory. The 2024 USF Pro 2000 champion is the only driver to finish on the podium in all four races this year, a feat that would usually earn him the top spot in the points standings.
But teammate Dennis Hauger has been even more dominant.
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Hauger, also a rookie, has won three of the season's first four events, drawing comparisons to NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver Alex Palou for his clinical performances. Hauger's only blemish came in Race 1 of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course doubleheader, where early contact with Callum Hedge sent him off track. Despite rejoining at the back of the 21-car field, Hauger salvaged an eighth-place finish. Hughes went on to win that race.
As the series heads into the Detroit Grand Prix, Hauger leads the standings by 15 points over Hughes. The rookie battle resumes at 10:30 a.m. ET Sunday, airing on FS1 and the INDYCAR Radio Network.
Andretti Dominance Faces Rowe Threat in Detroit
Andretti Global has established a firm grip on INDY NXT by Firestone, winning 13 of the last 15 races dating back to Race 2 of the 2023 Indianapolis weekend. That run includes a win on the streets of Detroit last year by eventual series champion Louis Foster, and the team remains undefeated in 2025 – 4-for-4 through the opening stretch of the season.
But as the series heads back to Detroit, another emerging force could disrupt that momentum: Myles Rowe.
Driving for ABEL Motorsports, Rowe has quietly built a consistent start to the season. After opening the year with back-to-back fourth-place finishes at St. Petersburg and Barber Motorsports Park, Rowe surged with twin third-place results at the IMS road course earlier this month – his first career INDY NXT podiums.
Now third in the championship standings, 53 points behind Hauger, Rowe enters Detroit with pace and experience. He finished fourth here last season with HMD Motorsports.
Rowe looms as a serious contender, aiming to spoil the Andretti streak and insert himself into the title conversation.
Collet Battles to Keep Pace
Last year's INDY NXT Rookie of the Year, Caio Collet, arrived in 2025 with high hopes after a strong 2024 campaign that saw him finish third in points and claim a victory at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Returning to HMD Motorsports, the Brazilian driver set realistic championship goals.
However, this season has proved challenging. Collet sits fourth in the standings, 70 points adrift of Hauger, and trails teammate Rowe by 17 points for third place.
The adage 'it's getting late early' seems fitting as Andretti Global's rookies, Hauger and Hughes, pull away in the points battle.
Collet showed flashes of speed, finishing runner-up to Foster in Detroit last season and again securing second place in the first IMS road course race this May. He also stood on the podium with a third-place finish in St. Petersburg.
Yet a mechanical failure at Barber Motorsports Park, which relegated him to 19th, combined with a fifth-place finish in the IMS doubleheader finale have put him in a tough position. To keep championship hopes alive, Collet needs to transform podium appearances into victories—and do so consistently.
Who Will Rise as Weekend's Breakout Story?
While Andretti Global's rookies dominate the headlines, a clutch of drivers and teams are quietly building momentum and could emerge as the weekend's underdog story at Detroit.
Jordan Missig impressed with a career-best sixth-place finish in St. Petersburg, driving the No. 48 ABEL Motorsports entry. His teammate, Jack William Miller, showed grit with a climb to ninth in Race 1 at the IMS road course. Meanwhile, Chip Ganassi Racing's Niels Koolen earned a career-best sixth a day later, signaling growth across the board.
Evagoras Papasavvas turned heads with a stunning series debut, qualifying third and finishing second at Barber Motorsports Park for HMD Motorsports.
One name to watch closely this weekend is ABEL Motorsports' Callum Hedge. The 2023 fourth-place points finisher and Detroit podium veteran sits eighth in the standings with just a single top-five finish this year, a fourth-place effort in Race 1 at IMS. Could Sunday's race mark his maiden INDY NXT victory?
Pressure looms from HMD Motorsports teammates Josh Pierson and Liam Sceats. Pierson ranks sixth, riding a streak of four consecutive top-10 finishes, the best run he's had since 2023. That year, he put together five straight top-10s.
Sceats, just 19, has quickly found his footing. After an 18th-place INDY NXT debut at St. Petersburg, he's not finished worse than eighth since.
Adding to the intrigue, HMD Motorsports swept the inaugural Detroit weekend in 2023 with first career wins by Reece Gold and Nolan Siegel. History suggests the team could be primed for another strong showing this year.
Track Specs: 1.645-mile, nine-turn street circuit
Qualifying Record: Louis Foster, 1:05.1079, 90.957 mph, June 1, 2024
Push To Pass Parameters: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation.
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