It's finally race day again next Sunday. 182 days after the last Indy NXT race at WeatherTech Raceway in Laguna Seca, the 2024 season kicks off on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida. In this preview, you'll get an overview of all the teams and drivers, including familiar faces from european racing, the race calendar for the new year, where you can watch the races and more.
This year, 12 of the 20 drivers confirmed so far are new to the series. Further drivers may be added to the grid in the course of the season. In addition to last year's champion Christian Rasmussen, who has made the step up to the Indycar series, the runner-up from 2023, Hunter McElrea, is also no longer on the grid. The New Zealander is competing in the IMSA Endurance Cup in the LMP2 class with TDS Racing this year. Danial Frost, who won in St. Petersburg last season and finished the championship in fifth place, is also no longer competing in Indy NXT this year.
Abel Motorsports
Josh Mason, Yuven Sundaramoorthy, Jacob Abel
Abel Motorsports is lining up with three cars on the starting grid this year. Josh Mason last competed in Formula 2 with PHM Racing and is making his car racing debut in the United States in 2024. During his eight races last year, his best result was twelfth place in the feature race at Monza. The 21-year-old Briton with Nigerian and Trinidadian-Grenadian roots has already won races in Formula Regional Oceania, Euroformula Open and BRDC British F3 during his career. Yuven Sundaramoorthy is also entering his first full Indy NXT season. The Indian-American racing driver from Wisconsin finished the USF Pro 200 championship in 15th place last year. However, he switched to the Indy NXT series after 13 of 18 races, where he was able to contest four more races before the end of the year. A ninth place in the season finale at Laguna Seca was the 21-year-old's best result. In 2021, he finished third in the USF 2000 Championship, where he won four races and finished on the podium a total of nine times. The third rider in the team is, of course, Jacob Abel. 2024 will be his third year in the Indy NXT Series. The 21-year-old from Louisville, Kentucky is on the hunt for his first win this year. Last year, he stood on the podium four times and finished a strong fifth in the championship.
Andretti Global
Louis Foster, Bryce Aron, Jamie Chadwick, James Roe
Andretti Global starts the new year with five drivers. Louis Foster is contesting his second Indy NXT season, having already won two races in his rookie year, finished on the podium four times and ended the championship in fourth place. The 20-year-old Briton won the USF Pro 2000 Championship in 2022, having previously finished runner-up in Europe in the 2021 Euroformula Open and 2018 Ginetta Junior Championship. He also finished third in the 2020 BRDC British F3 and the 2019 F4 British Championship. His teammate Bryce Aron was still racing in the Euroformula Open last year, where he won three races, finished on the podium five times and ended the championship in fourth place. The 20-year-old from Illinois became the 2020 Champion of Cadwell, finished third in the 2020 Walter Hayes Trophy and finished third in the 2019 F1600 Championship Series during his Formula Ford tenure. This will be Jamie Chadwick's second year with Andretti in the Indy NXT Series. The 25-year-old Brit finished the championship in twelfth place in her rookie season. Her best result so far was a sixth place at Portland International Raceway. During her career, she has won the W Series twice, the Indian MRF Challenge Formula 2000 and the British GT4 Championship. This will also be James Roe's second year with Andretti in the championship. Last year, he finished second on the podium once at Indianapolis and ended his second Indy NXT season in seventh place in the championship. The 25-year-old Irishman finished runner-up in the F2000 Championship Series in 2018 and won his only Indy Pro 2000 race in the season finale at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 2021.
Andretti Cape
Salvador De Alba
The Andretti team is completed by a cooperation with Cape Motorsport and the Mexican driver Salvador De Alba. The 24-year-old from Guadalajara, Mexico, has spent the past two years in the USF Pro 2000, where he won three races, finished on the podium a total of eight times and ended the 2023 championship in third place. Prior to that, he mainly competed in the NASCAR Mexico Series, where he finished runner-up in 2020 and secured the title in 2021.
HMD Motorsports
Christian Bogle, Reece Gold, Nolan Allaer, Josh Pierson, Callum Hedge, Caio Collet, Jonathan Browne, Niels Koolen, Nolan Siegel
With a total of ten cars, HMD Motorsports has by far the most drivers. Half of the Indy NXT field is represented by this team. Christian Bogle is already entering his fourth Indy NXT season, his third with the HMD team. The 21-year-old from Louisiana is still waiting for his first podium. His previous best finishes were two fourth places in Detroit in 2022 and Portland in 2023. For Reece Gold, 2024 will be his second year in the Indy NXT Series. During his rookie season, he joined the HMD Motorsport team, where he won his second race for the team in Detroit. The 2022 Indy Pro 2000 runner-up finished the season in eighth place. Another podium in Indianapolis and a fourth place at Road America were the best results for the 19-year-old from Miami, Florida, after the win. This will be Nolan Allaer's first season in the Indy NXT Series. The 21-year-old from Michigan previously competed mainly in SCCA championships, winning the SCCA National Championship Runoffs Formula Continental class twice in 2022 and 2023. Last year, he also won the Formula Ford category of the SCCA National Championship Runoffs.
Josh Pierson, on the other hand, is contesting his second season in the Indy NXT series. Last year, the 18-year-old from Portland, Oregon, took part in nine of 14 races, as he also competed in the LMP2 category of the WEC. His best result so far was a sixth place in the race at Iowa Speedway. However, HMD Motorsports also has some international talent on the grid this year. Callum Hedge had his big breakthrough last year when, after finishing runner-up in the Formula Regional Oceania, the New Zealander won both the Formula Regional Americas and the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia. The 20-year-old won a total of 20 races last year and finished on the podium a further 19 times. Brazilian Ciao Collet comes to the United States after three more or less unsuccessful and unlucky years in FIA Formula 3. Three wins, eleven podiums and a best finish of eighth in the 2022 championship is his résumé from his time in the F1 Feeder Series. Collet won the French Formula 4 in 2018 before finishing runner-up in the Formula Renault Eurocup in 2020. Days that the 21-year-old would love to build on again in Indy NXT.
This will not be Jonathan Browne's first year in the USA, but the first on the Indy NXT stage. The 23-year-old Irishman came to the United States in 2022 and competed for two years with Turn 3 Motorsport in the USF Pro 2000 Championship. Last year, he finished third twice on the podium at Road America and in Portland. Niels Koolen was still competing in Formula 4 races in Europe last year. It was only two years ago that the Dutchman switched from karting to formula racing, where a twelfth place in both Formula 4 and his only weekend in Eurocup 3 are his top finishes to date. Points in a car race? Zero. Nevertheless, the 22-year-old is venturing into the second-highest formula racing class in the United States this year. The ninth driver in the squad is most likely another candidate for the top places. Nolan Siegel finished the pre-season in third place in the championship and was named Rookie of the Year. The 19-year-old from Palo Alto, California, won two races and finished on the podium a total of five times. He has previously won races in the USF 2000 and Indy Pro 2000, as well as the LMP2 classes of the Asian LeMans Series and IMSA and the GT World Challenge America - Pro-Am.
HMD Motorsports with Force Indy
Myles Rowe
The HMD Motorsports team is completed by the reigning USF Pro 2000 champion. Myles Rowe will once again be competing with the support of Force Indy. After his five victories and nine podium finishes in last year's USF Pro 2000, he became the first African-American driver ever to win a title in an open-wheel championship. The 23-year-old from Powder Springs, Georgia also won a total of six races in the USF 2000 championship from 2021 to 2022, stood on the podium eleven times and finished the 2022 season as runner-up.
Juncos Hollinger Racing
Lindsay Brewer
For the first time since 2007 a female American racing driver will compete in the Indy NXT Series. Juncos Hollinger Racing driver Lindsay Brewer has competed in the USF Pro 2000 Championship for the past two years, where her best result was an eighth place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. She competed in karting until 2014 before going to college at the San Diego State University. She finally entered car racing in 2019 and made her debut in the season finale of the Las Vegas Saleen Cup GT Series. In 2021, she won her only car race to date in the Skip Barber Formula Race Series.
Miller Vinatieri Motorsports
Jack William Miller
Jack William Miller is making the step up to the Indy NXT Series this season. The 20-year-old from Indianapolis previously competed for three years in the USF Pro 2000 and two years in the USF 2000 Championship. He still lacks a race win in his palmares. In the USF Pro 2000, he stood on the podium four times and took three pole positions. He also finished on the podium twice in the USF 2000 championship.
As in the previous year, a total of 14 Indy NXT races will take place in 2024. Compared to last season, two new tracks have been added with the weekends at the Milwaukee Mile and the Nashville Superspeedway. Only the Nashville Street Circuit will no longer host a race. Both new tracks are oval races, which means that with Iowa Speedway and World Wide Technology Raceway, a total of four oval races will be held. In addition, the season finale will no longer take place at Laguna Seca, but at the only Superspeedway of the year in Nashville.
Round 1: Streets of St. Petersburg (March 10)
Round 2: Barber Motorsports Park (April 28)
Round 3: Indianapolis Motor Speedway - Road Course (May 10-11)
Round 4/5: Detroit Street Circuit (June 2)
Round 6: Road America (June 9)
Round 7/8: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca (June 22-23)
Round 9: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (July 7)
Round 10: Iowa Speedway (July 13)
Round 11: World Wide Technology Raceway (August 17)
Round 12: Portland International Raceway (August 25)
Round 13: Milwaukee Mile (August 31)
Round 14: Nashville Superspeedway (September 15)
The Indy NXT is using the exact same points system as they use in Indycar. Unlike in USF Pro 2000 & USF 2000, the points for oval races are the same as on road courses.
The following points are awarded: P1 = 50, P2 = 40, P3 = 35, P4 = 32, P5 = 30, P6 = 28, P7 = 26, P8 = 24, P9 = 22, P10 = 20, P11 = 19, P12 = 18, P13 = 17, P14 = 16, P15 = 15, P16 = 14, P17 = 13, P18 = 12, P19 = 11, P20 = 10.
In addition, there are extra points to be won in each race. One point is awarded to every driver who leads at least one lap, the driver leading the most laps gets two points. And the driver who qualifies on pole position is awarded one additional point.
Fans outside the United States, Mexico and South America can watch all practice sessions, qualifying sessions and every race live on indycarlive.com. However, in most countries you will need to make a paid subscription to be able to watch everything. In the USA and most countries in South America, you can watch Indy NXT live on Peacock TV.
You can find a detailed overview of individual countries here.
As I already did with some racing series last year, I dare to make a little prediction for this year's Indy NXT driver and team championships.
Drivers Championship Prediction
P1: Louis Foster
P2: Nolan Siegel
P3: Caio Collet
P4: Myles Rowe
P5: Reece Gold
There were pre-season tests at Sebring Raceway, but the full results were never made public, which makes the pre-season guessing and predicting even more fun. For me, Louis Foster and Nolan Siegel are the two big favorites to beat on the way to the title this year. There are a few Indy NXT rookies that I think are capable of doing so this year. I'm counting Caio Collet, who came to the States from Formula 3, and the reigning USF Pro 2000 champion Myles Rowe among them. Both will be competing for victories over the course of the year. I also see drivers like Reece Gold, Callum Hedge, Salvador De Alba and Jacob Abel in the fight for podiums and race wins. For most of the rookies, however, it will first be important to understand the new car and to get the best out of it on an ongoing basis.
Teams Championship Prediction
P1: HMD Motorsports
P2: Andretti Global
P3: Abel Motorsports
I see HMD Motorsports leading the team championship again this year. Although only the best two results of a team count towards the team championship, HMD Motorsports has the greatest variety of talented drivers who can regularly score big points. Behind them, Andretti Global will probably finish a reasonably clear second again. Abel Motorsport is very likely to finish third again this year, albeit with a few more points than last year.
The first race of the year will take place next sunday on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.
written by Claudio Graf / 3rd March, 2024