Andretti Global driver Louis Foster locked up the INDY NXT by Firestone championship on Aug. 31 at Milwaukee Mile by scoring his seventh victory of the season. Foster led all 90 laps from the pole to secure Andretti Global its sixth series championship and first since Kyle Kirkwood in 2021.
Also, HMD Motorsports driver Caio Collet clinched Rookie of the Year honors at Milwaukee.
SEE: Race Details
With the championships determined, Sunday’s race at Nashville Superspeedway is an event where the 18 drivers competing on the 1.33-mile concrete oval can race for pure enjoyment. The pressure to deliver is minimal without much to lose.
Here are some storylines for the 65-lap race at 11:50 a.m. ET Sunday on Peacock (U.S.), INDYCAR Live (international) and INDYCAR Radio Network.
Can Foster Go Out on Top?
In what likely is Foster’s final INDY NXT by Firestone start in the No. 26 Copart/Novara Technologies entry, can he end in victory lane? Foster has seven wins in the last 10 races and placed runner-up in the other three.
“The championships might be wrapped up, but I have two major goals this weekend,” Foster said. “The first is to go out and put on a strong performance for all the people who have helped in my career so far and, of course, the whole Andretti team. It was a great achievement securing the championship with one race to go and to get the job done for all my team and sponsors, especially Copart, who have backed me since 2019 and continue to be by my side.
“They’ve all been crucial in getting the championship over the line and finishing the year with a good performance would feel like the best way to end my INDY NXT career with them on a high note before we enter the next chapter.
“The second goal is to approach this as another opportunity to do our job, to impress people in the INDYCAR paddock as we aim to be on that grid next year, and to show everyone that even though the title might be won, we’re going about this as professionals approaching it like any other race.”
His nine career wins are tied with Pato O’Ward for sixth all time. A Nashville victory would place Foster in a tie for second with Tommy Byrne, Alex Lloyd, Paul Tracy and Kyle Kirkwood. Greg Moore is the career wins leader with 13 trips to victory lane.
Foster also has 10 poles, and an 11th would tie him for second with Robbie Buhl and Ed Jones. Byrne’s 12 are tops all-time.
Foster has qualified on the front row in nine consecutive races, including six poles, and was fastest (184.844 mph) during the Aug. 8 Open Test at Nashville Superspeedway.
Abel Eyeing Victory in Final Start
Abel scored his first INDY NXT by Firestone victory on April 28 at Barber Motorsports Park. That sparked a career-best season for the third-year driver with three wins, three poles and 10 podium finishes in 13 starts.
Can he add one more in the No. 51 Abel Construction entry?
“We had a good test last month; it was a good chance to really see what the track looks like and feels like,” Abel said. “It’s pretty flat out, which is a different experience for all of us. This weekend will be a good learning experience for us for when we get to superspeedways – hopefully next year – in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.
“Because of the track surface, it requires a bit of a different driving style. You have to change your perception a little bit. But we were quick in testing, and I’m looking forward to the race weekend. I think it’s going to be something none of us in the INDY NXT field have ever experienced before, so it should be an exciting way to end the season. This is my third and final season in the INDY NXT series, so I’m hoping to finish my career here with a win.”
Abel comes to Nashville with three consecutive top-two finishes and four top-three finishes in the last five races.
He will be joined at Abel Motorsports this weekend by teammates Yuven Sundaramoorthy (No. 22 Optima Batteries/Clarios/Abel Motorsports) and Taylor Ferns (No. 55 Bradford Allen/Abel Motorsports). Sundaramoorthy has seven top-10 finishes, four consecutively, in the last eight races. He had a best finish of 12th in the previous five events of the season.
Collet Figuring Out Ovals
Collet’s celebration in Milwaukee after securing Rookie of the Year honors was subdued. He was disappointed with himself for struggling to adapt to ovals.
In his first three oval starts of his driving career, he finished 17th, 14th and ninth, respectively, with an average finish of 13.33.
In 10 road or street course starts, Collet has a 4.9 average finish, including a victory from the pole July 7 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and three runner-up results.
Collet took part in the Aug. 8 Open Test at Nashville Superspeedway and set the third-fastest lap at 183.931 in the No. 18 HMD Motorsports car. Improvement on ovals and ending the season on a high note on a circle track could leave a lasting impression into the offseason, as he has re-signed with HMD to make a title assault in 2025.
Chadwick Searching for First Oval Win
Jamie Chadwick (No. 28 VEXT) secured her first INDY NXT by Firestone victory June 9 at Road America. The Andretti Global driver pursues her maiden oval victory Sunday.
Nashville Superspeedway is a great place for that. Ana Beatriz won the last INDY NXT by Firestone event on the 1.33-mile oval in 2008. That was the first of her two career victories. Pippa Mann is the other female oval winner in the series, in 2010 at Kentucky Speedway.
Chadwick has finished seventh, 16th and fifth, respectively on circle tracks this season. Her strong performance being second fastest at 184.551 during the Open Test leads her to be a potential sleeper.
She is sixth in the standings after 13 races, trailing Salvador de Alba Jr. by four points for fifth. Chadwick is eight points ahead of Reece Gold, who won’t compete this weekend in the No. 10 HMD Motorsports entry. Nolan Allaer will replace Gold in the season finale.
That is an opportunity for Chadwick’s Andretti Global teammate James Roe Jr. to move up in the standings. He’s five points behind Gold for seventh and trails Chadwick by 13 points for sixth. Roe was fifth fastest at 183.635 in his No. 29 Topcon entry in the Open Test, qualified on the pole and finished second at Iowa Speedway on July 13 and has three top-10 finishes in his last four starts on the season, all on circle tracks.
Track Specs:1.33-mile concrete oval
Qualifying Record (One Lap): Thiago Medeiros, 25.6508 seconds, 182.386 mph, July 16, 2004
Qualifying Record (Two Laps):James Davison, 51.8844 seconds, 180.401 mph, July 12, 2008. This was the only year qualifying was cumulative time of twolaps. From 2002-07, starting lineup was determined by best lap among a two-lap attempt.