Photo: Andretti Global
Andretti Global has announced its first two Indy Nxt signings for 2025, recruiting USF Pro 2000 champion Lochie Hughes and promoting Salvador de Alba.
Hughes, from Australia’s Gold Coast, won this year’s USF Pro 2000 title at the first attempt with Turn 3 Motorsport.
Now 22, he was Australian F4 runner-up in 2019 before a two-year hiatus from racing. He returned to win the United States F4 title in 2022 with Jay Howard Driver Development, with which he then finished third in USF2000 last year.
“It’s a dream to be a part of this historic team, and one that I’ve wanted to race for since moving to the US,” Hughes said. “This year was great for me winning the USF Pro 2000 Championship and for Andretti winning the Indy Nxt championship, so, I hope that I can help be a part of adding another championship title to Andretti’s record.”
Mexican driver de Alba was signed by Andretti on a two-year deal at the beginning of this year and made his Indy Nxt debut under the Andretti Cape banner, a tie-up with Cape Motorsports. He finished fifth in the points, as the third-best rookie, and scored two podiums in the last five races.
Approaching his 25th birthday in December, de Alba raced for seven seasons in NASCAR in his native Mexico, where he won the championship in both 2021 and 2023. In 2022 he also moved into USF Pro 2000, where he went on to finish third in the points last year.
“The 2024 season with Andretti Cape was super positive for me,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot from my time with the Cape’s, and I am grateful for getting to spend my rookie year with them.
“I would like to start next season with similar results to how we ended this year, and I’ll work as hard as I can to achieve that.”