Photo: Joe Skibinski
Dennis Hauger will start Indy Nxt’s race at Iowa Speedway from pole due to being points leader after qualifying was cancelled.
A few hours before the session was due to take place late on Friday afternoon, IndyCar decided to cancel all of the day’s remaining track action “due to inclement weather” and that an updated Saturday schedule would then be issued.
The new Saturday schedule did not accomodate a rescheduling of Indy Nxt’s qualifying session, while its 75-lap race remains in the same time slot.
Free practice had taken place, but was also interrupted by rainy weather, and Andretti Global’s Salvador de Alba had gone fastest ahead of Abel Motorsports with Force Indy’s Myles Rowe and Hauger. But the series decided to use entrant points rather than the order of the timesheet in that session to set the race grid.
“[A] shortened practice, but happy to be where we are,” said de Alba of his practice performance. “All the Andretti cars are pretty fast. We [turned] good laps at the very end with the used tyres, so that gives us even more confidence.”
De Alba will line up sixrh for the race, while team-mates Hauger and Lochie Hughes share the front row.
HMD Motorsports’ Caio Collet and Rowe fill row two, and alongside de Alba will be HMD’s Josh Pierson.
Callum Hedge (Abel Motorsports) and Jack William Miller (Abel with Miller Vinatieri Motorsports) were only 10th and 12th in practice but get to line up seventh and eight for the race, ahead of stablemate Jordan Missig and HMD’s Davey Hamilton Jr.
Hamilton has only made one start prior to Iowa this year, but his car has been driven to strong points-scoring finishes by Evagoras Papasavvas.
Chip Ganassi Racing’s Bryce Aron and Niels Koolen fill row six, and behind them are Ricardo Escotto (Andretti Cape), Juan Manuel Correa (HMD), James Roe Jr (Andretti Global) and the HMD quartet of Tommy Smith, Nolan Allaer, Hailie Deegan and Max Taylor.