Hauger pips Collet in second Indy Nxt practice session at Barber

Photo: Paul Hurley

Andretti Global’s Dennis Hauger pipped HMD Motorsports’ Caio Collet in Indy Nxt practice two at Barber Motorsports Park.

Hauger topped FP1 on Friday with a 0.3073-second margin to Collet, and on Saturday morning his gap was slashed.

It was Collet who led the way at first in the 45-minute session. Hauger was in the pits as his rival racked up four laps and posted a 1m26.8361s benchmark.

Next to top the times was Andretti’s Salvador de Alba, knocking 0.6266s off Collet’s best, but once Hauger was up to speed a 1m25.0461s put him 1.1634s clear of the rest of the field a quarter of the way into FP2.

Collet embarked on his second run and soon lowered the pace to 1m23.5125s. Going into the session’s second half, team-mate Max Taylor was his closest rival 0.3573s behind and Andretti’s James Roe Jr was the only other driver within a second. Hauger was fourth, in the pits, and 1.5336s off Collet.

When Roe embarked on his next run, he went quickest by 0.0945s and team-mate Lochie Hughes also beat Taylor. Hauger was in sixth behind new Chip Ganassi Racing signing Bryce Aron and Andretti Cape’s Ricardo Escotto with 15 minutes to go.

Ganassi’s Niels Koolen got within 0.0305s of Roe and Andretti Cape’s Seb Murray lapped within 0.0916s of his pace, as the track got busier.

A few minutes on, Collet laid down a 1m19.1862s marker that put him 1.1827s ahead of Papasavvas and 1.2622s up on Koolen. He improved again two laps later, to 1m16.6512s, and Josh Pierson rose to second but was half a second slower than Collet. Eight drivers lapped sub-1m20s, with Hauger’s new personal best placing him ninth.

Abel Motorsports with Force Indy driver Myles Rowe got within a second of Collet with eight-and-a-half minutes remaining, shortly before Koolen lowered the pace to 1m16.2372s.

Collet returned to the top on his 14th lap, setting a 1m14.7209s, and a 1m16.1254s lifted Hauger from 10th to second. A minute later he was in fifth, as Collet improved to 1m14.2755s and Hughes set a 1m14.7531s in second.

There was clearly more pace to be found, and Hauger left it until five minutes to go to set his 10th lap and go fastest with a 1m14.0048s. Collet immediately responded by 0.0862s, but Hauger did the same in turn and 1m13.5178s became the new benchmark. It took two more laps for Collet to edge back ahead, by 0.0582s, and Rowe trailed by 0.316s in third.

With a minute to go Hauger improved again, bettering Collet by 0.0215s as Rowe came 0.0132s shy of him. The top eight all improved.

A 1m13.0094s returned Collet to first place a minute before the end, Hughes got within 0.0628s of that time and Hauger was fifth again behind de Alba and Abel’s Callum Hedge.

Collet improved to 1m12.8753s as the chequered flag waved, Rowe went third fastest, then de Alba lapped 0.1806s shy of Collet. Hauger was seventh, until his 15th and final lap made him quickest by 0.101s.

Free practice 2 results