Veteran Oval Standouts Need Strong Weekend at WWTR

World Wide Technology Raceway marks the first of three oval races this INDY NXT by Firestone season, with the others July 19 at Nashville Superspeedway and Aug. 30 at Milwaukee Mile.

With just three of 17 races on ovals, maximizing points beginning this weekend becomes critical, especially for series veterans like Myles Rowe and Lochie Hughes (photo, top).

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Hughes, a second-year Andretti Global driver, won this race a year ago, with Rowe finishing second. Rowe also captured last season’s finale at Nashville Superspeedway and topped both oval tests this spring at Nashville and WWTR. Hughes ranked third and second, respectively, in those sessions.

Both drivers need a strong weekend. Hughes sits fifth in points while third-year driver Rowe is seventh despite a runner-up finish last weekend in Detroit driving for Abel Motorsports with Force Indy.

“Obviously with our success on the ovals, we'll be looking for nothing more than the top spot,” Rowe said. “With where our program's been on road and street courses, we'll be looking to maximize.”

Championship Race Remains Wide Open

Just eight points separate the top three drivers entering the weekend.

Enzo Fittipaldi leads the standings for HMD Motorsports, seven points ahead of Nikita Johnson of Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR. Fittipaldi’s rookie teammate Tymek Kucharczyk trails by eight points.

The parity has been remarkable. Five different drivers have won the first seven races, with Johnson and Fittipaldi the only two-time winners. Johnson won the season opener in St. Petersburg and Race 1 of the Barber Motorsports Park doubleheader.

Fittipaldi won Race 1 of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course doubleheader and last Sunday’s race in Motown.

Four organizations (HMD Motorsports, Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR, Andretti Global and AJ Foyt Racing) are represented among the top six in points.

The last time the series had at least five winners in seven races was 2023 with Danial Frost, Christian Rasmussen, Matteo Nannini, Reece Gold, Nolan Siegel and Louis Foster combining to produce six winners through seven races. Prior to that, the 2017 season had five winners in the opening seven races with Aaron Telitz, Colton Herta, Nico Jamin, Kyle Kaiser and Matheus Leist.

Can Experience Beat Half The Field?

Twenty-three of the 24 drivers competed in the Nashville Superspeedway test April 2 and 22 of the 24 on April 22 at WWTR. Despite the spring oval tests, race experience remains a major question.

Eleven drivers have never started an INDY NXT oval race, including championship leader Fittipaldi and his teammate Kucharczyk. AJ Foyt Racing rookies Alessandro de Tullio and Nicholas Monteiro, Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR teammates Johnson and Matteo Nannini, Abel Motorsports driver Max Garcia, Chip Ganassi Racing's Carson Etter, HMD Motorsports driver Jack Beeton and Juncos Hollinger Racing's Alexander Koreiba all enter unfamiliar territory.

That inexperience could provide a significant advantage for proven oval performers such as Hughes and Rowe.

Same for Yuven Sundaramoorthy, who replaces Nicolas Stati in the No. 15 Cusick Morgan Motorsports entry due to a previous commitment for Stati. Sundaramoorthy tested the car during the April 22 test and was 18th fastest. Sundaramoorthy, 23, has 18 career starts, including four on ovals, but none since 2024. He finished third in the 2024 race at WWTR and runner-up that season at Nashville Superspeedway.

Did Kucharczyk Gain An Edge?

Kucharczyk may be among the best-positioned title contenders despite his lack of INDY NXT oval experience.

The Polish rookie (photo, above) sought extra preparation by competing in a USF Pro 2000 oval race at Indianapolis Raceway Park just west of Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 21 for TJ Speed Motorsports. He finished third in his first oval start.

Kucharczyk enters the weekend third in points with seven top-five finishes in seven races, including a victory during the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course doubleheader.

If the additional oval seat time translates into race speed, he could emerge as a serious threat Sunday.

Is This Andretti Global's Race To Lose?

Andretti Global has won five of the last eight races at WWTR, with the exceptions being David Malukas sweeping the lone doubleheader for the track in 2021 and Rasmussen winning the 2023 race. Both drivers won for HMD Motorsports.

Andretti Global has won the rest since 2018, with Ryan Norman, Oliver Askew, Matthew Brabham, Louis Foster and Hughes (photo, above) in Victory Lane. The last time a non-Andretti Global or HMD Motorsports driver won on the track was Santiago Urrutia for Belardi Auto Racing in 2017.

Andretti not only brings defending winner Hughes, but Seb Murray (12th last year) and Josh Pierson (10th in 2023, 13th in 2024, sixth last year) with experience on the track. Pierson was fourth fastest in the Nashville test and seventh in the April 22 test at WWTR.

Rookie Taylor was second and 11th, respectively, at both tests.

The team needs a victory as it has one win in seven races this season. Its best points representatives are Taylor in fourth (-38) and Hughes in fifth (-90).

Weekend Schedule

The event features a condensed two-day format. Practice begins at 3 p.m. ET Saturday followed by qualifying at 6 p.m. ET, both on FS2 and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls. Sunday's 75-lap race airs at 5:30 p.m. ET on FS1, FOX One and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls.

Track specs: 1.25-mile oval

Qualifying record (one lap): Dennis Hauger, 27.0697 seconds, 166.238 mph, June 14, 2025 Qualifying record (two laps): Dennis Hauger, 54.1639 seconds,166.162 mph, June 14, 2025