Andretti INDYCAR and INDY NXT Head to the Motor City in Search of Another Street Course Win
As May is quickly coming to a close, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and INDY NXT by Firestone will return to the Motor City this weekend for the Detroit Grand Prix. The 1.645-mile, nine-turn circuit weaves through the city streets like Jefferson Avenue and Atwater Street, offering a tight, technical challenge. The Andretti INDYCAR and Andretti INDY NXT squads enter the race weekend with a strong track record on street courses so far this season, with dominating performances from INDYCAR’s Kyle Kirkwood on the Streets of Long Beach and INDY NXT’s victory from the pole in his rookie debut on the Streets of St. Petersburg.
Race Details
| Detroit Grand Prix – Streets of Detroit |
| Round | 7/17 |
| Track Type | Street Course |
| Turns | 9 |
| Laps | 100 Laps |
| Track Length | 1.645 Miles |
| INDY NXT Indianapolis Grand Prix – Streets of Detroit |
| Round(s) | 5/14 |
| Track Type | Street Course |
| Turns | 9 |
| Laps | 45 Laps |
| Track Length | 1.645 Miles |
Notes
Andretti INDYCAR
- This weekend will mark Andretti INDYCAR’s third appearance at the recently revived downtown Detroit street course. Over the past two years of competing in Detroit, the Andretti INDYCAR team has collected one pole position (C. Herta – 2024), one podium (Ericsson – 2024) and three top-10 finishes.
- Before moving back to the Streets of Downtown Detroit in 2023, Andretti INDYCAR collected three wins, five pole positions and 12 podium finishes in the Motor City while racing at Belle Isle.
Colton Herta
- Colton Herta will make his third career start on the Streets of Detroit this weekend.
- Last year, the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda driver landed on the pole, leading 33 laps of the race, before making contact in Turn 5 halfway through the race and finishing a lap down.
- In the 2023 return of the race to the Streets of Detroit, Herta claimed the title of Josten’s Biggest Mover of the Race, coming from 24th to 11th and recording the most passes completed during the race.
Kyle Kirkwood
- Also, back for his third start on the Streets of Detroit, Kyle Kirkwood will race on the Streets of Detroit for the third time this weekend after the last two years saw the American take back-to-back top-10 finishes.
- Announced earlier this week, Kirkwood will again represent Siemens as his primary partner, with AWS joining the Detroit Grand Prix weekend as co-primary partner on the No. 27 Siemens AWS Honda.
- Last year, starting sixth, Kirkwood quickly jumped into the top three in the opening laps of the race before taking the lead for 24 laps. The No. 27 fell out of the lead after the team’s final stop of the race, but was still able to bring home a top-five finish.
Marcus Ericsson
- In his two starts on the reconfigured downtown circuit, Marcus Ericsson has not started or finished outside of the top 10 and has led seven laps.
- Ericsson will join his teammate Kirkwood in representing Andretti’s long-time technology partner, Siemens, at the Detroit Grand Prix, running the recently announced No. 28 Siemens Honda.
- Last year’s race saw the Swede take the second step of the podium in the final laps, despite starting ninth and sustaining minor contact on the opening lap of the race.
- Ericsson is the only current Andretti INDYCAR driver with a win in the Motor City after the Swede took his first career INDYCAR victory at the Raceway at Belle Isle in 2021 along with his maiden INDYCAR podium finish in his rookie season in 2019.
| NTT INDYCAR SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS |
| Driver Championship Standings |
| Colton Herta | 120 points | 9th |
| Kyle Kirkwood | 156 points | 5th |
| Marcus Ericsson | 79 points | 20th |
Andretti INDY NXT
- Andretti INDY NXT will take on the Streets of Detroit for the fifth round of the 2025 INDY NXT by Firestone season. Last year saw the team take on the Detroit street course for the second time, securing a victory by reigning INDY NXT Champion, Louis Foster. In addition to last year’s victory, the team has seen three pole positions (Foster – 2023 R1 & R2, 2024), one other podium finish (Foster – 2023), and eight top-10 finishes in the past two years.
Lochie Hughes
- Coming off his first career INDY NXT win and pole at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis earlier this month, Lochie Hughes will make his debut on the Streets of Detroit this weekend with the Andretti INDY NXT team. The rookie has already shown promise on street courses this season, scoring a podium finish at the season opener earlier this year on the Streets of St. Petersburg.
Salvador de Alba
- Salvador de Alba will make his second race start in Detroit this weekend. His debut in Detroit last year saw him qualify near the back of the grid, forcing him to work his way up the field 11 positions, ultimately ending the race in the top 10, the fourth of his INDY NXT career at the time.
Dennis Hauger
- Dennis Hauger will make his debut on the Streets of Detroit this weekend with the Andretti INDY NXT team after scoring a win in Race 2 of the Indianapolis Grand Prix earlier this month. Hauger has already had good fortune on street courses this season, securing a victory at the season opener this year on the Streets of St. Petersburg.
James Roe
- As the most experienced INDY NXT driver on the grid this weekend with the Andretti team, James Roe is set to make his third INDY NXT career start at the Detroit Grand Prix. After 2023 saw Roe take home a pair of top-10 finishes, the Irish driver was determined to earn some solid points again on the street course.
- Unfortunately, Roe was issued a drive-through penalty just 10 laps into the race, setting him back in the field. Misfortune struck again when Roe was involved in a multi-car incident on Lap 42 in Turn 6, forcing him to retire from the race three laps before the checkered.
Seb Murray
- Scottish rookie driver Seb Murray will make his INDY NXT debut at the Detroit Grand Prix this weekend with Andretti Cape INDY NXT.
- Murray competed in a street course race for the first time in his career earlier this season at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, where he took the checkered flag in P17.
Ricardo Escotto
- Ricardo Escotto will make his first race start on the streets of Detroit this weekend. Although this year will be the Mexican driver’s first time racing in the Detroit Grand Prix, Escotto did qualify for the INDY NXT Detroit event last year but was unfortunately disqualified from the race after Qualifying.
| INDY NXT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS |
| Andretti INDY NXT Driver Championship Standings |
| Lochie Hughes | 172 points | 2nd |
| Salvador de Alba | 111 points | 5th |
| Dennis Hauger | 187 points | 1st |
| James Roe | 60 points | 16th |
| Andretti Cape INDY NXT Driver Championship Standings |
| Seb Murray | 63 points | 14th |
| Ricardo Escotto | 72 points | 11th |
Team Quotes
Colton Herta
No. 26 Gainbridge Honda
“Detroit is a tough track, but I think we’ve had a really strong package there in the past. We had a shot at the win last year. Unfortunately, it didn’t come together, but we’ve shown a lot of speed the last few times we have raced there. Hopefully, we can keep that momentum going and try to finally get the top step of the podium.”
Kyle Kirkwood
No. 27 Siemens AWS Honda
“Detroit is definitely one of the stronger tracks for the Andretti team. It’s a place we should have won last year, but some untimely yellows and situations on track just didn’t go our way. We led 24 laps during the race, so I’m excited to go back to see what we can do in the Siemens AWS Honda this weekend. Our cars really thrive on street circuits, and Detroit is one of the bumpiest out there. I think that’s part of the reason we’re so good at this circuit.”
Marcus Ericsson
No. 28 Siemens Honda
“Detroit is a really fun street course. It put on a tremendous show last year with a lot of action. I finished second, which was my best result of the season. In general, Detroit has always been a good place for me. I got my first win in Detroit back when it was on Belle Isle, and also my first podium. I can’t wait to get back and try to master the bumps of this circuit again.”
Rob Edwards
Chief Operating Officer
“We’ve been strong on street courses so far this season and also on this newly reconfigured downtown circuit, so we’re looking forward to heading back to the Streets of Detroit this weekend. It’s always a quick turnaround heading into this race after the last month, but we’re prepared to put on an exciting show in Detroit.”
Lochie Hughes
No. 26 McGinley Clinic / USF Pro Championship Dallara
“We’re at Round 5 of the Championship in Detroit. It’s going to be my first ever time racing there, and it’s looked like a pretty crazy race the last couple of years. So, it’ll be interesting to see what the track is like with all the bumps and sharp turns that come with this street course. It’ll be important to keep it clean for the weekend and get some solid points to take home.”
Salvador de Alba
No. 27 Grupo Indi Dallara
“We’re heading to the second street course of the season this weekend in Detroit. It’s fun to be at a circuit like Detroit, where there are more variables at play. Like the bumps on the backstretch, where you need to be careful to avoid them as much as possible to not destroy the car. This track also has a lot of 90-degree corners and a chicane where it’s pretty common to clip the wall at points. Overall, it’s super fun to be there, and the city itself has a lot of cool places to explore.”
Dennis Hauger
No. 28 Rental Group Dallara
“I’ve heard that Detroit is probably the bumpiest track on the calendar this year. We don’t get to test there, so there’s a lot of new stuff to figure out in practice this weekend. So, every moment on track leading up to the race is going to be crucial for us to learn as much as we can. I’m looking forward to getting going, I usually enjoy racing on street circuits, so this is going to be a fun one.”
James Roe
No. 29 Topcon Dallara
“Detroit is a super fun, technical track. Andretti has always been strong here, and that’s something that we hope to capitalize on this year. We’ve had a chance to work as a team and fine-tune things to be street course-ready, so I’m excited to lock in some points this weekend.”
Seb Murray
No. 2 Dream Racing Dubai Dallara
“I’m really looking forward to going out to Detroit this weekend. I’ve only raced on one street course before, and that was earlier this year in St. Pete. That one wasn’t the easiest for us, but I have a few more races under my belt in an INDY NXT car now, and I’m eager to get back out there and see how my progress has moved along since the first race of the season.”
Ricardo Escotto
No. 3 Frank’s RedHot Dallara
“We had a bit of a break there, but we’re back racing in Detroit this weekend. I’m happy to be coming back to the track where I made my INDY NXT debut last year. We’re hoping to bounce back from a tough weekend in Indianapolis a couple of weeks ago and building on from there for a big month of racing in June.”
Don Lambert
Team Manager
“After dominating the doubleheader race weekend at IMS earlier this month, we’re ready to get back to racing on the Streets of Detroit. This track is challenging and demanding as far as street course racing goes, so it’s a great experience for our group of drivers. Hopefully, we can keep building on our momentum for this tough stretch of races in June.”
