Back Together in Barber: Andretti INDYCAR and INDY NXT will Share the Track Once Again at Barber Motorsports Park
For the first time since the season-opening race on the Streets of St. Petersburg, the Andretti INDYCAR and INDY NXT teams will reunite to take on Barber Motorsports Park. Known as the Alabama Rollercoaster, the 2.3-mile permanent road course features 17 flowing turns and 80 feet of elevation change that challenge both drivers and engineers. A 45-foot-wide racing ribbon also makes it imperative for patience while setting up overtaking opportunities. Following Kyle Kirkwood’s exciting INDYCAR victory from the pole on the Streets of Long Beach and a double podium for Dennis Hauger and Lochie Hughes in their last INDY NXT outing in St. Petersburg, the team is ready to build on those strong results on the Alabama road course this weekend.
Race Details
| INDYCAR Children’s of Alabama Grand Prix – Barber Motorsports Park |
| Round | 4/17 |
| Track Type | Road Course |
| Turns | 17 |
| Laps | 90 Laps |
| Track Length | 2.3 Miles |
| INDY NXT Grand Prix on Alabama – Barber Motorsports Park |
| Round | 2/14 |
| Track Type | Road Course |
| Turns | 17 |
| Laps | 35 Laps |
| Track Length | 2.3 Miles |
Notes
Andretti INDYCAR
- The Andretti INDYCAR team has made 14 appearances at Barber Motorsports Park since 2010, achieving two wins (Hunter-Reay – 2013, 2014), two poles (Hunter-Reay – 2013, Grosjean – 2023), five podiums, 10 top-five finishes and 213 laps led.
Colton Herta
- Colton Herta will make his sixth career start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend. Last year saw Herta fight his way up from the back of the field in the last stint of the race after a slow pit stop early in the race. He ultimately went on to score his best INDYCAR finish on the road course, taking the checkered in eighth.
Kyle Kirkwood
- Coming off of his second win on the Streets of Long Beach and third overall, Kyle Kirkwood will make his fourth career start on the Alabama road course with hopes of a strong result on the second road course of the season and the chance to take the lead in the INDYCAR Championship standings.
- Like teammate Herta, Kirkwood’s 10th-place result at last year’s race was the best of his INDYCAR career at Barber Motorsports Park.
Marcus Ericsson
- Marcus Ericsson will join Herta in making his sixth INDYCAR start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend. Out of his five appearances on the Alabama road course, the Swede has only finished outside of the top 10 twice.
- Despite working his way into the top 10, last year’s race at Barber saw the No. 28 driver finish in the same position that he started the race (18th) due to mid-race contact and untimely yellows.
| NTT INDYCAR SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS |
| Driver Championship Standings |
| Colton Herta | 73 points | 7th |
| Kyle Kirkwood | 108 points | 2nd |
| Marcus Ericsson | 55 points | 12th |
Andretti INDY NXT
- After almost two months since the opening round of the 2025 INDY NXT by Firestone season, Andretti INDY NXT is finally back on track this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in the team’s 14th appearance at the Grand Prix of Alabama. Since the team’s first outing on the Alabama road course in 2010, Andretti INDY NXT has collected seven wins (Saavedra – 2012, Munoz – 2013, Veach – 2014, Jamin – 2017, C. Herta – 2017, O’Ward – 2018 Race 1, 2), six poles, 18 podiums, 26 top-five finishes and led 232 laps.
- Although the INDY NXT Series hasn’t been racing since the 2025 season opener in St. Pete, the Andretti INDY NXT team has stayed busy on track by participating in testing sessions during this break period at two different tracks: Nashville Superspeedway and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The team excelled at these tests, running consistently in the top-10, including standout performances by Dennis Hauger (P1 – Nashville Session 2, P2 – Mid-Ohio Session 1 and P1 – Mid-Ohio Session 2), Lochie Hughes (P3 – Nashville Session 2 and P3 – Mid-Ohio Session 2) and James Roe (P3 – Nashville Session 1).
Lochie Hughes
- Following his podium finish on the Streets of St. Petersburg in March, Lochie Hughes will make his first race start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend.
- Hughes has a successful history of competing on permanent road courses in the USF Pro 2000 Series. Last year, the Australian driver collected three wins (Road America Race 1, 2 & 3), one pole (Road America Race 1) and seven podium finishes (Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course Race 1, 2 & 3, Road America Race 1, 2 & 3 and Portland International Raceway Race 2) while competing in the development series.
Salvador de Alba
- Salvador de Alba will make his second INDY NXT start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend after collecting his sixth career top-five finish in St. Petersburg earlier this year.
- Last year, de Alba recovered from a 12th-place qualifying effort with a clean race that saw the Mexican driver move up two spaces from where he started to take the checkered in the top 10.
Dennis Hauger
- Dennis Hauger will make his first career race start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend following his impressive drive at the season-opener in St. Petersburg that saw the rookie driver convert his first INDY NXT pole into his first INDY NXT win.
- Although this will be Hauger’s first time racing on an American permanent road course, he had plenty of experience on this type of track while competing in the Formula 2 Championship, including one win (Budapest Sprint Race – 2023), six podiums (Imola Sprint Race – 2022, Zandvoort Sprint Race – 2022, Sakhir Sprint Race – 2023, Budapest Sprint Race – 2023, Spa-Francorchamps Sprint Race – 2023 & 2023) and one pole (Spielberg – 2024).
James Roe
- James Roe is set to make his fourth career INDY NXT start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend with the Andretti INDY NXT team.
- Last year’s Grand Prix of Alabama was memorable for Roe as he maintained his high starting position of third to capture the second podium finish of his INDY NXT career at the time. Roe’s 2023 race also saw the Irish driver take home a top-five finish at the Alabama track.
Seb Murray
- Following his Stateside racing debut in St. Petersburg, INDY NXT rookie Seb Murray will make his first start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend.
- During his time in the GB3 Championships in 2024, Murray gained plenty of permanent road course experience on iconic international tracks including Oulton Park, Silverstone Circuit, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps and Hungaroring among others.
- Although Murray hasn’t competed in a race at Barber Motorsports Park, he did test at the Alabama track in a USF Pro 2000 car in 2024.
Ricardo Escotto
- Ricardo Escotto will make his first INDY NXT race start at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend with the Andretti Cape INDY NXT team.
- In his partial 2024 INDY NXT season, Escotto gained valuable permanent road course experience while racing in the Grand Prix of Monterey doubleheader and the Grand Prix of Portland.
| INDY NXT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS |
| Andretti INDY NXT Driver Championship Standings |
| Lochie Hughes | 41 points | 2nd |
| Salvador de Alba | 30 points | 5th |
| Dennis Hauger | 54 points | 1st |
| James Roe | 10 points | 20th |
| Andretti Cape INDY NXT Driver Championship Standings |
| Seb Murray | 13 points | 17th |
| Ricardo Escotto | 20 points | 10th |
Team Quotes
Colton Herta
No. 26 Gainbridge Honda
“Barber is such a great track, and qualifying there is one of the highlights for me. The circuit is so fast and narrow; there’s really nothing else like it on the INDYCAR schedule. From a race perspective, Barber is usually between a two- and three-stop strategy, so you really have to figure out the balance and make quick decisions as the race goes on. I’ve had some strong results at road courses in the past and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do in the Gainbridge Honda this weekend.”
Kyle Kirkwood
No. 27 PreFab Honda
“After another win from the pole on the Streets of Long Beach, I am really excited to return to racing this weekend. Barber Motorsports Park is one of the best road courses on the calendar. We haven’t quite nailed the pace in the past, but with everything we’ve worked on over the offseason and the win in Long Beach, I’m confident we can go after some strong results this weekend.”
Marcus Ericsson
No. 28 Bryant Honda
“Barber is one of the most beautiful and challenging road courses. With its elevation changes and fast and flowing corners, it really demands a lot from both the car and the driver. Barber is one of the toughest physical tracks to drive in INDYCAR, especially because of the steering forces needed for those long-duration corners. It’s always a challenge, but it’s a track I really enjoy, and I’m looking forward to getting back out there.”
Rob Edwards
Chief Operating Officer
“After a win with Kyle in Long Beach and a successful IMS Open Test, we head into our next race at Barber Motorsports Park. Barber kicks off an intense stretch between now and the end of August with only four weekends off. During the offseason, we highlighted Thermal and Barber as two tracks that we needed to improve on this season. We checked off the first of those goals at Thermal and we hope to do the same at Barber. As always, the competition will be tough, but we are ready.”
Lochie Hughes
No. 26 McGinley Clinic/USF Pro Championship Dallara
Andretti INDY NXT
“I’m looking forward to heading out to Barber Motorsports Park. It’s going to be my first ever race at that track, so I’m excited to try it out. They call it the ‘Augusta of Racing’, so I’m also looking forward to checking out everything that the track has to offer. I think the racing there is going to be a bit tough, it’s hard to overtake apparently, so qualifying will be key to getting a good result.”
Salvador de Alba
No. 27 Grupo Indi Dallara
Andretti INDY NXT
“Barber Motorsports Park is a lot like a rollercoaster – it’s super fast, has lots of uphill and downhill sections and plenty of elevation changes. Also, the area around the track itself is really unique, with all of the sculptures it has. Overall, it’s a fun stop on the calendar and I can’t wait to go racing there again.”
Dennis Hauger
No. 28 Rental Group Dallara
Andretti INDY NXT
“Barber is next up for Round 2 of the season. The Andretti INDY NXT team had a test there last year, and we left feeling pretty good about how we did. It’s a cool, technical track with a lot of ups and downs. This will be my first time racing there, so I’m excited to get out there. It’s going to be great.”
James Roe
No. 29 Topcon Dallara
Andretti INDY NXT
“I’m super excited to get back to Barber. We had a great race here last year in the No. 29 Topcon machine with a strong qualifying and a podium finish. So, we’re looking to repeat those results again this year. It’s one of my favorite tracks on the schedule, and I’m planning to continue the good momentum we have out there.”
Seb Murray
No. 2 Dream Racing Dubai Dallara
Andretti Cape INDY NXT
“I’m looking forward to going back to Barber this weekend. I’ve never raced there before, but I had the chance to test a USF Pro 2000 car on that track last year, so I can’t wait to see the speed difference running an INDY NXT car out there. It’ll be nice to get back out on-track again with the No. 2 crew for a solid weekend of racing.”
Ricardo Escotto
No. 3 Frank’s Red Hot Dallara
Andretti Cape INDY NXT
“I can’t wait to get back to racing again this weekend. Barber isn’t a track that I have a lot of experience at, so I’m looking forward to getting out there, making improvements and working toward a good result. I’m hoping that we can take what we learned in St. Pete and continue taking some positive steps forward.”
Don Lambert
Team Manager
“Our INDY NXT team is ready to finally get back racing after this long break. In this downtime, we’ve had two very productive tests at Nashville Superspeedway and Mid-Ohio. It was nice to get out on track at these tests, and we learned a lot, but the whole team is itching for some real racing competition. Barber Motorsports Park is a great track, and we enjoy racing there, but it’s also a very challenging race on our schedule. So, we must continue to execute this weekend.”
