INDY NXT RACE REPORT: Grand Prix of Detroit
Race Results
| Grand Prix of Detroit |
| Lochie Hughes | P21 |
| Seb Murray | P5 |
| Max Taylor | P20 |
| Josh Pierson | P14 |
Race Notes
- The Andretti Global INDY NXT team hit the track this morning to battle it out on the Streets of Detroit, with Max Taylor leading the Andretti lineup to green from the front row.
- Chaos erupted almost immediately after the green flag, as a Lap 1 incident in Turn 3 shuffled the field, disrupting the races of nearly every Andretti driver. Seb Murray was the lone exception, expertly avoiding the wreckage and charging to a top-five finish as the team’s highest-placed driver.
- Four caution periods disrupted today’s grand prix, ultimately converting the race into a timed event that concluded at 42 laps under a full course yellow.
- Andretti INDY NXT will look to rebound next weekend as the team heads to World Wide Technology Raceway to tackle their first oval race of the 2026 season on Sunday, June 7th, with live coverage on FS1 and FOX One.
Lochie Hughes
No. 26 Andretti Global Dallara
P21
| Started | P5 |
| Standings | P5 (176 points) |
- Lining up in the third row this morning on the grid, Lochie Hughes set out to make his second INDY NXT career start on the Streets of Detroit.
- Moments after the green flag waved, in an attempt to break through the field going through Turn 3, Hughes made contact with the race leader, initiating a multi-car chain reaction. He was then issued a Stop and Hold penalty for the incident, which he served as the track returned to green on Lap 9.
- Relegated to the back of the pack, the early setback forced the No. 26 driver to finish the day in 21st, three laps down.
“At the start, when the lights went green, the car from the right side of the grid just drove into me before the brake zone. Then, when I hit the brakes, it just felt like nothing happened. After that, three laps down, I was just bringing it home at that point.”
Seb Murray
No. 27 Megatron Dallara
P5
| Started | P8 |
| Standings | P9 (148 points) |
- Seb Murray made his second race start on the Streets of Detroit today from eighth place, looking to navigate farther up through the top 10.
- Murray prevailed as the sole Andretti driver to navigate cleanly through the Lap 1 Turn 3 incident, sending him up to fourth place.
- After breaking into the top three by Lap 10, he battled to maintain position before ultimately falling back slightly to cross the line in fifth. Today’s result marks Murray’s second career top-five finish.
“Finished here in Detroit, really messy race as usual, but it was great fun. We kept our nose clean at the start, and that meant we made up a good few positions. I think we came out of Lap 1 in P3, so really strong, strong start, but unfortunately, I just didn’t have the pace to maintain that podium spot. The team put together a great car, and then the car really came alive in the last 10 laps. It’s a shame that the safety car came out because I reckon we would have had a really good run for the podium spots. Massive thank you to the Andretti team, and we’ll take a top five any day. So, we’ll tune up and look forward to the first oval race next week.”
Max Taylor
No. 28 Susan G. Komen Dallara
P20
| Started | P2 |
| Standings | P4 (228 points) |
- Making his sixth INDY NXT front-row start, Max Taylor was unfortunately unable to capitalize on his prime starting position after being forced into the Turn 3 runoff to avoid the chaos of the Lap 1 incident.
- When the track returned to green, Taylor was issued a Drive-Through Penalty for jumping the restart, which he served on Lap 11, dropping to the rear.
- Taylor spent the remainder of the race fighting his way up the field, putting up impressive pace to eventually break into the top 10 following the final restart.
- Taylor was running strong in eighth when, in the final moments of the race, he made contact with the barrier in Turn 1, causing a Full Course Yellow and ending his day prematurely.
“I just can’t really believe it. I mean, we nearly got crashed out at the start and had to go to last. Then we got a drive-through penalty because of a miscommunication. After that, I drove like an animal back up to inside the top 10, and then I just made a mistake, hit the wall and ended our day early. It’s just so unfortunate because we were so fast out there. It’s just a shame to come away with nothing.”
Josh Pierson
No. 29 Starchive Dallara
P14
| Started | P12 |
| Standings | P13 (123 points) |
- Josh Pierson tackled the downtown Detroit street circuit for the third time in his INDY NXT career from just outside of the top 10.
- Unfortunately, Pierson was caught in the Lap 1 incident in Turn 3, an unavoidable bottleneck that shuffled the No. 29 driver toward the back of the field.
- Then, shortly after the restart on Lap 8, Pierson ran into trouble once again as he was unable to navigate through Turn 3, going into the runoff and moving to the rear once again.
- The No. 29 driver managed to maintain a clean run for the remainder of the race and stayed aggressive through the chaos, eventually gaining nine positions to finish the race in 14th.
“It was a super messy race, but that’s kind of the case with us on street circuits. It’s always a bit of a mess. Got caught up in the incident in Turn 3. I was lucky to stay clean, just had nowhere to go, and ended up kind of beached out there. So I had to grab reverse and find my way out, and then try and charge back through the field. Then I made a bit of a mistake on the first restart, which sent me even further back. Just a mess of a race. Everybody was kind of in a similar boat, though. It seemed like the whole field order was just really shaken off. Tough weekend for the No. 29 crew. I feel bad for these guys. Last weekend at Indy I know we had a shot to win those races. We’ve had a car that’s capable of doing that, and I just know how much these guys deserve it. I’m really grateful to Andretti Global, Starchive, Tiger Ply and The Crypto Company for what they do. Really looking forward to hopefully giving us some results for the next one.”
Don Lambert
INDY NXT Team Manager
“Tough day for Andretti INDY NXT. Detroit is tough. I mean, you have got to hand it to the kids out there, running between the concrete walls; it’s not an easy track. But it was also a great day for Seb. He needed to be up there, racing with those guys, and he did a really good job. He might not have had the best car today, but he muscled through it and did a really good job. For Max, to get pushed out early on then have to come back wasn’t easy. And we made a bad call on the stand, and I take full responsibility for that. He got a penalty for it and we had to come through pit lane, which probably didn’t help him get a few more points. You’re going to have these days, and unfortunately, today was our day. So, we’ll just regroup, pack up and go to St. Louis.”
