INDY NXT QUALIFYING REPORT: Music City Grand Prix
Qualifying Results
| Music City Grand Prix |
| Lochie Hughes | P9 |
| Seb Murray | P18 |
| Max Taylor | P12 |
| Josh Pierson | P11 |
Qualifying Notes
- The Andretti Global INDY NXT team took on their second oval qualifying session of the 2026 season at Nashville Superspeedway to lock in their spots on the grid for tomorrow’s Music City Grand Prix.
- The field lined up in reverse-Championship order for single-car qualifying runs, with starting positions determined by each driver’s two-lap average speed.
- The Andretti INDY NXT team started the day strong in morning practice, with Lochie Hughes and Josh Pierson sweeping the top two spots on the speed charts.
- Prioritizing race trim over qualifying speed, all four entries chose to run today’s session with a race setup, which utilizes more downforce and less trimming than their competitors. As a result, Hughes will lead the team’s charge tomorrow from ninth on the grid.
- Row 6 will feature Pierson and Max Taylor starting 11th and 12th, respectively, while Seb Murray will make his second Nashville start from 18th.
- INDY NXT by Firestone will run a 65-lap race tomorrow afternoon, with the green flag set to wave at 1:00 PM ET.
Lochie Hughes
No. 26 Andretti Global Dallara
P9
| 2-Lap Average | 175.852 MPH |
“I was flat from the moment they told me to leave pit lane, so I was holding it flat till I saw God or the checkered flag. I guess that’s just everything she had. I think some guys up front trimmed a little bit more, and then, I think some guys just have some mega engines in the back of their car. The racing is going to be interesting, so we’ll see what we’ve got.”
Seb Murray
No. 27 Megatron Dallara
P18
| 2-Lap Average | 174.450 MPH |
“I felt like I did everything on my part, really. I had my foot to the floor as soon as I left pit lane. The track is really grippy with everything being so hot. I think it’s going to be interesting to see what everyone is on with downforce for the race tomorrow. That’s what I’m hoping at least. I felt like I did everything I could, so we’ll see what we can do tomorrow. Our main focus is to have a strong result and take some solid points home.”
Max Taylor
No. 28 Susan G. Komen Dallara
P12
| 2-Lap Average | 175.434 |
“A fast qualifying car doesn’t equal a fast race car. I think we have a bit more downforce in the setup for the race tomorrow. So we’ll see how it plays out. Hopefully it’ll be in our favor, but I’m going to go pass some cars tomorrow. I think that St. Louis was a really good first oval of the year. I was happy with the result, and I learned a lot that I can take into tomorrow. It’s going to be a fun one. Honestly, even though we’re starting further back, I’m excited to pass some cars and have some fun. I know I’m good at that.”
Josh Pierson
No. 29 Starchive Dallara
P11
| 2-Lap Average | 175.609 MPH |
“We want to try and cut distance and make things a little bit quicker in quali, but it’s hard because we want to prioritize the arrow for the race. So, we are all kind of maxed out on downforce and just a bit limited. It’s easy to be flat the whole way around, so at that point, you’re trying to figure out how you can get a little bit extra out of it. Maybe I did a bit too much on the end, not sure, but the car feels good. I think we for sure have a car we can go race with, and I think that’s the important part here for this track.”
Don Lambert
INDY NXT Team Manager
“So, we may not have had the fastest cars we’ve ever had here in qualifying, but, looking ahead to the weather tomorrow and how the track has been since we started this morning, we just selected to make sure the cars were good to drive in traffic and maybe a bit more downforce. So, hopefully that works out for us tomorrow, and the guys can just march straight to the front. The cars are good. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow.”
