Indy NXT | FP2 | St. Pete | Rowe pips Hauger to top spot - Motorsport

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Indy NXT FP2 at St. Pete was delayed by over 20 minutes as track repairs were required, full report and results below. Everyone was on used tyres at the start of the session.

A 1:12.607 from Salvador de Alba was the very early benchmark as all drivers started to get heat into the tyres. Ireland’s James Roe logged a 1:08.313 to go 3s clear soon after. However, the Mexican responded again as a 1:07.250 saw him become the first driver to get within 2s of Hauger’s Friday benchmark.

Just after the 5-minute mark, a 1:06.134 from Dennis Hauger put him a whopping 0.7s clear of Myles Rowe, with Lochie Hughes a tenth further back. de Alba and Missig completed the top 5.

A 1:06.092 from Rowe put him P1, before de Alba, Missig and Hauger all bettered that. The Norwegian put in a 1:05.638 to go 0.3s clear on this occasion.

At the 10-minute mark, Hauger (1:05.383) led de Alba, Missig, Rowe and Hedge. The top 8 were all in the 1:05s, although the advantage for the Andretti driver was almost 0.4s.

The gap at the front closed as the session reached a third of the way through. Myles Rowe for ABEL Motorsports with Force Indy clocked a 1:05.445 go within six hundredths of Hauger. Hughes, Hedge and Missig rounded out the top 5.

Pierson, de Alba, Collet, Browne and Roe completed the top 10 as drivers started to return to the garage.

Hauger went faster still at the 20-minute mark, pumping in a 1:05.154 to extend his gap to almost 0.3s once again. The top 12 drivers were all in the 65s bracket at this point.

New tyre runs

Calo Collet vaulted up to P2, clocking a 1:05.393 to move himself up from 9th. Jack William Miller went 3rd on a 1:05.406 as he found big gains on his new set of tyres.

Australian Lochie Hughes briefly stopped the Hauger express as he logged a 1:05.044 to go fastest. Seconds later, however, a 1:04.686 from the Andretti driver put him fastest again by a margin.

On his second push lap, Hauger went over three tenths quicker, lowering the benchmark to a 1:04.354. Replays showed him pushing unbelievably hard, clipping the wall with the rear left on the exit of turn 9.

Heading into turn 10, Jordan Missig had a lock-up and bailed out, quickly recovering to the track.

In the closing moments, Myles Rowe smashed in a 1:04.250 as the ABEL Motorsports driver went a tenth quicker than Dennis Hauger.

Hughes, Collet, Browne, de Alba, Hedge, Allaer, Escotto and Missig rounded out the top 10. James Roe was also in the 1:04s as seven tenths covered the top 11.