Andretti Autosport’s Louis Foster will tackle a brand new track at this weekend’s Detroit Indy NXT event.
The reigning Indy Pro 2000 champion and driver of the #26 machine for Andretti is coming off the back of a second place finish in the last race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Now he’ll head to Detroit where the track has been moved from Belle Isle to the downtown streets where Formula 1 used to race in the 1980s. It’s a tight and technical track with a unique split pit lane.
It's also one of only two double-header events in the series - the second being the season finale at Laguna Seca - so there's over 100 points on offer this weekend.
“The Indy road course race was a big event to put points on the board for us after a tough start to the year,” says Foster, who is backed by Copart, a global leader in online auto auctions.
“But now we have to wipe the slate clean and just continue on executing race by race, starting in Detroit this weekend.
“It’s always hard to know looking at a new track from the outside or even on a simulator how it will be like to race on without getting a feel for the surface and how the conditions impact grip, those sorts of things.
“It’s certainly tight and twisty, so qualifying is going to be both extremely difficult to extract the maximum out of it, and also vital for track position.”
Foster qualified on pole for the series’ last street race at St Petersburg before he hit trouble in the race.
That gives him confidence that he’ll be in the mix for the leading positions at the event.
“The pace in myself or the car hasn’t been in question all season, it’s just been about executing,” adds Foster.
“We’ve had some misfortune but how we bounce back from that will decide our season, not a couple of disappointing results.
“I’m excited to get back in the car this weekend.
A lot of work has gone into the Detroit event to make it a success and it’s expected to be a huge event for the fans, some of whom will be enter the track for free.
“Enormous credit to the organiser of the race, it looks like it will be a fantastic atmosphere and one to remember for the fans,” Foster concludes.
Detroit schedule - Eastern Time (BST -5)
Friday, June 2 Practice 1350-1440 (1850-1940) Qualifying 1730-1800 (2230-2300) Saturday, June 3 Race 1 1155-1300 (1655-1800)
Sunday, June 4
Race 2
1245-1345 (1745-1845)
Indy NXT is available to watch on Peacock TV in the USA and on Sky Sports for certain sessions. The first race on Saturday will be shown on Sky Sports F1 channel at 1700 and the second race on Sunday is also on Sky Sports F1 at 1745. In countries where Indy NXT is not scheduled to be broadcast, it is available through the IndyCar Live streaming service.
Notes to editors
Louis Foster
Louis Foster is a 19-year-old British racing driver from Hampshire aiming to take the racing world by storm. He’s a member of the BRDC SuperStars and races for the Andretti Autosport team in Indy NXT by Firestone. Son of British Touring Car and GT racer Nick Foster, Louis has been around motorsport for the majority of his life. Foster had a successful karting career before making his debut in Ginetta Juniors where he won nine races and scored 19 podiums in his first season. A step up to the British F4 championship delivered six wins and 13 podiums in his first season of single-seater racing, while his debut BRDC British F3 campaign kept up a 100% winning record in his car racing career with three victories and six podiums. In 2021 Foster stepped up to racing in Europe and added three wins in Euroformula Open, took a further 10 podiums and two pole positions in a series which raced in front of Formula 1 on occasion this year. His performances led to a nomination for the prestigious Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award, an honour which was repeated a year later. The following year he made his debut in America and won half of the races on the way to the 2022 Indy Pro 2000 championship. He won on all three types of tracks, including on street courses and ovals which he hadn’t raced on before. Outside of motorsport Louis is a keen rugby and hockey player as well as enjoying off-road mountain biking and training in the gym. Foster is sponsored by auction giant Copart, which sells more than 300,000 cars per years in the UK and more than 3M cars per year worldwide. He is also backed by Chambers Recycling Solutions, Novara Technologies, One Sports Management Group and Poggesi. For media inquiries and interview requests, please contact barry@onesmgroup.com
Indy NXT by Firestone
Indy NXT (formerly Indy Lights before a major rebrand for 2023) is the top level of junior racing in the United States. It is organised and promoted by Penske Entertainment - which also owns NTT INDYCAR SERIES and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway - and is the premier route for drivers hoping to reach INDYCAR. It races on road courses, street circuits and ovals, just like the stars of INDYCAR. The series races with cars made by Dallara, with the distinctive Halo device used to help protect the drivers. The cars feature turbocharged, 2-litre engines producing 450bhp, and are tricky to control which gives drivers a good learning curve ahead of reaching IndyCar. Winning the series awards a prize fund worth a reported $1.4 million, and includes tests at Texas and Indianapolis, an Indy 500 start and an entry into one additional IndyCar race. Past champions of the series include Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden and Pato O’Ward.
Indy NXT by Firestone calendar
March 5 St Petersburg April 30 Barber May 13 Indianapolis road course June 3-4 Detroit (doubleheader) June 18 Road America July 2 Mid-Ohio July 22 Iowa Aug 6 Nashville Aug 11 Indianapolis road course Aug 26 Gateway September 3 Portland September 9-10 Laguna Seca (double header)