Track News

Twice The Opportunity, Twice The Risk This Weekend at Barber

7 HOURS AGO

INDY NXT by Firestone resumes this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park with a doubleheader on the 17-turn, 2.3-mile natural road course.

It marks the first Barber doubleheader since 2021, a format that has appeared seven times (2013-18, 2021) in track history, and the first of five doubleheader weekends this season for the INDYCAR development series.

SEE: Race 1 Event Details | Race 2 Event Details

Race 1 is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET Saturday, March 28, with Race 2 at 11 a.m. ET Sunday, March 29. Both races air on FS1, FOX One, the FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls.

Here are five storylines to watch this weekend:

Max Taylor

Can Andretti Return to Victory Lane?

Last season, Dennis Hauger delivered Andretti Global its first Barber victory since 2019. The question entering this weekend: Can the team go back to back at Barber and continue its early-season momentum?

Max Taylor (photo, above) leads the charge. The 18-year-old New Jersey resident enters as the points leader after a runner-up finish in St. Petersburg and a victory March 15 on the streets of Arlington. He has topped all four practice sessions this season and earned the pole at St. Petersburg.

Teammate Lochie Hughes sits fourth in points (-32) with two fifth-place finishes to start the season. He also finished third at Barber last year.

Seb Murray is fifth (-34) after finishes of fourth and seventh this season. He placed 16th at Barber last year as a rookie with Andretti Cape.

Josh Pierson rounds out the lineup, sitting 16th in points after a 23rd-place result in Arlington. He opened the season with a seventh-place finish at St. Petersburg.

Tymek Kucharczyk

Kucharczyk Continues Strong Start

Tymek Kucharczyk has opened his rookie campaign with consecutive third-place finishes for HMD Motorsports.

But he’s aiming higher.

“I’m not here to finish third,” Kucharczyk said.

The Polish driver (photo, above) arrives after a dominant 2025 Euroformula Open Championship season, where he secured the title with BVM Racing. He also competed in the Macau Grand Prix as part of the FIA Formula Regional World Cup.

Kucharczyk began karting at age 5 and has steadily climbed the ladder, including a third-place finish in the 2022 F4 Spanish Championship and multiple wins in GB3.

Enzo Fittipaldi

Fittipaldi on Cusp

Enzo Fittipaldi rebounded in Arlington, starting and finishing second after a difficult season opener in St. Petersburg. Fittipaldi finished 17th in the opener, mainly because he started last following a qualifying crash.

The HMD Motorsports rookie (photo, above) entered the season as a championship contender. A former Italian F4 champion and Formula Regional European Championship runner-up, he progressed through Formula 3 and Formula 2, earning two wins and 13 podiums in F2.

He also gained endurance experience in the European Le Mans Series and participated in INDYCAR and Formula E test sessions.

Fittipaldi showed speed throughout offseason testing, including a third-place result in the fall Barber test and consistently running near the top at Sebring and Miami.

Now sixth in points (-35), he has prior experience at Barber, finishing 12th and 10th in USF Pro 2000 competition in 2021.

Myles Rowe

Rowe Needs a Strong Weekend

Myles Rowe enters Barber eighth in points (-42) after finishing sixth in St. Petersburg and ninth in Arlington with ABEL Motorsports.

The third-year driver (photo, above) finished fourth in points last season but needs a strong weekend to keep his championship hopes on track.

Rowe has shown speed at Barber before, finishing fourth last year and sixth as a rookie in 2023. He also won at the track in 2022 in USF2000 competition.