The dawn of the 40th anniversary season of INDY NXT by Firestone has arrived.

For the 16th time and fifth straight year, the season opens on the sun-splashed Streets of St. Petersburg, Florida. The maiden green flag of 2026 flies at 10 a.m. ET with live coverage of the 45-lap race on FS1, FOX One, the FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network.

SEE: Event Details

The race launches a 17-race schedule, the most since 2021, with all races contested during NTT INDYCAR SERIES event weekends.

This marks the second season of the FOX Sports partnership. In 2025, the series debuted on FOX Sports and delivered an average audience more than five times larger than in 2024.

The current era has produced the deepest fields since 2009, with nine on-track passing records set at five tracks last season. Momentum continues to build entering 2026, which features 24 full-time entries, with additional growth and new records anticipated.

Here are five things to watch for this weekend’s season opener.

Lochie Hughes the Favorite?

Dennis Hauger became the first driver since Pato O’Ward in 2018 to win both the season opener and the championship in the same year. Both accomplished the feat with Andretti Global.

Can Lochie Hughes follow suit?

Hughes started and finished second in last year’s race during his INDY NXT debut season, also with Andretti Global. He’s back in 2026 as the highest finisher in points among returning drivers.

Hughes aims to deliver Andretti Global its eighth INDY NXT championship and third consecutive crown. He previously won the 2024 USF Pro 2000 championship.

Notably, three of the last four INDY NXT by Firestone champions -- Linus Lundqvist (2022), Christian Rasmussen (2023) and Louis Foster (2024) -- were sophomores when they captured the title.

Myles Rowe

ABEL’s Turn at St. Petersburg?

Andretti Global and HMD Motorsports have combined to win six consecutive races on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary street circuit.

Kyle Kirkwood (Andretti Global) and David Malukas (HMD Motorsports) swept the 2021 doubleheader. Andretti’s Matthew Brabham won in 2022. Danial Frost (HMD) claimed victory in 2023, Nolan Siegel (HMD) in 2024 and Hauger (Andretti Global) last year.

Hauger, Hughes and Caio Collet delivered a clean podium sweep for Andretti and HMD in 2025.

But could this be ABEL Motorsports’ breakthrough?

Andretti Global has won 18 of the last 28 races over the past two seasons, yet three of its four drivers in this year’s lineup are still seeking their first INDY NXT victory. Hughes owns two career wins.

Georgia native Myles Rowe (photo, above) looks to deliver ABEL its first series championship after finishing a career-best fourth in points in his debut season with the team. The 2023 USF Pro 2000 champion is joined by rookie Max Garcia and veterans Jordan Missig and Colin Kaminsky.

Rowe finished eighth at St. Petersburg in 2024 with HMD and improved to fourth last year in his first season with ABEL. He also won at St. Petersburg during both the 2022 USF2000 and 2023 USF Pro 2000 weekends.

Missig placed sixth in this race last season and closed 2025 with five top-10 finishes in the final seven races.

Seb Murray

Does Test Speed Translate for Andretti Global?

If ABEL can’t break through, Andretti Global remains the most likely team to produce the winner -- even if it’s not Hughes.

Andretti fields a balanced lineup alongside Hughes, blending veterans with rookie Max Taylor. Sophomore Seb Murray (photo, above) takes over the No. 27 entry after topping the Chris Griffis Memorial Test on Oct. 27 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Josh Pierson replaces James Roe in the No. 29 entry and enters his fourth INDY NXT season after a career-best 2025 with HMD Motorsports, highlighted by two podium finishes, 11 top-10 results and sixth in the championship. Pierson ranked inside the top three at both offseason Open Tests, including in November at Barber Motorsports Park.

Taylor made six INDY NXT starts last season and completed his rookie USF Pro 2000 campaign with one win, four podiums and nine top-five finishes. He led November’s Barber Open Test, was second fastest at the Chris Griffis Memorial Test and ranked in the top two in all four sessions at Sebring.

Nikita Johnson

Florida Talent With Realistic Winning Chances

Nikita Johnson, a St. Petersburg native, headlines the in-state contingent.

Johnson (photo, above), 17, finished runner-up in both the 2023 USF2000 championship and the 2024 USF Pro 2000 title chase. At his home track, he finished third and first in 2023 and fourth and first in 2024. He made three INDY NXT starts last year, including his debut at St. Petersburg, finishing 11th with HMD Motorsports. He joins Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR full time in 2026.

Garcia, 16, of Miami, enters with consecutive titles in USF2000 in 2024 and USF Pro 2000 in 2025. He seeks a third straight championship and can become the second consecutive rookie to win the INDY NXT crown, following Hauger last season. Garcia owns four St. Petersburg starts in USF competition, earning three wins and one runner-up finish.

Both AJ Foyt Racing rookies hail from Florida, with Nicholas Monteiro from Pembroke Pines and Alessandro de Tullio from Miami. De Tullio won last year’s USF Pro 2000 season opener at St. Petersburg.

HMD Motorsports rookie Enzo Fittipaldi, born in Miami, brings an international pedigree. The 24-year-old grandson of two-time Formula One World Champion and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Emerson Fittipaldi earned Formula 2 victories in 2023 and 2024 and competed in the European Le Mans Series last season.

Fittipaldi ranked in the top two in all four sessions during January’s two-day test at Sebring International Raceway, a notoriously bumpy circuit that closely resembles a street course in feel.

Fast Starts Matter

While Hauger was the first driver in six seasons to win both the opener and the championship, the title fight consistently begins in St. Petersburg.

INDY NXT by Firestone allows few mulligans.

Last season, the top five in points all finished inside the top five in the opener. The year before, Siegel won the race but competed in only five events before advancing to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Even so, the top two in points finished on the St. Petersburg podium.

In 2023, five of the top six in points finished in the top five at St. Petersburg. In 2022, four of the top five in the final standings finished in the top four in the opener.

The message is clear: contend early, or chase all season.

Track Specs: 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary street circuit

Qualifying Record: Dennis Hauger, 1 minute, .8801 of a second, 101.440 mph, March 1, 2025

Push To Pass Parameters: 50 seconds of total time