Nikita Johnson and Alessandro de Tullio split the wins at Barber Motorsports Park as a rookie-led IndyNXT by Firestone field battled it out at the 2026 Grand Prix of Alabama double header.
Qualifying
The weekend’s single practice session hinted at how tight the field would be. Myles Rowe topped the times, followed by JM Correa, who was only 0.0007 seconds behind. However, as is the norm in IndyNXT, Qualifying had different plans. The cooler track conditions improved grip levels for the Firestone rubber on the Dallara IL-15s and allowed the young drivers to really go for it. Qualifying was split into two groups, with Max Taylor leading Group 1 and De Tullio topping Group 2. De Tullio’s 1:10.317 edged Taylor’s 1:10.475, to see the AJ Foyt rookie claim outright pole position and put Group 2 into the odd-numbered grid spots.
The grid for Race 1, Round 3, set by drivers’ fastest laps, saw the Top 10 covered by just over 0.5 seconds. De Tullio started ahead of Taylor, Johnson, Enzo Fittipaldi, Bryce Aron, Tymek Kucharczyk, Max Garcia, Jordan Missig, Rowe, and Correa. While still in the Top 10, both Rowe and Correa would be unhappy with their grid spots after their promising Friday practice results. Race 2 would see the same Top 3, followed by Missig, Garcia, Kucharczyk, Rowe, Fittipaldi, Josh Pierson, and Correa. The Top 10 for Round 4 was covered by over 0.8 seconds, and was set by drivers’ second-best lap times from their respective qualifying sessions.
Race 1: Johnson Takes His Opportunity
The IndyNXT Grand Prix of Alabama, Round 3, looked set to be de Tullio’s redemption after his heartbreak in Arlington. De Tullio launched away cleanly at the start, and controlled most of the race’s 35 laps. Johnson maintained his second place, filling the mirrors of de Tullio and reminding everyone why he led the championship coming into the weekend. With around 10 laps remaining, the leaders began catching traffic.
They may have been in P21 and P22, but in Indy racing any driver is allowed to fight to stay on the lead lap. So, Chip Ganassi Racing teammates James Roe and Carson Etter were well within their rights to continue fighting when caught by the leaders. As de Tullio tried to slip past, he dipped his wheels into the dirt at Turn 9. That gave Taylor a run and allowed him to briefly grab the lead. Before the end of the lap, the battle came to blows. Taylor stuck his nose inside at Turn 16, but his left-front tagged de Tullio’s right-rear, causing both drivers to spin. Johnson slowed, threaded the needle, and claimed the lead. Fittipaldi and Kucharczyk followed in behind to claim P2 and P3.
Johnson held off the HMD Motorsports duo to claim the win and the top spot in the IndyNXT Championship standings. Garcia held onto P4, ensuring that the Top Four were claimed by IndyNXT rookies. It should be noted, Taylor was able to rejoin rather quickly after the contact with de Tullio. But Race Control issued him a penalty, dropping him to P19 after the race.
Race 2: De Tullio’s Redemption
Round 4 saw the IndyNXT field compete in a 30 lap race with only a few unexpected incidents. De Tullio again led from pole, ahead of Taylor and Johnson at the start. Johnson got a great jump and took P2 briefly before Taylor reclaimed his position a few turns later. Further back, Rowe’s weekend reached a disheartening climax as he lost control and collected teammate Garcia late in the opening lap.
Race 2 settled down after that, with drivers contending with the Barber grind and hoping to maintain track position. De Tullio and Taylor pulled away from Johnson, who had to worry about Fittipaldi and Kucharczyk. Unlike Saturday’s race, the leaders kept it clean on Sunday. De Tullio managed his race well, utilizing push-to-pass late when his Firestones began to degrade. Taylor was able to cut the lead to just over 0.3 seconds, but de Tullio held on for AJ Foyt’s first IndyNXT win since 2003.
IndyNXT Championship Picture
As the Grand Prix of Alabama’s Round 3 and 4 come to an end, the title fight had changed dramatically. Johnson now leads with 168 points, with two wins from four starts while leading 51 laps. Taylor is in second with 145 points and one win. Although unhappy, Kucharczyk is still third in the standings with 135 points despite having no race win yet. Fittipaldi sits in fourth on 129 points and will look to continue his momentum into Indianapolis. De Tullio finally claimed that elusive win, dragging himself to fifth after the disappointing start to the season. Drivers like Rowe, Lochie Hughes, Jordan Missig, and others have to regroup after Barber and reset before Round 5.
Next for IndyNXT, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in May. That weekend will see another double-header, hosting Rounds 5 and 6. With Johnson establishing himself as the leader, Taylor working to regroup, and de Tullio hoping to stay at the front from now on, IMS will host another rookie-heavy title fight.
Feature Image by Aaron Skillman , Penske Entertainment