One & Done: Indy NXT Champ Dennis Hauger Ready for Jump to INDYCAR

Dennis Hauger’s time racing Indy NXT didn’t last long. And there’s good reason.

Winning six of the 14 races and the championship in his rookie season, the 22-year-old Norwegian will move to the top INDYCAR series, as the Andretti Global driver will race for Dale Coyne Racing.

“I’m as ready as I can be,” Hauger said last week. “I feel like I’ve proven myself worthy this year, gone to all the new tracks and made it happen a lot of the time.”

With Andretti having three seasoned drivers in Kyle Kirkwood, Marcus Ericsson and the incoming Will Power, there was no room in its 2026 stable for Hauger, whose Formula 2 experience (five wins and 13 podiums in three years) was on full display throughout the 2025 Indy NXT season.

Andretti Global owner Dan Towriss had said that he wanted Hauger to run at the top level in 2026, and he has now found him that spot with Dale Coyne Racing, and the two teams will have a technical alliance. The deal with Coyne makes sense because both organizations run Honda engines and DCR did not have either of its 2025 drivers — Rinus VeeKay and Jacob Abel — signed for next season.

“This is a great opportunity for us here at DCR to bring on a talented driver and gain a strong technical partner in Andretti Global,” Dale Coyne said in a statement.

“Thanks to Dan and his belief in our sport and his dedication to elevating Dennis to the top of the ladder.”

Hauger, speaking last week before the Coyne deal was announced, said the transition from Formula 2 to Indy NXT didn’t come easy. Especially when it came to only turning left.

“For sure, the ovals were a big challenge,” Hauger said. “But I think just not really knowing what to expect coming over here for me personally, and coming into the Andretti team — a new team, new paddock.

“We just worked. The IMS [road course] test was really good from the start, and we just kept on working from there. And I think that’s been a key point. … We’ve been quick from the start.”

In three of the four ovals, Hauger finished on the podium, showing that he could adapt to them quickly.

“I enjoyed them a lot,” Hauger said. “The first race was not the best. Got fifth, which was not bad but obviously wanted more. I just realized there was a lot for me to learn. It’s not so easy to learn as much as the road courses or the street courses because then you can do simulator stuff.

“But when you’re doing ovals, you don’t really get to learn as much on the sim. You have to really go out there and experience it.”

Having clinched the championship with one race remaining, Hauger said he got the freedom to experiment on the Nashville oval during the finale and learn more about how the car reacts as well as how it handles marbles of tire rubber that tend to accumulate near the upper grove on an oval during an event.

“I got to try a few things, not worrying about the championship. … I really enjoyed it,” he said. “It can be super scary. It can be super fun.” 

Overall, Hauger is pleased with his move to the United States for racing after a Formula 1 opportunity didn’t materialize despite having some success in F2.

“Indy NXT is a great championship to learn and experience as much as possible for the top step for us guys, which is INDYCAR,” Hauger said. “You learn the tracks. And I think the driving style is fairly similar from what I’ve heard.

“You really have to drive it hard in the Indy NXT car and handle it with aggression sometimes, and I think that’s a really good training for any driver.”

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.

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