The AJ Foyt Racing driver, Alessandro de Tullio, achieved an impressive victory at Portland International Raceway, leading the race from pole position to the checkered flag in a standout performance in the Indy NXT competition.
De Tullio completed the 35 laps of the 1.964-mile circuit in 2.169 seconds ahead of his rivals, in a race that showcased his supremacy on the track. This victory marks the second triumph of the season for the Argentine driver.
“It wasn’t easy,” De Tullio commented after the race. “I had to take care of the tires; at the end there was a bit of wear. I tried to improve the lap record at the end, but I missed it by a little. The race was good, although the start was a bit complicated with Lochie (Hughes), who attacked hard at the first corner, but we were able to defend ourselves. We made a good restart after the safety car and the car worked perfectly. I can’t thank the whole team enough.”
The Andretti Global drivers, Hughes and Max Taylor, completed the podium in second and third positions respectively. Tymek Kucharczyk, with the #71 of HMD Motorsports, finished fourth, while Jacob Abel made his return to the series, finishing fifth.
Race Development
The race started cleanly for De Tullio, although there was contact between his teammates Hughes and Taylor. On the third lap, Carson Etter of Chip Ganassi Racing suffered a crash in turn 12, prompting the first yellow flag.
The restart took place on lap 5, with De Tullio pulling ahead of Hughes and the rest of the group. As the laps progressed, the Argentine driver extended his lead to 2.5 seconds after 10 laps.
With only 15 laps to go, De Tullio was leading by a considerable margin, while Fittipaldi and Johnson were racing very close in seventh and eighth positions, respectively. This competition was crucial for the standings, as Fittipaldi regained the championship lead with a point ahead of Johnson.
After a race controlled by De Tullio, he crossed the finish line with a clear victory, solidifying his position in the championship before the final three races of the season.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
SourceID: SRC_71233bf7711938719bb529281c592c61e488c86a