THE MODERATOR: We are joined by Dennis Hauger, who led 30 of the 35 laps this afternoon, driver of the No. 28 Rental Group car for Andretti Global, a bounce back from an eighth yesterday, his third win of the season, extends his points lead to 15 points now as they head to the streets of Detroit in a couple weeks.
Lochie Hughes led five laps this afternoon. He finishes second, driver of the No. 26 McGinley Clinic USF Pro Championship machine for Andretti Global. His fourth podium of the season, so a first and a second this weekend for Lochie here on the IMS road course.
And Myles Rowe in the No. 99 Abel Motorsports, fourth INDYCAR podium sweep this weekend for Myles, up two spots after starting fifth today, holding off De Alba and Collet.
Dennis, congratulations. Another win for you. You made it look easy. It wasn't, though, was it?
DENNIS HAUGER: No, yeah, yesterday was a tough day. I think we didn't have the best pace out there, to be honest, yesterday, but I think we sorted some things out for today and were able to fix the mistakes we did and get on with it.
It's a good bounce back from yesterday and shows we're not going to be put down so easily. I'm really happy we made those steps as a team and were able to bounce back like that.
Yeah, it was a good Saturday.
THE MODERATOR: What did you learn from yesterday that you applied to today in your opinion?
DENNIS HAUGER: I think mainly the balance we had through the race yesterday was not ideal, and I think the track changed a bit for today, as well, which we tried to predict a bit, and I think we did a good job with that.
Just brake a bit later for Turn 1, as well, instead of being caught up in something in that first lap. Putting some things together I think was a key point today, and we maximized it, so happy about that.
THE MODERATOR: Do you want to talk through the restart, getting up to first place; what happened for you?
DENNIS HAUGER: Yeah, I got a good restart, just stayed in the slip stream, to be honest, until Turn 1. Just went deeper on the brakes, tried to hang around on the outside. It was really tight. Lochie didn't make it easy on the outside there, but got the inside for Turn 2, so it was just about hanging on.
From then on it was just about managing tires, I think, for everyone, trying to take it easy and not overdo it.
THE MODERATOR: Lochie, a first and a second this weekend, so certainly a nice weekend. Tell us about your day, your thoughts on this weekend as a whole.
LOCHIE HUGHES: Yeah, it was a good weekend. Yeah, just in that race, got a good start initially and felt comfortable and then just got stuffed with the safety car really. Going into Turn 1 leading on the restart is pretty difficult here, especially at the start of the race when everyone has got tires and everything.
Did the best I could, tried to give Dennis as little room as possible. He's a teammate, as well, so had to be a little bit smart at this point in the season.
Yeah, and then after that I put as much pressure on Dennis as I could, and I think honestly I was following too closely and pushing too hard behind him, had some lock-ups, using the tire up a bit too much.
Some of the changes we made, a bit like Dennis, to predict the weather, we kind of made those changes thinking we're going to have clear air, so yeah, following Dennis was a bit difficult and didn't really have anything at the end.
THE MODERATOR: Myles, congratulations to you, podium sweep with two thirds. Talk us through. You made up one spot there on the start and then made up another spot on that restart.
MYLES ROWE: Yeah, it was a pretty good start for us. Once we got through Turn 4 we got a little held up just by all the cars fanning out in front of us going into 1. So actually fell back to sixth but was able to capitalize to get into fourth coming out of 2 going into 4, which worked out really well, and then on the restart, just took an opportunity going into 1 on P3, and that worked out pretty well, pretty clean. Nothing too fancy there.
Then yeah, it was just about following these two Andretti cars here, which was working out for a little bit. I thought we would have some pace in the end, but our tires actually fell off quite severe in the end. So yeah, at the end I was just making sure I managed and got to the finish line. Happy to be here for sure.
Q. Knowing your tire situation you had to hold off De Alba again and then Kyle was back there in 2. Were you keeping an eye on that?
MYLES ROWE: Honestly, not until the last three laps when I was like, okay. It was quite interesting how quick they were able to catch up. But yeah, we fell off like on a cliff. Like if I tried to push any more, it was just only going to hurt me. Just tried to get better exits, keep the car rotated so I could get on power better and doing the best I can to manage that.
I think if I drove a little bit worse, they possibly would have got me. So I'm happy with how I drove today and happy with moving up a few positions from having not such a great qualifying. Looking to build on this into Detroit.
Q. Dennis, two questions for you. You said earlier the track has changed and you improved your balance. Was the track change significant for your win? At the end you were 4.7 seconds in front of Lochie.
DENNIS HAUGER: I think just the track changed in the sense that track temps were a lot higher today. We had a late race yesterday, and today was the middle of the day and a warmer day, as well. I think that made a bigger change for how we had to manage the tires a bit.
As Myles said, as well, just falling off a cliff when you were pushing and overpushing, I think you were just overheating it.
I think that was a really important part of the race for me, and that was sort of the goal was to try and get ahead early to get to clean air. I think that was an important part of it. And then on the last couple laps we were pushing a bit more, but I didn't want to overdo it beginning to mid because I knew it would be about managing.
Yeah, happy we were able to do that and come out on top.
Q. I have a business question for you. I was very surprised two nights ago we bumped into you in the car park and saw that you have Harald Huysman as your manager. Back in the '70s and '80s he was one of the drivers challenging Senna in Formula 4. This is a different era. Can he still teach you what to do with the car from a driver point of view, or is it just totally different, he just gives you business advice as a race driver?
DENNIS HAUGER: I mean, definitely he's helped me up my career, getting tips here and there on and definitely off the track. But I think nowadays he's probably leaving most of it to the engineers. But he's got a lot of experience. He was a quick guy back in the day, so it's always good to have a guy on the team there to talk with and have a team player to work with.
Q. Myles, would you say that your results this weekend are due more to your experience of being around for another year from last year, or working with a new team?
MYLES ROWE: I don't think it has anything to do with experience. I've been -- I felt this comfortable quite early last year, to be very honest. It's really just the new team, I think, and just how we work together. I think we mesh really well. We listen to each other. Yeah, the car works pretty well.
Yeah, I enjoy my time with them. The combination of all of that and just the support they have for me, yeah, it's starting to show. But yeah, I don't think it's an experience thing. I've honestly been really comfortable. Obviously experience helps, but yeah, I just think everything around me is a little bit more better tuned for me.
Q. Myles, I know we're approaching five years of the Race For Equality and Change initiative which is part of your start in your career. Can you talk about how influential that initiative is to your career and where you are today?
MYLES ROWE: Yeah, the Race For Equality and Change has brought many opportunities not only to me but other individuals in the sport, not just as a driver but engineers and mechanics, as well. That's really important because the sport is much bigger than just driving a race car.
So for the speedway to launch that initiative and keep with it and hold up to it, it shows the character that we have for racing in North America and kind of the passion and kind of the strive to build motorsports and make it accessible for all. I think that's something great, and I'm super proud to be a part of it.
Q. Myles, I really enjoyed you talking about experience, versus what I think is confidence. Can you talk about how you continue to be more and more confident in the off-season? A new team, Rod, Keegan, all the great people, your family; everybody was here today. What does that mean to you, how confident that makes you that everybody is on the same page pushing forward?
MYLES ROWE: Yeah, for sure being with Abel Motorsports has shown -- they've shown very, very good support to us and my family and everything. So yeah, naturally my confidence of just everything around me being just better for me has helped me off the track, which helps me on the track sort of a thing. That's something I'm really grateful for, for Bill able and Abel Motorsports, and yeah, it'll continue to show, no doubt.
Q. Starting with you, Dennis, obviously I know yesterday probably wasn't the result you were looking for, but do you feel that going through the field has taught you a lot of stuff you wouldn't have known otherwise?
DENNIS HAUGER: Definitely. Just being for the first time in these cars in dirty air, actually having to use the Push-to-Pass strategically, coming from the back, going up was definitely a good experience. I hope I didn't have to experience it, to be honest, because we lost some points in the championship with that. That's not what you want.
But I think it's a good experience to bring forward. Everything is new this year with Push-to-Pass, tires, tracks and cars. It's all about just gaining experience every weekend, and definitely this was one of the weekends we can take with us into the next one. Yeah, not an optimal weekend points-wise, but a lot learned.
Q. Just for Lochie, do you feel like it's been a breakthrough weekend for you? Do you feel like it's important to carry momentum where the races get a lot more common week after week after week from this point?
LOCHIE HUGHES: Yeah, for sure. I think I learned a fair bit this weekend, and I made some steps forward. It's nice, obviously, now that we're into the swing of things to get some momentum going.
Hope, yeah, this can carry over to Detroit and just keep on improving each weekend.
Q. Just for Myles, you're obviously heading into your second year now. Do you feel more pressure, more expectations to get results like these heading into the second year, or does nothing change from your perspective?
MYLES ROWE: Yeah, for sure the desire for my outside supporters and everything for our success is higher. But the pressure, that doesn't really resonate with me, to be honest. If anything I put more pressure on myself. Honestly, I've been looking for the success just as much as I was last year, and I'll continue to push just the same and not overdo it, sort of a thing. But honestly, it doesn't really resonate too much with me. I'm just here to do my best as best I can and deliver the results that I'm supposed to get.
Q. Dennis, how was it to strike back after that incident yesterday, and did you change your approach in that corner?
DENNIS HAUGER: Yeah, definitely good to bounce back after yesterday. It was a tough day overall. We had a good practice. But a bit of a weird qualifying. I think we didn't quite nail everything from my end and the balance side.
Then going into the race, for sure today I think we learned from our mistakes yesterday, both, I think, balance-wise and driving-wise for me, especially into Turn 1 and also just how to manage the tires around there a bit better.
But yeah, I think we showed that we improved and gained experience into the next day. So I'm really happy about that.
Q. There's a little break now from the INDY NXT racing. Will you keep working with the INDYCAR team and do other stuff as you have done in breaks previously?
DENNIS HAUGER: I don't know. We have a bit of a break, and then watch the 500. That will be nice for the first time. Then looking forward to Detroit. That's going to be a completely new track again, street course. I usually like that. And it looks like a very bumpy one.
We will see how it goes. Just keep working as we have now, and yeah, keep working hard until the next one.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports