After a top-ten finish at Barber Motorsports Park two weeks ago, Christian Bogle was looking to be on an upward trajectory in the opening rounds of the 2023 championship season with HMD Motorsports. As a team, HMD Motorsports had been very successful in the first two races of the season. However, both the team and Christian Bogle struggled to make gaps and find pace this past weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Grand Prix weekend.
In the opening practice session, the eight-car team covered the field from front to back, with Christian Bogle coming in 13th in the one and only practice session of the weekend. With a tight turnaround to convert the track from the road course layout to the oval for the Indianapolis 500, the Grand Prix weekend took place over just two days with a condensed schedule, giving the INDY NXT drivers only one practice session before heading out for qualifying, where Bogle qualified 18th on Friday afternoon.
In the 35-lap race early Saturday afternoon, Bogle was able to make the jump up into 17th on the start, where he stayed for eight laps, before falling back into 18th for the remainder of the race.
“Tough weekend all around for us,” expressed Bogle. “Our pace was decent at the Mid-Ohio test earlier in the week and everything was good in practice. We just seemed to miss the mark in qualifying and the race. We will regroup for Detroit in a few weeks’ time.”
With 11 rounds remaining in the 2023 INDY NXT by Firestone season, Bogle still has multiple opportunities to make up points and work his way up in the championship.
The INDY NXT field will be back early next month for the INDY NXT by Firestone Detroit Grand Prix double-header weekend on the new circuit through the streets of downtown Detroit, June 2-4.
Stay tuned to the Christian Bogle Racing social media pages for news, information, photos, and results from the 2023 season.
Photo: RTD Media