It wasn’t just Callum Hedge flying the Tony Quinn Foundation colours over the weekend in Indy NXT — fellow ambassador Liam Sceats was also in action at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with the 19-year-old delivering another mighty performance despite battling a painful arm infection that nearly ruled him out of Sunday’s race.
With his future in the series still uncertain, it was a crucial outing for Sceats — and he absolutely rose to the occasion! Let’s take a look at how his weekend unfolded at the famed Brickyard, the track where the young Kiwi claimed his maiden USF Pro 2000 win last year.
After a single 50-minute practice session, Sceats headed into Qualifying needing to close the gap to the leaders, having ended Practice 1.36 seconds off pacesetter Dennis Hauger.
Qualifying would be vital, not only for setting the Race 1 grid, but also Race 2, with each driver’s second-fastest lap used to determine their starting position for Sunday’s race (NZT).
Drawn into Group 2 for the second weekend running, Sceats faced a tough task as Group 1 proved quicker overall. He clocked a best time of 1:15.6257 to go seventh in his group — a lap just a couple of tenths off the top four in Group 2 and a solid step forward from practice.
His second-best lap also ranked seventh, meaning he’d be starting both races from 14th position. It left the Kiwi with plenty to do — but as he’s shown before, that’s no problem.
In Race 1, Sceats got stuck in immediately. A brilliant launch saw him jump into the top ten within the opening corners, and by Lap 3, he was up to ninth. He then chased down Jordan Missig and capitalised on a restart to make the move for eighth on Lap 13.
He spent the next phase of the race tucked up behind James Roe, and on Lap 28 had a big scare as Roe ran wide, bounced off the wall, and came back across the track — narrowly missing Sceats before collecting Nikita Johnson.
The incident brought out another caution and elevated Sceats to seventh, where he’d stay to the flag, setting his fastest lap on the final tour and finishing just four tenths behind sixth.
The charge from 14th earned him the “Biggest Mover” award — a just reward for a clinical drive.
Come Race 2, it was more of the same. Another strong getaway saw him immediately gain ground, and by Lap 3, he was back inside the top ten after dodging a Turn 1 clash ahead.
A mid-race caution bunched the field again, and although Sceats briefly slipped back to 11th, he fought back with clean passes on Papasavvas and Roe to move into ninth.
Sceats found himself locked in a thrilling four-car battle with Koolen, Johnson, and fellow Kiwi Callum Hedge in the closing laps.
The positions kept changing all the way to the chequered flag, with Sceats eventually crossing the line in eighth — another well-earned top-ten finish, and his third in a row.
Even more impressive was that he did it all while battling a painful arm infection—one that nearly ruled him out of the final race.
After Sunday’s race (NZT), Sceats was taken straight to the hospital for scans and minor surgery. Fortunately, we’re happy to report that he’s on the mend!
After another standout weekend, Sceats now sits seventh in the Indy NXT standings — just two points clear of Hedge and 97 behind leader Dennis Hauger.
Whether we’ll see him return at Detroit in two weeks’ time remains to be seen as he’s on a race by race basis, but here’s hoping we haven’t seen the last of Liam Sceats in Indy NXT. His talent, grit and determination are impossible to ignore.
From all of the team at the Tony Quinn Foundation and Velocity News, we wish Liam a speedy recovery, and we can’t wait to see what comes next in his journey.
Header Image: Penske Entertainment – Karl Zemlin
