Alexandra Hainer wraps up McLaren Trophy NA season with class win in Indianapolis
Alexandra Hainer closed the McLaren Trophy North America season with a ProAm victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, completing a strong final stint in the #43 Starface McLaren Artura shared with Jesse Lazare to secure her second class win of the year - coming after a Pro class podium in the Miami make-up race.
Alexandra Hainer closed the 2026 McLaren Trophy North America season with a ProAm victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, delivering a strong final stint in the #43 McLaren Artura shared with Jesse Lazare to secure her second class win of the year.
The reigning champion and Lazare finished fourth in ProAm in the second race of the weekend before returning to the top step in Sunday's season finale, where Hainer took the class lead after the driver change and held off late pressure following a Safety Car interruption. The Indianapolis event featured three races, including a rescheduled make-up race from Miami in which the duo competed in the Pro class, and Hainer also added a Pro class podium to her weekend.
The Indianapolis weekend began with encouraging pace for Hainer and Lazare, who finished second in ProAm in the opening practice session with a 1:26.868 lap. The first race followed on Wednesday afternoon, with Lazare starting third overall and second in the Pro class for the make-up event, which retained the Pro classification used for the original Miami round.
Lazare lost ground at the start, dropping to fourth before slipping to sixth after an early battle with Pintos, but he quickly settled into a rhythm and set the fastest first sector on lap two. As he pushed forward, contact between Dyer and Schmidt ahead allowed him to recover fifth overall and second in class, putting him in pursuit of Madsen. A Full Course Yellow on lap six, triggered when Dyer came to a halt, briefly interrupted the charge, with the field returning to green on lap eight.
Lazare remained fifth overall and second in class after the restart, then gained another position amid further battles to move into fourth. He continued to close on class leader Li in the #74 entry, who headed to the pits on lap 15 with 27 minutes remaining. Lazare stayed out and cycled into the Pro class lead and third overall before making his own stop on lap 18, handing the McLaren over to Hainer.
Hainer rejoined fifth overall and third in class, immediately setting about recovering ground. After recording a 1:29.9 lap, she attacked Highland and made a decisive move for fourth overall, although Cooper Broll subsequently passed her to reclaim the overall position.
Hainer remained third in Pro and maintained a comfortable margin over Kaia Teo, returning to the 1:29s as she continued to push. She then caught Ryan James, gaining around two seconds per lap before making the pass on lap 30 to secure fourth overall. Hainer ultimately finished third in Pro, securing a podium in the make-up race and giving the team an encouraging start to the weekend.
Thursday's qualifying sessions set the grid for the remaining two races, with Hainer taking on Q1. She posted a 1:26.619 lap to initially qualify second in ProAm and 11th overall. Lazare then took over for Q2 and delivered a 1:25.408, securing ProAm pole position and third overall for the final race of the season.
For Race 2, Hainer returned to the ProAm category and started from 10th overall. She made a clean getaway to seize the class lead, while an incident behind involving McPherson and Teo escalated when McPherson outbraked himself and hit Teo before spinning and being collected by Highland. Both cars sustained damage and retired, bringing out the Full Course Yellow, under which Hainer maintained her class lead.
After four laps under caution, the race resumed on lap five, with Hainer remaining clear of the other ProAm entries and staying close to a Pro class car ahead. Her progress was complicated by contact with Stockard's Pro entry, for which she received a five-second penalty to be served at her next pit stop. Another collision, this time between Pollard and King at Turn 1, triggered a second Full Course Yellow just as the pit window opened.
The field returned to green on lap nine, and Hainer pitted from the lead to serve her penalty before handing the car over to Lazare. He rejoined fourth in ProAm and immediately began working his way forward, setting a fast lap of 1:28.042 before improving to 1:27.3. As the final pit stops unfolded, Lazare continued to lower his times, eventually recording a 1:27.0 and setting the fastest lap in class as he chased the AM cars ahead.
Lazare gained positions overall and closed on Madsen, the nearest ProAm rival, cutting the gap to around three seconds. He also caught Cooper Broll's #100 AM car but could not quite get close enough to complete another pass before the finish. After 50 minutes of racing, the #43 crossed the line fourth in ProAm and 10th overall, leaving Hainer and Lazare with one more opportunity to finish the season on the top step in the final race.
The second Indianapolis race in fact saw Lazare start from ProAm pole and third overall. Lazare was boxed in at the start and dropped to fifth into Turn 1, but immediately fought back, using the inside line to reclaim third overall. He was unable to retain the ProAm lead, however, as Oliver Webb moved ahead, leaving Lazare second in class and needing to defend from the AM entry of Broll while keeping O'Brien, the closest ProAm challenger, at a distance.
Lazare remained around 2.5 seconds behind Webb and recorded a personal best of 1:27.314 on lap seven, making up ground on his direct rival. O'Brien responded with a 1:27.7 on lap nine and then made a move to pass Lazare for second in ProAm as the pit window approached. The first stops began on lap 14, but Lazare extended his stint, staying out long enough to cycle up to second overall before pitting on lap 20 to hand the McLaren over to Hainer.
Hainer rejoined second overall and second in ProAm, with Randy Highland leading both the overall and class order. She had a margin of around 11 seconds over the third-placed ProAm car and immediately began closing on Highland, gaining several seconds per lap before making the pass on lap 22 to take the overall and class lead. With the ProAm victory within reach, Hainer focused on maintaining her advantage over Ryan James, while faster Pro class cars Li and Liddy began to close.
The race took another turn with 12 minutes remaining, when a Full Course Yellow neutralised the field and erased Hainer's margin. The green flag returned with nine minutes to go, leaving the entire 21-car field tightly bunched behind her. Li and Liddy moved ahead overall, eventually dropping Hainer to ninth, but she remained in front in ProAm with James closing in and only six minutes left to defend the lead.
Under pressure and navigating traffic, Hainer kept her composure and took no unnecessary risks in fights with the Pro entries. James and Pollard battled behind her for second, allowing Hainer to stay close to Stockard's Pro car and regain some ground. Pollard eventually emerged as the closest ProAm threat, but Hainer matched his pace and held firm through the closing laps to secure the class win, finishing 10th overall.
The victory provided a fitting end to Hainer and Lazare's season, adding another class win to their 2026 partial campaign. After their successful return at Road America and a Pro class podium in the rescheduled Miami race, the Indianapolis finale confirmed that the pair remained highly competitive across both categories, with Hainer once again delivering when it mattered most in the closing stint.
