A ninth-place finish in 2025 as a rookie set the stage for major strides for Jordan Missig heading into this year’s INDY NXT season. He rejoined ABEL, declaring that he would use what he learned to “make me a stronger competitor and help us challenge for wins.” Unfortunately for him, his season has now come to a tragic end.

Missig’s No. 48 car is beyond financial repair after a devastating crash at Nashville Superspeedway on July 19. As a result, he will have to watch the final three race weekends of the season from home.

“As many of you have seen, I was involved in a major crash that was out of my control at Nashville Superspeedway that took me out of the race and caused extensive damage to the #48 Abel Motorsports car,” Missig said via a statement released on X.

“Due to the severity of the damage and the cost of repairs, I unfortunately have to announce that my 2026 INDY NXT by Firestone season has come to an end. I’m absolutely gutted for my team at Abel Motorsports, my family, and my sponsors that our season must end four races early.”

The incident unfolded after Missig lost control of his car coming out of Turn 4. That left former Formula 2 driver Juan Manuel Correa with nowhere to go. Correa slammed into the No. 48, and both cars crashed heavily into the wall, causing severe damage to each.

Correa blamed the track, calling the Superspeedway unpredictable. About Missig, he said post-race, “You could see there was just kind of that slow. He just lost the rear over the bumps gradually; the rear gives up over the oscillations, and there’s no turning back. Unfortunately, I just had nowhere to go.”

For Correa and Cusick Motorsports, the good news is that they will be able to field a car for the next race, which takes place on Sunday, August 9, in Portland. What Missig would have given for this to be true for himself and Abel too.

The announcement ends what had been a fairly decent campaign for the 28-year-old. He sat 15th in the championship standings before the accident, and had two sixth-place finishes, both at the Barber Sports Motorpark.

Missig also took time to thank team owner Bill Abel, John Brunner, and every member of the No. 48 crew for allowing him to compete in the series he dreamed about as a child. While disappointed by how the season ended, he insisted the setback would not define his racing career, promising,

“We’ll be back. Better, faster, and stronger than ever,” he added.

Abel had no choice but to pull the plug. The chassis was destroyed, and replacing it would have cost well into six figures. At the INDY NXT level, teams and drivers rely heavily on sponsorship funding, and an unexpected expense of that size can derail an entire season. That’s exactly what happened to Missig.

Just a few years ago, Missig was climbing the American racing ladder one series at a time, with each season bringing another step toward INDY NXT. Hence, the crushing disappointment.

Missig’s steady rise makes the setback even tougher

How Missig got to this stage was the result of years of climbing the ranks of American sports cars and the open-wheel racing ladder.

The Illinois native began his competitive racing career at Autobahn Country Club in 2017. Back then, he competed in both the Spec Miata and Radical Sports Car classes, where he quickly established himself as a frontrunner and won multiple club victories and championships before stepping up to Radical Cup North America in 2018.

His breakthrough arrived in 2024 when he captured the Radical Cup North American Series championship. The campaign saw him win nine races and finish on the podium 16 times while racing with Graham Rahal Performance and Radical Indianapolis. He also finished third at the Radical World Finals in Abu Dhabi, further showcasing his potential on an international stage.

Missig then went on to make starts in USF Pro 2000, Lamborghini Super Trofeo, and Formula Regional Americas before getting the INDYNXT Shot.

His rookie campaign in 2025 yielded six top-10 finishes, enough to secure ninth in the championship standings and raise expectations for his sophomore season.

While 2026 came to an abrupt end, Missig showed enough to be optimistic about the future. Given everything he has achieved throughout his junior career, there’s every reason to believe he’ll be back on the grid once the opportunity comes.