Hughes was a title contender through the first eight rounds of the season until he suffered his first finish outside the top 10 at Iowa.

Dennis Hauger, a former Red Bull junior, ultimately ran away with the title while Hughes dipped to third in the standings behind Caio Collet.

That was due largely to a four-race run that saw him record finishes of 16th, sixth, 15th, and 10th across Iowa, the Laguna Seca double-header, and Portland.

At the Milwaukee Mile, Hughes finally found his feet to take the final spot on the podium behind first-time race winner Salvador de Alba and Hauger.

“It’s great,” said Hughes.

“It almost feels like a win after the last few rounds have been kind of a nightmare.

“But first of all, congrats to Dennis. Great for him to win the championship. We were fighting for a while. But no, yeah, happy to finally get a result after the last few weeks.”

Hughes said he enjoyed the change of pace with just the third oval on the calendar.

“I feel like today in the race, we were real quick,” he said.

“It’s just very hard to follow. We had a very good racecar.

“I do like these ovals. Very different type driving. That’s the great thing about this series: we get to do all sorts of racetracks.”

Hauger, who started from pole position, lost the lead to de Alba and settled into second place for the 90-lap contest.

His 10th podium of the season was enough to clinch the crown with one race to spare.

“A big thanks to everyone at Andretti,” said Hauger.

“I’m super proud to be part of this team and to deliver the championship for them.

“It’s been an incredible year, and we’ve still got one more to go in Nashville, so we’ll keep pushing.

“From the beginning, we knew if we could average top-three or top-four finishes, we’d be in the fight for a championship.

“That’s been the focus every weekend, and of course, winning brings the most points.

“Andretti has given me a great car all year, and we’ve been on top of things from start to finish.

“With new tracks and a new car to learn as a rookie, it’s been a challenge, but also a really rewarding season.”

New Zealand’s Callum Hedge finished just shy of the podium in fourth for Abel Motorsports after being displaced by Hughes. Australia’s Tommy Smith was classified 18th with HMD Motorsports but did not finish.

Results: Indy NXT by Firestone at the Milwaukee Mile