As one of the most accomplished NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers from the United States, Ryan Hunter-Reay of Andretti Autosport has earned the nickname “Captain America.”

Last Saturday at Texas Motor Speedway, Hunter-Reay became “Captain Comeback.”

2012 NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion and 2014 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Hunter-Reay had to overcome adversity twice in one day. He brushed the Turn 2 wall in practice with his No. 28 DHL Honda, incurring a broken toe link in the right rear. When the rear suspension collapsed, the car turned slightly to the right and into the backstretch wall.

That sprung the Andretti Autosport crew into immediate action. The team repaired the damaged car to make it into the qualification line with just three minutes to spare. Hunter-Reay was able to wring enough speed out of the machine to qualify fourth for the Genesys 300 that evening.

Another problem arose a few hours later, just before the green flag to start the race. There was an electronic issue with his engine.

When Hunter-Reay turned the car to standby, the middle ignition button, his screen said, “HPD plug-in required.”

It couldn’t be restarted until the Honda engineer assigned to the team was able to plug in the computer to reset the ECU (electronic control unit). The same malfunction happened to fellow Honda driver and teammate Alexander Rossi and Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Because the cars were impounded after qualifications, the team was not allowed to make any changes on the car. The ECU issue was cleared by the HPD engineer, but Hunter-Reay had to relinquish his fourth starting position on the grid and start at the back of the field. On top of that, both Hunter-Reay and Rossi were assessed drive-through penalties.

It was early in the race, and Hunter-Reay was already one lap down.

“It happened on a strange day, in general, for sure,” Hunter-Reay said Monday from his home in Florida.

The start of the 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season had been delayed since the decision was made March 13 to halt the series because of the COVID-19 pandemic. INDYCAR instituted strict safety precautions to start the season in the June 6 race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Officials and teams flew in the morning of the race, staged practice, qualifications and the race in one day, loaded up the equipment and flew home in the same 24-hour period.

Drivers, however, were allowed to arrive the day before and stay in their motorhomes in the TMS infield once they cleared their medical screening. Hunter-Reay was one of those drivers and was sequestered in his motorhome in the infield at 6 p.m. Central time.

Hunter-Reay spent the night in his bus. When the team arrived at 8 a.m., he was with his Andretti Autosport crew from 8 a.m. until 11 p.m.

When Hunter-Reay hit the track, he was one of the many drivers that discovered a particularly slick surface on the high line in the corners. On one of the laps, he brushed the Turn 2 wall, and that sheared a bolt on the toe link that led to his crash.

“The DHL guys did a fantastic job in 103-degree heat after being up since 4 a.m.,” Hunter-Reay said. “They were thrashing all day.

“To put it up front, P4, felt like pole for us.”

There were more challenges to overcome in the race, though.

After the electronic issue and serving the drive-through penalty, Hunter-Reay had to fight through the one-lap deficit.

“It was frustrating after the huge turnaround we had to overcome to qualify up front,” Hunter-Reay said. “I’ve learned over the years in INDYCAR, you can never give up. I just kept my head down. It doesn’t matter what happens in the race, I was going to be charging 100 percent. I kept my head down, kept on the strategy and went as fast as we could.”

That approach paid off, especially when he got back on the lead lap.

“We wanted a yellow because we were a lap down so that we could stay out when the leaders pitted so that we could get our wave-around, so we had to wait for a yellow,” Hunter-Reay said. “We picked up some spots passing some cars, but we were still a lap down. There were very few of us at the beginning that were a lap or two down, so we were in our own category until the yellow came out at the right time to get the wave-around.

“We were P20 or something at that point, but we were back on the lead lap.”

From there, Hunter-Reay charged his way to an eighth-place finish.

“Finishing P8 after starting a lap down is an accomplishment, for sure,” Hunter-Reay said. “Hopefully, we get our bad luck out of the way so we don’t have to go through that again.”

For Hunter-Reay and the rest of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, the long wait to get the season started is over.

“I’m thrilled to get the first race in,” Hunter-Reay said. “Just to get back with my team and get back in the rhythm of our way of life, back in the flow of the car. I’ve been out of the car for so long, you are wondering how that first race is going to go, over one day.

“All in all, it went pretty well for the series.

“Our goal is to get the fans back to the races later this season. They are what makes this series.”