Light ions deposit their energy in target materials by interaction with bound and free electrons. As the target heats toward inertial confinement fusion temperatures a progression of ionization states will be encountered. The stopping power of each ion created in this process will depend upon details of the respective bound electron states. In general, the net ion stopping power will increase compared to cold matter due to the free electron contribution. We report an experimental and theoretical study of enhanced ion stopping powers in targets heated by 0.5–1.4 TW/cm2proton beams. The experiments were performed on the Proto‐I accelerator with aluminum and nickel foil targets. The theoretical effort incorporated free and bound electron stopping terms in hydrocode simulations of the target response. At these intensities we observe and calculate stopping power enhancements of 100% for aluminum and 50% for nickel.