2024 IndyCar season
NTT IndyCar Series
Season
Races17
Start dateMarch 10
End dateSeptember 15
Awards

The 2024 NTT IndyCar Series will be the 113th official championship season of American open wheel racing and the 29th season under IndyCar Series sanction. Its showcase event will be the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500.

Spanish driver Álex Palou will enter the season as the defending champion, having obtained his second IndyCar title in 2023, while Josef Newgarden will enter the season as the defending Indianapolis 500 winner.

Background and series news

The 2.2-liter engines used in the series are scheduled to have hybrid technology implemented after the original plans to debut a new 2.4-liter hybrid engine formula were scrapped.[1] The original plan was to introduce the hybrid powertrain at the start of the season in St. Petersburg, but on December 7, 2023, IndyCar announced a delay to its introduction, until after the Indianapolis 500.[2]

Confirmed entries

The following teams, entries, and drivers have been announced to compete in the 2024 NTT IndyCar Series season. All teams will use a spec Dallara IR18 chassis with universal aero kit and Firestone tires.

Team Engine No. Driver(s) Round(s) Ref(s)
Abel Motorsports Chevrolet 50 United States R. C. Enerson  R  5 [3]
A. J. Foyt Racing[N 1] Chevrolet 14 United States Santino Ferrucci All [4]
41 United States Sting Ray Robb All [5]
Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian Honda 26 United States Colton Herta All [6][7]
Andretti Global 27 United States Kyle Kirkwood All [8]
28 Sweden Marcus Ericsson All [9]
Andretti Herta with Marco Andretti and Curb-Agajanian 98 United States Marco Andretti 5 [10]
Arrow McLaren Chevrolet 5 Mexico Pato O'Ward All [11]
6 United States David Malukas All [12]
7 United States Alexander Rossi All [13]
McLaren-Hendrick 17 United States Kyle Larson  R  5 [14]
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 4 Cayman Islands Kyffin Simpson  R  All [15][16]
8 Sweden Linus Lundqvist  R  All [17][18]
9 New Zealand Scott Dixon All [19]
10 Spain Álex Palou All [20][21]
11 New Zealand Marcus Armstrong All [20]
Dale Coyne Racing Honda TBA TBA All [10]
TBA TBA All [10]
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet 23 TBA 5 [22]
24 TBA 5 [22]
Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet TBA Denmark Christian Rasmussen  R  5 [23]
20 1–4, 6–9, 12, 14, 17 [23][24]
United States Ed Carpenter 5, 10–11, 13, 15–16 [23]
21 Netherlands Rinus VeeKay All [25]
Juncos Hollinger Racing[N 2] Chevrolet 77 France Romain Grosjean All [26]
78 Argentina Agustín Canapino All [27]
Meyer Shank Racing[N 3] Honda 06 Brazil Hélio Castroneves 5 [28]
60 Sweden Felix Rosenqvist All [29]
66 United Kingdom Tom Blomqvist  R  All [28]
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 15 United States Graham Rahal All [30]
30 Brazil Pietro Fittipaldi All [31][32]
45 Denmark Christian Lundgaard All [33]
Team Penske Chevrolet 2 United States Josef Newgarden All [34]
3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin All [35]
12 Australia Will Power All [36]
R Eligible for Rookie of the Year

Driver changes

Preseason

  • On January 12, 2023, Arrow McLaren confirmed reports that 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson would drive for the team in the Indianapolis 500, with the entry to be co-owned by Larson's Cup Series car owner Rick Hendrick.[14]
  • On August 11, 2023, Meyer Shank Racing confirmed reports that its IMSA driver Tom Blomqvist would drive for its No. 66 entry full-time in 2024, with 4-time Indianapolis 500 winner Hélio Castroneves moving to an Indy-only role for the team, as well as receiving an ownership stake in the team.[28]
  • On August 23, 2023, Andretti Autosport confirmed reports that 2022 Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson would join the team, departing Chip Ganassi Racing after four seasons. Ganassi stated on social media the same day that it would announce driver updates "in due course".[9] On August 31, 2023, Chip Ganassi Racing confirmed reports that 2022 Indy Lights champion Linus Lundqvist would join the team on a full-time basis, ultimately replacing Ericsson in the No. 8 car.[17][18]
  • On September 2, 2023, NBC Sports reported that Romain Grosjean told them that he would be departing Andretti Autosport after two seasons with the team.[37]
    • On October 4, 2023, Grosjean released a statement confirming his departure from Andretti, and that he has commenced an arbitration proceeding in Indiana against the team, saying that he had expected to continue racing with the team "in the coming years."[38]
  • On September 5, 2023, Meyer Shank Racing confirmed reports that Felix Rosenqvist had signed to drive the No. 60 entry in a multi-year deal. Rosenqvist departs Arrow McLaren after three seasons.[29]
  • On September 5, 2023, 2019 Indianapolis 500 winner and 2016 IndyCar Series champion Simon Pagenaud released a statement confirming his departure from Meyer Shank Racing after two seasons, saying that he is focusing on his recovery from injuries sustained in a crash during practice at Mid-Ohio in 2023.[39]
  • On September 7, 2023, Chip Ganassi Racing confirmed reports that Marcus Armstrong had re-signed with the team on a full-time basis with a multi-year contract, having served as road/street course driver alongside Takuma Sato in 2023.[20]
  • On September 8, 2023, Arrow McLaren confirmed reports that David Malukas had signed to drive the No. 6 entry full-time in 2024, departing Dale Coyne Racing after two seasons.[12]
  • On September 18, 2023, Chip Ganassi Racing announced that development driver Kyffin Simpson would join the team full time in 2024, expanding the team to 5 cars. At the time of the announcement, no number has been confirmed.[15]
  • On October 23, 2023, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced that Haas F1 Team reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi will drive the team's No. 30 entry full-time in 2024, making his first start in the series since the 2021 season. The same day, RLL confirmed that Jüri Vips, who drove the No. 30 entry in the final two races of 2023, will remain under contract with the team, with the possibility of part-time competition in a fourth entry, testing duties and opportunities in IMSA competition.[32][40]
  • On October 25, 2023, Ed Carpenter Racing announced that 2023 Indy NXT champion Christian Rasmussen will drive the team's No. 20 entry on road and street courses in 2024, and in a third entry at the Indianapolis 500. Team owner/driver Ed Carpenter will compete in all oval races in the No. 20, having driven for the team's third entry for the last two seasons.[24]
  • On October 26, 2023, Juncos Hollinger Racing announced that they had mutually decided to part ways with driver Callum Ilott after three seasons together.[41] On November 2, 2023, Juncos confirmed that Romain Grosjean signed for the team, replacing the outgoing Ilott.[26]
  • On December 15, 2023, A. J. Foyt Racing announced that Sting Ray Robb would drive the No. 41 entry full-time for the 2024 season, leaving Dale Coyne Racing after one season. Initial reports covering the announcement stated that Robb was to replace Benjamin Pedersen, with the entry being renumbered to 41 from the 55 which Pedersen drove in 2023.[5] However, later that day, Pedersen released a statement on social media implying that he has not left the team and that Robb would be joining as his teammate, with team director Larry Foyt being non-committal when directly asked if Robb was replacing Pedersen during a teleconference with media.[42]

Team changes

Preseason

  • On September 5, 2023, Andretti Autosport announced a rebrand that would take effect for the 2024 season, with all of its race teams running under the Andretti Global banner.[43]
  • On October 3, 2023, Arrow McLaren and Juncos Hollinger Racing announced the formation of a strategic alliance that "may evolve over time," beginning with a "commercial and strategic focus" and "talent development opportunity."[26]
  • On November 10, 2023, Andretti Global confirmed that they would reduce to three entries from four for the 2024 season.[44]

Midseason

Schedule

The schedule was released on September 25, 2023.[45]

Rd. Race name Track Location Date
1 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg  R  Streets of St. Petersburg St. Petersburg, Florida March 10[46]
NC The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge  R  The Thermal Club Thermal, California March 24[47]
2 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach  R  Streets of Long Beach Long Beach, California April 21[46]
3 Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix  R  Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Alabama April 28[48]
4 Sonsio Grand Prix  R  Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course Speedway, Indiana May 11[46]
5 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500  O  Indianapolis Motor Speedway May 26[46]
6 Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix  R  Streets of Detroit Detroit, Michigan June 2[46]
7 Grand Prix of Road America  R  Road America Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin June 9[48]
8 Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey  R  WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca Monterey, California June 23
9 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio  R  Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Lexington, Ohio July 7
10 Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend Race 1  O  Iowa Speedway Newton, Iowa July 13
11 Hy-Vee Indycar Race Weekend Race 2 July 14
12 Honda Indy Toronto  R  Exhibition Place Toronto, Ontario July 21[48]
13 Bommarito Automotive Group 500  O  World Wide Technology Raceway Madison, Illinois August 17
14 BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland  R  Portland International Raceway Portland, Oregon August 25
15 Milwaukee Mile Race 1  O  Milwaukee Mile West Allis, Wisconsin August 31[49]
16 Milwaukee Mile Race 2 September 1[49]
17 Big Machine Music City Grand Prix  R  Nashville Street Circuit Nashville, Tennessee September 15[50]

NOTE: Race names are preliminary and subject to change.

O Oval track
R Road/street course

NC Non-championship race

Schedule changes

  • On August 3, IndyCar announced that the Music City Grand Prix will host the season finale from 2024 onwards. The 2024 race will feature a new layout that runs through Broadway in Downtown Nashville, but still features the Korean War Memorial Bridge.[51] Laguna Seca's date has been moved to June to accommodate this.
  • On September 25, IndyCar released the 2024 schedule. The Texas race, which had been a feature of the schedule from the 1996–97 season, will not return in 2024. Besides Texas, the Gallagher Grand Prix will not return in 2024, ending the joint IndyCar–NASCAR weekend (where both series raced at the same venue on the same weekend) established in 2020. Both races were replaced by the Milwaukee Mile Doubleheader.[52] Night races were also reintroduced for Gateway and the Saturday Iowa race.[45]

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Technical partnership with Team Penske.
  2. ↑ "Strategic alliance" with Arrow McLaren.
  3. ↑ Technical partnership with Andretti Global.

References

  1. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (December 6, 2022). "IndyCar drops plans for new 2.4l engine". Racer.com. Retrieved December 7, 2022.
  2. ↑ Martin, Bruce (December 7, 2023). "IndyCar Delays Hybrid Assist Unit Until After 108th Indianapolis 500". Forbes. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  3. ↑ Dejewski, Kevin (January 11, 2024). "Enerson confirms Indy 500 return with Abel Motorsports". Motorsportweek.com. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  4. ↑ Barnes, Joey (January 9, 2024). "Santino Ferrucci back with AJ Foyt Racing for 2024 season". Motorsport.com. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  5. 1 2 Pruett, Marshall (December 15, 2023). "Robb moves to Foyt team for 2024". RACER. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  6. ↑ Fryer, Jenna (October 25, 2022). "Herta signs 4-year Andretti IndyCar extension through 2027". AP NEWS. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  7. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (July 7, 2023). "Andretti Autosport restructuring IndyCar program for 2024". RACER. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  8. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (September 26, 2023). "Kirkwood extends deal with Andretti". RACER. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  9. 1 2 Benyon, Jack (August 23, 2023). "Ericsson to leave Ganassi for IndyCar rival Andretti". The Race. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 "Setting the Scene for 2024: Plenty of Action, Intrigue Ahead". IndyCar.com. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  11. ↑ "O'Ward signs contract extension with AMSP". racer.com. May 27, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  12. 1 2 Pruett, Marshall (September 8, 2023). "Malukas joins Arrow McLaren for 2024 IndyCar season". RACER. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Rossi confirmed for Arrow McLaren SP move in 2023". racer.com. June 2, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  14. 1 2 Malsher-Lopez, David (January 12, 2023). "Kyle Larson to race for McLaren-Hendrick in 2024 Indy 500". www.autosport.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  15. 1 2 "Chip Ganassi Racing promotes development driver Kyffin Simpson, will run 5 cars in 2024". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
  16. ↑ Wood, Ida (September 19, 2023). "What you should know about IndyCar's new driver and his case for a seat". Formula Scout. ...Simpson added, before confirming that he is set to race under a Cayman Islands licence next year.
  17. 1 2 Pruett, Marshall (August 31, 2023). "Ganassi confirms Lundqvist for 2024 IndyCar season". RACER. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
  18. 1 2 "Lundqvist to drive No. 8 American Legion Honda in 2024". IndyCar.com. November 27, 2023. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  19. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (July 31, 2023). "Ganassi in no rush to lock down 2024 IndyCar drivers". RACER. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
  20. 1 2 3 Pruett, Marshall (September 7, 2023). "Armstrong signs multi-year IndyCar deal with Ganassi". RACER. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  21. ↑ Bradley, Charles (September 12, 2023). "IndyCar champ Palou sets sights on 2024 Indy 500, could race #1". Autosport. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  22. 1 2 "Dreyer & Reinbold planning for two-car Indy 500 entry". RACER. December 6, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  23. 1 2 3 "Rasmussen to Race Partial Schedule for ECR in 2024". IndyCar.com. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  24. 1 2 Wood, Ida (October 25, 2023). "Indy Nxt champion Christian Rasmussen gets IndyCar seat with ECR". Formula Scout. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  25. ↑ Brown, Nathan. "Rinus VeeKay signs new multi-year deal with Ed Carpenter Racing". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  26. 1 2 3 "Grosjean To Drive for Juncos Hollinger in 2024". www.indycar.come. November 2, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  27. ↑ "Juncos Hollinger Extends Canapino for 2024 Drive". IndyCar.com. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  28. 1 2 3 Pruett, Marshall (August 11, 2023). "Blomqvist gets full-time MSR IndyCar drive for 2024 as Castroneves goes Indy 500-only". RACER.
  29. 1 2 Pruett, Marshall (September 5, 2023). "Rosenqvist signs multiyear IndyCar deal with Meyer Shank Racing". Racer.com.
  30. ↑ Barnes, Joey (November 13, 2023). "Rahal signs multi-year deal to remain with Rahal Letterman Lanigan". Autosport. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  31. ↑ alison, markus (October 23, 2023). "Pietro Fittipaldi To Drive The No. 30 Entry For Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing In The 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Season". Rahal Letterman Lanigan. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  32. 1 2 Benyon, Jack (October 23, 2023). "F1 reserve driver gets full-time IndyCar return for 2024". The Race. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  33. ↑ Malsher-Lopez, David (August 17, 2022). "Lundgaard signs multi-year deal with Rahal Letterman Lanigan". Motorsport.com. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  34. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (September 9, 2022). "New deal for Power next on Penske checklist". RACER. Retrieved July 8, 2023. "We just did Scotty and we're on a long-term contract with Josef right now," Penske told RACER.
  35. ↑ Malsher-Lopez, David (September 7, 2022). "McLaughlin, Penske sign multi-year contract extension". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  36. ↑ Martin, Bruce (March 31, 2023). "Power Signs Multi-Year Extension With Team Penske". SPEED SPORT. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  37. ↑ Martin, Bruce (September 2, 2023). "Andretti Autosport could downsize to 3 cars in 2024; Romain Grosjean says he won't return". NBC Sports. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  38. ↑ Benyon, Jack; Khorounzhiy, Valentin (October 4, 2023). "Grosjean taking action against Andretti following IndyCar exit". The Race. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  39. ↑ Newbold, James (September 5, 2023). "Rosenqvist joins Meyer Shank Racing for 2024 IndyCar season, Pagenaud departs". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  40. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (October 23, 2023). "Vips retained by RLL; fourth IndyCar entry possible for 2024". RACER. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  41. ↑ "Ilott splits with Juncos Hollinger Racing". RACER. October 26, 2023. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  42. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (December 15, 2023). "Pedersen lays claim to Foyt IndyCar seat after Robb signing". RACER. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  43. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (September 5, 2023). "Andretti Autosport becomes Andretti Global". RACER.
  44. ↑ "Andretti IndyCar line-up set as it shrinks to three cars for 2024". The Race. November 10, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  45. 1 2 "INDYCAR ANNOUNCES 17-RACE 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES SCHEDULE". IndyCar.com. September 25, 2023. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  46. 1 2 3 4 5 "More 2024 IndyCar event dates locked in". Racer.com. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  47. 1 2 Khorounzhiy, Valentin. "IndyCar Adds $1Million Non-Points Heat-Format Event For 2024". the-race.com. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  48. 1 2 3 "IndyCar's 2024 schedule is proving tough to put together. Here's where things stand". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
  49. 1 2 Martin, Bruce (September 25, 2023). "2024 IndyCar Schedule Features Milwaukee Return, Texas Depart". SpeedSport. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  50. ↑ "Nashville To Host NTT INDYCAR SERIES Finale Sept. 13-15, 2024". IndyCar.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  51. ↑ "Nashville To Host NTT INDYCAR SERIES Finale Sept. 13-15, 2024". IndyCar.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  52. ↑ Dejewski, Kevin (September 25, 2023). "The NTT IndyCar Series has released the schedule for the 2024 season, featuring a few drastic changes compared to recent years". motorsportweek.com. Retrieved September 25, 2023.

Sources

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