McElrea a step closer to possible IndyCar debut

Antipodean racer Hunter McElrea is a chance to feature in IndyCar at the back-end of this season with Dale Coyne Racing following his first ever test day at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

The former race winning Andretti IndyNXT competitor stepped into the revolving #51 Honda machine for the Dale Coyne by Rick Ware Racing team, ticking off a goal that has been a dangling fruit for some time. 

“This whole year has been a test of my desire because honestly, I’ve had a few times where I thought I might be getting an IndyCar drive, or a test, and for whatever reason, it didn’t happen,” McElrea told RACER. 

“Probably a month ago, I felt like I exhausted every option, and it was looking really unlikely I was going to get anything going.

“Then Dale gave me a call and said, ‘There’s an opportunity to jump in and test, would you be interested?’ So before he could finish the sentence, I jumped at it immediately. 

“Racing in IndyCar is why I came from all the way around the world to be here, and I’ve been trying to just test one for so long. I’ve been racing LMP2 in IMSA, which is great, and finally getting in an IndyCar, the test went really well. It was awesome. I loved every lap and I exceeded my own expectations.”

McElrea got his first taste of some Honda IndyCar machinery at Mid-Ohio with Dale Coyne Racing

Racing an ORECA 07 for TDS Racing this season the team managed a podium at the 12 Hours of Sebring, but his heart lies in open wheel racing.

 His time in Indy NXT was well spent, taking Rookie of the Year with Andretti Autosport with two wins and a fourth place finish in the championship, whilst 2023 saw him finish second with a further two trips to victory lane.

His desire is the chance of getting a drive in the remaining IndyCar 8 rounds, which features an oval heavy program. But despite his experience on ovals in the second tier “Road to Indy” ladder, it’s likely that any appearance this year would come at either the Toronto Street race on July 21, or at the Portland Grand Prix on August 25.

“That’s the dream,” he said of competing at the top of the North American tree, 

“The track was in good condition, but I hadn’t driven an open-wheel car since Monterey last year when I won the NXT race with Andretti,” he added, regarding his test experience. 

“I got up to speed pretty quick. The first couple runs were just about getting up to speed, and within 20 laps, I was pretty competitive, and it felt pretty natural; it wasn’t scary-fast, like what I expected. It’s a quick car, but it felt very manageable.”

McElrea finished second in the championship for Andretti Autosport in the 2023 IndyNXT season

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