On the occasion of the first oval event of the season at the 375 miles of Texas on March 20, the IndyCar grid will have two novelties Regarding the St. Petersburg Grand Prix that kicked off at the end of February. Two American pilots, J. R. Hildebrand and Ed Carpenterwill have the opportunity to climb into the third car of their respective teams, AJ Foyt Racing and Ed Carpenter Racing, in a role they will fill during the five oval races that make up the 2022 schedule, including the Indianapolis 500.
This Friday there was the official announcement of Hildebrand, a 34-year-old veteran, as Foyt’s #11 car oval driver, taking over from a Tatiana Calderón who signed a program focused on permanent and urban circuit races for her debut season. The Californian driver, Indy Lights champion in 2009, is considered a specialist in ovals; he has obtained the three only podiums in his career in this fieldand accumulates eleven consecutive participations in the Indy 500, an appointment that he was about to win in his first attempt in 2011 until his famous accident in the last corner, for which he crossed the finish line second after the ill-fated Dan Wheldon.
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In fact, since a fractured 2013 in which he lost his seat after crashing on the fourth lap of the Indy 500, his only appearances beyond Indianapolis date back to a frustrating 2017 as Carpenter’s full-time pilot. He finished 15th overall, the same position he held last year at Indianapolis, where he was already Foyt’s third driver at the wheel of a #1 car in tribute to the 60th anniversary of owner AJ’s first of four wins. Foyt. In addition to his new role, Hildebrand plans to rescue his project this year to compete in the legendary Climb to Pikes Peak with a modern Dallara IR18, aborted in 2021 due to logistical problems.
A week earlier, Ed Carpenter Racing had formalized that its founder and owner, Ed Carpenter would be behind the wheel of a third vehicle in all oval races. A common circumstance, but one that had been left up in the air when Conor Daly was announced as the full-time driver of the second car with which Carpenter, 41, has competed in every oval event since 2014. Until this year, his line-up had only been able to afford to field a third machine in the Indy 500, but the new financial support from its drivers has finally given the green light to this partial expansion, which will not be replicated on road circuits.
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Carpenter’s great ambition since childhood is to cross the finish line first among the 33 competitors in the Indy 500. With this in mind, his car It will take precisely the number #33which also fits with his birthday (March 3) and the number of wins and poles (3) he has earned in his 191 IndyCar races since 2003. The vast majority of his appearances have been on the oval due to his previous background on the dirt ovals, although until 2013 he did not finish throwing in the towel. Carpenter hasn’t missed an Indy 500 since his debut in 2004.and this will be his 19th attempt in pursuit of the glory that came so close in the 2018 edition, in which he finished second after his third pole position in this event.
Last year he enjoyed a competitive car again, starting fourth and finishing fifth in what was his only top 10 of the season in the four races he entered. For now, knows what it’s like to win in Texaswhere he obtained his last victory in 2014. After this event and the one in Indianapolis, which this year will be held on May 29, both Hildebrand and Carpenter will participate in the Iowa double-test on July 23-24, and will close out their season on August 20 at the Gateway 500.
With these confirmations, the IndyCar grid will count on all oval appointments with a total of 27 troopsone more than on the road, thereby breaking several modern statistics for oval racing outside of the Indy 500. Since the introduction of the current chassis in 2012, no ‘normal’ oval event had gone over 26 cars, with the last superior references being those of the final appointments of 2011, with 29 cars in Kentucky and 34 in the tragic and aborted race in Las Vegas. In fact, in the last eight years (since 2014), no oval beyond Indianapolis had even surpassed 24 drivers. A good sign for the potential rebirth of a discipline necessary for the championship’s identity.
Photos: IndyCar Media