Santino Ferrucci says 'good chance' he'll run the 2021 Indy 500 along with Xfinity schedule
Nathan BrownCount Xfinity Series rookie and former full-time IndyCar driver Santino Ferrucci as a likely candidate to fill an open or unannounced Indianapolis 500 seat for this year’s May 30 race.
Leading into his Xfinity Series debut this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway – the start of five consecutive races for the 22-year-old American driver with Sam Hunt Racing – Ferrucci told media Wednesday there’s a “good chance” he’ll return to the 2.5-mile superspeedway where he finished seventh as the race Rookie of the Year in 2019, followed by fourth last August.
Though he didn’t specify, Ferrucci said he has spoken with teams already about the possibility, though his focus will be on stock cars until April 9, which marks the end of his five-race run at Homestead (Feb. 27), Las Vegas (March 6), Phoenix (March 13), Atlanta (March 20) and Martinsville (April 9).
“May is coming up pretty quick, but I’ve started to put everything on hold (regarding prospective Indy 500 talks) to really focus on these next five races,” he said. “But I definitely think there would be a good chance we’ll be in the 500 in May."
Among the possibilities are a pair of open cars with his former IndyCar team. Dale Coyne Racing, where Ferrucci drove the No. 18 Honda a year ago and the No. 19 full-time in 2019, has in place a partnership with NASCAR program Rick Ware Racing for a full-season seat in the No. 51 and a partial-season program in the No. 52 that will include the Indy 500 and select other races yet to be announced.
Former Formula 1 driver Romain Grosjean is already in place to run the road and street course races in the No. 51, leaving the doubleheader at Texas Motor Speedway (May 1-2), the Indy 500 (May 30) and, potentially, the Aug. 21 race at WWT Raceway. Grosjean is considering running the short oval.
When looking at potential conflicts for Ferrucci those weekends, he’d be wide-open for Texas, as well as Indy 500 qualifying May 22-23 as Xfinity runs a road race at Circuit of the Americas, races Ferrucci said he’s extremely unlikely to run in 2021. Xfinity does run at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile oval track that Ferrucci said he’s focusing on this year, the day before the 500 May 29, which wouldn’t preclude the American driver from competing in the 500 the following afternoon.
The Xfinity Series then goes to Michigan International Speedway Aug. 21, considered a superspeedway that Ferrucci said he does hope to run at least once in 2021, but other opportunities exist at Pocono (June 27), Daytona (Aug. 27) and Talladega (Oct. 2).
Presently, the rest of Ferrucci's roughly 20-race schedule for this year with SHR is unannounced. Among the driver's near-future goals, he said he plans to pursue a full-season Xfinity slate in 2022.
But for now, Ferrucci clarified Wednesday he would be open to running additional ovals in IndyCar this year beyond the 500.
“It’s something I’d be open to, but Xfinity comes first,” he said. “If my schedule can fit running ovals with an IndyCar team, I will 100% do it because experience is experience, laps are laps, and I truly believe we can win some races if we’re with the right team in an Indy car on ovals."
More on Dale Coyne/Rick Ware in IndyCar:
- Romain Grosjean spins, learns in first IndyCar test: 'The real race is in the car'
- Insider: With Romain Grosjean confirmed, here's what's next for Coyne, Ware
- 'I wanted to go where I wanted': Why F1's Romain Grosjean chose IndyCar
- Insider: After series of letdowns, Ed Jones found his way back to Dale Coyne Racing
Beyond the No. 51 Coyne/Ware entry, the No. 52 doesn't have an announced Indy 500 driver, though it appears primed to run more than just ovals. In particular, Rick Ware previously told media he’s eyed the doubleheader June 12-13 IndyCar weekend at Belle Isle, which overlaps with the NASCAR Cup Series’ non-points-paying All-Star race. Ware’s son, Cody, previously tested in an Indy car at Sebring ahead of his first full NASCAR Cup Series schedule, and Rick said his son is expected to contribute to the team’s partnership this season on either the No. 51 or 52 in IndyCar. It’s unclear, though, whether he’ll be approved to run an IndyCar oval race or not, given his lack of open-wheel racing experience.
Notably, last year’s Coyne/Ware driver for the pair’s No. 51 entry in the 104th running of the Indy 500, James Davison, announced last weekend he will make a return for his seventh 500, but has yet to announce a team. Having run four times in the 500 with Coyne previously, the Australian driver would seem an ideal fit with the team, and a Coyne official told IndyStar Davison will not be part of the No. 51 team. Starting to piece together possibilities, Ferrucci would seem a solid fit to fill out Grosjean’s No. 51 oval races, with Davison running the 500 in the No. 52 and Ware taking on other road or street races, though nothing has been confirmed.
Regarding the 500, those two Coyne/Ware seats are the only ones formally announced without a driver. Though Carlin hasn’t made any announcements regarding its 2021 IndyCar plans, it’s assumed the team will return to the series with at least one car involving Max Chilton, who for the last two years has run a road-and-street-only program in the team’s No. 59 Chevy, along with the 500. Additional (and presently unannounced) potential entries from Andretti Autosport, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Dreyer and Reinbold Racing, Top Gun Racing and others will presumably fill the field to 33 cars – and likely beyond for a return to bumping during Indy 500 Qualifying Weekend.
At the moment, the series stands with 28 confirmed car-and-driver combinations for this year’s 500, with the Coyne/Ware cars pushing the field to 30.
Email IndyStar motor sports reporter Nathan Brown at nlbrown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter: @By_NathanBrown.