IndyCar Weekly: Signings, Super Licenses and surprise appearances
Although we may now be far removed from IndyCar's season finale at Laguna Seca, the announcements continue to trickle in from both the IndyCar and Indy NXT paddocks, including 2027 deals being finalised and cars being back on-track. IndyCar Weekly provides your round-up of the news from IndyCar and Indy NXT from the last seven days.
Johnson confirmed for IndyCar graduation with Dale Coyne Racing
The 2027 IndyCar field has become more clear this week after 2026 Indy NXT Champion Nikita Johnson was confirmed to fill the first of Dale Coyne Racing's entries.
It follows Johnson's first IndyCar test at Barber Motorsports Park last week, where he drove for Coyne in a driver evaluation day that he spent alongside Formula 2 driver Alex Dunne.
“I want to thank Dale Coyne and everyone on the team for this amazing opportunity," said Johnson. "I would also like to thank my family for their unwavering support and my management team, for working with Dale Coyne to take the next step in my career. I am focused on working with the DCR team to maximize this opportunity at the top level of motorsports.”
Johnson will become the youngest driver in the field in 2027 and has the opportunity to break the record for the youngest winner in series history, should he win any of the opening six races of the season.
“This is a great opportunity for DCR to sign a young and talented driver with an impressive résumé," said Dale Coyne. "Nikita has raced many types of cars and has gained great experience in the USA with Indy NXT, the USF series, Formula Regional in New Zealand, and GB3 and F3 in England and Europe.”
Although the second driver at the team is still unconfirmed, the only entry that remains so alongside the two Juncos Hollinger Racing entries, Johnson's announcement indicates a complete change in driver line-up for the team in 2027. Dennis Hauger, who like Johnson, made the step up to Coyne after winning the Indy NXT championship, has since been confirmed at AJ Foyt Racing, with Romain Grosjean not expected to return to the team either.
Johnson is the second confirmed rookie for 2027 and will compete against Josh Pierson for the Rookie of the Year title.
Herta achieves FIA Super License to become F1 eligible
Although there is no racing to speak about this week on #ExIndyCarDriverWatch, there was a vital breakthrough for nine-time IndyCar race winner Colton Herta, who finally earned his FIA Super License this week - the license required to race in Formula One.
It came after a bizarre miscalculation following the Mexico City Grand Prix, where calculations believed that Herta had become Super License eligible. However, an error on the IndyCar website, which listed him sixth instead of seventh in 2025, meant that he was a point short of the 40 required to earn the license. Herta had lost out on sixth in the standings that year to Felix Rosenqvist on countback and the error has since been rectified.
However, Herta earned the final point this week by completing the required mileage in the opening practice session of the São Paulo Grand Prix - his sixth session this season following outings in Barcelona, Hungary, Italy, the United States and Mexico City.
Herta has had a tricky road to earning a Super License, which stopped him competing with Alfa Romeo in F1 in 2022 and AlphaTauri the following year due to not earning the required license points through IndyCar.
The American earned one point from finishing 10th in the 2023 IndyCar season, 30 points from following second the following year and four points for finishing seventh in 2025. Herta has earned the remaining five points through his practice sessions.
Herta left IndyCar at the end of 2025 to pursue his F1 dream, in which he made a surprise move to F2 to learn the intricacies of the F1 ladder and continue his bid to earn Super License points. Herta currently lies 19th in the Formula 2 championship with 26 points with two rounds remaining. With pressure increasing on Valtteri Bottas' future at Cadillac, Herta is seen as a likely replacement should Bottas leave the team.
MSR confirm car number for third entry in 2028
A small step has been taken towards Meyer Shank Racing's (MSR) third entry in the last week, after confirmation of the car number that they will use in 2028, when a third car gets added to the programme.
The team will take responsibility of the Honda charter, after both engine manufacturers were provided a charter as part of their latest agreement with IndyCar. Honda chose MSR as their partner, with Chevrolet yet to confirm who will field their entry in 2028.
MSR will field the No.93, the same number that has been used on one of their GTP entries in the IMSA SportsCar Championship and one that harks back to their first racing entry in IMSA in 2017. No driver has been confirmed for the seat, although Kakunoshin Ohta and Linus Lundqvist are assumed as realistic possibilities for the team.
A third entry does provide a question mark over four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Hélio Castroneves' future at the race. Castroneves is expected to return in 2027 in the No.06 entry as he has done with the team since 2021 - when he won on race on debut with the team.
However, the team will not accommodate an extra car for the Indianapolis 500 in 2028, leaving no opportunity for part-owner Castroneves to remain involved in the driving side of operations. It leaves the Brazilian with a decision to make over his future at the race.
Hocevar ruled out of Indy 500 attempt in 2027
Ever since attending multiple practice days in the build-up to the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500, NASCAR Cup Series driver Carson Hocevar has long been linked with an attempt at 'the Double', the feat of competing in NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 and the Indianapolis 500 on the same date.
Such a bid would be made easier for Hocevar with his NASCAR outfit Spire Motorsports being under the same TWG Motorsports umbrella as Andretti Global. However, Spire CEO Jeff Dickerson has confirmed such a feat will not be attempted by Hocevar in 2027.
It’s something that he wants to do and I know [TWG CEO] Dan [Towriss] and I have talked about it," said Dickerson. “[We want] to see is a little more discipline in [Hocevar’s] race craft, because he could actually hurt himself in those cars [an Indy car at Indianapolis].
“But yeah we’ve talked about it for sure and I know it’s something that Dan has said when the time is right that we can do, but I don’t think we’re there yet.”
Dickerson later confirmed that no bid would be made in 2027.
Katherine Legge was the most recent driver to attempt 'the Double' doing so for HMD Motorsports at Indianapolis and Live Fast Motorsports at Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier this year. She followed the attempts of Kyle Larson in 2024 and 2025 who raced for Arrow McLaren and Hendrick Motorsports. Tony Stewart is still the only driver to complete all 1100 miles, having done so in 2001.
Three drivers confirmed for 2027 Indy NXT campaigns
We discussed the first three drivers announced for the 2027 Indy NXT season in the last edition of IndyCar Weekly and three further drivers have since been announced to be in the field for next season. Enzo Fittipaldi will not return to Indy NXT after being confirmed for Lola in Formula E, where he will race alongside Robert Shwartzman in #ExIndyCarDriverWatch.
De Tullio makes switch to Ganassi for sophomore season
Alessandro de Tullio will return for a second season of Indy NXT as he moves to Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) after spending 2026 with AJ Foyt Racing. De Tulllio was one of the standout drivers of 2026, in a season which he took eight poles and 14 front row starts, and becomes the highest-placed driver in the championship to be confirmed for a 2027 return.
De Tullio's presence in the team expands to an IndyCar-associated role too as he will serve as the team's reserve driver on all road and street course events in 2027.
“I’m very excited to be joining Chip Ganassi Racing for 2027 in Indy NXT and with a reserve driver program in IndyCar," said de Tullio. "It’s another step in my career, and joining the most successful team in IndyCar is something that’s very special. I’m looking forward to adding to that success in the Indy NXT program, doing my best to learn as much as possible and help as much as possible as the reserve driver in IndyCar. I also have to thank my partners that have helped me get to this stage, and I’m excited to see what we can do together at Chip Ganassi Racing."
The Argentine has tested twice for the team thus far, once at the Chris Griffis Memorial Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and one since at Barber Motorsports Park.
"We’re excited to welcome Alessandro to Chip Ganassi Racing for the 2027 season," said CGR team manager Taylor Kiel. "Our goal is to give him and his teammates the support and resources to compete for wins and the Indy NXT championship. Pairing that program with an IndyCar reserve driver role gives him a valuable opportunity to learn from our drivers and engineers, contribute to the team in a variety of ways and build his experience as a driver.”
De Tullio will drive the No.10 entry, replicating famous Argentines to utilise the number such as Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona.
Etter confirmed for CGR return for second Indy NXT campaign
Alonside de Tullio's announcement, CGR also confirmed the return of Carson Etter, who will embark on a second Indy NXT season with the team.
Etter finished 22nd in his rookie campaign with a best finish of 13th in Road America, in a season where he battled with shoulder issues throughout after aggravating the injury at Detroit.
The American has since had successful surgery on his injured shoulder, although it sat him out of the Chris Griffis Memorial Test, as he was replaced by Álex Palou, who was assisting the team in developing their Indy NXT programme after a challenging 2026 season. Etter is expected to have recovered fully by early December and will have the opportunity to be back in the car before the season starts.
Etter has been a regular guest on the DIVEBOMB IndyCar Podcast throughout the season, where he has reflected on his rookie campaign across four episodes. The latest episode, where Etter goes in-depth on his injury, his busy off-season so far and giving guidance to Palou at the test can be found here.
Ganassi have stated that work continues to confirm the two drivers who will race alongside de Tullio and Etter at the team next season.
Aron becomes first confirmed Cape driver for 2027
While de Tullio and Etter were confirmed at CGR for 2027, Bryce Aron confirmed his departure from the team after signing with Cape Motorsports powered by ECR for what will be his fourth season in Indy NXT.
It marks Aron's fourth team in as many seasons after racing for Andretti Global in 2024, HMD Motorsports for the opening round in 2025 and CGR for the remainder of 2025 and the full 2026 season.
Aron's best championship effort was ninth in his rookie season, in a year where he earned podiums at Laguna Seca and Portland. He finished 14th in 2026 with a best finish of sixth in the first race of the double-header at Laguna Seca.
Next season will see Aron drive the No.21 entry, the same entry that Johnson drove in 2026 as he became the youngest-ever Indy NXT champion and provided Cape Motorsports with their first championship title in the series.
“Very excited to be joining the reigning Indy NXT champions for the 2027 season,” Aron said. “I’ve followed the success of the Cape brothers for many years and enjoyed seeing them win at each level of the Road to Indy ladder system. I can’t wait to get started and see what we can achieve together with my experience next season.”
Aron completed 76 laps for the team at the Chris Griffis Memorial Test, where he set the 15th fastest lap time. He finished in the same position at the test at Barber Motorsports Park this week.
Aron, Etter and de Tullio join Leonardo Escorpioni (HMD Motorsports), Niels Koolen (Abel Motorsports) and Bart Harrison (AJ Foyt Racing) as those confirmed for 2027.
Indy NXT back on track for Barber test
For the third time this off-season, Indy NXT was on-track testing, with the second full field test since the season finale at Laguna Seca, with 20 cars present at Barber Motorsports Park.
Thee test was topped by Max Taylor of Andretti Global, who set a best lap of a 1:10.7037. He was close followed by Tymek Kucharczyk, who was just three-thousandths of a second slower, the Pole returning in the No.71 HMD Motorsports entry. Neither driver has confirmed their plans for 2027.
Escorpioni was the quickest of the seven Indy NXT rookies who were testing, setting the fourth-quickest time overall with a 1:10.7253. Jack Beeton split the difference between Kucharczyk and Escorpioni. The test saw the top five covered by 0.039 seconds, with de Tullio rounding out those positions.
Palou took the headlines when he topped the Chris Griffis Memorial Test when having a surprise outing with CGR and the IndyCar driver trend continued as Rinus VeeKay spent the day in the No.76 Juncos Hollinger Racing entry - seven years since the Dutchman last drove such machinery, ironically with Juncos when he won both races of the double-header Laguna Seca season finale in 2019. VeeKay finished 10th in the timing charts.
The test continued to give an insight into who may end up where for the 2027 season, and notably featured Cem Bölükbaşı and Sophia Flörsch once again for Abel Motorsports, alongside Jacob Abel. Antonio Serravalle was present for Juncos, some four years after his last Indy NXT season with F3 driver Jose Garfias once again present for Cape Motorsports.
Full testing line-up was as follows, those in bold have been confirmed for 2027:
Abel Motorsports: Niels Koolen, Cem Bölükbaşı, Sophia Flörsch, Jacob Abel
AJ Foyt Racing: Bart Harrison, Frankie Mossman, Matteo Nannini
Andretti Global: G3 Argyros, Max Taylor, Jack Beeton
Cape Motorsports: Bryce Aron, Jose Garfias
Chip Ganassi Racing: Alessandro de Tullio, Alexander Koreiba
Juncos Hollinger Racing: Antonio Serravalle, Rinus VeeKay
HMD Motorsports: Leonardo Escorpioni, Max Garcia, Tymek Kucharczyk, Teddy Musella
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