Written by Archie O’Reilly
NTT IndyCar Series President Jay Frye has confirmed that conversations are ongoing with “two or three different entries or entities” with an interest in joining the series.
This is leading to the prospect of almost having too many teams involved, which Frye admits is “something we’ve got to evaluate” as a series.
“It’s a problem, but it’s a good problem to have right now,” Frye said. “There’s a lot of interest in IndyCar. I think it looks back over what’s happened the last few years, going forward we got a lot of good things going on.”
This comes after esteemed Formula One feeder series outfit Prema was revealed to be joining the series with a two-car, Chevrolet-powered operation in 2025 on Tuesday. The addition of Prema means a preliminary field size of 29 cars in 2025, which could expand further if more new teams enter the series.
“It’s obviously huge news,” Frye said. “A team that has won 80 championships in 40 years… that’s phenomenal. This is for sure our vision of what could happen - to recruit elite teams like Prema. To have them here, we’re quite excited about it.
“The car count… last year [was] 27 full-time, which was a record. We have just added to that. We just added to that with an elite program. We’re obviously excited to have them.”
Frye mentioned that interest from so many entities is a “good problem” but a problem nonetheless. He has admitted there may have to be a limit at some point given, at some venues, the pit lane can scarcely fit the current field of 27 cars.
“Probably [will be] a hybrid of all,” he said. “We will do all we can to start as many cars as we can. But obviously there are limits. There will be a time where that has to be addressed and we will address it.”
The reason Frye sees the booming car count as a positive problem is foremost in creating opportunities for high-level crew members previously unable to find a job, as well as providing inevitable openings for drivers.
“We have tried to do things… like last year we set up a job portal - IndyCar did - to help recruit, the teams do that,” Frye said. “There have been a lot of teams that actually used that portal. We are collectively as a group working with the paddock to recruit new and young talent coming into the sport.
“It’s a great opportunity for a lot of young people right now to come into the sport at a time when it’s growing rapidly. Again, it’s a problem, it’s a good problem, one we’re all addressing together. I think we’ll get through it.”