Ghiotto to make IndyCar debut with Coyne at Barber

25/04/2024 18:08

ELMS driver and Formula 2 veteran Luca Ghiotto will drive Dale Coyne Racing’s No. 51 entry for the upcoming rounds at Barber Motorsports Park and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

The 29-year-old Italian spent five full seasons in F2, achieving a best result of third in the championship in 2019 with UNI-Virtuosi Racing. He made his debut in sportscars the following year and currently competes in the ELMS’s LMP2 class with Inter Europol. He was also test and simulator driver for the Nissan Formula E team in 2022-2023.

"I'm very excited to be making my NTT IndyCar Series debut this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park," said Ghiotto. "I've spent the majority of my career overseas but was always intrigued and wanting to try IndyCar. It will be my first time driving this car and my first time at this track, so there's a steep learning curve and challenge ahead of me, but I am very much looking forward to it."

Ghiotto’s open-wheel resume also includes serving as a test and reserve driver for the Williams F1 team in 2017. DCR team owner Dale Coyne said that he hopes all of this experience will help flatted out Ghiotto’s learning curve when he heads out to tackle Barber’s tricky 2.38-mile layout.

"We know it won't be an easy first race for Luca jumping in the car like this with no testing whatsoever," said Coyne. "That said, he has plenty of experience in different types of race cars and has proven himself over the years. We look forward to seeing what he can do in the next two races and know that he will bring experience and knowledge to the team."

Ghiotto will get his first laps aboard an IndyCar car on Friday, April 25 starting at 3:40pm ET when drivers take to the track for the first practice session of the weekend. He will be the third driver to have raced the No.51 this year, following on from Colin Braun (St Petersburg and Thermal) and Nolan Siegel (Long Beach). Katherine Legge will take over the car for the Indianapolis 500.