Beyond the Flag
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2016 IndyCar Preseason Power Rankings

By Brittany Frederick

Jan 29, 2016; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; Scott Dixon before practice for the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 29, 2016; Daytona Beach, FL, USA; Scott Dixon before practice for the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 24, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; IndyCar Series driver Conor Daly prior the 2015 Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
May 24, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; IndyCar Series driver Conor Daly prior the 2015 Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports /

14. Conor Daly

The feel-good story of the IndyCar offseason was that Conor Daly has finally landed a full-time drive. Daly may not have the best team behind him as he takes on his first entire season in the No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing entry, but he’s been through enough in the years leading up to this that one should think he’s going to do pretty well now that he finally has a shot.

Race fans know that for the last two years, Daly has been the “super sub” turning up everywhere a replacement driver is needed and generally posting solid results in these relief efforts, not always with a ton of preparation. (Remember the 2015 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, when he was a last-minute substitute after Rocky Moran Jr. injured himself on race weekend?) Most recently, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports tapped Daly and Ryan Briscoe to fill in for James Hinchcliffe in the No. 5, and the two guys did a fantastic job. (Speaking of people who need a full-time ride, Briscoe would be tops on that list. But we digress.)

Daly finished sixth in the second half of the Dual in Detroit while standing in for Hinchcliffe, and it’ll be very interesting to see if he can build on results like that once he gets the seat time of being in the car every week and building that consistency with his race team. He probably won’t be a title contender this season, but he could make some runs. All he needs is a car at the Indianapolis 500 that won’t catch on fire.

Next: 13. Marco Andretti