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IndyCar: 2019 full-time driver lineup likely set

By Asher Fair

FORT WORTH, TX - JUNE 09: Ryan Hunter-Reay, driver of the #28 DHL Honda, leads a pack of cars during the Verizon IndyCar Series DXC Technology 600 at Texas Motor Speedway on June 9, 2018 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX - JUNE 09: Ryan Hunter-Reay, driver of the #28 DHL Honda, leads a pack of cars during the Verizon IndyCar Series DXC Technology 600 at Texas Motor Speedway on June 9, 2018 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images) /
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Following more recent driver confirmations for the 2019 IndyCar season, the full-time driver lineup for the season is likely set.

A total of 21 drivers have been confirmed as full-time drivers for the 2019 IndyCar season, and that will likely remain the case. While there are two key factors pertaining to the 2019 driver lineup that have not yet been determined, these factors likely won’t affect this full-time driver total.

Carlin recently confirmed that Max Chilton is set to return to the team as a full-time driver in the 2019 season. However, they announced that Charlie Kimball, who drove full-time for the team in the 2018 season, their first season in the sport, is set to return to the team as a part-time driver in the 2019 season as opposed to a full-time driver.

Regardless of which driver or drivers Carlin confirms as Chilton’s teammate or teammates in the races in which Kimball will not be his teammate, the Florida-based team will have only one full-time driver for the 2019 season.

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Meanwhile, there is not much known about the car and driver situations of Juncos Racing, which fielded one car in 12 of the 17 races throughout the 2018 season after fielding two cars in the 2017 Indianapolis 500, the team’s first IndyCar race and their only race of the 2017 season.

Throughout the course of the 2018 season, a total of three drivers combined to make 12 starts in the team’s lone car, the #32 Chevrolet, Rene Binder drove this car in six races while Kyle Kaiser drove it in four  and Alfonso Celis Jr. drove it in two.

While it is still not yet known whether Juncos Racing will field one or two cars in the 2019 season, it is almost a sure thing that they will not have one or two full-time drivers for the 2019 season even if they do end up fielding at least one car on a full-time basis.

With the full-time driver lineup for the 2019 season likely set, here is how it is set to look.

A.J. Foyt Enterprises

Andretti Autosport

Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports

Carlin

Chip Ganassi Racing

Dale Coyne Racing

Ed Carpenter Racing

Harding Steinbrenner Racing

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

Team Penske

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Will this driver lineup end up being the full-time driver lineup for the 2019 IndyCar season like it is expected to be? Expect to know for sure within the next few weeks, as the 17-race season is scheduled to get underway in just over six weeks on Sunday, March 10 with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida. For the full 2019 schedule, click here.