IndyCar: Notable drivers still searching for 2019 Indianapolis 500 rides

There are several notable IndyCar drivers who have not yet found rides for the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 next month.

A total of 33 drivers have been confirmed on the entry list for the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 next month. This driver total has been 33 for more than six weeks now; in fact, it has been 33 since before the 2019 IndyCar season began.

That said, there are several other confirmed at least very close to confirmed entries for this race, three to be exact. In addition, several drivers have emerged as the most likely candidates for each of these three entries.

There is also still the possibility of one or two additional entries being added from now until practice for the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana commences in just over three weeks.

Which notable drivers are not among the 33 confirmed drivers for this year’s running of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing”?

Of the 35 drivers who attempted to qualify for the 102nd running of the Indy 500 last year, 25 are among the 33 confirmed drivers for this year’s running of the race. The other eight include seven rookies and one non-rookie.

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The seven rookies are Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist, Dale Coyne Racing’s Santino Ferrucci, Carlin’s Patricio O’Ward, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Jordan King, DragonSpeed’s Ben Hanley and Harding Steinbrenner Racing’s Colton Herta. The lone non-rookie is McLaren’s Fernando Alonso.

Of the 10 drivers who attempted to qualify for last year’s Indy 500 but are not among the 33 confirmed drivers for this year’s edition of the race, three will definitely not compete this year.

These three drivers are Danica Patrick, who is now retired, Zachary Claman DeMelo, who is now a full-time Indy Lights driver, and Robert Wickens, who is still recovering from major injuries that he suffered in an IndyCar crash at Pocono Raceway last August.

Of the other seven drivers, three are likely to drive in this year’s Indy 500. Oriol Servia is the most likely candidate to drive the third Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports car while Kyle Kaiser is the most likely candidate to drive the lone Juncos Racing car and J.R. Hildebrand pretty much has a ride solidified, likely with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing to drive their second car like he did last year.

The other four drivers are Carlos Munoz, Gabby Chaves, Stefan Wilson and Jay Howard. Chaves and Howard have not really been in the mix to land rides for the race this year, but Munoz and Wilson have garnered some attention in that they have not yet landed rides and may very well end up not doing so.

Munoz has competed in each of the last six Indy 500 races, and he has been one of the most impressive drivers in the race during this six-year span. He has finished outside of the top 10 just once and has an average finishing position of 7.50.

He finished in second place in his first career Indy 500 start, which was also his first career IndyCar start, back in 2013, and he finished in second in the race once again back in 2016.

Wilson has competed in two of the last three Indy 500 races, and he came just over four laps away from winning the race last year before he needed to top off on fuel. He finished in 15th place.

The possibility still exists that Harding Steinbrenner Racing will field a second car for this year’s Indy 500, and Munoz or Wilson would likely end up driving it if they do.

Both drivers drove for Andretti Autosport in the race last year, with Munoz having done so in five of the last six years now, and Harding Steinbrenner Racing formed a technical alliance with Andretti Autosport this past offseason.

The additional possibility still exists, albeit a smaller and smaller one by the day, that Andretti Autosport themselves will field a sixth car for the race, in which case Munoz or Wilson would likely end up driving that car.

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Expect to see Oriol Servia, Kyle Kaiser and J.R. Hildebrand on the entry list for the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 in the very near future. As far as Carlos Munoz and Stefan Wilson are concerned, it wouldn’t be surprising to see one of them end up on the entry list for this race as well, but as far as both of them ending up on it, the chances are slim.