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IndyCar: Jay Howard won’t compete in 2019 Indianapolis 500

By Asher Fair

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAY 25: Jay Howard of England, driver of the #7 One Cure SPM Honda drives during Carb Day for the 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motorspeedway on May 25, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAY 25: Jay Howard of England, driver of the #7 One Cure SPM Honda drives during Carb Day for the 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motorspeedway on May 25, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /
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Jay Howard will not compete in the 103rd running of IndyCar’s most prestigious race, the Indianapolis 500, next month, as he has officially dropped his bid to do so.

Jay Howard has officially dropped his bid to drive the third car for full-time IndyCar team Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports in the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 next month. He drove in this race as the team’s third driver in both 2017 and 2018.

Oriol Servia, who was the team’s third driver in the 2016 Indy 500, has been speculated as their third driver for this year’s running of the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana for quite some time, and Howard’s withdrawal further clears the path of the 44-year-old Spaniard to get to that point.

Here is what Howard had to say about dropping his bid to drive for Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports in this year’s running of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing”, according to RACER.

"“Three or four months ago, I would have said being back with the team was a go, but I had some things sponsor-wise that happened that made that hard. I found some money here or there, but it wasn’t coming along quickly so I eventually told Sam [Schmidt] to look elsewhere.”"

The 38-year-old Briton made his Indy 500 debut back in 2011 driving for the team, then known as Sam Schmidt Motorsports, and he qualified in 20th place before going on to finish in 30th due to a crash on lap 61 that took place as a result of an issue with his right rear tire after leaving the pits.

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Howard was supposed to return to the Indy 500 in 2012 driving for Michael Shank Racing, but the team were unable to secure an engine lease despite the fact that they had full sponsorship to field a car for him. He ended up returning to the race in 2017 driving for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports.

Once again, Howard qualified in 20th place, but by lap 53, he was running in 33rd (last) and seven laps down. After slightly hitting the wall in turn one, he came back toward the middle of the track and entered the path of Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, who was unable to avoid Howard’s #77 Honda. The two cars collided, and Dixon’s #9 Honda went airborne in spectacular fashion. After the dust settled from what ended up being a nasty wreck that thankfully resulted in no serious injuries, Howard was officially scored in 33rd.

Howard returned to the Indy 500 driving for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports for the 102nd running of the race in 2018, and he qualified in 28th place before finishing the race for the first time. He finished in 24th, seven laps down, after rumors circulated that the team would replace him with full-time driver James Hinchcliffe after Hinchcliffe failed to qualify for the race.

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Who will end up being confirmed as Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ third driver for the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500, which is the sixth of 17 races on the 2019 IndyCar schedule? The race is scheduled to take place on Sunday, May 26, and it is set to be broadcast live on NBC from Indianapolis Motor Speedway starting at 11:00 a.m. ET.