IndyCar: McLaren-Arrow SPM partnership a huge win for Chevrolet

By Asher Fair | Aug 10, 2019

DETROIT - JANUARY 11: The Chevrolet logo is displayed on a screen at the General Motors exhibit at the North American International Auto Show January 11, 2010 in Detroit, Michigan. The 2010 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) opens to the public January 16th. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images) /

The partnership between Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and McLaren to form Arrow McLaren Racing SP for the 2020 IndyCar season is a huge win for Chevrolet.

Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports entered the 2019 IndyCar season with two years left on their contract with Honda for the Japanese manufacturer to continue supplying them with engines through the conclusion of the 2020 season.

But that contract is now set to expire at the end of the 2019 season.

McLaren, which are unable to work with Honda because of the way their relationship deteriorated from 2015 through 2017 when the latter supplied the former with engines in Formula 1, formed a partnership with Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports for the 2020 season to create Arrow McLaren Racing SP, and they announced a two-car effort using Chevrolet engines.

This could not be better news for Chevrolet.

Of course, the McLaren-Chevrolet relationship didn’t exactly get started off on the right foot either, as with Honda unwilling to supply them with engines, McLaren formed a technical alliance with Carlin for this year’s Indianapolis 500 and fielded a Chevrolet-powered car for two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso.

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In embarrassing and dramatic fashion, Alonso ultimately failed to even qualify for the race.

But this is different for Chevrolet.

Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports are a team that have had recent success as a mid-pack team, and they are partnering with a world-renowned Formula 1 team that have the resources they need to have success in IndyCar.

Of course, Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports were expected to have a bit more success than they have had this season, especially given their new title sponsorship deal with Arrow, but they have still been solid despite what has been somewhat of a struggle.

As for Chevrolet, let’s look at the facts and figures.

With all things considered, Arrow McLaren Racing SP should be competing for solid results if not race results right away. Look at what happened when McLaren partnered with Andretti Autosport for the 2017 Indy 500.

With no previous IndyCar experience or oval experience, Alonso qualified in fifth place and led 27 of the race’s 200 laps around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana before he was forced to retire with an engine issue on lap 180.

McLaren joining an established team should certainly breed success for all parties involved.

Other than Team Penske, Chevrolet have had hardly any success in recent years. Scott Dixon drove his #9 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet to victory lane at Watkins Glen International back in September of 2016. Chip Ganassi Racing ended up switching to Honda for the 2017 season.

Since Dixon’s last Chevrolet victory, 47 races have been contested. Chevrolet and Honda have been fairly even, with the former winning 24 races and the latter winning 23. Yet all 24 of the bowtie manufacturer’s victories belong to Team Penske.

Josef Newgarden, who now drives for Team Penske and is responsible for securing 11 of these 24 victories, is the driver who most recently won a race driving a Chevrolet-powered car for a team that still use Chevrolet engines.

He won the race at Iowa Speedway in July of 2016 driving for Ed Carpenter Racing. Three Team Penske victories and one Honda victory separate this victory from Dixon’s last Chevrolet victory.

Chevrolet’s best finish by a non-Team Penske driver in the 2017 season was J.R. Hildebrand’s second place finish in the race at Iowa Speedway. Driving for Ed Carpenter Racing as Newgarden’s replacement, he was also Chevrolet’s highest finishing non-Team Penske driver in the championship standings that year. With only two top 10 finishes, he finished in 15th in the standings.

Chevrolet’s best finishes by a non-Team Penske driver in the 2018 season were Ed Carpenter’s second place finish in the Indy 500 driving for his own team and Spencer Pigot’s second place finish in the race at Iowa Speedway. Driving for Ed Carpenter Racing as Hildebrand’s replacement, Pigot was also Chevrolet’s highest finishing non-Team Penske driver in the championship standings. He in finished in 14th.

Finally, Chevrolet’s best finishes by a non-Team Penske driver through the first 13 races of the 17-race 2019 season are Pigot’s fifth place finishes in the races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and at Iowa Speedway. Once again, he is Chevrolet’s highest non-Team Penske driver in the championship standings as well, as he sits in 12th.

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Will Arrow McLaren Racing SP get Chevrolet back to victory lane in an IndyCar through a team other than Team Penske for the first time since the 2016 season next year? Assuming Ed Carpenter Racing, A.J. Foyt Enterprises and Carlin don’t win any of the four remaining races on the 2019 schedule, it is certainly possible.