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IndyCar: Conor Daly won’t drive for Arrow McLaren Racing SP in 2020

By Asher Fair

MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 21: Marcus Ericsson #7 of Sweden and Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda practices for the NTT IndyCar Series Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on September 21, 2019 in Monterey, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images)
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 21: Marcus Ericsson #7 of Sweden and Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda practices for the NTT IndyCar Series Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on September 21, 2019 in Monterey, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images) /
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Conor Daly has confirmed that he will not drive for Arrow McLaren Racing SP in the 2020 IndyCar season despite the fact that he was one of the drivers under consideration to do so.

Many candidates are believed to be under consideration to drive for the newly formed Arrow McLaren Racing SP in the 2020 IndyCar season.

Arrow McLaren Racing SP were formed when preexisting full-time IndyCar team Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports announced a partnership with McLaren and a switch from Honda engines to Chevrolet engines in August.

Conor Daly was one of these candidates. Daly has made several starts for the former, including one late in the 2019 season.

But the 27-year-old Noblesville, Indiana native is no longer one of the drivers who the team are considering signing for the 17-race 2020 season.

Here is what Daly has to say about the matter, according to RACER.

"“They told me they had decided to go a different direction. I knew I was on their shortlist, but as of now I’m no longer their main focus. I’m flattered they considered me.”"

Daly has not driven full-time in IndyCar since driving for A.J. Foyt Enterprises in the 2017 season, but he is seeking to change that in 2020.

This past season, he drove in seven of the 17 races for three teams. He drove in four races for Carlin, two for Andretti Autosport and one for Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports. He finished in a season-high sixth place in the race at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway driving for Carlin.

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Unfortunately, his lone start for Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports at Portland International Raceway, which was his first start for the team since he drove in four races for them back in the 2015 season, including three as the replacement for the injured James Hinchcliffe, ended in a turn one, lap one pileup that was not his fault. He qualified for this race in a solid ninth place.

Hinchcliffe and rookie Marcus Ericsson drove for the team this past season, and the team are set to operate with two cars on a full-time basis in 2020.

Hinchcliffe has stated that he will be back with them next year, and Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports co-owner Sam Schmidt as well as McLaren CEO Zak Brown have made similar claims given the fact that his current contract runs through the 2020 season.

This is the case despite the fact that there was a rumor that Honda would do whatever they could to retain the 32-year-old Canadian given his role as a spokesman for the manufacturer, which has involved him appearing in many recent commercials and other advertisements.

Honda’s contract with Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports also ran through the 2020 season, but we saw that deal come to an end one year early anyway.

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Who will Arrow McLaren Racing SP sign for the 2020 IndyCar season, and where, if anywhere, will Conor Daly end up?