IndyCar: Who will drive part-time for Ed Carpenter Racing in 2020?

Who will drive Ed Carpenter Racing’s shared #20 Chevrolet in the road and street course races in the 2020 IndyCar season?

Ed Carpenter Racing team owner Ed Carpenter drove full-time for his own team behind the wheel of the #20 Chevrolet in the 2012 and 2013 IndyCar seasons before stepping out of the car for the road and street course races and becoming the team’s oval specialist beginning in the 2014 season.

From the 2014 season, a separate driver, or in some cases, drivers, has/have driven the #20 Chevrolet in the road and street course races each year.

This past season, it was Ed Jones who drive the #20 Chevrolet in these races through a partnership with sports car team Scuderia Corsa. But it has been speculated for several months that Jones will not return to the team in the 2020 season, and that remains the case.

More from IndyCar

Additionally, Scuderia Corsa’s future involvement in IndyCar remains in question nearly two months into the offseason between the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Perhaps a renewed deal would boost Jones’s slim chances of a return.

Spencer Pigot, who drove full-time for the team in the 2018 and 2019 seasons after serving as their road and street course driver for much of the 2016 season and the entire 2017 season, confirmed that he will not be back with Ed Carpenter Racing behind the wheel of the #21 Chevrolet next year. Rinus VeeKay has been tipped to replace him, and a key aspect of Pigot’s ride loss pertains to a lack of funding on his part and ample funding from Dutch sponsors on VeeKay’s.

The two most heavily rumored candidates to land the part-time ride behind the wheel of the #20 Chevrolet are Conor Daly and Nico Hulkenberg. Per a report by gplatestnews.nl, Hulkenberg is already in line to land this ride, and it is set to be announced within a week. This same news outlet also reported that VeeKay would replace Pigot.

With that being said, a report by RACER, which features a quote from Hulkenberg, indicates that Daly may be in a better position to do so.

Here is what Hulkenberg, who lost his Formula 1 ride with Renault to Esteban Ocon for the 2020 season and could not secure another ride, had to say about the matter.

"“I have not signed anything and I won’t do in the foreseeable future. I received several calls from different series’ teams, but nothing is really happening at the moment. I guess, yes (IndyCar is a consideration). To be honest, my state of mind is pretty relaxed. I want to finish the season as successfully as possible. And after that rewind a little bit, take a moment or two or three for myself, see what I want to do, see what seems of interest. I am certainly not having the feeling that I want to rush into something just to race.”"

He went on to confirm that he would not be interested in competing in oval races, which fits the bill to drive the #20 Chevrolet in solely the road and street course races. But he also did state that he may simply take the year off as well.

As for Daly, he has been seeking a full-time ride in IndyCar since driving for A.J. Foyt Enterprises on a full-time basis in the 2017 season. His sponsorship from the United States Air Force could be a key component in a possible landing spot at Ed Carpenter Racing for next year.

While a 12-race deal with Ed Carpenter Racing wouldn’t be a full-time ride, it would be a step in the right direction following a season during which he competed in seven races, including four for Carlin, two for Andretti Autosport and one for Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, after he was only originally slated to drive in one.

Top 10 IndyCar drivers of all-time. dark. Next

Who will end up being named the driver of the #20 Chevrolet for Ed Carpenter Racing for the 12 road and street courses on the 17-race 2020 IndyCar schedule? Will Conor Daly land his first major ride since driving full-time for A.J. Foyt Enterprises in the 2017 season? Will Spencer Pigot remain with the team but in a smaller role if he can secure enough funding to do so? Will Nico Hulkenberg make the switch from Formula 1 to IndyCar? Could Ed Jones return after all?