IndyCar: Tony Kanaan's record streak to come to an end

This Saturday’s IndyCar race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is set to be the first race in over 19 years not to feature Tony Kanaan.

Tony Kanaan’s start in the 2020 IndyCar season opener at Texas Motor Speedway early last month was not his final scheduled IndyCar race.

The 2004 champion and 2013 Indianapolis 500 winner announced back in January that the 2020 season would be his 23rd and final season of American open-wheel competition, but that he would only be competing part-time for A.J. Foyt Enterprises in his third year driving the #14 Chevrolet.

He landed an ovals-only dea, which amounts to a five-race deal given the updated 14-race schedule IndyCar released due to the coronavirus pandemic. His start at Texas Motor Speedway was his 318th consecutive start, by far an all-time record.

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But with IndyCar set to compete at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course this Saturday afternoon, it was his 318th and final start of this record streak, as it is rookie Dalton Kellett who is slated to make his series debut behind the wheel of the #14 Chevrolet this weekend.

The last race in which Kanaan did not compete took place at the Raceway on Belle Isle Park back on Sunday, June 17, 2001. He crashed in the qualifying session for this race, a CART race, the day prior and had to sit out due to suffering a concussion.

But ever since he strapped in for the following Sunday’s race at Portland International Raceway, he hasn’t missed a race. He competed full-time in CART and made his Indianapolis 500 debut in 2002 before moving full-time to the IndyCar Series in 2003.

The 45-year-old Brazilian set the new all-time consecutive starts record for so long that two other drivers have also passed the old record since he did. The record used to belong to Jimmy Vasser, and it was 211.

Driving for the Vasser co-owned KV Racing Technology on the streets of Baltimore, Maryland, Kanaan broke that record with his 212th consecutive start on Sunday, September 1, 2013.

Now, after setting a new record for 107 consecutive races over the course of eight different seasons, that streak is set to end at 318.

Scott Dixon is slated to compete in his 260th consecutive race this Saturday while Marco Andretti is set to compete in his 236th. Ryan Hunter-Reay is set to tie Vasser for fourth place in this particular category with his 211th consecutive start. In theory, 58 more starts (for Dixon to match Kanaan) translates to around three and a half seasons.

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Saturday’s race, the GMR Grand Prix, is set to be broadcast live on NBC from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course beginning at 12:00 p.m. ET.

IndyCar: Tony Kanaan’s record streak to come to an end

By Asher Fair | Jul 3, 2020

This Saturday’s IndyCar race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is set to be the first race in over 19 years not to feature Tony Kanaan.