IndyCar: The one seat still open for the 2022 season

The driver lineup for the 2022 IndyCar season is almost complete, though there is still one void that needs to be filled.

The start of the 17-race 2022 IndyCar season is right around the corner. For the first time since 2019, the season is actually scheduled to get underway as initially planned, and for the first time since 2004, the season is scheduled to get underway in the month of February.

Set to lead things off on Sunday, February 27 is the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.

A total of 26 full-time entries have been confirmed for the upcoming season, and 25 have confirmed full-time drivers.

Three cars that were split between a road and street course driver and an oval driver last year are now set to be driven by full-time drivers.

The #20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet was driven by Conor Daly in the road and street course races and Ed Carpenter in the oval races. The #48 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda was driven by Jimmie Johnson in the road and street course races and Tony Kanaan in the oval races.

Finally, the #51 Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda was driven by Romain Grosjean in the road and street course races and Pietro Fittipaldi in the oval races.

This year, Daly is the full-time driver of the #20 Chevrolet, with Carpenter in an additional entry for the Indy 500, and Johnson is the full-time driver of the #48 Honda, with Kanaan in an additional entry for the Indy 500 as well.

Former Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver Takuma Sato, who was replaced by rookie Christian Lundgaard behind the wheel of the #30 Honda, is the full-time driver of the #51 Honda.

But there is still one car that is set to be driven by one driver in the road and street course races and another driver in the oval races.

That car is the #11 A.J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet, a third car for the team that was not run on a full-time basis last year.

Tatiana Calderon is set to drive this car in the road and street course races. But the seat is still open for the five oval races on the schedule, including the Indy 500. The first of these oval races is the race at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, March 20.

It is the only confirmed entry for the 2022 season that is still missing a driver. Who will drive the #11 Chevrolet?

As of now, it looks as though J.R. Hildebrand, who drove for the team in the 2021 Indy 500, is the favorite to land the seat. But could Ryan Hunter-Reay end up back with the team for which he drove throughout the majority of the 2009 season before his move to Andretti Autosport, the team for which he drove for the last 12 years, after missing out on the full-time Ed Carpenter Racing ride that Daly landed?

It was believed that Carlin could have ended up fielding the #59 Chevrolet, as they’ve done for the past few seasons, but they now have a new technical alliance with Juncos Hollinger Racing, ending their four-year run in IndyCar.

All of the focus is on Juncos Hollinger Racing’s #77 Chevrolet, which is set to be run by rookie Callum Ilott after he competed in the first three races of his career for the team in the final three races of the 2021 season. In fact, the team have already ruled out running a second car for the Indy 500 in late May.

It was also believed that Arrow McLaren SP could come up with the resources to field a third car, but the only confirmation outside of their two entries so far is that Juan Pablo Montoya is set to drive the #6 Chevrolet in the May race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and then in the Indy 500.

All in all, it’s safe to say that the 2022 season should feature at least 26 cars in each round, with 25 full-time drivers competing for the championship. With the full-time drivers set, it’s that 26th car that’s still missing one key piece.