Chip Ganassi Racing have yet to officially confirm that Christian Lundgaard will take over from Scott Dixon behind the wheel of the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda in the 2027 NTT IndyCar Series season, joining a lineup that already consists of five-time series champion Alex Palou and Kyffin Simpson.
While that confirmation is still expected at some point in the near future, what has now been confirmed is that the Lundgaard-for-Dixon swap won't actually be a straight-up driver swap.
Dixon, of course, is on his way to Arrow McLaren to join Pato O'Ward and reunite with former Ganassi teammate Felix Rosenqvist. Dixon had been with Chip Ganassi Racing for a quarter of a century.
Scott Dixon joining McLaren, but not in the No. 7 car
But it's Rosenqvist, who competed for McLaren from 2021 to 2023 before spending the next three years with Meyer Shank Racing, who is set to replace Lundgaard behind the wheel of the No. 7 Chevrolet. Dixon is officially set to replace Nolan Siegel behind the wheel of the No. 6 Chevrolet, as the team formalized their drivers' number assignments earlier this week.
Dixon hasn't used a number other than No. 9 since 2004, when he took the No. 1 as reigning series champion. After going winless in 2004, he decided never to use the No. 1 again, even after winning five more titles in 2008, 2013, 2015, 2018, and 2020. He went winless in 2026 for the first time in 22 years.
When he joined Chip Ganassi's team during the 2002 CART season, he initially used the No. 44, after using the No. 18 and, yes, the No. 7 during his time with PacWest Racing.
As for Rosenqvist, he used the No. 7 during his first two seasons with McLaren, but when the team added a third car for Alexander Rossi in 2023, Rossi was given the No. 7 and Rosenqvist was moved to the new No. 6 entry.
O'Ward has driven the No. 5 Chevrolet since joining the team in 2020, and Ryan Hunter-Reay is again set to use the No. 31 for his Indy 500-only entry next year.
The 2027 NTT IndyCar Series driver lineup still has six official vacancies across four teams, but the season isn't scheduled to begin for another five and a half months, so silly season might well continue for another few months. The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is set to kick things off on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida on Sunday, March 7. The full 2027 schedule hasn't yet been solidified, but all races are set to be shown live on Fox.
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