INDIANAPOLIS — Helio Castroneves will proceed chasing a record-breaking fifth Indianapolis 500 victory with a brand new perspective — successful one for his workforce.
Meyer Shank Racing introduced Friday that the favored 48-year-old Brazilian will turn out to be a minority co-owner with the Ohio-based group. He additionally would be the workforce’s third driver in subsequent 12 months’s 500.
Defending IMSA champion Tom Blomqvist will go away the sports activities automobile circuit and exchange Castroneves as MSR’s second full-time driver as Castroneves begins his post-racing profession as a driver coach.
“I need to be very clear: I’m not retiring, OK?” Castroneves stated. “I simply need to ensure that folks perceive that. Really, my line is open now to do different sequence. Clearly, the principle focus is IndyCar, and likewise the Drive for 5. I nonetheless have a whole lot of hearth inside me, a whole lot of power that I need to burn, however now I’ll focus that burn on the Indy 500.”
It is the second time Castroneves has scaled again his IndyCar schedule.
Group Penske’s longtime anchor driver competed in two races at Indianapolis for Penske in each 2018 and 2019, then ran his last Indy 500 with Penske in 2020. He additionally ran two races for Arrow McLaren that 12 months, then made the leap to Shank for a partial schedule in 2021.
However Castroneves’ record-tying 500 victory in 2021, the primary for MSR, rejuvenated the driving force’s profession. He ran 5 of that 12 months’s last six races earlier than returning to full-time standing the previous two years.
Jim Meyer and Michael Shank stated Castroneves will proceed racing on Indy’s historic 2.5-mile observe for at the very least a pair extra years although his main focus will probably be on different sides of his place.
“He will probably be becoming a member of our possession group as a minority accomplice, which I believe is the primary in an extended, very long time a driver coming into the possession group,” Jim Meyer stated. “Helio can even tackle a job — it is greater than an ombudsman — it is driver coach, it is ambassador and albeit it is offering and serving to us get to