Daly keen to learn from Munoz

Conor Daly is a rare bird among young Verizon IndyCar Series drivers. At an age and stage of his career where it would be expected for the Indiana native to fight for the spotlight at the expense of his teammate, Daly has taken a surprising approach to the new season.

After Carlos Munoz was drafted in from Andretti Autosport during the offseason to lead the A.J. Foyt Racing program, Daly arrived at the team late in 2016 with great enthusiasm in ways that defy what one might expect from a driver coming off a promising rookie season at Dale Coyne Racing.

From Daly's vantage point, wanting to win races for Foyt in the Chevy-powered No. 4 entry and all the other norms are there, but the part that really stands out as a unique opportunity is the chance to learn from Munoz, his fellow 25-year-old.

"We are the same age but Carlos has an incredible amount of experience – a lot more than I do, and I have to look at that and continue to think that," Daly told RACER. "He has come from a powerhouse organization at Andretti, which is really good because he has that experience. He has two more seasons of IndyCar than I do, and those are seasons with three to four teammates that are really incredible."

Daly has had the opposite experience in IndyCar. He was the only constant at Coyne's team last year, and even in sporadic drives prior to Coyne, the second-generation racer was rarely in a position to build his knowledge with the help of a veteran teammate. Finally, with Foyt, he'll be able to make up for lost time.

"In one season last year I had three different teammates in the other car," he continued. "They were all good drivers but it's difficult to really learn. Now that I have Carlos' data to look at, it is a really good thing to have and we can work together so we're making the team strong and I can grow, really, for the first time with a steady teammate."

Looking at Daly's preparations prior to IndyCar, he spent a portion of the 2011 Indy Lights season as a teammate to eventual champion Josef Newgarden. Daly looks to his friend, who joined the vaunted Team Penske organization after years of stability and success with Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing/Ed Carpenter Racing, as an example of what he can create for himself at Foyt.

"It has been very difficult and people don't understand," Daly said. "I look at my career, and it is really interesting to just see the differences of how people get through their initial years. I always go back to Josef as well because he never had teammates. He is five years into this or six years into this, and he's driving for Penske now. It just takes time.

"He was on his own at Sarah's team, he had a teammate at Carpenter's, but the whole time, it was a solid environment for him to learn in. That's what I see as being possible for me here at the Foyt team, and having Carlos to work with is also a big bonus."

As he prepares for opening practice on Friday at Long Beach – a race the Foyt team won in 2013 – Daly says having a proper foundation to work from has changed his outlook on where his career can go. Helped in part by his father Derek, a former IndyCar driver, Daly is using his first year with Foyt as chance to emulate Newgarden at some point in the future.

"People set really high expectations for me, which is cool and that's fine, but what I have worked on in the off-season with my dad is focusing on the process," he said. "I set way too high expectations for myself as well because of what I see around me. But what I want to do now is focus on my process, focus on what I have in front of me, working with my engineer, working with Carlos' data now that we have a solid team environment, because it is not an easy game.

"When I get frustrated, I have to go back and think, hang on a second, this is totally different than my past situations. I need to dig in and work this like we're building step by step, not like I don't know who my teammate's going to be next weekend so I have to try and do it all by myself."

As a member of team that replaced both of its drivers, both race engineers, and changed engine manufacturers coming into 2017, Daly knows the Foyt program will need time – probably more than anyone wants to accept – before it can fight among the championship contenders. With the opening race of the year complete and the second one about to start, Daly is confident the team will continue moving closer to reaching its goals.

"It is difficult and we all wish we had more time to get to work together, but I think we have that also in perspective, which is nice," he said. "I don't see anyone thrashing and overworking themselves. I see a calculated process, which is really nice. I like that.

"And I know we have one-year contracts, but in the end, we are only thinking about how we have to continue to grow together as a group. And I really like working with these guys. I think we have all got the right mindset to get to a place where we can win for ABC Supply and A.J."