Abel gets IndyCar test with Ganassi

Chip Ganassi Racing will run Indy NXT title contender Jacob Abel in an NTT IndyCar Series test at Texas Motor Speedway on November 14.

The Kentucky native had his first IndyCar test last November with Dale Coyne Racing. He on the lead the early stages of the NXT championship, delivering three wins and 10 podiums from 14 races, and placed behind title winner Louis Foster, who was recently signed to drive by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

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“He’s earned an opportunity to drive an IndyCar, and his performance, not only last year in Indy NXT, but his performance throughout his career, shows that he's able to separate himself from most people on the grid when he drives a race car,” CGR managing director Mike Hull told RACER.

“So what that means is he's got an enormous amount of ability, and I spent some time with him and him and his dad this last year and got to know them, and was impressed with the amount of integrity Jacob has. Jacob will go a long way in motor racing. I don't think there's any question about that.

"When you're Jacob's age and you're trying to get to the next level, you’re just looking for an opportunity to drive so you can show people the ability that you have, and we're happy that it's coming together for the test with us."

CGR will make use of the Indy NXT driver testing allowance provided by IndyCar to evaluate talent in its top training series. The NXT driver test day is similar to the single evaluation day teams are given during the offseason, where a non-IndyCar driver can be used for the sake of getting to know the driver in a competitive environment or, as is the case in most instances, to deploy a skilled driver like Abel to assist with chassis setup feedback in preparation for the upcoming season.

Although CGR does not have any vacancies, heading to Texas with Abel – in the same way Meyer Shank Racing will with Logan Sargeant on November 19 at The Thermal Club — is a perfect way to forge links that could be beneficial in the future.

“It's really cool,” Abel said. “I've been able to build a relationship with a lot of people in the in the Chip Ganassi Racing camp with Mike Hull, Taylor Kiel, and Chris Wheeler, and we've grown closer to each other through the past year. So, to finally get an opportunity to do something together and to work together is really, really special.

"I'm beyond flattered that they even considered me to jump in one of their cars and do a test for them, and I'm going to do whatever I can to provide as much knowledge as possible to hopefully meet both of our goals.”