Rosenqvist ‘focused on staying in IndyCar’ amid McLaren uncertainty

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In the round-up: McLaren SP IndyCar driver Felix Rosenqvist says he is focused on remaining in IndyCar with the team while his future in the series remains unconfirmed.

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In brief

Rosenqvist ‘focused on staying in IndyCar’ amid McLaren uncertainty

McLaren SP IndyCar driver Felix Rosenqvist says he is focused on remaining in IndyCar with the team while his future in the series remains unconfirmed.

McLaren have announced that Rosenqvist will race for them in 2023, but have not yet specified whether he will compete in a possible third car run by McLaren SP in IndyCar or instead join their Formula E programme. Currently, McLaren SP have confirmed that Patricio O’Ward will remain with them until the end of the 2025 season, while Alex Palou was announced to join from 2023 but is embroiled in a legal dispute with current team Chip Ganassi Racing.

Rosenqvist says Formula E would be “secondary” in his plans compared to racing in IndyCar. “I think I’m mainly focused on staying with my current team, McLaren SP,” said Rosenqvist.

“I feel happy working with my engineer, my mechanics. Obviously it’s another car coming to the team next year. I think it’s all depending on the Palou case what’s going to happen with me.

“For the Formula E stuff, I think that’s kind of secondary at this point. Mainly just focusing on what I’m doing here now, try not to get distracted by what’s going on in the background.”

Stroll has enough experience to lead Aston Martin – Krack

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack says his team are trying to understand why they appear to struggle so much in qualifying relative to their race pace.

The team have taken three points finishes in the five rounds leading to the summer break, but have only escaped Q1 twice out of a possible ten times over that same span.

“We’re trying to understand it, honestly,” Krack said about Aston Martin’s lack of qualifying performance. “Because if we knew why, then we would try to change it? So it’s something that we really need to understand what makes this.

“It is very important to stay really objective and really monitor the lap time difference that you are having and then see where we have to improve. It is clear that on Saturdays we struggle more than Sundays.”

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With Formula 1 setting up a permanent presence on the Las Vegas strip ahead of next year’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, reader WimB is humoured by the idea of F1 embracing the gambling culture of the famous city…

Welcome to the F1 Casino!

Here you can play blackjack at the Monaco Table where passing is almost impossible, high-stakes poker at the F1 Commission, or test your pure darn luck turning the handle on Pirelli’s one-armed bandits to keep their temperature in a random operating window …
WimB

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Will Wood
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14 comments on “Rosenqvist ‘focused on staying in IndyCar’ amid McLaren uncertainty”

  1. McLaren is destroying Riccardo’s career and almost destroyed Alonso’s. Piece of rubbish team.

    1. To be fair, Ricciardo has done a fine enough job of that himself. Commiting to leaving Abiteboul after just one year has to be his biggest mistake. He’s reaping what he’s sown and it’s hard to have sympathy.

      1. Not quite sure how you figure that. Left RBR on the back of a clear push from management to make Max their lead driver having spent 5 years with them without a championship winning car, while they were set to take on PU that had been the absolute laughing stock of the series. Went the Renault, struggled to start, turned the car and team into something that even after having signed for a rival team he took to the podium. Went to McLaren, struggled in a car that was known to be peculiar, tore him self down and built his driving style back up to suit, the second half of 2021 and the win at Monza are a clear portrayal of this. 2022 McLaren build a car that doesn’t even have the right cooling set up for a known track, admittedly he’s been far from his best but McLaren is no winner.

        1. Retelling his story doesn’t change the fact. You say it yourself; “Went the Renault, struggled to start, turned the car and team into something that even after having signed for a rival team he took to the podium.” Why did he leave that? Alpine reaped the rewards and he ended up worse off.

          McLaren sold him stories of them being title contenders, and he gave up a good thing for it. Couldn’t be a clearer mistake. Nobody made him do it…

          1. Don’t see how getting stabbed in the back by McLaren is ‘reaping his reward’ for improving one team whilst moving on to another that looked on a better trajectory.

          2. >Don’t see how getting stabbed in the back by McLaren is ‘reaping his reward’

            Because that’s exactly what Ricciardo did to Abiteboul. Abiteboul was very clear that he wanted a long term leader, and that’s the role Ricciardo signed up for. He asked for two years to show what Renault could do, but Ricciardo barely gave them one before leaving for supposedly greener pastures.

            He’s getting quite a slice of karma…

    2. If McLaren want to break off the agreement they have with Daniel, that’s acceptable.

      Having said that, there is a right and a wrong way to do it. Meeting behind closed doors, ironing out an agreement and THEN feeding it to the media is perfectly acceptable.

      Sharing info with the media BEFORE an agreement is made, especially when done in such a demeaning way, is asinine and says something about the organization I am shocked that McLaren is handling this so poorly. Zach will pay a price for this. All the young drivers he has been teasing – I think he’s gone bonkers.

      I get it, RIC has grossly underperformed. but it isn’t as if he isn’t giving it his best. He simply can’t get the best out of the car. Which brings another point – the car is mediocre at best. Not competitive. It is no better than last years car. I thought James Keys was the next Newey. Why no talk about his poor performance?

      In my opinion, McLaren are being disrespectful playing this out for all to see. I hope Daniel makes them pay every penny that they owe him. He can get on with another team. I think he should turn down any offer McLaren give him pertaining to Indycar. Make them pay!

      As far as Piastri goes, it’s pretty much the same. What they are doing is legal, or probably legal, but to poach a youngster who has come up through the ranks and won all his championships with another team is not sporting.

      I think Zack has gotten out of his skis. Bringing Piastri in to team up with Norris could very well end up being a nightmare. If Piastri is as good as everyone seems to think he is, he will challenge Norris which may or may not work out so well.

      As we saw in 2007, two highly talented young drivers on the same team can have dire consequences. I can’t believe Norris is jumping for joy. If Piastri is another Hamilton or Alonso, good luck.

      1. Sharing info with the media BEFORE an agreement is made, especially when done in such a demeaning way, is asinine and says something about the organization

        I don’t know what you’re on about? McLaren has not shared anything with the media yet. All that is out there now did not come from them. They always planned on making no announcements before sorting it out with Daniel, probably find him another seat first to avoid speculation on his future. The fact that they have signed Piastri, is only out now because Alpine announced him and he immediately denied it. Alonso caused a rollercoaster of events that interfered with what McLaren had planned. McLaren has been quiet all week as they stick to their original plan of sorting everything out with Daniel first.

        1. “ McLaren has not shared anything with the media yet. All that is out there now did not come from them”

          Huh? It ALL came from them through the media.

      2. A two year contract is hardly a long term leader contract. Five years maybe, and Renault couldn’t even meet their own engine goals. Dan left when his contract expired, he was upfront with the team and still managed to bring them around him even when they knew he was leaving… doesn’t really sound like he stabbing anyone.

  2. What could be more green than harvesting bushes that grow in the desert !?

    1. Who likes deserts anyways ! /s

  3. We would all love perfect environmental solutions to the worlds problems, however I’ll take ‘greener’ options over no improvement at all any day.

    1. Intended as a response to @hohum

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