IndyCar team land Ferrari F1 signing in HUGE announcement

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IndyCar

IndyCar team land Ferrari F1 signing in HUGE announcement

A member of the Ferrari F1 family has been confirmed for a team switch to IndyCar

Kerry Violet

Tuesday 5 November 2024 21:00

A member of the Ferrari Formula 1 team has been confirmed to be making a switch away from the pinnacle of motorsport with a return to a former team.

Prema Racing announced their completed lineup for the 2025 NTT IndyCar series, with a familiar face now added into the mix.

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Ferrari F1 reserve driver Robert Shwartzman was announced to be joining the alternative racing series with former team Prema, having competed with them in endurance and lower formula racing.

The 25-year-old first joined the team in 2018, claiming third place in the F3 European Championship and a year later, cruised to the FIA F3 championship title of the new era, marking the start of Prema’s dominant form in the series. He stayed with the team for his jump to F2, but then made his F1 testing debut in 2020 with Ferrari, continuing to test with the Scuderia alongside American team Haas.

Robert Shwartzman has driven in F1 in 2024 as a reserve driver for both Ferrari and Sauber

Shwartzman IndyCar switch confirmed

Throughout the 2023 and 2024 F1 seasons, Shwartzman competed in practice sessions for both Ferrari and Sauber's F1 teams, most recently at the Mexican Grand Prix where he was handed a bizarre penalty.

A statement from the team announcing his move read: "PREMA Racing is thrilled to announce that Robert Shwartzman will be joining the team for the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Reuniting with the PREMA family after a successful stint in Endurance racing, the 25-year-old Israeli will return to single-seaters, completing the team’s Chevrolet-powered effort for the upcoming season."

Shwartzman himself spoke on the news, stating: "I’m definitely very very excited to be back at PREMA to start a new adventure in INDYCAR. Everything will be new to us and there will be many challenges, but it will also be a lot of fun and a lot of work at the same time.

"I think a very successful future lies ahead for us.

"INDYCAR is a very competitive series, with so many strong drivers, and I’m looking forward to the racing, as it looks really cool. I have never driven on ovals and to master them, it will be a completely new challenge.

"However, with PREMA we achieved a lot in the past, and I think that my F1 and Endurance experience will be helpful to make us evolve fast and get up to speed quickly."

🚨DRIVER ANNOUNCEMENT🚨@ShwartzmanRob returns to PREMA for @IndyCar debut! 🤝

📰 Team completes 2025 lineup ↘️https://t.co/s3gW3NCUkb pic.twitter.com/ilUHwRwU0a
— PREMA (@PREMA_Team) November 5, 2024