26 of the 27 full time seats in IndyCar has now been taken for the 2025 season, with the announcement of a driver signing on Monday.
Jacob Abel has signed for Dale Coyne Racing to drive the #51 car, having broken out in Indy NXT last year with a trio of wins and second place in the championship.
Chip Ganassi Racing managing director Mike Hull backed Abel for a full-time IndyCar seat after the 23-year-old impressed in a recent test for the team at the Texas Motor Speedway, something he thanked Hull for after his signing announcement this week.
Abel's team-mate in the #18 Honda is the only driver currently unknown for the 2025 season, with the team yet to announce that star's identity - or, possibly, yet to decide on it themselves.
Speaking to RACER after the announcement, Abel said: “It’s super cool; it’s what I’ve been working for my whole entire career. This off season in particular has been my most unsure and unsteady for obvious reasons.
"It’s been a huge journey, and I really can’t thank everybody enough with the likes of Mike Hull that are saying that I belong here, I deserve to be here, and then everybody, basically since day one, who’s supported me in every single way possible to get here and make this happen.
“I’m just happy to have a chance to be on the grid, do what I love, and hopefully do it at a high level. I’m ready to take it one step at a time, and I understand it’s going to be a process, and it’s a process that I’m really, really looking forward to.”
He continued: “I’m really looking forward to the whole experience. Honestly, I already feel very confident of what I’ve seen in the team, the new personnel coming in, the people that are returning, lots of people with a lot of experience. And I do think that continuity is going to be a big thing this year, and I think it’s going to be something that is going to be improved."