The IndyCar season kicked off on the unforgiving streets of St. Petersburg with six drivers racing for a new team in IndyCar.
Christian Lundgaard made his debut for Arrow McLaren while the driver he replaced, Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi, stepped in at Ed Carpenter Racing for 2025.
Rinus VeeKay switched from ECR to Dale Coyne Racing after a season that ended strongly last year with a run of finishes in and around the top 10.
New Zealander Marcus Armstrong began his new adventure at Meyer Shank Racing after a couple of years at Chip Ganassi Racing.
Sting Ray Robb returned to IndyCar for another year and drove for Juncos Hollinger Racing. The Argentine-American team looked for stability after the unnecessary drama around Agustin Canapino’s exit in 2024.
David Malukas endured a torrid time last year after an injury in pre-season cost him his drive at Arrow McLaren but the American kicked off life at A. J. Foyt.
Let’s see how five of them performed in Florida, apart from VeeKay. The Dutchman scored 10th place, which was a superb result for Dale Coyne Racing.
Marcus Armstrong’s ‘unfortunate’ MSR debut
Armstrong’s first race for Meyer Shank Racing ended after just 46 laps as the Kiwi hit the wall at Turn 11, due to locking up and damaging his front-right corner.
It was a missed opportunity for Armstrong, who embarked on his third season in the championship with a fourth place in qualifying.
Armstrong was very quick over a single lap, building on his teammate Felix Rosenqvist’s form to start from second in 2024.
Despite failing to capitalise on a competitive car, Armstrong remains positive ahead of the upcoming rounds, kicking off with The Thermal Club.
He said: “It was really unfortunate to not be able to finish the race. We had some really good pace in the No. 66 SiriusXM / Root Insurance Honda. I felt like we were strong on both tyres.
“I was on a really good run on the greens and feel like we could have gone pretty long on those which would have put us in a position to potentially fight for the lead had we kept that pace. Unfortunate way to start the season, but I think we showed the speed that we have as a team and we have a lot to look forward to the rest of the season.”
Sting Ray Robb’s day of ‘learning’ at Juncos Hollinger Racing
Robb failed to finish on the lead lap in Florida as the American driver finished the race a lap down. He was classified in 21st place at the chequered flag.
He went under the radar for most of the event but got involved in the battle for the lead. Robb was under the spotlight when race leader Alex Palou was on the verge of lapping the JHR driver at St. Petersburg.
Robb was significantly slower than the reigning champion but was under no obligation to let him through. Meanwhile, Palou’s nearest challenger, Josef Newgarden, closed the gap but couldn’t overtake him. After going a lap down, Robb put a tough start at his new team down to tyre pressure issues.
He said: “Today was okay. I think we had a good car, we are still learning the tyres. It really hurt us at the beginning of the race. Our ending stint was really nice. We were there in front of the leaders trying to hold Palou off, and it is very hard to hold off that guy.
“I felt like we had decent pace in the car. I think we could have gone a little more forward with different tire pressure. Overall, I’m happy with it. I think we had decent fuel save, and decent power. So I am hoping that the No. 77 Goodheart Chevrolet goes faster at the next one, and I think it will.”
Alexander Rossi’s weekend that ‘steadily improved’ at St. Petersburg
Rossi is kicking off a new chapter in his IndyCar career this season. This comes after a mixed two-year stint at Arrow McLaren that yielded just two podium finishes.
The American driver will have to readjust his expectations at Ed Carpenter Racing. Fighting for trophies may be slightly out of reach this season.
Rossi drove brilliantly at St. Petersburg to take home a top-10 finish with 10th place. The drive was made even more impressive after struggling to P20 in qualifying. ECR’s new recruit was adamant that he delivered to a high level in Florida at a positive start to 2025.
He explained after the race: “It was always going to be hard starting from 20th. We came in P2 on the strategy that we chose, which was starting on the primary tyre.
“We steadily improved the car all weekend and from a strategy standpoint, we executed really well. That’s about all we could get out of it, but the weekend overall was positive. We’ll take the momentum and try to keep learning.”
David Malukas can take ‘a lot of positives’ from St. Petersburg
Malukas bounced back well from a very difficult 2024 season. A battling drive to 13th place, moving up from his starting spot of P17.
He was running in the top 10 but lost time in the pit lane, dropping Malukas to 13th place. The MSR driver feels he had a productive weekend but needs to iron out some qualifying errors.
The 23-year-old said: “Overall, a lot of positives to take out of that race. Very good race for us. We had a little issue with the pit stop at the end there that took us out of the top-10, overall, our race was incredible.
“We just kept going forward. The green tyres, which was a big question mark for all the drivers on it having a lot of pace. I think, for us we managed to do a full stint and even did an extra few laps.
“The car was really good. The team is doing a good job. To start off the first race like that, to capitalise on my mistakes from quali, we finished off with P13. It’s a very good, decent result to start the season off and looking for better results to come.”
Christian Lundgaard was scuppered by a ‘lucky yellow’ for the primary tyre runners
Lundgaard is arguably under the most pressure of all six drivers that changed teams as he begins life in the pressure cooker of Arrow McLaren.
The Dane’s been composed since switching from Formula 2 to IndyCar. This trait that helped him to P8 after leading 23 laps. The former F2 driver also pulled off a stunning move late in the race.
Lundgaard began on the harder primary tyre and was hindered by a caution on lap one. However, he was delighted to lead on his Arrow McLaren debut.
The driver of the No. 7 car said: “It was a really, really good first weekend overall. From where we were in Practice 1 to Practice 2 to Qualifying, we just kept chugging speed out of the car and got faster and faster into the race.
“Going in, it was a big question mark on strategy, what was going to work and what wasn’t. I hate to see the cars that are always on the better side of the strategy are the winning cars again. Obviously I would have liked to have been in that situation.
“The alternate tyre runners got the lucky yellow in the beginning of the race, and it simplified their race from there. We got to lead a good amount of the race, which was awesome for a debut with Arrow McLaren, so I’m very happy for that.
“The rest was pretty much just damage control. We were looking at a good result but also potential for a very bad result. We chose a bit of a safer route, and we got home in eighth. At the end of the day, we get points for that and leading the race, which is pretty cool.”
