IndyCar 2021 Preview: Chip Ganassi Racing
Scott Dixon goes for a record-tying 7th title, 7-time NASCAR champ Jimmie Johnson's begins his foray into IndyCar (road and street courses only), and Tony Kanaan returns to CGR (ovals only)
Scott Dixon, left, and Jimmie Johnson. Photo: Chris Owens/INDYCAR
By Michael Eubanks
This is the fifth of a 10-part weekly series of previews of each full-time team slated to compete in the 2021 NTT IndyCar Series. Each preview will give an overview of all drivers currently signed to drive for the team, recap the team’s 2020 results, describe what’s new for the team in 2021 and provide an outlook for the team’s performance this season.
Today’s preview features Chip Ganassi Racing - the defending IndyCar champions. The season-opening Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama takes place on April 18.
2021 Drivers (name, car number, all Honda-powered): Marcus Ericsson - No. 8, Scott Dixon - No. 9, Alex Palou - No. 10, Jimme Johnson, - No. 48 (road and street courses only), Tony Kanaan - No. 48 (ovals only)
2020 recap: The team fielded three entries, for Ericsson, Dixon and Felix Rosenqvist. Dixon picked up four race victories (including the first three races) and won his sixth championship and the 13th for the team. Rosenqvist and Ericsson finished 11th and 12th, respectively, with Rosenvist picking up his first career victory at Road America.
What's new for 2021: Ericsson and Dixon return to their respective rides, while Alex Palou joins the team’s No. 10 entry previously occupied by Rosenqvist. A fourth entry, the No. 48, will be shared by seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson and longtime IndyCar competitor Tony Kanaan. Johnson will run all the road and street course races for the team, while Kanaan will pilot the entry in the oval rounds.
Season Outlook: There’s no reason to think CGR won’t be a title favorite once again this season. Even at the age of 40, Dixon has yet to show any signs of slowing down, and could very well win his seventh championship this season. Doing so would tie the sport’s all-time record, held by the legendary A.J. Foyt.
Ericsson and Palou enter their second and third IndyCar seasons respectively, and both could easily improve upon their performance from last year. Ericsson has publicly stated that one of his targets for 2021 is to win his first race, and Palou scored three top-10 finishes (including a podium at Road America) during his rookie season last year despite running for a lower budget team. Either driver could reach victory lane this year.
Perhaps there is no driver who fans are more excited to watch compete in an Indy car this year than Jimmie Johnson. At age 45, the seven-time Cup Series champ is set to make his IndyCar debut, driving with the same number 48 that he made famous in NASCAR. Realistically, Johnson probably won’t dominate the open-wheel circuit like he once did in stock cars, but he still is a truly talented driver and will likely continue to improve his performance as the season progresses.
Tony Kanaan will also drive the No. 48 in the four oval races Johnson is not competing in this year. Kanaan previously drove for CGR from 2014-17. Should the 46-year-old win Indy for the second time come May, he’d become the second-oldest driver to ever win the famed race.
Scott Dixon goes for an IndyCar record-tying seventh championship in 2021. Photo: Chris Owens/INDYCAR
Driver Quotes:
“It would be amazing (to win seven championships). Seven sounds a lot better than six, so why not? I've never been able to repeat, so that's goal number one, is to go back-to-back. It's always tough. I think even to win the last two out of three has been pretty exceptional for our team, and it's been fantastic for PNC and welcoming them to the sport and onboard the 9.
“It's easy to come in and say, Yeah, we're going to repeat, we want to repeat, we want to win a seventh championship. But trying to secure that is something totally different. To me it would mean everything to me to be able to do that. I think even to get the sixth was -- in the current landscape is extremely tough and very difficult to do. Very proud of that. The obvious goal is to add to that. That will be what we're trying to do.” — Scott Dixon
“I think it's going to be a very steep learning curve for me to deal with. But I love a good challenge. I'm really excited to start this next chapter of my motorsports career.” — Jimmie Johnson
“I couldn't have been more excited, to be honest. It's been a difficult year for everybody on the personal side. All of a sudden I was getting ready to call the T.K. Last Lap. Now everybody is making fun of me because that was not a last lap anymore, completely unexpected.
“I feel like a kid that got a new toy. I was getting ready to look for other things in my life because I thought this last year was going to be the last lap. Then the pandemic came, and I kind of flirted and playing around saying it was not going to be fair for me to go away without racing in front of my fans. Then I got a call from Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi, all of a sudden I'm back for two more years. Still doing the oval races like I did last year. That was actually my choice, as well. It ended up being a really good coincidence that Jimmie didn't want to do the ovals.
“Happy, excited. I can't wait. I was talking about out there, I don't know if you guys know this, but I am doing four SRX races for Tony Stewart as well, and 10 stockcar races in Brazil. It's an 18-race season. For somebody that was slowing down, my wife is asking me where did that went. I haven't done 18 races in a long time. I mean, our seasons have been 15, 16 races. I'm going to be busier than I've ever been.” — Tony Kanaan
“The target is to win some races, to fight for the championship. We know we have the resources. We know that we have all the engineers, all the mechanics, the crew chief. We know we have the car. We know we have the sponsors. And we know we have everything to win. Now it's all up to us. I think this year there's like 12 drivers that are in the same position, with really good cars, some experience and with the hunger to win. It's not going to be easy, but we'll try to make it.” — Alex Palou