Former Formula 1 driver Esteban Gutierrez will make his IndyCar Series debut in place of the injured Sébastien Bourdais at Dale Coyne Racing in Detroit this weekend.
Bourdais, winner of the opening round of the season at St. Petersburg, sustained hip and pelvic injuries in a high-speed crash during qualifying for the Indianapolis 500, and has been sidelined for an unknown period of time.
Gutierrez competed in Formula 1 with Sauber in 2013/14 and returned to a race seat with the new Haas squad for 2016, though was unable to retain his drive for 2017 after he failed to score a point, with Kevin Magnussen signed to partner Romain Grosjean.
Gutierrez has since raced in Formula E for Techeetah and will now climb aboard the No. 18 car for this weekend's double-header around the streets of Belle Isle.
"I’m very grateful to join Dale Coyne Racing, a highly competitive team,” he said.
“When Dale Coyne called me, I had no doubt that this would be a great opportunity for me to get experience in the IndyCar Series. My target is to learn as quickly as possible. IndyCar is a very challenging series for drivers, but I feel ready to take this chance.
“I’m excited about my debut races at the Detroit Grand Prix and I cannot wait to start working with the team, engineers and Honda, as well as driving a Dallara car again."
