Illinois-based outfit Dale Coyne Racing has announced Alex Palou will be joining the team for the 2020 NTT IndyCar season.
Palou has an extensive career in junior single-seater racing with time spent across the European categories including the former Formula V8 3.5 series, European Formula 3 championships, as well as the former GP3 and GP2 series before they were rebranded as Formula 2 and Formula 3 respectively.
The Spaniard's most recent exploits were spent in the Japanese SuperFormula series where he raced for TCS Nakajima Racing alongside Honda junior Tadasuke Makino, finishing third in the standings at the end of the campaign.
It has yet to be confirmed which car Palou will be driving following the departure of Sebastien Bourdais in November. 2019 driver Santino Ferrucci has also yet to be confirmed with the team for a second full season.
Bourdais left the team in November after team-owner Dale Coyne decided not to honour the final year of his contract in favour of looking towards a younger driver with financial backing.
For the 2020 season, the four-time series champion will drive for the Mustang Sampling DPi outfit in the WeatherTech IMSA Championship.
Palou becomes the third rookie to be signed for the 2020 campaign after Arrow McLaren SP announced 2019 Indy Lights champion Oliver Askew, while Ed Carpenter Racing brought in Askew's Indy Lights title rival Rinus VeeKay.
The entry for Palou will be known as 'Dale Coyne Racing with Team Goh' who has previous history in Motorsport after winning the 1996 Japanese Grand Touring Championship (JGTC).
“I’m very excited about coming to America to race Indy cars,” commented the 22-year-old driver.
“I’m grateful for all that have helped me get to this point of my career and especially Dale Coyne and Mr. Kazumichi Goh for giving me this opportunity.”
“We’re very pleased to partner with our friend of many years Kazumichi Goh in this collaborative effort for 2020,” added Team Owner Dale Coyne.
“We tested Alex at Mid-Ohio earlier this year and he impressed everyone. His rise in performance over the past three years shows great promise for the future.”
Palou will begin an extensive testing programme in January ahead of his debut at the Grand Prix of St.Petersburg on March 15.
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