Linus Lundqvist will fill in for Simon Pagenaud for a second consecutive race at this weekend’s Gallagher Grand Prix at IMS.
The rookie made his IndyCar debut last weekend around the streets of Nashville, and put on a strong performance on one of the toughest events on the calendar.
Lundqvist put the #60 car into the second round of qualifying, and was running in the top half of the field for a majority of the race before he made a small mistake that led to him hitting the concrete barriers and retiring.
His debut made a good impression on team co-owners Mike Shank and Jim Meyer, so much so that they have invited him back to drive the car again this weekend.
“First I want to say a massive thank you to Mike and Jim for their trust to put me back in the car again,” said Lundqvist in the release. “The Nashville weekend was great in so many ways.
“Obviously, a lot of impressions and a lot of new stuff for me going on that weekend and I was pretty disappointed with the way that it ended. It was my mistake and I enjoyed it up until that point.
“I think it also left me and the team wanting more, which I am grateful for another opportunity at Indy. I know it is going to be tough again, but now I have a whole race weekend under my belt.
“Hopefully we can string some good results together and find some good speed, but I feel like it is going to be a super weekend.”
Lundqvist has a lot of experience on the IMS road course, logging two wins out of the four races he’s done there in Indy NXT.
That familiarity should help the 24-year-old learn more about his new car since he won’t have to spend as much time learning the track itself.
Pagenaud is still the preferred driver for the #60 entry, and he will have the seat again whenever he is fully recovered from his injuries.
The Gallagher Grand Prix takes place on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 PM ET.
