Source: James Black/Penske Entertainment / other
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Marcus Armstrong has made noise here and there this season as the fourth entry from the Chip Ganassi Racing stable.
He is only racing the road and street course races this season in the No. 11 car, sharing that ride with veteran driver Takuma Sato who is running just the oval races. The latter races are something that Armstrong is keen on giving a try next season.
“I haven’t exactly kept it a secret, but I’d love to stay here at Chip Ganassi Racing,” Armstrong said of his prospects for 2024. “I think I’ve been reasonably vocal about trying ovals for the first time. It would be a dream come true to compete at the Indy 500.”
Armstrong is another transplant from Europe and the F1 ladder. He competed for three seasons in Formula 2 and when no F1 rides came calling, he jumped the pond to give IndyCar racing a try and so far has gotten the hang of it as the top running rookie in the season championship standings, while not even competing in every race.
Still, Armstrong feels he’s leaving a little bit on the race track week in and week out.
“Certainly we’ve got to get everything right. I feel like we have a lot to work on, which is in a way quite comforting because I feel like, despite having had top 10s in the previous races, we haven’t really done that great of a job, or personally, I don’t feel like I have,” said Armstrong. “Nashville provides an opportunity to try to learn from the things I did wrong at Toronto.”
Armstrong finished 6th at Toronto three weeks ago, which was his third Top 10 finish in the last four races. Those results for someone brand new to IndyCar racing are certainly above par.
“Being top 10s I think in INDYCAR is one thing. Being top three is another,” he said. “There’s still a big step to be made to be consistent with Alex (Palou) and Scott (Dixon), and Marcus (Ericsson). There’s a step to be made to be inside the top three. I think you can’t understate how high the level is right at the very pointy end of IndyCar. I’m just going to keep trying to find bits and pieces to get that.”
CGR has not said anything yet as to what the nature of their garage will look like next year, especially with the future of Alex Palou still up in the air after last year’s contract drama. Armstrong said emphatically on Tuesday that he would like to stay with Ganassi for the foreseeable future.
