Nolan Siegel didn’t receive much of a stable opportunity to impress during his first IndyCar season, but things are already looking on the up for 2025.
It’ll be his first full-time gig in the series, having started last year in Indy NXT before finding seats at Dale Coyne Racing, Juncos Hollinger, and finally McLaren.
The British outfit is starting to establish themselves as regular frontrunners in IndyCar, which is a great place for the 19-year-old Siegel to be.
He joins up with Pato O’Ward and Christian Lundgaard again, as the papaya outfit combine to form the youngest line-up on the grid.
Nolan Siegel makes ‘everything better’ admission for Indy 500
Siegel’s maiden entry into the Indy 500 didn’t go to plan in 2024, failing to qualify for the race with Dale Coyne Racing.
That’s mainly because he had very little testing time and no experience compared to his rivals – it was virtually a foregone conclusion that he would struggle to make the main event.
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Speaking to Frontstretch Open Wheel on YouTube, the American driver shared how he believes that he has a much better chance at success next time around.
“For sure, I’m going to be way better prepared in a lot of ways this year. Having done this now instead of at the open test, spending time there doing that instead of proper running.
“I think it’s going to just make everything better. I’m excited to get back and get straight into it.”
Why is Siegel better prepared for 2025?
After a day of testing involving 11 cars for next year’s Indy 500, Siegel was permitted the opportunity to complete some laps before the day’s running began.
It means that he has now completed the Rookie Orientation Program – allowing him to take part in more testing and running before the next event.
His teammate Lundgaard finished bottom of the running by a fair distance, some 5mph behind Alex Palou’s speed average at the front.
With the autumn Indianapolis test now complete, Siegel will be able to go away and focus his efforts on trying to prepare for the first round of the 2025 season.
Just five months away from the season starting in March, he will be hoping to better his career-best finish of seventh as soon as possible.