The big news in automobile racing this week is the announcement of a merger between McLaren Racing and Arrow Schmidt-Peterson Racing for the 2020 season and beyond. McLaren attempted to field a car in this year’s Indy 500 with disastrous results. Working with Andretti Autosports and Honda, the team tried to put driver Fernando Alonso in the 33 car field and failed.
The new team will be called Arrow McLaren Racing and will have Chevy-powered Dallaras. As of the moment James Hinchcliffe will hold the Number 1 seat. Swedish Rookie Marcus Ericsson has inferred that he will not be part of the new team in 2020. Ericsson has had an up and down rookie season but has shown promise and has sponsor funding so he will be with some Indy Car team next season. Alonso will once again have a ride for the Indy 500 and may compete in several other road course events but that remains to be seen.
There has been much speculation about the 3rd car seat. Who will be the driver if not Ericsson? It’s known that McLaren covets rookie phenomenon Colton Herta and has made strong inquiries about his possible availability in 2020. Herta is contractually obligated to Harding Steinbrenner Racing and through them Andretti Autosports. Herta is reportedly very pleased with his current situation so it is highly unlikely that he will be leaving it any time soon. This has led to all kinds of speculation about possible driving scenarios for 2020 which are too numerous to be mentioned here. However, what is known for sure is the racing giant McLaren will be back in IndyCar racing and everyone is excited about that.
Andrew Luck & the Colts
The Horseshoe’s opening preseason game was played last Thursday against the Buffalo Bills in Buffalo. Jacoby Brissett didn’t look sharp and Phillip Walker was just plain ineffective in trying to run the Colts offense. The good news was the play of 2nd year quarterback Chad Kelly who impressed with his play in the 2nd half. Kelly looked sharp throwing the ball and scampered 33 yards for the Colts’ single touchdown of the game. He has most likely moved past Walker in the depth chart at the quarterback position. Wideouts Deon Cain and Reese Fountain both enjoyed good performances and made strong cases for themselves to be a part of the regular season squad. Defensively rookie EJ Speed impressed everyone with a standout performance at linebacker. The rookie from Tarleton State showed aggressive, tough, and smart tendencies all over the field and displayed a nose for where the ball is. He is definitely a player to watch.
It’s not easy to judge team performance in preseason. Everyone is trying to impress to make the team as individuals and teamwork just is not there. It might be safe to say that the Bills 3rd teamers as a unit performed better than the Colts 3rd teamers.
The biggest issues at this moment is the backup quarterback position. The team has finally come clean on Andrew Luck’s injury status. Luck has said it was an injured calf muscle in his left leg that was keeping him on the sidelines, when in fact it was a small bone injury. Whether or not it is a break hasn’t been said, but it could mean that Luck may miss some of the regular season. If so, then Brissett needs to step up his game if the team is to be competitive in the early going of the regular season. If he doesn’t the team will be in a serious hole. That is, if Luck is not available. The Colts host the Cleveland Browns this coming Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium.