Ed Carpenter Racing has announced that team owner Ed Carpenter will relinquish his driving duties for the final three events of the 2024 IndyCar season.
He was originally scheduled to drive the #20 entry for all of the season’s oval rounds, including the final events at The Milwaukee Mile and Nashville Superspeedway.
A late change of plans means that the team’s rookie Christian Rasmussen will climb behind the wheel and gain valuable track time to close out the season.
Rasmussen has been driving the #20 for the season’s road and street courses as well as the Indianapolis 500. He also completed some oval testing for the team that reportedly went very well.
“First off, this was a very difficult decision for me to make. I want to make it clear that this is not a retirement announcement,” said Carpenter, pre-empting questions that would be coming about his driver status.
“However, the reality is, I have not performed to the level that I expect of myself for the team. Christian tested at Gateway prior to the race and he showed me that he deserves this expanded opportunity.
“He also had such a strong performance during the Month of May and has earned the chance to continue his development. I am excited to watch him finish the season out strong for the No. 20 crew and the entire ECR team.”
The #20 entry currently sits 24th in the entrant standings, and is perilously close to the cutoff line for the series’ Leader’s Circle payout.
The decision to place Rasmussen in the car seems to be, as much as anything else, an attempt to make sure the car remains high enough to earn the monetary award.
“First and foremost, I am incredibly thankful to Ed for providing me this opportunity,” Rasmussen said.
“I am excited to drive the No. 20 in the remaining three races and I am fully committed to giving the team my absolute best.
“While I haven’t raced at Milwaukee or Nashville before, my past performances on ovals have been strong and I’m eager to add these tracks to the list!”
Carpenter’s best finish this season has been 17th, while Rasmussen finished 12th at the Indy 500 and earned a top 10 result at Mid-Ohio.
