Andretti Autosport has announced that it has signed the two young sons of late racing driver Dan Wheldon to its driver development program.
The announcement was fittingly made at the Dan Wheldon memorial in St. Petersburg, where IndyCar is contesting its second round of the 2021 season.
Oliver and Sebastian Wheldon, aged 10 and 12 respectively, have been working on their racing careers for some time already, and will now have the support of one of the most famous teams in IndyCar racing.
The two young drivers are currently competing in various karting series and hope to advance on to race in the IndyCar series as they grow older.
The aspiring racecar drivers will carry the Andretti shield logo on their karts as they progress through the ranks and refine their skills.
Oliver and Sebastien will receive guidance from the Andretti Autosport team and from Michael Andretti himself.
“I’m really excited to be a junior driver for Michael Andretti and follow in my dad’s footsteps,” said Sebastian Wheldon. “I hope Oliver and I can both win the Indy 500 too.”
“It would be so cool to race for Andretti Autosport one day. I think we will get to win a lot of races, just like my dad,” said Oliver Wheldon.
Dan Wheldon was an IndyCar driver for eight years from 2003-2011, and won the championship in 2005 while racing for Andretti Green Racing.
Wheldon’s life was ended prematurely in a horrific accident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in October 2011.
The remainder of the race was cancelled in the aftermath of the 15-car crash, and the entire racing community mourned the British racing driver’s untimely death.
“Dan was family to us, and we had a lot of on track success together, we see a lot of Dan in both Sebastian and Oliver and are very proud to officially welcome them into our racing family,” said Andretti Autosport CEO Michael Andretti.
“No one will ever be able to replace Dan in their lives, but we’re happy to offer a network for mentorship to help the boys grow their careers.
“Karting is the first step, but we have hopes of helping foster promising Road to Indy, and eventually even IndyCar opportunities.”
