Juncos Hollinger Racing has confirmed Conor Daly will contest the remaining five rounds of the 2024 season in the IndyCar Series.
A veteran of 110 career IndyCar starts, Daly will drive the team's No. 78 Chevrolet-powered entry that was recently occupied by Agustin Canapino.
The team and Canapino mutually parted ways a week ago after a string of five consecutive finishes of 18th or worse – with the last four results being 22nd or lower – that has put the entry in danger of falling out of the top 22 of the $1 million Leaders Circle, currently sitting 23rd.
Daly, a 32-year-old native of Noblesville, Indiana, drove the No. 78 entry nearly two weeks ago in a test at the track formerly known (and still widely recognized) Gateway, the 1.25-mile oval based just outside of St. Louis, which is also the site of this weekend’s IndyCar round. It is known he set the fourth-fastest time at the test despite having a gearing issue hindering his fast laps toward the end of the day.
While JHR will mark the 11th team that Daly has driven for in the IndyCar Series. It is also a reunion of sorts as he previously drove for team co-owner Ricardo Juncos in 2010 while competing in the Star Mazda Championship (now USF Pro 2000 Championship), where he captured seven wins, 12 podiums and nine poles en route to title.
“I am extremely pleased to reunite with Ricardo Juncos after our success together in the Road to Indy,” said Daly, who has four top 10s, including a best finish of fifth (2017) in seven starts at Gateway.
“Ricardo took a chance on me when I was young and it made a huge difference in my career. There are a lot of people on this team that I’ve worked with before and that gives me a lot of confidence.
“What (team co-owner) Brad Hollinger and Ricardo have built here is extremely impressive in a short amount of time and I consider myself very lucky to get to compete for the rest of the season and earn the necessary points for this No. 78 Chevrolet. There are a lot of partners in this effort and I appreciate the support behind me to get back in the race seat.”
Juncos also caught some nostalgia in working with Daly for the first time in almost 15 years.
“Having Conor Daly back in a JHR car after many years is like a flashback to some great memories, as we achieved a lot together,” Juncos said.
“Now it's time to focus on what's ahead and aim for strong results in the rest of the NTT IndyCar Series season.”
Co-owner Hollinger, who teamed with Juncos in 2021 after relinquishing his majority shareholding at Williams Racing in Formula 1, added: “Conor’s years of IndyCar experience will help the team grow and develop the car further.”
