IndyCar team boss Dale Coyne stated that his contract with Takuma Sato last year was one-year with a one-year option, that included a clause that precluded him from racing for any other team in 2023. This was confirmed by Sato’s manager Steve Fusek in the summer and the off-season. However, there was some wriggle room – a matter on which Coyne doesn’t wish to comment, even as late as yesterday.
With Sato’s financial support from Honda Japan and Panasonic being reduced, Coyne adjusted his intentions. He would, he told Autosport, prefer to add a third car for Sato to run an oval-only programme. But while most admire Coyne's outfit and revel in its David-beating-Goliath achievements, one can understand why a driver in his career twilight would want his numerically reduced opportunities to be enhanced by placement at one of the greatest IndyCar teams.
