Rosenqvist Brings Stacked Racing Resume to Indy This May as Ganassi Rookie
March 01, 2019 | By Paul Kelly, Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Don’t be surprised if Felix Rosenqvist becomes a rookie sensation during the upcoming Month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, for many reasons.
One, Rosenqvist has honed his considerable driving skill in a vast array of series around the world, including Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires. Two, he is driving for one of the elite, championship-winning teams in the NTT IndyCar Series, Chip Ganassi Racing. Three, Swedish native Rosenqvist loves old-school racetracks.
“Coming from Europe, a lot of the tracks have been spoiled by big runoffs,” Rosenqvist said. “That takes the challenge out of the circuits. The U.S., it’s not like the tracks are unsafe. There’s a DNA to each track that makes each track special. They don’t change from year to year.
“People want that kind of mystique from a circuit. That’s what’s special about U.S. racing. I’m very much for the old-school kind of circuits.”
It doesn’t get much more old school among American racetracks than the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
While the surface of the IMS oval has evolved from the original crushed stone and tar to 3.2 million bricks to the current asphalt, the dimensions of the track are unchanged from when the facility opened in summer 1909. 2.5 miles. Two long straightaways of 5/8th of a mile each. Two “short chute” straightaways of 1/8th-mile each. Four distinct turns, each banked at 9 degrees, 12 minutes. No banking on the straightaways.
Rosenqvist, from Malmo, Sweden, will drive the No. 10 NTT Data Honda for the entire NTT IndyCar Series season as teammate to reigning series champion Scott Dixon. That includes the INDYCAR Grand Prix on Saturday, May 11 on the IMS road course and the 103rd Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Sunday, May 26 on the Speedway oval.
Unlike many European-based rookies, Rosenqvist has a bit of oval racing experience. Two of his 10 Indy Lights starts in 2016 came on the 1-mile oval at ISM Raceway in Phoenix and in the Freedom 100 at IMS. Rosenqvist won three races that season with Belardi Auto Racing, all on road and street circuits, while his best oval finish was ninth in the Freedom 100.
Rosenqvist, 27, is methodical and flexible in his approach to preparing for seasons, perhaps because he has been such a racing nomad during his career. He admits he hasn’t thought much or talked much to teammate and 2008 Indy 500 winner Dixon about preparing for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” instead focusing on the earlier races on the calendar, all on road and street courses.
But specific members of the powerful Ganassi organization already are preparing Rosenqvist for the Month of May.
“My PR team has told me I’ll be very busy,” he said, smiling. “I think that’s the big challenge, keeping your head straight and getting through all the things that come with Indy being Indy. First of all, you need to qualify. I’m taking it one step at a time.”
Robert Wickens was the rookie sensation of the Month of May 2018, earning Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors for his ninth-place finish. Rosenqvist and Wickens share a bond in that it’s almost silly to call both rookies during their respective first Month of May.
Wickens came to the NTT IndyCar Series with vast experience in junior open-wheel formulas, including Formula 2 and GP3, the last two rungs before Formula One. Wickens also raced from 2012-17 in the ultra-competitive DTM touring car series in Europe.
Rosenqvist brings even more stamps on his racing passport to IMS this May. Over the last 11 years, he has raced in multiple open-wheel series, including FIA Formula E, Indy Lights, Formula Renault and Formula 3. He has raced in sports cars, including in the Rolex 24 At Daytona and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He has raced in exotic Super GT cars in Japan and, like Wickens, the DTM in Europe.
And Rosenqvist was successful in nearly every one of those series. He has won season championships in Formula Renault 2.0 in Asia and his native Sweden. Perhaps his most impressive season came in 2015, when he won 13 of 33 starts to claim the title in the viciously competitive FIA Formula 3 Championship. He also won the prestigious Macau Grand Prix in 2015 and triumphed from 2016-18 in races in Formula E, which features some former F1 drivers.
That winning experience with many teams has helped Rosenqvist make a smooth transition into his seat with Ganassi, where victory is an expectation and not a treat. Spending time with the team while testing in 2016 and 2017 at Mid-Ohio also made his return to Ganassi much more familiar.
“That was a big thing; I got to know the team with those tests,” Rosenqvist said. “I spent some time in the factory. We traveled together from Toronto to Mid-Ohio. I think it’s very important to get to know everyone, especially in such a big organization as Chip Ganassi Racing is. I feel like it’s been a couple of years now knowing certain characters on the team.”
Rosenqvist’s strong performance in testing, combined with his three Indy Lights victories in just 10 Indy Lights starts in 2016, almost made it seem like it was a matter of when, not if, his courtship with Ganassi ended with a seat on the team.
There’s no question a chance to land a plum ride with Ganassi appeals to almost any driver. But Rosenqvist insists he was committed to returning to North America to race in the NTT IndyCar Series even before he tested for Ganassi in 2016.
“When I did Indy Lights, I told everyone that I’ll be back here one day because that’s when I made up my mind to be in IndyCar, when I drove in the series below,” Rosenqvist said.
But Ganassi had series champions and Indy 500 winners Dixon and Tony Kanaan in its lineup in 2016 and 2017 and Dixon and Ed Jones in 2018, so Rosenqvist packed his helmet bag and headed to Formula E, which features electric-powered cars.
“No one expected Formula E to be around, it came around very quickly,” Rosenqvist said. “It was a great time there, for sure. I really loved Formula E, but still the dream of IndyCar was bigger. And from a sporting point of view, to drive these cars at these great circuits gave me a hunger to come here. It became bigger than the love I had for Formula E.
“I took a chance, and here I am.”