Fansided

5 IndyCar drivers to watch in 2017

By Brittany Frederick

Team Penske's Josef Newgarden observes the IndyCar team test at Sebring International Raceway. Photo Credit: Chris Owens/Courtesy of IndyCar
Team Penske's Josef Newgarden observes the IndyCar team test at Sebring International Raceway. Photo Credit: Chris Owens/Courtesy of IndyCar /
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IndyCar drivers to watch
Ed Carpenter Racing’s JR Hildebrand. Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Verizon IndyCar Series. /

JR Hildebrand

Team: Ed Carpenter Racing
2016 Finish: NA
2016 Wins: NA

Speaking of the Josef Newgarden saga, JR Hildebrand is the man that Ed Carpenter Racing chose to replace Newgarden. Team owner Ed Carpenter elected to go with the driver that he knew and that knew his team rather than trying to pursue another target on the free-agent market. That makes Hildebrand one of the IndyCar drivers to watch not only for how he does, but how his team will do with him in the No. 21 ECR Chevrolet.

Hildebrand will be in his fourth year competing with Ed Carpenter Racing. He has driven for the team at Indianapolis since 2014, including a career-best finish of sixth in last May’s 100th running of the Indianapolis 500. Past that, he’s developed a relationship with ECR behind the scenes that will serve him much better than any other driver coming into a new team. He’s basically been on the team already; he just hasn’t been driving full time.

But that’s also what makes him a bit of a quandary. Hildebrand hasn’t driven for any IndyCar team extensively full-time. He only has two full seasons under his belt, for Panther Racing in 2011 and 2012. During that time he had no victories and only one podium (a runner-up finish at Indianapolis in 2011). Will that relative lack of experience hinder him? Not to mention that it’s been five years since he’s taken on a full-time driver’s workload.

Yet Hildebrand wasn’t just another driver looking for any available ride. He’s been public about the fact that he specifically wanted to drive this car for this team. And that gives him a vested interest in pushing as hard as he can this season. With Newgarden, ECR was putting itself on the map, and hopefully, JR Hildebrand will be able to keep the team there.