Just when we say the grid is set, tThis morning’s announcement by A. J. Foyt Racing of a third full time car puts the NTT Indycar Series full time grid at 26. The only seat open right now is for someone to drive the ovals in Foyt’s number 11, which Tatiana Calderon will drive on the road and street course. I would think J. R. Hildebrand is the prime candidate for the Indianapolis 500, but I don’t know his availability for the other ovals.

From earlier:

thepitwindow.blog/2022/01/17/tatiana-calderon-joins-indycar-with-foyt-rokit/

There will be at least 27 cars at the GMR Grand at IMS in May. Arrow McLaren SP has already said that Juan Pablo Montoya will enter that race as a warmup for the 500. Other non oval events could see up to 28 cars.

Indianapolis 500 entries stand at 34 right now, with two more entries expected. Both will be powered by Chevrolet.

The full time lineup:

Team Penske

2- Josef Newgarden

3- Scott McLaughlin

12- Will Power

Chip Ganassi Racing

8- Marcus Ericsson

9- Scott Dixon’

10- Alex Palou

48- Jimmie Johnson

Andretti Autosport

26-Colton Herta

27- Alexander Rossi

28- Romain Grosjean

29- Devlin Defrancesco (R)

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

15- Graham Rahal

30- Jack Harvey

45- Christian Lundgaard (R)

Arrow McLaren SP

5= Pato O’Ward

7- Felix Rosenqvist

Dale Coyne Racing with HMD

18- David Malukas (R)

Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing

51- Takuma Sato

Meyer Shank Racing

06- Helio Castroneves

60- Simon Pagenaud

A. J. Foyt Racing

4- Dalton Kellett

11- Tatiana Calderon (R)

14- Kyle Kirkwood (R)

Ed Carpenter Racing

20- Conor Daly

21-Rinus VeeKay

Juncos Hollinger Racing

77- Callum Ilott (R)

The field has six rookies and ten drivers with three years or less experience. There are also six drivers, seven counting Ed Carpenter, older than 40 years old. Penske’s IMS upgrades should include a senior citizens’ center and a day care.