McLaren’s IndyCar outfit announced today that 19-year-old Indy NXT driver Nolan Siegel would replace Théo Pourchaire for the remainder of the 2024 season in the #6 car, beginning with this weekend’s IndyCar round at Laguna Seca. Siegel will vacate his Indy NXT seat at HMD Motorsports as a result.

By Feeder Series

Siegel, one of the hottest prospects on the American junior single-seater scene, has been widely rumoured for a full-time step up to the top class off the back of a promising season and a half in IndyCar’s main support series. He sits fourth in the points after six races, 79 points off championship leader Louis Foster of Andretti Global, after having already withdrawn from the last race at Road America to pursue a last-minute IndyCar race drive with Juncos Hollinger Racing that weekend.

Feeder Series understands that even by last week, Siegel was expected to suspend his Indy NXT campaign for a full-time seat in IndyCar, though the nature of that opportunity was not yet clear. Doing so would have meant he would relinquish his chance to compete for Rookie of the Year honours in 2025, a condition that requires a driver to have started no more than four previous IndyCar races.

Siegel’s appearance at Road America for JHR came after the team benched regular driver Agustín Canapino, 34, the Friday of the race weekend following a social media firestorm surrounding an incident with Pourchaire at the previous weekend’s Detroit Grand Prix. Siegel finished 23rd at Road America.

It was thought that Siegel’s temporary deal with the team might well become permanent, but Juncos announced 12 June that the team had reinstated Canapino to the #78 car.

Siegel had also made several previous IndyCar entries with Dale Coyne Racing this year. He had finished 20th in the Long Beach Grand Prix, his only start, and did not qualify for the Indianapolis 500 or the non-points round in March at the Thermal Club circuit in California. He was set to make an additional appearance for the team at the Grand Prix of Toronto in July.

Siegel’s move to McLaren leaves Pourchaire, the reigning Formula 2 champion, without a full-time race seat for the remainder of 2024. The 20-year-old Frenchman retains his role as reserve driver for Sauber in Formula 1. He sat 21st in the points, with a best finish of 10th in Detroit, while the #6 car is 16th in the entrants’ points.

Pourchaire himself was drafted in by McLaren in April ahead of the Long Beach Grand Prix as a stand-in for David Malukas, who had broken his wrist in a pre-season mountain biking accident in February. Malukas was dropped by McLaren 29 April, and on 9 May, Pourchaire was confirmed as his replacement for the rest of the season excluding the Indianapolis 500, in which prior Malukas replacement and erstwhile JHR driver Callum Ilott would be racing for the team.

Upon that announcement, it was confirmed that Pourchaire would vacate his seat at Toyota-powered Team Impul in Super Formula after just one start. He had finished 18th in that race, last of the series’ four rookies.

Meanwhile, Siegel’s replacement at HMD Motorsports for the remainder of the season will be Christian Brooks, who was competing in his first full USF Pro 2000 season with Pabst Racing. The 23-year-old sat fourth in the standings with three podiums and was the second-highest-placed rookie with three rounds to go.

Brooks, who once struggled with funding, will continue his USF Pro 2000 campaign. That means he will perform double duty at the Mid-Ohio round on the first weekend of July and at the season finale at Portland on the final weekend of August.

Brooks’ replacement of Siegel is the second driver change at HMD in as many weeks. The team announced last Wednesday that 23-year-old Dutchman Niels Koolen would vacate his seat after the Laguna Seca Indy NXT round. He will be replaced by Jagger Jones at the Mid-Ohio event, with the occupant of that seat for future rounds still to be decided.

In a press release announcing the change, Siegel said, “I’m looking forward to jumping right in with the Arrow McLaren team this week and confirming my place in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES in papaya moving forward.

“This is an unexpected jump, but I’m thrilled to be in this position after a rewarding run in the Indy NXT by Firestone series with HMD Motorsports. I am looking forward to this new journey and learning alongside the entire team starting this weekend in my home state.”

McLaren team principal Gavin Ward said, “Stability and sustained growth are key to our long-term game plan here, and this is a significant step in that mission. First, I want to thank Théo for his time filling in on the No. 6 car with us in recent weeks.

“We’ve been working through musical chairs all season, and ultimately, making this change to Nolan now that he’s available gives us the chance to build a foundation for the future.

“He is a young, talented driver with an immense amount of experience at this stage of his career and we’re excited to continue on the upward journey together.”

Header photo credit: McLaren Racing