Alexander Rossi makes promising case for second Indy 500 victory in debut with ECR

Alexander Rossi has shared that he could have a good chance at winning his second Indy 500 this year, combining his new team's rapid pace and his experience at the IMS. Rossi previously claimed his maiden IndyCar win at the prestigious event as a rookie in 2016.

After two years at Arrow McLaren, Rossi will team up with Christian Rasmussen at Ed Carpenter Racing for the 2025 IndyCar season. Rossi was replaced by Christian Lundgaard at McLaren after reportedly refusing to sign a contract extension.

In an interview with IndyCar Radio, Rossi was asked if his move to ECR could lead to another Indy 500 win, given that the team has previously had good results there and Rossi himself has also won the event before.

At first, the 33-year-old hilariously just replied with "yes" and left it there. When asked to elaborate, he comically just repeated the question back to the reporter and passed it off as the answer to his question.

Rossi then finally gave a serious answer to the question, saying that he loves the Indy 500 and the IMS is a track he feels comfortable on. He said:

"It's a race I love. Its a track I felt comfortable with right away in 2016. I've been very fortunate to have great teammates over the past nine years there to learn from, I've been fortunate to have good equipment, so I never got spooked early on." [via IndyCar Radio]

"So, its just a track and a race that comes naturally to me," he added.

Alexander Rossi won the historic 100th Running of the Indy 500 in 2016 with the Andretti/Herta team and became the first rookie to win the iconic race since 2001. He went on to claim seven more victories in his time with Andretti, before moving to McLaren in 2023.

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Alexander Rossi gives straight-forward reason for joining Ed Carpenter Racing

Alexander Rossi at the 107th Running of the Indy 500, 2023 - Source: Getty

Alexander Rossi has shared that he believes in Ed Carpenter Racing's vision and growth trajectory when asked why it was a good fit for him. The American will drive for his new team for the first time in this season's inaugural IndyCar race at St. Petersburg, Florida on March 2.

In the aforementioned interview with IndyCar Radio, Rossi said that he is optimistic about the team's vision for the future and wants to grow as a group with the team.

When asked why ECR felt like a good fit for him, he did not waste any words as he simply said:

"Because the vision they have for the future, the changes they've had this off-season and, you know, just growing as a group together." [via IndyCar Radio]

Alexander Rossi has also raced in Formula 1, competing in five races for Manor Marussia in 2015. He also won the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2021, with Wayne Taylor Racing.