"I had no clue": Rinus Veekay was blindsided by ECR about his IndyCar axing

Rinus Veekay has opened up about his abrupt exit from Ed Carpenter Racing after the 2024 IndyCar season. The Dutchman debuted with ECR in the premier American open-wheel racing series in 2020 and spent five decently successful years with them.

Veekay consistently outperformed his teammates during the entire stint. In 2024, he scored seven Top 10 finishes for ECR, including four straight such results between Iowa and Laguna Seca. However, the Ed Carpenter-owned team kept him in the dark about a potential contract extension till after the season.

In late September, ECR replaced Rinus Veekay with Alexander Rossi to partner with Christian Rasmussen in 2025. The timing of the move made it highly improbable for Veekay to secure an IndyCar seat for this year. With only two weeks to go for the season, Dale Coyne Racing signed him, ending his family's downbeat outlook.

In a recent appearance on the Pit Pass Indy podcast uploaded on March 12, Veekay spoke about the ECR axing, saying [20:30 onwards]:

"Oh it's very disappointing. Of course, I put my mind on it and the thing is, I had no clue. If I had a clue, if I knew a little bit sooner, (I) could've got something done sooner too. But in the end, I'm here now. I'm with Dale, I'm very happy, I'm very happy with the place I'm in right now with the team. It might be a blessing in disguise, who knows? I look at it very positively."

In a recent interview with motorsport.com, Rinus Veekay revealed how frantically his manager called him upon getting to know Ed Carpenter's stance on not renewing the IndyCar contract.

The last-minute Dale Coyne signing gave him another chance to prove his worth, and he was on the money at the season opener in St. Petersburg.

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Dale Coyne couldn't ask for anything more after Rinus Veekay's Top 10 finish at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Day 2 - Source: Getty

Rinus Veekay's P9 finish at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg gave Dale Coyne Racing its first Top 10 finish since David Malukas' P8 at Portland in 2023. Veekay qualified in P12, but the team's race strategy and the pace on his No.18 Honda pushed him ahead.

Team owner Dale Coyne commended his new driver's performance and said (via Frontstretch)

"We’re happy with our drivers, happy with our engineers, the team guys, everybody. So this is good to come out like this, qualify top 12, finish top 10. Couldn’t ask for anything more for now. Well… now we’ve got to get a top-five, then we’ve got to get a podium and then see what happens after that!"

Veekay's rookie teammate Jacob Abel didn't have a good outing. He could only manage a P23 finish after starting P25 on the grid.