"I'm just a normal midwest American kid" - Jacob Abel hopes to strike a chord with IndyCar fans in rookie season

Jacob Abel was announced as a Dale Coyne Racing driver for the 2025 IndyCar season in January 2025. Motorsports reporter Bob Pockrass uploaded a reel on Instagram in collaboration with IndyCar on FOX that featured the 23-year-old.

As Pockrass sat with Abel for the interview, he asked Dale Coyne Racing's driver to give fans a reason to support him in the upcoming IndyCar season. The American replied:

“I think fans should root for me because, you know, at my heart, I'm just a normal Midwest American kid. You know, I'm from Louisville, Kentucky. I think I can relate to a lot of the fans. I went to college, I went to a normal high school, and just two hours from here, I'm a huge sports fan. That's the biggest reason people should root for me is that I think I'm one of the most relatable drivers to all the fans in the paddock.”

Jacob Abel finished as the runner-up behind the champion Louis Foster in the 2024 Indy NXT championship. The 2025 IndyCar season will be the rookie year for both Abel and Foster, who will be making their debut at the Saint Petersburg Grand Prix on March 2nd.

Jacob Abel scored three wins and ten podium finishes during the 2024 campaign as he drove for his family's team Abel Motorsports. The American began his professional single-seater career in the US F4 championship in 2017 and then moved to race in the US F3 championship.

Abel raced in the Indy Pro 2000 championship from 2019-2021, finishing 9th, 14th and 6th in the championship respectively. He raced in the Indy NXT series for the next three years with the best championship result coming in 2024, before making the IndyCar move.

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Dale Coyne Racing owner reveals why the team signed Jacob Abel for the 2025 IndyCar season

Jacob Abel had a great 2024 Indy NXT season, which was overshadowed by Louis Foster’s incredible season that consisted of a series-high eight wins in 14 races and 12 podium finishes. However, the American's performances did not go to waste and the DCR owner revealed how they kept an eye on Abel since 2023.

AUTO: MAR 05 INDYNXT Series Streets of St. Petersburg - Source: Getty

As Jacob Abel’s announcement was made on January 13, 2025, Dale Coyne said (via IndyCar):

“We have watched Jacob over the years and did an evaluation test with him at the end of the 2023 season, where he showed great promise in these cars. It will be good to run one driver in the #51 car for the whole season so that we can work on the consistency needed in the highly competitive NTT IndyCar Series. Our plans for our second driver are coming along quite nicely, and we will have more news on that in approximately three weeks.”

Dale Coyne Racing is the only team left to confirm their lineup for the upcoming season with the #18 car seat still available on the market.