PREMA Racing's Callum Ilott feels "no one knows" how IndyCar drivers will fare at the Thermal Club GP

PREMA Racing's IndyCar driver Callum Ilott has touched on what awaits IndyCar drivers and teams at the Thermal Club Grand Prix this coming weekend from March 21 to 23. The track will make its debut on the IndyCar calendar this year as a points-paying race. In 2024, it hosted an exhibition race - the $1 million challenge that defending champ Alex Palou won.

The feature race around the 17-turn, 3.67-mile permanent circuit had 20 laps and required no strategy, as drivers weren't required to make pit stops. Chip Ganassi Racing's Palou took pole position in the unique qualifying format and took a lights-to-flag victory.

However, the teams couldn't assemble a lot of learnings for this year's full-length Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix, considering the unusual format it had in 2024. Callum Ilott, who signed for debutant team PREMA Racing for 2025 and beyond, has laid out his expectations for race weekend.

"It's an amazing track. I think it's gonna be interesting racing there this year. We did a short race last year, so doing a full race, full length, that's going to be a challenge. It's quite heavy on tires, so maybe a bit on tire saving. But no one knows how its really going to unfold," the 26-year-old said (via @IndyCarRadio on X).

Fortunately for Ilott, PREMA Racing was one of three teams including Andretti Global and Dale Coyne Racing that tested their cars at the Thermal Club circuit before the 2025 IndyCar season began. The British racer completed 50 laps around the circuit, emerging as the fourth-fastest among the six drivers that day.

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Callum Ilott sets realistic timeline for success with PREMA Racing after a "solid" first race at St. Petersburg

INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Day 1 - Source: Getty

PREMA Racing, which boasts a rich history in the European racing circuits, got its first official taste of IndyCar at the 2025 season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. The driver duo of Robert Shwartzman and Callum Ilott, both former Ferrari development drivers, fared decently.

While Ilott started the race dead last out of 27 drivers on the grid, Shwartzman, who was quicker in qualifying, started from P18. However, Ilott's two-plus years of experience shined through as he made the best of a lap 1 crash in front of him to gain seven positions. The No. 90 Chevrolet driver eventually finished in P19, one place ahead of his rookie teammate in what he labeled a "solid first race" for the Italian team.

In an interview with reporter Bruce Martin, Callum Ilott explained how he expects PREMA to get their operations streamlined by the Indy 500 on May 25.

"I think once we get all our ducks in a row, we'll be strong," the British driver said on the Pit Pass Indy podcast [40:15 onwards]. "But at the moment, it's more of a building, see where we end up. I think around the (Indy) 500, maybe just after the 500, we should be going steady. So up until then, it's a bit unknown and we'll have to build on it."

The team left St. Petersburg with 21 points - 11 for Callum Ilott and 10 for Robert Shwartzman. The Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix will begin with the first practice session on Friday scheduled for 6:30 pm ET.