Callum Ilott expected to continue in IndyCar

Callum Ilott changes lane. After the car, the 25-year-old Briton will ride in Endurance in 2024, and more particularly in WEC. In the FIA ​​World Championship, the Englishman will compete in the Hypercar category with Hertz Team JOTA. It will be aligned in the Porsche 963 n°12 in the company of his compatriot Will Stevens and the Frenchman Norman Nato. The vice-champion of Formula 2 2020 did not plan to leave the championship IndyCar where he has been playing since the end of the 2021 season, but after two full seasons at Juncos Hollinger Racing, he will be replaced in 2024 by Romain Grosjean in Dallara No. 77.

« I expected to stay [in IndyCar], explains Callum Ilott in the DIVEBOMB podcast available on YouTube. I had no doubt in my mind about that. It was a bit of a surprise for me. Staying in the championship was my primary objective, but I was not the first option for the remaining seats. If I had been free a few weeks earlier, this wouldn't have been a problem. So I explored other paths, and in particular that of Endurance. The JOTA opportunity presented itself with their second car and I realized how interesting it could be. We came to an agreement quite quickly after the Bahrain race. I really like their ideology, their way of thinking, their mentality. On simple things like encouraging drivers to drive as much as possible, because it’s in our nature. »

By entering the WEC, Callum Ilott will have the opportunity to find the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A test he already knows. “ I finished third at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the GTE Am category in 2021 (alongside Matteo Cressoni and Rino Mastronardi on a Ferrari 488 GTE Evo from the Iron Lynx team. Editor’s note), the pilot remembers. It’s super exciting to be able to return to the main category, Hypercar. I am very excited to return to the European circuits that I grew up with and learned as a driver. JOTA is not a manufacturer, but it is a team capable of doing a very good job. We will have a great crew. Le Mans will be the main goal, but winning or getting podiums in any other race would be great for the team and for me. »

« JOTA has shown its evolution over the years, continues Ilott. Last season they got the car just before Spa (the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, April 29. Editor’s note) without having been able to test it and we were able to see their progress until the end of the season. I think with more testing we should be able to get in the fight with the best. »

Hertz Team JOTA will field two Porsche 963s in 2024 after a convincing first season as a Porsche customer team. The #38 will be driven by Oliver Rasmussen, Phil Hanson and a certain Jenson Button.

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