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Ed Carpenter Racing on Wednesday said it has ended its relationship with driver Conor Daly effective immediately and will announce a new driver for the No. 20 Chevrolet by IndyCar’s next race.
Daly has been working with ECR since 2020, but did not run a full season with the team until last year when he brought sponsor BitNile to the team. BitNile has been supportive of Daly and sponsored him in the Daytona 500 this year.
“This is the most difficult decision I have made as a team owner because I respect Conor and know what he means to IndyCar and its fans,” Carpenter said of the 31-year-old Indianapolis native.
“Our team has not been performing at the level we are capable of this year, and despite making technical changes and investments in the offseason, 2023 has been extremely challenging,” Carpenter continued. “I have put a great deal of consideration into the current state of our team and realize it is my obligation to our employees, partners, and supporters to do whatever is necessary to elevate our team’s competitiveness.”
Daly is ranked 20th in the standings after Sunday’s 15th-place finish in Detroit. His best finish this season was eighth in the Indianapolis 500 last month.
“Although we’ve mutually decided that it’s in our best interests to take different paths, I’d like to thank ECR for the past three and a half seasons,” said Daly. “I’m grateful to everyone who has supported me–past, present and into the future. I look forward to taking on the next opportunities that await, and I want to thank the fans for being with me on this ride.”
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Even though ECR has underperformed this season, it is surprising to make a move like this mid-season. Seems like there has to be something else at play here other than just poor performance.
I agree with Joe A. above — something’s not adding up. I’ve always tremendously admired Conor (even if he is the Pat McAfee of racing…) and his loyal ability to get more than could be reasonably be expected out of some pretty crappy cars over the years. I hope BitNile is sticking with him wherever he goes?
You have to respect Pat McAfee – the guy built one of the greatest post NFL careers of anyone alive today… and he did not even need to change who he was
AGREED
Mid season change on a middling team…like ECR and really admire Dalys hustle – will be interesting to see what shakes
(LOVE the McAfee correlation!)
Wow, very surprising. Like others have said, you don’t see mid season moves that often, I would suspect!