Conor Daly isn’t slotted in to drive the No. 60 Honda this weekend, but the Meyer Shank Racing team values his experience and input and has asked the NTT IndyCar Series free agent to plug back into the program at Toronto as a resource for rookie driver Tom Blomqvist.
Daly was deputized to step into the No. 60 for the injured Simon Pagenaud earlier this month at Mid-Ohio and earned rave reviews from the team, and with an opportunity to give MSR’s IMSA champion a look in the car after Pagenaud was ruled out for Toronto by IndyCar’s medical staff, Blomqvist was given the green light to make his series debut and will have Daly on his timing stand and in engineering meetings to support the multi-talented star.
“It’s just been great being involved with the team and Mike Shank’s been super honest with me about this, because obviously it’s a changing situation,” Daly, a veteran of 105 IndyCar races, told RACER. “This is Simon’s car and we’re just here to help the team until he jumps back into his car. But until he does, the team needs to keep racing and so whatever the week-by-week assignments are to help until Simon’s driving again is what we’re here to do.
“I completely understand why Tom’s in the car because he’s got plenty of trophies, and I’ve known Tom for a long time since our GP3 days, so I’ve already been texting with Tom this week trying to help with stuff to prepare for Toronto and it’s just a good relationship. And the MSR guys are super friendly to me.”
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An unrewarding stint with Ed Carpenter Racing came to an end for Daly in June, and with a wide-open future in front of him, the Indiana native is doing exactly what he should be doing by being present at IndyCar events and making his skills and availability known to every team in the paddock. So far, MSR has been the first to make use of his services, and with a recent pole position at Iowa Speedway to his credit, Daly would be a natural fit for the No. 60 car next weekend if Pagenaud is unable to make his return at the doubleheader.
“It’s been a win-win situation,” he added. “It’s great just to be able to offer whatever I can from experience that I’ve got — because, oddly enough, I do have a lot of experience and with a lot of different teams. I do want to get back to racing here as quickly as I can because I still have so much to prove. I don’t know what’s gonna happen in the future, but if you’re ready for one opportunity, as Eminem would say, you’ve got to be able to take advantage of that.
“MSR has a very large footprint in sports cars and IndyCar, and I’ve never lost that drive to be successful. So it’s good to be affiliated. I’m going to be helping however they ask. I’m gonna be here, ready — who knows what that might lead to down the road, but I’m gonna be ready to go racing anytime, anyplace.”