An IndyCar seat might seem like the perfect fit for Logan Sargeant, but he's better off not being on the grid - for 2025, at least.
Of course, when Sargeant exited Formula 1, people immediately began to wonder if he'd end up in IndyCar. That's often the case for drivers in similar situations, and in this case there is the added bonus of Sargeant being marketable thanks to his American nationality, while he also knows a bit about the series because of his close friendship with Kyle Kirkwood.
But Sargeant's name is not being mentioned regularly in connection to the remaining seats, and I think that's a good thing for him.
The seats available are not what he needs. Sting Ray Robb has been announced at Juncos Hollinger for 2025 so, assuming the Rahal Letterman Lanigan seat is going to Devlin De Francesco as expected, the remaining options are two at Dale Coyne and one at Juncos Hollinger.
Both teams have giant-killing potential, but both have their issues. Coyne has been plundered for its staff over the years and spent 2024 swapping drivers more often than McLaren did, and that's saying something.
Juncos had better performance generally but is really struggling for budget and its addition of Robb means Sargeant wouldn't have a quick and experienced team-mate to learn from.
And then there's Sargeant himself.
Losing his F1 seat no doubt took a toll on his confidence. He has one chance at redemption with his next gig to prove those who backed his F1 career dying were wrong and if he ends up touring around at the back of the IndyCar grid in an uncompetitive car, it's going to do nothing for him or his reputation.
There's also the fact that, despite being American, he grew up racing European-based single-seaters, so he has no experience of Firestone tyres or the tracks IndyCar races on - not to mention ovals - just like other drivers coming over. That's another learning curve Sargeant would have to go through next year, without the possibility of much testing.
He'd be far better off aiming at a sportscar drive - something he has been investigating for 2025 - and a reserve F1 gig if he can land one, and look to build a serious programme at a good team for 2026, whatever that might be in.
Because fundamentally, while F1 was a stretch for Sargeant, he's still a very, very talented driver. And IndyCar can always do with quick, young American drivers on its grid. Who knows, perhaps a sportscar future might end up being the destination instead, but Sargeant's more than good enough to have a decent, paid career in IndyCar.
So if the lack of clamour for his name this silly season translates to no IndyCar seat for 2025, looking at the options, it may be the best thing.
Sargeant's test at the Thermal Club this week with Meyer Shank was always going to be just that - a test - owing to Shank having retained Felix Rosenqvist (pictured above0 and signed Marcus Armstrong from Ganassi for 2025. Armstrong - a regular rival of Sargeant's on the F1 junior ladder - was at the test watching on.
Shank needed a driver without IndyCar experience to be eligible for this extra test - McLaren did the same bringing in Enzo Fittipaldi, for example - and team boss Mike Shank praised Sargeant for being "everything that I had hoped for and he caught on really quick".
The Race understands Sargeant was third quickest, within two tenths of the pacesetter for Team Penske, another ex-F1 driver, Felipe Nasr. Last year's Indy NXT runner-up Hunter McElrea was second quickest for Ed Carpenter Racing. Louis Foster - who'll race for Rahal Letterman Lanigan in 2025 - Fittipaldi and Dale Coyne's Toby Sowery rounded out the six drivers in the order.
Sargeant added: "I thought the IndyCar was fun for sure, it's very different from any other car that I have driven before.
"I felt like we were chipping away at it throughout the day and were trying some different set-up stuff - some good, some bad.
"I'd say the most surprising thing was how the tyres were pretty 'peaky'. They were pretty difficult to nail on a lap, I had thought that they would have a bit of a longer peak.
"Working with MSR has been amazing. Everyone on the team is great to work with, everyone is super nice. It's a great atmosphere here and I had a nice time working with them."
Nyck de Vries tested for Shank a few years ago and left a lasting impression, so it will be interesting to see if Sargeant has done the same, and if he jumps up the list of names fighting for next year's seats.
But if he doesn’t, he might be better off anyway.
2025 IndyCar driver line-up so far
AJ Foyt: Santino Ferrucci, David Malukas
Andretti: Marcus Ericsson, Colton Herta, Kyle Kirkwood
Arrow McLaren: Pato O'Ward, Christian Lundgaard, Nolan Siegel
Chip Ganassi: Scott Dixon, Alex Palou, Kyffin Simpson
Dale Coyne: TBC, TBC
Ed Carpenter: Christian Rasmussen, Alexander Rossi
Juncos Hollinger: Sting Ray Robb, TBC
Meyer Shank: Marcus Armstrong, Felix Rosenqvist
Prema: Callum Ilott, Robert Shwartzman
Rahal Letterman Lanigan: Louis Foster, Graham Rahal, TBC
Team Penske: Scott McLaughlin, Josef Newgarden, Will Power
