After a period of negotiations with the Australian Government to be allowed to leave Australia following the end of this year’s Supercars Championship, it’s been confirmed that Scott McLaughlin has been given the necessary exemption to fly overseas and take on the IndyCar Series.
The defending Bathurst 1000 winner will compete with Team Penske at the IndyCar series finale; the October 25 Firestone Grand Prix of St Petersburg, in Florida.
“This is something I haven’t stopped thinking about, but I wanted to ensure my focus was on winning our third straight Supercars championship for DJR Team Penske and all our partners in Australia,” he said.
“We are still laser-focused on that and have three more rounds to get it done, but I’m equally as excited to finally get the chance and make my IndyCar debut.
“I’ve been doing everything I can to keep up with the series this year, from watching as many races as I can on TV to even talking to the drivers and some of the engineers back at the Team Penske shop.
“I never knew if I would be able to get behind the wheel of one of these cars this year due to all the COVID-19 restrictions, but I wanted to be ready if it became an opportunity.”
“Our plan has always been for Scott to run a race in the IndyCar Series this season, but we never wanted to take the focus away from the main goal, which is winning another Supercars championship,” added Team Penske president Tim Cindric.
“COVID-19 certainly altered those plans early on, but with the way the schedules have lined up at the end of this season, St. Pete became an available option and we remain committed to getting him some IndyCar seat time.
“We know Scott is ready for this challenge and this should add even more excitement to the 2020 season finale in St. Petersburg.”