Ricky Taylor to get IndyCar test with Andretti
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Marshall Pruett | January 23, 2023 7:22 AM ET
One of the best sports car drivers of his generation will get another chance to test an IndyCar as Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport IMSA GTP driver Ricky Taylor is set to get another open-wheel run courtesy of his new team co-owner.
Taylor, the 33-year-old from Florida who has two IMSA DPi championship titles – with the most recent coming for Acura Team Penske in 2020 ‒ got his first IndyCar run with Team Penske in what served as an audition that easily landed him the job with ATP as it was being assembled for 2018.
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Taylor impressed Penske’s IndyCar operation at the early 2017 run on the Miami-Homestead roval, and while there have been other IndyCar teams that have expressed interest in sampling Taylor’s renowned testing and development skills and running him in a few road course races, those opportunities never materialized.
For Andretti, the new union with the factory Acura WTR team has brought an inside look at Taylor’s capabilities behind the wheel, and if all goes well in testing, it might be hard to argue against placing the hard-charging two-time winner of the Rolex 24 At Daytona in an extra Andretti Autosport Indy car at a few rounds.
“Let me just say he’s on our radar,” a smiling Andretti told RACER. “Hopefully we’re going to get him in the car soon and see how he does. I know he drove a Penske car a few years back, and I heard it went very, very well from the people that were there at the test that worked with them. So, we can’t wait to get him in the car.”
Taylor’s younger brother Jordan, a three-time IMSA champion, is also on Andretti’s shortlist of talent to acquire. Having joined the factory Corvette Racing team in 2020, Taylor could be a perfect fit for a reunion with his father and brother – the siblings won the 2017 DPi title as co-drivers – as WTR with AA is looking to expand its GTP effort to two cars in 2024.
“To be honest, [it’s] both my kids,” said Wayne Taylor. “When Michael flew down [to discuss the merger], the first thing they said when they came in was, ‘We want both your kids.’ And Jordan and Ricky said to me, ‘We like the idea that Andretti’s name is on it, because then we can deal with Michael and we don’t have to deal with you, dad! We can just deal with Michael.”