How Chip Ganassi landed Christian Lundgaard and why Lundgaard wants to work with Alex Palou
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Christian Lundgaard has officially landed on his feet after being let go by Arrow McLaren in favor of Scott Dixon and Felix Rosenqvist. Lundgaard’s IndyCar career will continue with Chip Ganassi Racing, which signed the Danish driver to a multiyear deal to replace Dixon in the No. 9 Honda.
Lundgaard won two races in 2026 and finished third in the IndyCar championship behind only CGR’s Alex Palou and Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood. He’s now set to join the team that has won a series-best 18 championships.
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How Lundgaard to CGR came together
Lundgaard said he found out the morning of July 6, just hours before Arrow McLaren made the announcement official, that the team was replacing him in 2027 (although he was granted permission to negotiate elsewhere before that). He understandably didn’t agree with Arrow McLaren’s decision.
But once Lundgaard realized there was mutual interest between himself and CGR, his tensions eased knowing he could drive for a team more successful than Arrow McLaren.
“As soon as the conversations really started, that was when – I would say – my excitement changed,” Lundgaard said. “Obviously I was very disappointed, very confused, and I'm sure I share that opinion with many. But as soon as the conversations started, that was when I knew there was a chance, and all I had to do was keep performing on track, and it would all fall into place.”
Replacing Dixon, a six-time champion, was no easy task for CGR owner Chip Ganassi. Ganassi said he “looked at everybody,” including drivers in other series. According to Ganassi, the timing with most of those drivers didn’t align to trigger serious conversations about driving the No. 9 car, which led CGR back to Lundgaard.
“Christian's name kept landing back as the obvious one,” Ganassi said. “Like, 'Wait a minute, we're not overlooking this guy, are we?’ Every name that came along, we said, ‘OK, well, how does that compare with Lundgaard?’”
Lundgaard understood that Ganassi had an initial process to go through before deciding he should take the seat. But he felt his track record in IndyCar would be enough for the team to land on him.
“I've always been aware that there’s drivers out there – there's options,” Lundgaard said. “But it also goes back to: when was the last time a third-place championship driver was available? I think we both had enough confidence to make it work.”
Lundgaard has accepted that, despite his confusion with Arrow McLaren’s decision, his two-year tenure is in the past. He’s now making light of the fact that he’ll race in the No. 9 car to continue his IndyCar career.
“I choose to look at it in a very different way,” Lundgaard said. “I've done well, and a better opportunity has (arisen) versus what it could have been. I think this is a conversation that Chip and I have already had. We're just looking forward now. It's not really looking back.”
For many years, Dixon was the unheralded leader and frontman of CGR. Whether it was racing duties or community and partnership events in tandem with PNC Bank – the primary sponsor of the No. 9 car – CGR knew what to expect of Dixon as a person and teammate.
Lundgaard likely won’t have the same overall expectations right away but Ganassi worked to make sure the 25-year-old was the right fit for the team.
“Christian will tell you, I grilled him pretty extensively in terms of what we expect and what we want, what's important and what's not important,” Ganassi said. “We have a great culture that (CGR managing director) Mike Hull and his team have built around there, and we try to push that down on other people, whether it's on-track activities or off-track activities. I’m confident that our system will continue to develop Christian in the same manner.”
Part of that CGR culture is centered around drivers working alongside each other and sharing information and tips they have. While joining Palou and Kyffin Simpson, Lundgaard will look to integrate into that environment.
Can Lundgaard outshine Palou?
Everyone in the paddock has the lofty goal of upstaging Palou. The Spaniard has won four consecutive championships and five total, while winning 14 races in the past two seasons.
Lundgaard, whose first full IndyCar season came with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in 2022, has spent much of his career battling Palou while driving for other teams. In those battles, Palou typically comes out on top.
“Every time I’m on the podium, second or third, he’s first,” Lundgaard said after Palou won the 2026 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. “It’s pretty annoying.”
When Palou had a mistake-riddled day in the Freedom 250 Grand Prix on Aug. 23, Lundgaard – who was rumored to have already agreed to a deal with CGR – said, “I think I'm just happy to see Alex not win for once.”
The competitive side of Lundgaard has shown frustration in Palou’s dominance. Now, he’ll look to capitalize on sharing a shop and engineering room with one of IndyCar’s all-time greats.
For many drivers, having a similar car and the same technical data as the champion brings a daunting level of pressure. Despite coming to the team with five full seasons in IndyCar, Lundgaard views this as an opportunity to learn.
“Alex has learned from Scott Dixon, and if I can learn the Scott Dixon things from Alex Palou with a twist of Alex Palou, it's the right combination,” Lundgaard said. “We've seen that from the performance on track. But I'm not so worried about the performance on track. I think it's more learning behind the scenes – getting integrated with the team, getting to know everybody, getting the whole team to (gel), put myself as a piece in that and get the best out of it and have many good years.”
Palou credits much of his success to Dixon’s leadership, even going as far as to say he wouldn’t have more than one championship if not for Dixon. Lundgaard hopes to get that same guidance from Palou, although their gap in age and experience isn’t as large.
“I think it's very easy to change the narrative as a driver to, okay, this car has (been) proven to win the championship; it should be easy, go out and do it,” Lundgaard said. “I know better. It's not as easy as it sounds or as it seems. Alex has done a tremendous job in the past six years and I want to mirror that in many ways, but I want to do it better.”
For Lundgaard to reach Palou’s level and beat him for a championship, he must become an all-around driver. It will take a leap Arrow McLaren didn’t believe in – or at least didn’t want to wait for – but CGR has faith it can bring the best out of Lundgaard.
Will Lundgaard solve ovals with CGR?
Lundgaard has won at one street course and two road courses and racked up 15 of his 16 career podiums on those types of circuits. But he’s yet to prove himself as a consistent threat on ovals.
Lundgaard’s lack of oval success was why Arrow McLaren was alright with letting him go despite two successful seasons with the team. With McLaren Racing, Arrow McLaren’s parent company, being an international brand, the team emphasizes success in the Indianapolis 500. While Dixon and Rosenqvist have both won the Indy 500, Lundgaard’s best finish in five tries is seventh.
In 29 career oval starts, Lundgaard has made the podium just once. That came at the Milwaukee Mile on Aug. 30, after Arrow McLaren made its 2027 lineup decision. After the race, Arrow McLaren team principal (and former CGR driver) Tony Kanaan stood by the move.
“The question was not if he could win on the oval; the question was when,” Kanaan said. “In my opinion, when I made the decision, I wasn't sure. I think if that was what it took him to come up and bring himself to the next level, obviously we didn't give up on him, ‘cause look what he's doing right now. Hey, life is full of tough decisions on both ends. If that actually is what he needed, we're going to give him a hell of a fight next year, and likewise. The sport is going to be better. The fans are going to watch it.”
When asked how CGR could unlock Lundgaard’s oval potential, Ganassi didn’t hesitate to defend his new driver.
“I didn't see any of those (oval) questions at Milwaukee,” Ganassi said. “He seemed to do OK there. That's an oval, and he beat all three of our guys. So I'm not overly concerned.”
Lundgaard would not be the first driver to figure out ovals several years into his career. It took Palou until his 29th oval start to win. It took Dario Franchitti, a three-time Indy 500 champion who works for CGR, 45 oval starts.
Lundgaard again pointed at Palou as a benchmark when it comes to ovals. Palou didn’t win on an oval for the first time until the 2025 Indy 500, and he has two more oval wins since.
“He didn’t win his first oval until he won the 500,” Lundgaard said in an interview posted by CGR. “And then it clicked. And in many ways, I hope that was Milwaukee for me this year, that that was the click.”
While Lundgaard has never competed for a win in the Indy 500, he has finished higher than his qualifying position each year and never exited the race early. Lundgaard’s average finishing position on ovals has also improved every year of his career.
If Lundgaard truly does decode his oval shortcomings through some combination of an improved driver and better car, there’s no reason to believe he can’t compete with Palou in similar equipment.
CGR believes that jump is on the horizon, and it’s why Lundgaard was chosen to follow Dixon’s 25-year run.
Zion Brown is IndyStar's motorsports reporter. Follow him at @z10nbr0wn. Get IndyStar's motor sports coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Motor Sports newsletter. Subscribe to the YouTube channel IndyStar TV: IndyCar for a behind-the-scenes look at IndyCar and expert analysis.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: How Chip Ganassi landed Christian Lundgaard and why Lundgaard wants to work with Alex Palou