Infotainment Factory: Kiwi gets surprise call for IndyCar debut

Simon Pagenaud's pain is Tom Blomqvist's gain.

After his enormous IndyCar crash at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, the Frenchman has not been given medical clearance to make his series return.

That means triple-national Blomqvist will step into the No.60 entry.

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Meyer Shank Racing has two high-profile programs in the IndyCar Series and IMSA Sports Car Championship respectively.

Tom Blomqvist will drive the No.60 for Meyer Shank Racing in place of Simon Pagenaud.

Blomqvist has long been rumoured to make the move to IndyCar full-time in 2024 amid a purple patch in IMSA.

Blomqvist was born in the United Kingdom to a Kiwi mother and Swedish World Rally Championship legend Stig Blomqvist.

The 29-year-old moved to New Zealand at a young age before returning to the United Kingdom.

He races under a British licence but considers himself part-Kiwi and is well-known in the New Zealand motorsport fraternity.

"First and foremost, I'm thinking of Simon and hoping that he recovers as quickly as possible so that he can get back behind the wheel," said Blomqvist.

"I have to thank Mike and Jim for considering me to fill in this weekend. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what IndyCar has to offer.

Tom Blomqvist drives for Meyer Shank Racing in the IMSA Sports Car Championship.

"Diving straight into the deep end is an understatement after only having one test in the MSR Indy car last year.

"I'm excited but aware of the challenges getting up to speed during a race weekend, so I'm not putting any pressure on myself.

"Just going to go out there soak it all in and give it all I've got."

Exactly when Pagenaud will be fit to return is unclear yet.

After the street race in Toronto the series has a quick turnaround with just a few days to return from Canada to the United States for a double-header at Iowa Speedway.

"We're obviously still working to get Simon as healthy as possible," said team boss Mike Shank.

"He is feeling find and is ready to get back in the car once he is cleared. The decision to put Tom in the car was an easy one.

"He's coming off of an IMSA win at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park last weekend and I have all the confidence in the world putting him in our Indy car."

The IndyCar Series is currently led by Spain's Alex Palou who has won four of the last five races with Chip Ganassi Racing.

His nearest rival is teammate Scott Dixon, who sits more than a race win's worth of points in arrears, 110 points behind.

The last five races in Toronto have been won by either Chip Ganassi Racing or Team Penske drivers.

The 85-lap race in Toronto gets underway on Monday at 3:30am with coverage live, ad-free, and exclusively on Stan Sport.

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