A Leader At MSR, Rosenqvist Set For 100th IndyCar Start

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Even Felix Rosenqvist finds it hard to believe that he’s already reached his 100th start in NTT IndyCar Series competition.

The Meyer Shank Racing driver’s milestone race comes in the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix powered by AmFirst at Barber Motorsports Park, round four of the Indy car season and the first race of the ‘Month of May’, headlined by the 109th Indianapolis 500.

It’s six years removed from his first appearance at the top level of American open wheel racing in 2019, when he transitioned to the IndyCar Series after two years in Formula E yielded modest success.

Now considered one of the veterans of the current Indy car field, the 33-year-old Rosenqvist marveled in the moment at how far he’s come since beginning his IndyCar Series journey.

“It feels a bit unreal, to be honest,” said Rosenqvist of reaching his 100th start this weekend. “It kind of brings you back a little bit to when you were a kid [and] you were dreaming about driving in IndyCar. Even my first years in IndyCar, obviously [it’s] nothing you take for granted, racing in one of the top leagues of the world. It’s been like a fast forward from then to now, honestly.

“One hundred is a big number. That's a lot of hours in the car,” he added with a smile. “It’s cool. I think it’s literally the coolest job in the world a driver can have. It’s also nice that I feel better than ever in the series, as well. I’ve probably had my best start in a year that I’ve had, so we’re in a good place.”

Statistically, Rosenqvist becomes the ninth driver among IndyCar Series full-timers to reach the 100-start threshold, making one-third of the field veterans of triple-digit starts in American open wheel racing.

Rosenqvist’s lone Indy car win to-date came in 2020 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., and he’s had six poles and six total podium finishes in his first 99 races.

Despite those seemingly thinner numbers, however, Rosenqvist has carried a surge of momentum through the spring months this season.

The first three races of 2025 have yielded finishes of seventh, fifth, and fourth, and Rosenqvist’s current average finish of 5.3 is far and away better than any of his full-season averages since he began Indy car racing.

It’s a sign that Rosenqvist is in a place of growth with the Meyer Shank organization as he navigates his second season with the team co-owned by Jim Meyer and Mike Shank.

“[Finishing strong] is a big thing we’ve been working on in the off-season. We know we’ve had speed, which we had all season last year. We probably were one of the strongest qualifiers in the field and we’ve maintained that part this year,” noted the Swede. “But I feel like we’re better in the races. We got to the point now, where we have this speed, and it’s about how do we get the points. It’s always in the small things. It’s pit stops, strategy, tire deg(redation), race pace, and really just how you flow through the weekend [as a whole].

“I think the work has paid off so far in that aspect. I think sitting fifth in points last year around this time, it was kind of hard to see what we could have done better because I feel like we just kind of nailed the first [few] weekends,” added Rosenqvist. Now, we can probably be a bit better still, even as we’re sitting good in the points. We still see some low-hanging fruit. That’s the big difference.

“We know now we’re kind of quick. We’re working on all the important areas.”

In Rosenqvist’s past tenures at Chip Ganassi Racing and Arrow McLaren, he had to work to shine over the prowess of power teammates in six-time IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and talented Mexican young gun Pato O’Ward, respectively.

There were established stars, and then there was Rosenqvist, who was well-liked but often had to play second fiddle in the pecking order.

At Meyer Shank, he’s stepped into more of a leadership role among the team, as the senior driver in the stable alongside New Zealand’s Marcus Armstrong – who drives the second full-time Meyer Shank entry.

And, perhaps notable as well, he’s fourth in the championship standings entering Barber. That’s one spot ahead of Dixon and two places ahead of O’Ward in the rankings.

There are a lot of pieces to the puzzle of championship contention in the IndyCar Series, and Rosenqvist is trying to assemble the ones he has, as well as fill in the gaps this year that he couldn’t last year after a second-half decline in performance.

“When I joined with Shank last year, it’s kind of been the natural progression of things, I guess,” said Rosenqvist of stepping up to the plate and contending in a bigger way. “But we’re a team organization. … We take everyone’s input in and discuss it. Everyone pulls their weight in different ways. But I think I do have a bit more confidence as a more routine driver now; that has made a difference, for sure.

“Making decisions when it matters is important. Sometimes you’re in a tricky position where you have to go one way on a setup, and you have to make the shot. I think before it was easier, my first year in INDYCAR, to just kind of do what Scott did because he’s experienced. Now I’m more of the one making that decision.

“But the team really believes in me, they value my feedback, and they really trust in my opinion when it comes to things like strategy or setup or [my] approach in general. It's been pretty cool to have that support behind me. They just try to give me the tools they can to do the job.”

With Meyer Shank’s new technical alliance this season with CGR came another piece to the puzzle for Rosenqvist in the form of Ross Bunnell, Dixon’s former race engineer who was assigned to the No. 60 team through the CGR association.

The pairing has shown cohesiveness from the outset and Rosenqvist feels fortunate to be working with someone of Bunnell’s caliber and experience.

“Ross is kind of a jack of all trades. If I could only bring one guy to the track with me and the car, I would definitely pick him, because he’s not only a great engineer, but he has very good mechanical knowledge and team leader knowledge,” Rosenqvist explained. “He’s a good team guy. He knows how to talk to people and to motivate people. He’s competitive but also knows how to have fun.

“But Ross takes no [expletive] basically. He stands up for himself, stands up for the team, for our car, and I like that. He’s a good guy to have in our corner.”

Yes, Rosenqvist has had to watch over the past four seasons as Alex Palou piloted the CGR car that he once drove to three Indy car championships during that span.

But he’s also enjoying where he’s at now with MSR and the promise that looks to lie ahead.

“Time just seems to fly by. I didn’t think at the time I’d get this old. Seven years now [in IndyCar]. But it’s cool. It’s a special series in that way,” said Rosenqvist. “I’ve done some other series for a long time. This one just seems to keep you on your toes all the time. You just keep learning and keep digging. In a way you always feel like a rookie, because it’s kind of hard to just rely on your experience.

“I feel like I’m a different guy than what I showed up. I’m a better person in many ways, not only [as] a driver, but just in general. I’m really happy, though, to be where I’m at. I’m lucky to be at Meyer Shank.”

Broadcast coverage from Barber Motorsports Park of Rosenqvist’s 100th NTT IndyCar Series race is slated for Sunday, May 4 at 1:30 p.m. ET, live on FOX, the IndyCar Radio Network, and SiriusXM IndyCar Nation, channel 219.