That is a difficult history to follow. But each side views this as a perfect opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m super excited,\u201d team owner Chip Ganassi said. \u201cWhen\u2019s the last time the guy that\u2019s finished third in the points was available? That says it all to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lundgaard was Arrow McLaren\u2019s highest point scorer in 2026 and won twice, giving him two victories, 13 podium finishes and 14 top-five results in his two seasons with the team.<\/p>\n
Yet in early July, Lundgaard learned Arrow McLaren would not offer him a contract for 2027. Suddenly, a driver who at the time was also third in the championship was looking for a new home. He was disappointed and confused.<\/p>\n
\u201cI found out a couple of hours before the media found out,\u201d Lundgaard said. \u201cI sort of had an idea that was a possibility. I tried to just keep my head down.\u201d<\/p>\n
The timing was significant. Part of the Lundgaard announcement was that the team had signed Dixon to join Pato O\u2019Ward for 2027, with Felix Rosenqvist also joining the organization. That left Ganassi looking for a replacement for one of the most accomplished drivers in team history. Lundgaard emerged as a logical fit.<\/p>\n
![\"No.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/09-30-No9-Honda.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
But a fit like that creates expectations. Lundgaard is aware he cannot simply step into the No. 9 Honda (photo, above) and replicate what Dixon accomplished. In the same breath, he also knows he is joining an organization that has repeatedly turned talented drivers into champions.<\/p>\n
Dixon won the championship in his first full-time season with Ganassi in 2003. Juan Montoya did the same in 1999, Dario Franchitti in 2009 and Alex Palou in 2021, the first of five titles in six years, including the last four.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thought that I had when this opportunity became on the table was, I\u2019m learning from the best driver (Alex Palou), who learned from the best driver in Scott Dixon,\u201d Lundgaard said. \u201cGetting to learn as much as I can from there. It really is just a dream come true in many ways. It\u2019s one of those opportunities you never expected to rise.\u201d<\/p>\n
But there is one question Lundgaard must answer \u2013 performance on ovals. That was one of the reasons cited for Arrow McLaren\u2019s decision to drop him. Ganassi doesn\u2019t see the same limitation. He sees an area where Lundgaard can continue to develop and one of the reasons he believed he was \u201cbest available\u201d for hire.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like his approach to driving,\u201d Ganassi said. \u201cI think he\u2019s very clinical. I think he\u2019s a student of the craft. I didn\u2019t see any oval questions at Milwaukee. That\u2019s an oval. He beat all three of our guys. I\u2019m not concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Milwaukee Mile doubleheader in August was significant for Lundgaard. He finished third, earning his first top-five finish on a circle track, during the final oval race of the 2026 season. He finished sixth in the other race of the doubleheader. That was another indication that Lundgaard\u2019s oval results are trending in the right direction.<\/p>\n
His average oval finish has improved in each of his first five seasons in the series, from 18.4 as a rookie to 17.6, 15.3, 13.2 and 10.8. Ganassi believes there is more to come.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn some of our first meetings, I grilled him (Lundgaard) pretty extensively on what we expect,\u201d Ganassi said. \u201cWe have a great culture. I\u2019m confident that our system will continue to develop Christian in the same manner.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look at Christian\u2019s age and his experience in the series. He\u2019s learned the circuits. He understands the paddock. We look for people with talent. Everything else can sort of be taught.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lundgaard admitted joining Ganassi is a tough situation to enter. He\u2019s replacing a six-time champion and joining a five-time champion.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know the cars are fast,\u201d Lundgaard said. \u201cThat\u2019s the thing I need to keep in mind. I need to learn as much as possible and do the simple things right. That\u2019s something CGR has been very good at.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know what I\u2019m capable of and why I\u2019ve been hired. Trying to learn as much as possible and get the most out of it. The main objective is to get a CGR car to Victory Lane.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ganassi said: \u201cHe seems to be able to keep the rubber side down and shiny side up, as they say. Those drivers keep the car on the track, and that turns into points.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why Lundgaard believes this is the right opportunity to take him to the next level. Take what Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing taught, McLaren believed was missing from his game and combine it with what Ganassi already sees in him to find out what the next chapter can produce.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re in the business to win but also create some great stories,\u201d Lundgaard said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Christian Lundgaard isn\u2019t feeling the pressure. That\u2019s not to say he doesn\u2019t understand what awaits him in 2027.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":632435,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[85,46,105],"class_list":["post-632434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632434","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=632434"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632434\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/632435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=632434"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=632434"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=632434"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}