Jacob Abel (racing driver)

William Jacob Abel
Born	(2001-03-09) March 9, 2001 United States
Occupation	Racing driver
Years active	2017–present
Known for	Competing in IndyCar Series for Dale Coyne Racing

William Jacob Abel (born March 9, 2001) is an American professional racing driver currently competing in the IndyCar Series, piloting the No. 50/51 Honda entry for Dale Coyne Racing. His previous experience includes participation in Indy NXT representing Abel Motorsports.

Lower formulae

Abel launched his senior-level racing journey in 2017 at sixteen years old, competing in the 2017 Formula 4 United States Championship with Abel Motorsports. The subsequent year saw him engage in partial schedules across both the F4 United States Championship and the inaugural F3 Americas Championship, where he achieved four podium finishes and secured fourth place in the overall F3 standings. Early in the following season, he earned consecutive victories at Road Atlanta.

In 2023, Abel broadened his racing horizons internationally by joining the 2023 Formula Regional Oceania Championship with Kiwi Motorsport, where he attained four podiums and finished third in the championship rankings. He returned to this championship in 2024, making his entry at Round 4 held at Euromarque Motorsport Park.

Road to Indy

Abel made his Road to Indy debut in July 2017 at Mid-Ohio, driving for Newman Wachs Racing. After a part-time campaign in 2018, he progressed to the Indy Pro 2000 Championship in 2019, concluding the season ninth overall with two top-five finishes but no podium appearances. In 2020, while competing full-time in the Formula Regional Americas Championship, he participated in seven Indy Pro 2000 races and captured his first series podium at Mid-Ohio.

The 2021 season marked Abel’s full-time commitment to Indy Pro 2000, where he earned two podiums at Road America and Mid-Ohio, ultimately finishing sixth in the championship standings. Advancing to Indy Lights in 2022 with Abel Motorsports, he achieved eighth place overall, highlighted by two fourth-place results at Portland and Laguna Seca. Returning for a second year in 2023, Abel secured his inaugural series podium at the St. Petersburg round after leading most laps and finishing third. He also claimed runner-up finishes at Road America and Iowa, where he additionally secured pole position. He wrapped up the season fifth in the championship. In November 2023, Abel completed an IndyCar test session with Dale Coyne Racing.

For his third season in Indy NXT during 2024, Abel continued racing with his family-run team. Following a second-place finish at St. Petersburg, he earned pole position and led every lap en route to his first victory of the category at Barber. He then achieved another dominant lights-to-flag win at Indianapolis, followed by a third triumph later that year at Portland. Abel finished the 2024 campaign second overall in the championship standings, recording three wins, ten podiums, and three poles—personal bests across all categories.

SportsCar racing career

In March 2021, Abel was incorporated into the HPD's Junior Factory Program for that year, which led to part-time entries with Racers Edge Motorsports in the GT World Challenge America. Later that season, he stepped in for Jeff Kingsley at Compass Racing during an IMSA SportsCar Championship round held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The following weekend saw Abel achieve his maiden class victory driving a GT3 car at the GT World Challenge America event hosted by Watkins Glen.

Stadium Super Trucks

Abel made his first appearance in the Stadium Super Trucks series during the Music City Grand Prix in August 2021, piloting a vehicle backed by Crosley Brands. He secured a runner-up position in the weekend's concluding race.

IndyCar Series

In November 2024, Abel completed an IndyCar test session at Texas Motor Speedway with Chip Ganassi Racing. His driving impressed team managing director Mike Hull, who advocated for Abel to obtain a full-time seat for 2025. Subsequently, on January 13, 2025, Abel was officially announced as a full-season driver in the No. 51 Honda for Dale Coyne Racing in the IndyCar Series.

Personal life

Abel is an alumnus of Trinity High School and pursued part-time studies in marketing at Butler University. He attributes his academic background to a deeper insight into the commercial and financial facets of motorsport.

Career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2017	Formula 4 United States Championship	Abel Motorsports	19	0	0	0	0	9	24th
	U.S. F2000 National Championship	Newman Wachs Racing	2	0	0	0	0	14	31st
2018	F3 Americas Championship	Abel Motorsports	11	0	0	0	4	124	4th
	Formula 4 United States Championship		12	0	0	0	0	24	15th
	U.S. F2000 National Championship		5	0	0	0	0	47	23rd
2019	F3 Americas Championship	Abel Motorsports	11	2	0	3	8	155	4th
	Indy Pro 2000 Championship		14	0	0	0	0	198	9th

• Season ongoing.

Complete Formula 4 United States Championship results

(Template:Motorsport driver results legend#key) (Bold denotes pole position) (Italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	DC	Points
2017	Abel Motorsports	HMS 1 24	HMS 2 Ret	HMS 3 DNS	IMS 1 10	IMS 2 25	IMS 3 8	MSP 1 14	MSP 2 17	MSP 3 12	MOH 1 9	MOH 2 10	MOH 3 12	VIR 1 15	VIR 2 14	VIR 3 13	COTA1 1 20	COTA1 2 15	COTA1 3 10	COTA2 < br > 12 ,29		24th	9
2018 Formula 4 United States Championship #2018 2018	important nowrap Abel Motorsports #Abel Motorsports Abel Motorsports	Virginia International Raceway #VIR VIR1 < br > Template:Small 23						Virginia International Raceway #VIR VIR2 < br > Template:Small 7		Virginia International Raceway #VIR VIR3 < br > Template:Small 7	Road Atlanta #ROA ROA1 < br > Template:Small 12					Road Atlanta #ROA ROA2 < br > Template:Small 11					Road Atlanta #ROA ROA3 < br > Template:Small 8						Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course #MOH MOH1 < br > Template:Small 11						Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course #MOH MOH2 < br > Template:Small 6						Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course MOH3 < br > Template:Small Ret						Pittsburgh International Race Complex PIT1 < br > Template:Small15						Pittsburgh International Race Complex PIT2 < br > Template:Small12						Pittsburgh International Race Complex PIT3 < br > Template:Small13						New Jersey Motorsports Park NJMP1 < br > Template:Small WD						New Jersey Motorsports Park NJMP2 < br > Template:Small WD						New Jersey Motorsports Park NJMP3 < br > Template:Small WD						Circuit of the Americas COTA1	Circuit of the Americas COTA2				15th	24

Complete Formula Regional Americas results

(key) (Bold race numbers denote pole positions) (Italicized race numbers signify fastest laps)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Final Position	Points Total
2018	Abel Motorsports	PIT 1	PIT 2	PIT 3	MOH 1	MOH 2	MOH 3	NJM 1 3rd	NJM 2 3rd	NJM 3 3rd	ROA 1 5th	ROA 2 4th	ROA 3 4th	NOL 1 Retired	NOL 2 5th	NOL 3 3rd	COTA 1 6th	COTA 2 4th	4th	124
2019	Abel Motorsports	BAR 1 3rd	BAR 2 4th	ATL 1 1st	ATL 2 1st	ATL 3 3rd	PIT 1 3rd	PIT 2 3rd	PIT 3 11th	VIR 1	VIR 2	VIR 3	ROA 1	ROA 2	SEB 1 2nd	SEB 2 Retired	SEB 3 3rd	4th	155
2020	Abel Motorsports	MOH 1 6th	MOH 2 6th	VIR 1 6th	VIR 2 9th	VIR 3 Retired	BAR 1 7th	BAR 2 5th	style="background:#efcfff;" [[Barber Motorsports Park BAR 3 ]] {{small Retired}} Template:Style background Sebring International Raceway SEB 1 Template:Small 5th Template:Style background Sebring International Raceway SEB 2 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Sebring International Raceway SEB 3 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Homestead-Miami Speedway HMS 1 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Homestead-Miami Speedway HMS 2 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Homestead-Miami Speedway HMS 3 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Circuit of the Americas COA 1 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Circuit of the Americas COA 2 {{{1}}} Template:Style background Circuit of the Americas COA 3 {{{1}}}	5th	133

U.S. F2000 National Championship

Season	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final Position	Total Points
2017	Newman Wachs Racing	STP	STP	BAR	BAR	IMS	IMS	ROA	ROA	IOW	TOR	TOR	MOH 16	MOH 13	WGL	31st	14
2018	Abel Motorsports	STP	STP	IMS	IMS	LOR	ROA 15	ROA 10	TOR	TOR	MOH 11	MOH 11	MOH 11	POR	POR	23rd	47

Indy Pro 2000 Championship

"2020""2021"

Season	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Final Standing	Points Accumulated
2019	Abel Motorsports	STP 9	STP 11	IMS 6	IMS 7	LOR 5			TOR 6	TOR 7	MOH 12	MOH 10	GTW 12	POR 7	POR 8	LAG 7	LAG 5			9th	198
"ROA"		"ROA"	"MOH"	"MOH"	"MOH"	style="background:#cfcfff;"| "LOR" "12"	style="background:#cfeaff;"| "GMP" "10"	"IMS"	"IMS"	"IMS"	style="background:#cfeaff;"| "MOH" "7"	style="background:#ffdf9f;"| "MOH" "3"	style="background:#cfeaff;"| "NJM" "9"	style="background:#cfeaff;"| "NJM" "6"	style="background:#cfeaff;"| "NJM" "8"	"STP"	"STP"			14th	107
style="background:#cfeaff;" | "ALA" "8"		style="background:#dfffdf;" | "ALA" "5"	style="background:#cfcfff;" | "STP" "15"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "STP" "7"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "IMS" "6"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "IMS" "7"	style="background:#cfcfff;" | "IMS" "13"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "LOR" "6"	style="background:#ffdf9f;" | "ROA" "3"	style="background:#dfffdf;" | "ROA" "5"	style="background:#ffdf9f;" | "MOH" "3"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "MOH" "6"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "GMP" "6"	style="background:#dfffdf;" | "NJM" "5"	style="background:#dfffdf;" | "NJM" "5"	style="background:#dfffdf;" | "NJM" "4"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "MOH" "6"	style="background:#cfeaff;" | "MOH" "9"	6th	292

Indy NXT

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Position	Points
2022	Abel Motorsports	STP 10	BAR 6	IMS 8	IMS 5	DET 14	DET 12	RDA 5	MOH 11	IOW 6	NSH 9	GMP 7	POR 4	LAG 4	LAG 5	8th	355
2023		STP 3*	BAR 16	IMS 9	DET 4	DET 9	RDA 2	MOH 6	IOW 2L	NSH 3	IMS 4	style = " background: #DFFFDF; " > GMP < br /> 4	style = " background: #EFCFFF; " > POR < br /> 16	style = " background: #CFCFFF; " > LAG < br /> 14	style = " background: #DFFFDF; " > LAG < br /> 5	style = " background: #DFFFDF; " >5th	style = " background: #DFFFDF; " >397
2024		style = " background: #DFDFDF; " > STP < br /> 2	style = " background: #FFFFBF; " > BAR < br /> 1*	style = " background: #FFFFBF; " > IMS < br /> 1*	style = " background: #DFDFDF; " > IMS < br /> 2	style = " background: #DFFFDF; " > DET < br /> 5	style = " background: #FFDF9F; " > RDA < br /> 3	style = " background: #FFDF9F; " > LAG < br /> 3	style = " background: #CFCFFF; " > LAG < br /> 11	style = " background: #FFDF9F; " > MOH < br /> 3	style = " background: #CFCFFF; " > IOW < br /> 15	style = " background: #DFDFDF; " > GMP < br /> 2	style = " background: #FFFFBF; " > POR < br /> 1*	style = " background: #DFDFDF; " > MIL < br /> 2	style = " background: #CFEAFF; " > NSH < br /> 8	style = " background: #DFDFDF; " >2nd	style = " background: #DFDFDF; " >517

IndyCar Series

(key)

Year	Team	No.	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Position	Points
2025	Dale Coyne Racing	51	Dallara DW12	Chevrolet	STP 23rd	THE 25th	LBH 26th	ALA 27th	IMS 24th	INDY DNQ	DET 18th	GTW 21st	ROA 23rd	MOH 22nd	IOW 27th	IOW 11th	TOR 23rd	LAG 26th	POR 23rd		NSH 23rd	27th	123
		50																		MIL 21st

• Current season underway.

Indianapolis 500

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start Position	Finish Position	Team
2025	Dallara	Honda	DNQ		Dale Coyne Racing

Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results

(key) (Bold signifies pole position)

Year	Team	Class	Vehicle Make	Engine Type	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	Final Standing	Points Earned
2021	Compass Racing	GTD Class	Acura NSX GT3 Evo	Acura 3.5 L Turbocharged V6									style="background:#EFCFFF;" | LGA 13th			65th	204

Stadium Super Trucks

(key) (Bold – Pole position. Italics – Fastest qualifier. * – Most laps led.)

Stadium Super Trucks performance record
Year	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	SSTC	Points	Reference
2021	STP	STP	MOH	MOH	MOH	MOH	NSH 12	NSH 2	LBH 13	LBH DNS	14th	39

Complete Formula Regional Oceania Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	DC	Points
2023	Kiwi Motorsport	HIG 1 6	HIG 2 2	HIG 3 6	TER 1 3	TER 2 6	TER 3 5	MAN 1 3	MAN 2 4	MAN 3 4	HMP 1 7	HMP 2 2	HMP 3 8	TAU 1 Ret	TAU 2 9	TAU 3 6	3rd place	265 points
2024	mtec Motorsport										style="background:#FFDF9F;" |RUA 1 3	style="background:#DFFFDF;" |RUA 2 7	style="background:#DFFFDF;" |RUA 3 5	style="background:#DFFFDF;" |HIG 1 5	style="background:#DFFFDF;" |HIG 2 4	style="background:#DFFFDF;" |HIG 3 4	13th overall	118 points

External links

• Jacob Abel profile on the Indy Pro 2000 Championship website