If James Davison‘s run last year at the Indy 500 proves to be his last, the Australian will be content with his career in open-wheel racing. Having competed for Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing and Byrd/Belardi in the 2020 event where the No. 51 Honda was the first car to exit the race, Davison was faced with an opportunity to return to Indy at the expense of contesting an expanded NASCAR Cup calendar.
Left to choose where the majority of his sponsorship dollars should be apportioned, the 34-year-old picked stock car racing as the arena to fully invest his efforts.
“It was either doing the Indy 500 again as a one-off drive, or doing 26 Cup races this season, and I truly love what I‘ve been doing in NASCAR, so that‘s where my decision went,” Davison told RACER. “And we have conflicts with Charlotte, COTA, and Indy, so we‘ll do the Cup races.
“It saddens me, but look, I‘ve done the Indy 500 six times, led the race, and I‘ve put over 15 years of my life into trying to make it in IndyCar. And I‘ve got to be realistic: I‘ve made eight IndyCar starts since 2013, and six of those were at Indy, so I‘m not really in the running to do more races outside of the 500. It‘s been a blast, and there also comes a time when a new generation of drivers come along like Colton Herta and Pato [O‘Ward], and it‘s their time now.”
— Racer —
