William Jacob Abel (born March 9, 2001), known professionally as Jacob Abel, is an American racing driver who competes in the IMSA SportsCar Championship in LMP2 for Era Motorsport. He has competed in the IndyCar Series for Dale Coyne Racing full-time in 2025, and Abel Motorsports at the Indianapolis 500 in 2026. He previously competed in Indy Lights/Indy NXT for Abel Motorsports between 2022 and 2024, with a one-off weekend in 2026.

Junior racing career Lower formulae Abel began his senior racing career in 2017 at the age of sixteen, competing in the F4 United States Championship with Abel Motorsports. The following season, Abel stepped back to a partial-season schedule in both the F4 United States Championship and the new-for-2018 F3 Americas Championship. Abel would score four podiums in his opening season in F3, en route to a fourth place championship finish. He took his first win in the series early the following season, scoring back-to-back victories at Road Atlanta.

In 2023, Abel stepped outside of North America for the first time in his racing career, taking part in the 2023 Formula Regional Oceania Championship with Kiwi Motorsport. He claimed four podium finishes, completing the season with a third place championship finish. He returned to the series in 2024, making his first appearance during Round 4 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 schedule in the series for 2018, Abel stepped up to the Indy Pro 2000 Championship in 2019. His opening season in the championship was quiet, as he finished ninth overall with no podiums and two top-fives. He would compete in just seven races in 2020 to supplement a full-season drive in the Formula Regional Americas Championship, scoring his first Indy Pro 2000 podium at Mid-Ohio that September.

For 2021, Abel committed to a full-time schedule in Indy Pro 2000. Claiming two podiums, one each at Road America and Mid-Ohio, Abel finished his first full season sixth in the standings.

For 2022, Abel stepped up to Indy Lights, once again with Abel Motorsports. He finished eighth in the championship during his rookie season, finishing as high as fourth at Portland and Laguna Seca. For 2023, Abel returned to the series. He scored his first series podium in the opening race of the season at St. Petersburg, leading 27 of 40 laps before dropping to third on a late restart. He would finish a season-high second at Road America and Iowa (where he claimed pole), finishing fifth in the championship. In November 2023, Abel embarked on an IndyCar test with Dale Coyne Racing.

Abel and his family's team returned for his third year in the series in 2024. Following a second place at the season-opener in St. Petersburg, Abel took pole at Barber, from where he led every lap to take his first victory in the category. Abel followed that up with another lights-to-flag victory at Indianapolis, and claimed his third and final race win of the season later in the year at Portland. Abel finished the 2024 season second in the championship, with a career-high three wins, ten podiums, and three pole positions.

Abel returned to Indy NXT in 2026 as a replacement for Jordan Missig at his family's team for the final four races of the season.

IndyCar Series In November 2024, Abel took part in an IndyCar test at Texas Motor Speedway, driving with Chip Ganassi Racing. During the test, Abel made a strong impression on Ganassi's managing director Mike Hull, who advocated for Abel to land a seat in the series for 2025. On January 13, 2025, it was announced that Abel would make the step up to the NTT IndyCar Series to compete full time in the No. 51 Honda for Dale Coyne Racing. Following a difficult season where he placed lowest of the full-time drivers — 48 points behind nearest driver Devlin DeFrancesco, Abel was dropped at the end of the season to make way for reigning Indy NXT champion Dennis Hauger. Abel also competed that year in a driver shootout with his then Dale Coyne Racing teammate Rinus VeeKay, for a spot among the 2025 Indy 500 starting lineup, which he ultimately lost to VeeKay.

On April 20, 2026, it was announced that Abel will compete in the 2026 Indianapolis 500 for Abel Motorsports.

Sportscar racing career 2021 In March 2021, Abel was announced as part of HPD's 2021 Junior Factory Lineup. As a result, Abel would compete part-time with Racers Edge Motorsports in the GT World Challenge America. Later that season, Abel joined Compass Racing for the IMSA SportsCar Championship event at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, substituting for Jeff Kingsley. The following weekend, Abel scored his first class victory in GT3 machinery in race #1 of the GT World Challenge America event at Watkins Glen.

2026 After losing his IndyCar seat, Abel joined the IMSA Sportscar Championship to contest the endurance rounds, driving for Era Motorsport in the LMP2 category.

Other racing Stadium Super Trucks (2021) In August 2021, Abel made his Stadium Super Trucks debut at the Music City Grand Prix, where he drove a truck sponsored by Crosley Brands. He finished runner-up in the second and final race of the weekend.

Personal life A graduate of Trinity High School in Louisville, Abel attended college part-time at Butler University while pursuing his racing career. A marketing major, Abel stated that his education helped him understand the financial and business aspects of motorsports.

Racing record 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 ChampionshipAbel Motorsports 11 2 0 3 8 155 4th Indy Pro 2000 Championship 14 0 0 0 0 198 9th 2020 Formula Regional Americas ChampionshipAbel Motorsports 17 0 0 0 1 133 5th Indy Pro 2000 Championship 7 0 0 0 1 107 14th 2021 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Abel Motorsports 18 0 0 3 2 292 6th Formula Regional Americas Championship Newman Wachs Racing 3 1 0 1 2 43 13thStadium Super Trucks Crosley Brands 3 0 0 0 1 39 14th GT World Challenge America - Pro-Am Racers Edge Motorsports 6 1 0 0 2 66 14th IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD Compass Racing 1 0 0 0 0 204 65th 2022 Indy Lights Abel Motorsports 14 0 0 0 0 355 8th2023 Formula Regional Oceania Championship Kiwi Motorsport 15 0 0 0 4 2653rd Indy NXT Abel Motorsports 14 0 1 0 4 397 5th 2024 Indy NXT Abel Motorsports 14 3 3 3 10 517 2nd Formula Regional Oceania Championship mtec Motorsport 6 0 0 0 1 118 13th 2025 IndyCar Series Dale Coyne Racing 16 0 0 0 0 123 27th2025–26Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2Vector Sport RLR 6 0 0 0 0 18 16th 2026IMSA SportsCar Championship - LMP2Era Motorsport 5 0 0 1 2 1420 20th IndyCar Series Abel Motorsports 1 0 0 0 0 6 29thIndy NXT 4 0 0 1 0 101 25th * Season still in progress.

Complete Formula 4 United States Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in 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 HMS1 HMS2 HMS3 IMS1 IMS2 IMS3 MSP1 MSP2 MSP3 MOH1 MOH2 MOH3 VIR1 VIR2 VIR3 COTA11 COTA12 COTA13 COTA21 COTA22 24th 9 2018 Abel Motorsports VIR1 VIR2 VIR3 ROA1 ROA2 ROA3 MOH1 MOH2 MOH3 PIT1 PIT2 PIT3 NJMP1 NJMP2 NJMP3 COTA1 COTA2 15th 24

Complete Formula Regional Americas results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 DC Points 2018 Abel Motorsports PIT1 PIT2 PIT3 MOH1 MOH2 MOH3 NJM1 NJM2 NJM3 ROA1 ROA2 ROA3 NOL1 NOL2 NOL3 COTA1 COTA2 4th 124 2019 Abel Motorsports BAR1 BAR2 ATL1 ATL2 ATL3 PIT1 PIT2 PIT3 VIR1 VIR2 VIR3 ROA1 ROA2 SEB1 SEB2 SEB3 4th 155 2020 Abel Motorsports MOH1 MOH2 VIR1 VIR2 VIR3 BAR1 BAR2 BAR3 SEB1 SEB2 SEB3 HMS1 HMS2 HMS3 COA1 COA2 COA3 5th 133

American open–wheel racing results U.S. F2000 National Championship Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Rank Points 2017 Newman Wachs Racing STP STP BAR BAR IMS IMS ROA ROA IOW TOR TOR MOH MOH WGL 31st 14 2018 Abel Motorsports STP STP IMS IMS LOR ROA ROA TOR TOR MOH MOH MOH POR POR 23rd 47

Indy Pro 2000 Championship Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Rank Points 2019 Abel Motorsports STP STP IMS IMS LOR ROA ROA TOR TOR MOH MOH GTW POR POR LAG LAG 9th 198 2020 ROA ROA MOH MOH MOH LOR GMP IMS IMS IMS MOH MOH NJM NJM NJM STP STP 14th 107 2021 ALA ALA STP STP IMS IMS IMS LOR ROA ROA MOH MOH GMP NJM NJM NJM MOH MOH 6th 292

Indy NXT Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Rank Points 2022 Abel Motorsports STP BAR IMS IMS DET DET RDA MOH IOW NSH GMP POR LAG LAG 8th 355 2023 STP BAR IMS DET DET RDA MOH IOW NSH IMS GMP POR LAG LAG 5th 397 2024 STP BAR IMS IMS DET RDA LAG LAG MOH IOW GMP POR MIL NSH 2nd 517 2026 Abel Motorsports STP ARL BAR BAR IMS IMS DET GAT ROA ROA MOH MOH NSS POR MIL LAG LAG 25th 101

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 18 Rank Points Ref 2025 Dale Coyne Racing 51 Dallara DW12 Honda STP THE LBH ALA IMS INDY DET GTW ROA MOH IOW IOW TOR LAG POR NSH 27th 123 50 MIL 2026 Abel Motorsports 51 Chevrolet STP PHX ARL ALA LBH IMS INDY DET GTW ROA MOH NSH POR MRK WSH MIL MIL LAG 29th 6

* Season still in progress.

Indianapolis 500 Year Chassis Engine Start Finish Team 2025 Dallara HondaDNQ Dale Coyne Racing 2026 Chevrolet 30 24 Abel Motorsports

Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) Year Team Class Make Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Rank Points 2021 Compass Racing GTD Acura NSX GT3 Evo Acura 3.5 L Turbo V6 DAY SEB MOH DET WGL WGL LIM ELK LGA LBH VIR PET 65th 204 2026 Era Motorsport LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 DAY SEB WGL MOS ELK IMS PET 20th 1420

Stadium Super Trucks (key) (Bold – Pole position. Italics – Fastest qualifier. * – Most laps led.) Stadium Super Trucks results Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pts Ref 2021 STP STP MOH MOH MOH MOH NSH NSH LBH LBH 14th 39

Complete Formula Regional Oceania Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) YearTeam123456789101112131415DCPoints2023Kiwi MotorsportHIG1 HIG2HIG3TER1TER2TER3MAN1MAN2MAN3HMP1HMP2HMP3TAU1TAU2TAU3 3rd 2652024mtec MotorsportTAU1TAU2TAU3MAN1MAN2MAN3HMP1HMP2HMP3RUA1RUA2RUA3HIG1 HIG2HIG3 13th 118

Complete Asian Le Mans Series results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) + Year Team Class Car Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pos. Points 2025–26 Vector Sport RLR LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SEP1 SEP2 DUB1 DUB2 ABU1 ABU2 16th 18

References

External links Jacob Abel at the Indy Pro 2000 Championship