Moving onto our second IndyCar Wrap-Up of the 2025 season, and Juncos Hollinger Racing had a slight change from its 2024 lineup. Conor Daly became a full-time driver for JHR after closing the 2024 with the team. Sting Ray Robb joined the organization for his third year in IndyCar. The team remained intact for the entire year. While there were a few bright spots for this group, most races did not see JHR as a factor.
Conor Daly
After spending 2024 mostly on the sidelines, Daly passed the audition when he got the second Juncos Hollinger Racing entry into a Leaders' Circle position and earned his first full-time ride since 2022. Ovals were expected to be where Daly would excel, and that was the case. However, we never saw a spark on a road or street course where the team got to shine.
What objectively was his best race?
Daly's season could not end on a much higher note. Though he had a poor qualifying run at Nashville, starting 24th, Daly ended up climbing up into the top ten in quick fashion, and that is where he spent most of the race. His car continued to improve and chipped away as the race ran on. When the checkered flag waved, Daly was fifth, his best finish of the season.
What subjectively was his best race?
Nashville and Gateway are neck-and-neck. Nashville was pretty good and Daly had to overcome a disappointing start to the weekend. It is hard to overlook Gateway because he had a good claim at a possible victory.
Daly looked set to win at Gateway. He was leading and keeping the race at arm's length as the laps ticked down. The only problem is the field beat Daly in the pit lane. After one cycle, Daly was out of the lead. On the next cycle, he fell back again and was out of the top five when the checkered flag waved. Gateway was his strongest race, though it slipped away from him.
What objectively was his worst race?
After contact with Christian Rasmussen in turn ten at Portland, Daly spun off circuit and he was out of the race classified in 26th.
What subjectively was his worst race?
After contact with Christian Rasmussen in turn ten at Portland, Daly spun off circuit and he was out of the race classified in 26th.
What subjectively was his worst race?
There were a few races where Daly didn't have the pace and struggled to finish much better than his teammate, a driver everyone believed Daly is significantly better than. However, his worst race is Portland, and not because of the accident and the result, but how Daly conducted himself before and after the incident.
Rightfully upset after being forced off track, Daly attempted to take matters into his own hands and lunged at Rasmussen, looking for contact in the chicane. The contact in turn ten was much more shared than as simple as Rasmussen turned into Daly, though Daly immediately stepped out of the car and cried foul, failing to acknowledge the role he played in his own bad day.
Conor Daly's 2025 Statistics
Championship Position: 18th (268 points)
Wins: 0
Podiums: 0
Top Fives: 1
Top Tens: 4
Laps Led: 51
Poles: 0
Fast Sixes: 0
Fast Twelves: 0
Average Start: 17.294
Average Finish: 15.294
Wins: 0
Podiums: 0
Top Fives: 1
Top Tens: 4
Laps Led: 51
Poles: 0
Fast Sixes: 0
Fast Twelves: 0
Average Start: 17.294
Average Finish: 15.294
Sting Ray Robb
Moving to his third team in three seasons, Robb looked to improve on his results at A.J. Foyt Racing. His finishes did improve in his sophomore season, and he did score his first career top ten finish. Robb had a shock of encouragement early in the season, but Robb settled into where we have seen him run over his first two seasons in IndyCar.
What objectively was his best race?
Good strategy saw Robb finish ninth despite starting 19th on the grid at Long Beach. It was Robb's second top ten finish of his career and his first on a street course.
What subjectively was his best race?
At Long Beach, Robb chose to take on the alternate tire late in the race, which put him in a difficult spot to lose ground while others had already shed the less desirable tire. However, Robb did 12 laps and when he got off the alternate tire, he had managed to hold onto a top ten spot. This race could have evolved into Robb spending a chunk of it in the top ten and one bad stint leading him to drop to 16th or 17th and be completely forgotten. Instead, he held ground and got a top ten.
What objectively was his worst race?
Robb spun under braking at Road America and hit the barrier. He was classified in 26th with only nine laps completed.
What subjectively was his worst race?
No race stands out as particularly poor for Robb. The races where he wasn't quick, he was anonymous, but didn't get in the way. Road America was bad. He had two other retirements. He was collateral damage when Kyle Larson spun in the Indianapolis 500, and then he spun on his own early in the second Iowa race.
Iowa was a little disappointing because Daly was competing in the top ten, and we have seen Robb have good runs on ovals, but in this case, Robb started outside the top twenty in both races and never performed above expectation. I think the Iowa weekend was a missed opportunity.
Sting Ray Robb's 2025 Statistics
Championship Position: 25th (181 points)
Wins: 0
Podiums: 0
Top Fives: 0
Top Tens: 1
Laps Led: 12
Poles: 0
Fast Sixes: 0
Fast Twelves: 0
Average Start: 22.176
Average Finish: 19.529
Wins: 0
Podiums: 0
Top Fives: 0
Top Tens: 1
Laps Led: 12
Poles: 0
Fast Sixes: 0
Fast Twelves: 0
Average Start: 22.176
Average Finish: 19.529
An Early Look Ahead
We know Robb will be returning for 2026, as for the second driver, there are questions.
Daly lives on one-year deals, and though he can have a handful of competitive oval races each season, he is still a driver that is finishing 18th in the championship and whose ceiling is 17th in the championship. Not once did JHR make it out of the first round of qualifying. Daly didn't have a top ten finish on a road or street course.
It is a team too small to draw a notable name that could take it to the next level. It lives within its means, but that means one of its cars will have Robb occupying the seat and perhaps sneaking into the top ten on a flukey day but for the most part it will be a car fighting just to crack the top twenty. Sure, it might get lucky a few more times and make the top fifteen, but it is a car we will hardly speak about over the entire season.
JHR would neither benefit nor suffer from retaining Daly. Maybe one of these oval races do go his way and he is on the right side of a caution during the final pit cycle and he pits with 25 cars trapped a lap down. Maybe it works out that his pit stops are just adequate enough to keep him in the fight and not cost him four positions. That is the one positive to Daly. He is there. Can the team support him?
A good number of drivers are not getting to that level. Daly has you on the door step, but can he and JHR combine to close the deal?
Of course, close is only good in horseshoes and hand grenades. Close doesn't pay the bills. For as close as Daly gets, the team still needs to pay the electric bill. If someone else comes along and makes that easier, they will trade close for the lights staying on.
It costs to compete. JHR has spent a significant amount of money just to be on the grid and running for 15th. Stepping up to the next level will require more, and it seems JHR is a team that is at its limit. The organization is not building a new shop like Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing all have in recent years. It doesn't have fancy programs to develop the dampers. It cannot hire a special pit crew dedicated to the craft. This is where it lives. It can either sustain running for 15th or wither away and disappear from our sights.
