In today’s age of social media, one doesn’t have to look far to see heaps of praise or criticism for their favorite or least favorite athletes on social media. Sites like Twitter can make it extremely easy to get one’s opinion on how well or poorly an athlete does out to the masses.
In the NTT IndyCar Series, one of the easiest targets for criticism has been Nolan Siegel. Let’s look at the facts. Siegel joined Arrow McLaren in 2024 in what was a tumultuous season for the No. 6 entry. Theo Pourchaire and Callum Ilott shared the seat intended for David Malukas who was sidelined due to a preseason biking injury.
The speed at which Siegel was put into the seat in 2024 led to some speculation about the nature of the signing. Siegel raced at Road America for Juncos Hollinger Racing after Agustin Canapino‘s benching for the weekend and Siegel then got drafted up into Arrow McLaren almost immediately afterward.
People asked if money had changed hands, which was discovered to be the case during the Alex Palou vs McLaren lawsuit.
On track, Siegel finished seventh at World Wide Technology Raceway late in the 2024 season and was preparing for a full-season entry in 2025 with the team. That season went, to put it bluntly, not so well for Siegel.
If asked, I’m certain that the Palo Alto native would admit that 2025 wasn’t up to his or the team’s expectations. Siegel was 22nd in points with only three finishes above 13th place (eighth at Road America, ninth at Barber, 11th at Mid-Ohio).
Meanwhile, teammates Pato O’Ward and Christian Lundgaard were respectively second and fifth in points.
Second. Fifth. 22nd.
Looking at those results, Siegel probably should have been at Dale Coyne Racing longer than he was (Long Beach and a failed Indianapolis 500 attempt) where he could have learned in a less pressure-intensive environment, but instead went for a top-tier team, but results aren’t guaranteed because you’re in good equipment.
Things didn’t start off better in 2026 with a pair of 20th place finishes and a 24th at Arlington after a late race collision with Romain Grosjean that was caused by Kyffin Simpson.
As of writing, Siegel is 23rd in IndyCar points while O’Ward and Lundgaard are fourth and fifth, respectively. As such, social media has been merciless to Siegel after his results so far this season.
Which now brings us to Long Beach. Siegel crashed during Saturday’s practice session and started last in the 25-car field for Sunday’s 90-lap race.
Expectations weren’t high based on previous race performances. In two previous races at Long Beach, Siegel finished 20th in both performances.
Siegel moved from 17th to 15th when Palou took over the race lead for good during the full course yellow pit sequence and had 30 laps to gain any positions in the midfield.
Unfortunately, Long Beach is a difficult track to gain any positions on, and it showed. Siegel gained 14th when Will Power served a drive-through penalty for hitting a member of Caio Collet‘s pit crew and then moved up to 13th when Louis Foster‘s tires didn’t have much grip in the race’s final 15 laps.
Siegel was 13th for 12 laps, but then saw his chance to move up again on the race’s final lap. As the race broadcast cut back from Palou’s crossing the checkered flag, Siegel moved around the outside of Rinus VeeKay to snatch 12th place from the Dutch racer with two turns to go.
Siegel finished 12th, just under a second from Dennis Hauger and within three seconds of Graham Rahal who finished eighth and was leading an eight-car train at race’s end.
It’s easy to pile on a driver that has, by all accounts, underperformed when compared to his teammates in a top level organization. It’s harder for some to give acclaim to that driver when they perform well after a rough start to a weekend.
Nolan Siegel didn’t start off the Long Beach weekend well, but finished by gaining the most positions in the field.
Good job, Nolan. Let’s get into the top five soon, shall we?
Christopher DeHarde has covered IndyCar racing and the Road to Indy for various outlets since 2014. In addition to open wheel racing, DeHarde has also covered IMSA and various short track racing events around Indiana. Originally from New Orleans, DeHarde moved to the Indianapolis area in 2017 to further pursue a career as a motorsports writer.