Photo Credit; Chris Jones/IndyCar
It was announced on February 1 that Mikhail Aleshin would be returning to Schmidt Peterson Motorsports for the full 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season.
Aleshin’s return was rumored but never officially confirmed until today. Aleshin announced the news from his hometown of Moscow, Russia that he would again be piloting the No. 7 Honda.
Aleshin drove for SPM full time in both 2014 as well as 2016. He also drove in the 2015 season finale for SPM. He will join teammate James Hinchcliffe who pilots the No. 5 Honda for SPM.
“Thanks to both the SMP Racing program and our American team, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, I am to keep fighting for even better results this season in INDYCAR,” Aleshin said. “With the Russian flag on my car, and with James and the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports crew, I will push hard to bring more poles and hopefully victories in 2017.”
The 29-year-old had a good second half of the 2016 season winning the pole for the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway, where he led 87 laps before finishing second. He also placed fifth at Iowa Speedway and sixth on the Streets of Toronto. He was leading at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course towards the end of the race, and was in position to win until a pit road incident that cost him his first victory.
“We are thrilled to have Mikhail back for 2017,” Schmidt Peterson Motorsports co-owner Sam Schmidt said. “We know he is capable of winning races and competing for the championship. This also means we have maintained continuity across drivers, engineering and team member staffing, which is critical for success.”
He has two podium finishes and 12 top-10 finishes under his belt in his 34 Verizon IndyCar starts, all of which came with SPM.
“It goes without saying that we are all so happy to have Mikhail back with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports for the 2017 season,” said team co-owner Ric Peterson. “I have no doubt in my mind that he will find much success this year, and I can’t wait to watch this team continue seeing their hard work translating into great results.”
Aleshin and Hinchcliffe will be participating in a private test February 7 at Sonoma Raceway in California before joining the rest of the IndyCar series drivers at Phoenix International Race for the open test February 10-11.
