Motorsport photo Joey Barnes Tue, November 3, 2026 at 4:01 PM UTC · 3 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Jacob Abel spent 2026 driving everything, everywhere. Now, the 25-year-old Kentucky native is figuring out what comes next.
Following his rookie NTT IndyCar Series campaign in 2025 with Dale Coyne Racing – built on the foundation of his 2024 Indy NXT championship runner-up finish – Abel's 2026 season threw out the traditional single-seater playbook. He kicked off the year racing LMP2 machinery in the Asian Le Mans Series with Vector Sport, then transitioned to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship where he collected two podiums in five endurance rounds with Era Motorsport. In May, he made his Indianapolis 500 debut with his family-owned outfit, Abel Motorsports, finishing 24th, before capping off his year by returning to Indy NXT for the final four races and securing two top-fives.
Looking back at a whirlwind schedule that spanned multiple continents and disciplines, Abel embraces the globetrotting experience.
"It was definitely a bit of a diverse year for me," Abel told Motorsport.com. "Definitely a lot different than in years past. This year I've been all over. Starting in January, I was in Dubai and Abu Dhabi and went to Daytona, obviously, and then even threw in a couple of Indy NXT races again in there. Obviously, the Indy 500 was the highlight of it all, for sure. Yeah, I've been a little bit all over the place. It's been a bit different, but I've enjoyed the challenge.
"That's definitely what it's been, is a new challenge, kind of getting out of my comfort zone with a lot of different things, different race tracks, different race cars, and just different scenarios all together. So it's been very fun, very enjoyable. I think I've learned a lot."
#18 Era Motorsport ORECA LMP2 07: Naveen Rao, Ferdinand Habsburg, Jacob Abel
As attention pivots to 2027, Abel's next steps remain under construction. While his initial single-seater path hit roadblocks during his 2025 IndyCar stint, his detour into endurance racing has broadened his horizon – though his sights remain firmly locked on a return to the Brickyard.
"Yeah, just trying to piece it together," Abel said. "I obviously got a chance to race in IndyCar last year, and it didn't quite go to plan at all, really, for one reason or another. And yeah, that was kind of my dream.
"So it's now trying to reevaluate everything and sort of see where we stand. I really enjoy this endurance racing. It's definitely very different. I'm definitely having to take a step back on a lot of things and learn and sort of absorb things, and that's pretty fun. But ultimately, I really want to get back to the Indy 500. That's my huge goal. I would like to do it again as a team, for sure, and hopefully with a little bit more notice this time, because this year it was honestly just trying to get through it all without issue."
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