With Shwartzman’s announcement, PREMA’s IndyCar lineup is set, lots of eyes are set on the team for their debut in 2025.
Robert Shwartzman completes Prema lineup for their debut IndyCar season in 2025. The announcement made on Nov. 5 indicated that Shwartzman would join the Chevrolet-powered initiative alongside British driver Callum Ilott, who had been named in September.
It also meant that he would continue his relationship with Prema, a relationship that likely helped to grab the final spot for the historical season. Here’s everything you need to know about the well-rounded 25-year-old Israeli driver and why this move to IndyCar is a great one.
Robert Shwartzman set for IndyCar switch with PREMA – The Story So Far
Taking an all-around look at Robert's motorsports path ↘️https://t.co/Lx5BaQ6SYu#PREMARacing #RobertShwartzman #INDYCAR pic.twitter.com/f4HmRmgJUG
— PREMA (@PREMA_Team) November 5, 2024
Prema Start
A strong showing in Italian Formula 4 and Formula Renault EuroCup caught the attention of Prema and he made his debut with the team in 2018. His career with the Italian-based team started with securing a third-place finish in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship and earning the title of top rookie that year. In 2019, he dominated the inaugural FIA Formula 3 Championship (the GP3 replacement). His win marked the beginning of PREMA’s stronghold in the series.
He continued with the team when he made the jump FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2020. Despite facing the heartbreaking loss of his father, he quickly achieved two victories in Feature Races, along with two additional wins in Sprint Races at Spa and Bahrain, ultimately securing fourth place in the championship standings.
He followed that up with a strong second season being in the championship fight but he ultimately finished as the runner-up to team-mate and current F1 driver Oscar Piastri. Over two seasons he notched up six victories and 14 podiums.
F1
Shwartzman has been linked to F1 since late 2017, rising through the ranks and then he made his Formula One testing debut in 2020 with Scuderia Ferrari. Right after his attempt at the F2 Championship in 2021, he drove for both Haas F1 Team and Scuderia Ferrari in the end-of-season test at Abu Dhabi and was confirmed as a test driver for the Scuderia for the 2022 season since then he has made several F1 tests and free practice appearances while also performing simulator duties.
In 2023, he joined finally Ferrari’s official F1 reserve driver pool and was confirmed for 2024, entering six free practice 1 sessions in total.
His hope for an F1 seat kicked off again with him potentially going to Sauber.
The rumors started after Mattia Binotto, a big fan of Shwartzman, arrived at Sauber in July, as a result, the 25-year-old was awarded two FP1 outings for the team at Zandvoort and Mexico City.
Ultimately, Sauber decided to sign the 2023 F3 Champion and current leader of the F2 Championship, Gabriel Bortoleto.
All around experience
The same season received his promotion, he decided to try out other things in other series.
Thanks to his tight relationship with Ferrari, he participated in the GT World Challenge Europe – Endurance Cup championship, driving the Ferrari 296 GT3 for the AF Corse. He won in the season’s final round held in Barcelona, alongside teammates Alessio Rovera and Nicklas Nielsen.
In November 2023, he had his first experience with the Ferrari 499P during the Rookie Test in Bahrain, where he recorded the fastest overall time in the testing session.
In 2024, he made his debut in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) within the HyperCar class, piloting the Ferrari 499P number 83, sharing the vehicle with Yifei Ye, and Robert Kubica.
The team found success in their first season with a win at the Lone Star Le Mans at in Austin, where Shwartzman was last in the hot seat to take the car to the checkered flag.
In addition to endurance racing, Shwartzman also participated in activities such as Formula E testing and extensive simulator work, establishing him as one of the top all-rounders in the driver pool.
Why IndyCar?
Drivers have options to go to one of the many series around the world, especially Schwartzman who seems to have experience just about everywhere; so why choose to go to IndyCar? He says it’s because of the nature of the series.
“I think I chose INDYCAR for two main reasons. One is a team that I have won with, I know and really trust. The second is a series that has the best racing at the moment. I like proper racing and I want to enjoy it.
This is not Shwartzman’s first making his mark in the INDYCAR series. In 2023 he had the chance to test at Sebring International Raceway with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team was impressed with his speed and while times and speeds were not officially released from the private tests, various media reports said he finished atop the all-day test, .045 of a second ahead of Sting Ray Robb.
The ovals will be the biggest challenge for any driver making the move but his range of experience in the different series will help him adjust quickly.
