Gutierrez to replace Bourdais in Detroit

Esteban Gutierrez has been confirmed as Sebastien Bourdais’ injury replacement for this weekend’s IndyCar Detroit Grand Prix.

The Mexican will make his IndyCar debut at Dayle Coyne Racing after Bourdais was ruled out for several months due to a heavy crash in qualifying for the Indianapolis 500.

James Davison drove the #18 entry in the 500 and was running inside the top 10 before tangling late in the race with Oriol Servia and crashing out.

“I’m very grateful to join Dale Coyne Racing, a highly competitive team,” Gutierrez said.

“When Dale Coyne called me, I had no doubt that this would be a great opportunity for me to get experience in the IndyCar series.

“My target is to learn as quickly as possible. IndyCar is a very challenging series for drivers, but I feel ready to take this chance.”

The team’s plans for the #18 seat past Detroit remain unclear, with Coyne having told Autosport last week that Davison and Oriol Servia were also candidates to fill in for Bourdais during his absence.

Gutierrez’s regular driver, in Formula E with the Techeetah team, clashes three times with IndyCar this season, at Texas, Toronto, and Mid-Ohio.

“We’re going to miss having Sebastien in the #18 car, but we’re very happy with our choice of a replacement for him this weekend,” said team owner Dale Coyne.

“Esteban has a great open-wheel racing background, especially with his time in Formula 1 and GP2.

“I think he’ll do well in an IndyCar despite the learning curve and we all look forward to seeing what he’ll do this weekend in Detroit.”