‘Ignored’ IndyCar engineer torches team after resigning

Michael Cannon left AJ Foyt Racing at the end of the 2024 season to join F1 feeder series giants Prema Racing.

He was part of the team’s livery launch, but just a matter of days after the event confirmed he has resigned.

Ultimately, it was his first and only public appearance with Prema.

In a damning statement, Cannon said he was “disregarded” and “simply ignored” by the team.

Cannon was to head up the engineering effort with its drivers Callum Ilott and Robert Schwartzman.

“I recently resigned my position from Prema Racing,” Cannon told TrackSideOnline.

“I was hired as Head of Engineering for Prema’s IndyCar program, in part due to 25 years in the series as well as my track record at the Indianapolis 500 of late.

“In very short order, I felt that the majority of my advice and counsel was being disregarded or simply ignored.

“It was my opinion that my time at Prema was not going to be used wisely and I thus resigned my position.

“Prema is to be commended for their commitment to the IndyCar series and for their willingness to take on its myriad challenges.

“The IndyCar series is a massively competitive arena and mastering its nuances is difficult [for] every team involved. Please root for them, become a fan, and wish them well.”

Cannon is widely regarded as one of the best engineers in the IndyCar paddock. His achievements include multiple IndyCar titles and an Indianapolis 500 win.

He has worked with Dale Coyne Racing, Andretti Global and Ed Carpenter Racing in the post-unification era as well as Players Forsythe Racing in the CART/Champ Car era.

While working with AJ Foyt Racing, rival outfit Team Penske struck up an engineering alliance.

Before confirmation of Cannon’s exit, Ilott said he was looking forward to working with “IndyCar’s own Einstein”.

“He’s great,” said Ilott.

“We’ve only done some simulator stuff, and that was establishing the foundations of the team and just getting things going. Haven’t seen the full creation as of yet.

“But yeah, he’s been working hard with the team. Let’s see where it goes, and I’ll answer that again later on. But right now it’s a good start, but everyone’s head is down at the moment.”