Dixon will depart Chip Ganassi Racing at the end of this year to join McLaren in 2027 where he will join O’Ward.
They will be joined by this year’s Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist, who returns to McLaren after a three-year stint at Meyer Shank Racing.
Despite having the greatest record of any driver on the IndyCar grid, reaction to Dixon’s signing has been mixed.
Dixon and Rosenqvist, who are 45 and 34 respectively, will replace 24-year-old Christian Lundgaard and 21-year-old Nolan Siegel.
Siegel’s axing is no great shock given his disparity relative to O’Ward and Lundgaard, but the decision to dump Lundgaard has stunned IndyCar fans.
Lundgaard has been the closest to matching four-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou with as many podiums as the Spaniard this season.
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However, the Danish driver has been let down by his oval performances, finishing no higher than 10th in the three races to date this year.
That’s been a sticking point for McLaren, who decided that the Indianapolis 500 wins that Dixon and Rosenqvist bring to the table outweigh Lundgaard’s overall upwards progression.
Speaking during this week’s IndyCar test at Milwaukee, O’Ward said he was disappointed by the public’s reaction to Dixon’s signing.
“To be fair, I don’t think anybody has missed what’s been said the last few days, and I’ve been shocked at the disrespect that he’s received,” said O’Ward.
“Because he maybe hasn’t had some of the best years the last couple, but guys like him don’t forget how to drive. The cycle of racing goes up and down.
“I feel like for someone like him to make a change after so many years somewhere and to receive some of the backlash that he’s received, I really hope when he joins he has a great run for a championship and wins many races.”
Dixon last won the IndyCar title in 2020. Since then, it’s been largely Palou’s show, winning four of the last five with the exception of 2022, which was won by Will Power.
O’Ward said Dixon deserves to be respected for his achievements despite his lean run of results lately.
“He has achieved way more than a lot of other drivers have ever achieved ever in IndyCar. For people to talk down somebody like that really is a shame,” said O’Ward.
“Talk down on me as much as you want. Like, I don’t care. But to talk down on somebody like Scott Dixon…
“Sometimes I really do feel like I wish people felt shame a little bit more because to disrespect somebody from that calibre and that level it erases any decency of what an athlete goes through.
“You won’t always be winning races and winning every championship every year. You will always go through cycles. I truly believe he’s going to be such a great addition to this team.”
IndyCar continues at Nashville on July 20 (AEST).
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