The Juncos Hollinger Racing IndyCar team and their 34-year-old Argentine driver Agustin Canapino are parting ways with five races left in the 2024 season.
Canapino has been navigating a challenging sophomore season, marked by off-track issues that caused him to miss the IndyCar Series race at Road America in June. The team attributed this decision to mental health concerns.
“Following a remarkable rookie and second season in IndyCar, Juncos Hollinger Racing and Agustin Canapino have mutually agreed to separate,” the team stated.
“We applaud Agustin for his courage in entering open-wheel racing with us over the last year and a half. He learned a new style of racing while relocating to the U.S. and mastering the language to compete in our series.
“Agustin and the team have dedicated significant effort to learn, evolve, and achieve success during his time with JHR, and we are very proud of our accomplishments together.
“We express our gratitude to Agustin for his contributions to Juncos Hollinger Racing and will support him as he continues his journey. Gracias, Agustin!”
Canapino faced controversy due to social media posts, including a statement refuting claims that his fans threatened competitors, which followed a collision with Arrow McLaren rookie Theo Pourchaire at the Detroit Grand Prix.
This incident led to the end of a strategic partnership between Juncos Hollinger Racing and Arrow McLaren, initiated in October 2023.
This marks the third instance of a driver raising concerns over social media abuse following interactions with Canapino, with Callum Ilott sharing his experience after multiple clashes while they were teammates in 2023.
Agustin Canapino, Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet
Photo by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Images
The incident with Pourchaire ultimately resulted in a public condemnation of online abuse from Canapino, who returned to racing after a one-race hiatus.
He participated in the next five races after his absence at Road America, but a first-lap exit due to a collision with Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon on the Streets of Toronto marked his final appearance with the team, concluding a stretch of five consecutive finishes of 18th or lower, with the last four results placing him 22nd or worse.
Asked by Motorsport.com about his final race in Toronto, Canapino remained optimistic and felt he was in a “good situation to finish the year” alongside his teammate Romain Grosjean.
“This year represented significant progress for both the team and myself,” he noted, highlighting top-10 qualifying performances at Iowa and Toronto. “Regrettably, I faced some bad luck this year.”
A multi-time Argentine touring car champion, Canapino concludes his time with Juncos Hollinger Racing after 28 career starts, achieving a best finish of 12th place (four times — St. Petersburg 2023, Texas 2023, Toronto 2023, Detroit 2024). He also finished 10th in the main event of the non-points exhibition at The Thermal Club earlier this March.
A replacement driver for the remaining five races of the season has yet to be announced.
