Scott Dixon leaving Chip Ganassi Racing throws a huge wrench into IndyCar's silly season

"Silly season" is always an apt name for the driver market in any racing series, but this year's silly season in IndyCar has gone well past silly and is heading toward a certifiably insane season with the news that Scott Dixon — after 25 seasons — is leaving Chip Ganassi Racing.

Which means the No. 9 at CGR is up for grabs. Buckle up, kids.

There were reports that Dixon would leave the team, and Chip Ganassi Racing confirmed this on Thursday.

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The 42-year-old six-time champ's destination for 2027 has not been announced, but RACER's Marshall Pruett reports that it sets up a move to Arrow McLaren.

This is now a huge piece of the driver market puzzle, and comes after it was revealed that Indianapolis 500 champion Felix Rosenqvist will not return to Meyer Shank Racing next season, with rumors that he'll return to Arrow McLaren as well, giving them a lineup of Dixon, Rosenqvist and Pato O'Ward.

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Which is obviously very strong.

MSR has a technical relationship with CGR and has performed really well all season, making Rosenqvist's No. 60 a sought-after seat.

But now that a seat at Ganassi has opened up alongside the dominant four-time champ Alex Palou, that will be the one everyone has their eyes on.

One potential option is Christian Lundgaard, who has really impressed at Arrow McLaren this year, especially on road and street circuits. If the Dixon-Rosenqvist-O'Ward pans out, he would need a new ride and would be a good option for CGR and could compete with the likes of Alex Palou, especially in the same machinery.

We're going to need some more dominoes to fall in place — with the big one being that No. 9 — but, man, is this going to be one of the wilder silly seasons in recent memory.