"My haters love saying I was trash": Conor Daly breaks silence after Juncos Hollinger signs Rinus Veekay without informing him

Conor Daly has shared his reaction to Juncos Hollinger Racing signing Rinus Veekay for the 2026 IndyCar season without informing him. Daly drove the No. 76 Chevrolet for JHR in 2025 and was a standout performer on ovals.

The 33-year-old was on a one-year contract, which meant he remained at risk of not having a full-time drive for 2026, and so was Veekay with Dale Coyne Racing. On Tuesday, Juncos Hollinger Racing announced it signed the Dutch driver for 2026, and it was assumed that he would replace Conor Daly, because JHR's second driver, Sting Ray Robb, had already signed on a multi-year deal, meaning he would continue with the team in 2026.

Daly addressed this matter on his Speed Street podcast, saying:

"There's a new driver at Juncos Hollinger Racing, which I have just discovered today, but I think I pretty much knew that since August. It was never really told to me, but we know these things. But that is a situation that is very sensitive, currently. There's a lot of releases that said that I was being replaced, which again I have not been told that directly. So I actually don't know what to say."

Nonetheless, Daly shared his gratitude to Juncos Hollinger Racing's co-owners, Brad Hollinger and Ricardo Juncos, for giving him the opportunity to race in IndyCar. The IndyCar veteran then got vulnerable about how his performance remains under greater scrutiny compared to his rivals, leading him to constantly fight to retain his seat.

"I obviously am very thankful, whatever happens, I am very thankful for the chance to do my job. I think I am harshly judged more than anyone else on results, and the one thing that I can say is, when I was replaced by an IndyCar champion (Ryan Hunter-Reay in mid-2023) and Indy 500 champion (Alexander Rossi, who replaced Hunter-Reay) at ECR, it only went worse for that car. So now again, my haters love just saying I was trash, all this stuff. It just was not true," Conor Daly added.

Conor Daly has nothing but respect for Rinus Veekay despite the messy seat situation at JHR

Rinus Veekay on the podium with Pato O'Ward and Kyffin Simpson at the NTT INDYCAR Series Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto - Source: Getty

Conor Daly's oval performances in IndyCar this season were spectacular. He secured four Top 10 finishes on ovals, including a Top 5 at the season finale in Nashville. However, his best result on a road/street course was a P14 at Laguna Seca, while Rinus Veekay's best with DCR was a podium at Indy Toronto.

While Daly didn't like being left in the dark by Juncos Hollinger Racing, he spoke highly about Veekay's talent. On the aforementioned podcast, the Indiana native said:

"Rinus is very good, and I am happy for Rinus because Rinus deserves a very good ride. I think Rinus should've been at Penske. That would've been awesome."

Conor Daly also shared that Rinus Veekay's manager was living in his trailer during the season finale weekend in Nashville, and some hints during that time indicated that Veekay would sign with Juncos Hollinger Racing. There remain two open IndyCar seats, one each with AJ Foyt Racing and Dale Coyne Racing, for 2026.

Edited by Yash Kotak