James Hinchcliffe’s absence from the IndyCar world barely lasted 48 hours.
On Tuesday, the Canadian driver, one of the most beloved personalities of the sport, announced via social media he was stepping away from full-time racing ahead of the 2022 season, with news to come about his future.
Two days later, the next phase of Hinchcliffe’s career was revealed. On Thursday, NBC Sports announced the 35-year-old will join its broadcast team as a full-time analyst for the NTT IndyCar Series and select IMSA WeatherTech Championship Series events.
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Hinchcliffe, who’s personality made him a fan favorite during his 10-year stint in IndyCar racing, will join play-by-play voice Leigh Diffey and fellow analyst Townsend Bell as NBC’s lead IndyCar booth for the 2022 season. He replaces Paul Tracy.
“I got a taste of calling IndyCar back in 2020 and that really solidified my desire to get into this side of the sport,” he said in a news release. “It’s always been a passion of mine to educate people about IndyCar, and I couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity to help tell those stories from the booth alongside a couple of pros in Leigh and Townsend.”
For Hinchcliffe, who said he planned on pursuing a motorsports journalism career if driving hadn’t worked out while on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s podcast in August, 2020, it’s a chance to kickstart his new career. The Canadian had previously called races during the 2020 season for NBC Sports, but his on-air debut as a full-time analyst will be Sunday, Feb. 27 at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
“James Hinchcliffe is one of the most dynamic personalities in motorsports and we’re excited to bring ‘The Mayor of Hinchtown’ straight from the car and into the booth for NBC Sports,” Executive producer and President of NBC Sports and NBCSN Sam Flood said.
The former Andretti racers move to the broadcast booth is a sensible evolution of the media content Hinchcliffe had already been producing. In 2015, he began his podcast “The Mayor on Air with James Hinchcliffe” which ran for two years. Since 2018, he’s co-hosted a podcast with fellow IndyCar driver Alexander Rossi titled “Off Track with Hinch and Rossi.”
But Hinchcliffe has made other appearances in media less IndyCar focused. In 2016, he appeared on an episode of “Celebrity Family Feud” and the same year, competed in Season 23 of “Dancing with the Stars,” placing second to Olympian gymnast Laurie Hernandez.
While his media appearances and personality made him notable off the track, for the better part of the past decade, Hinchcliffe’s racing abilities have made him a staple of the IndyCar world. He debuted in 2011 for Newman/Haas Racing, where he won Rookie of the Year honors.
The next season, Hinchcliffe moved to Andretti Autosports, taking over for Danica Patrick who was moving to NASCAR. He spent the next two seasons driving the No. 27 car for Andretti Autosports, before moving to Schmidt Peterson Motorsports in 2015 to replace Simon Pagenaud.
However, a suspension failure during a practice run ahead of the Indianapolis 500 caused Hinchcliffe to be hospitalized for the rest of the 2015 season after he suffered serious injuries in the crash. Undeterred, he returned in 2016 and won pole position for the Indy 500 just a year later.
Hinchcliffe returned to Andretti Autosports for the 2020 and 2021 seasons. He finished his career with six race wins and was twice named IndyCar Fan Favorite in 2012 and 2018.
“James’ engaging personality, combined with his unique perspective of what these drivers are experiencing in real time, will be a great addition to our motorsports coverage,” Flood said.
