Here’s Fernando Alonso’s McLaren IndyCar

McLaren has released renderings and video of its upcoming No. 66 IndyCar, the one that will be driven by Fernando Alonso at the Indianapolis 500 on May 26th. The car wears the time-honored McLaren Papaya Orange color with a contrasting blue hue. Its number is the same as worn by Mark Donohue’s McLaren-Offenhauser for the 1972 Indy 500 victory, which was also the first Indy 500 win for the Penske team.

Before the Indy 500, the car is facing an open test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, two weeks from now on April 24th. The images do not clearly show

the new AFP cabin protection device

fitted, which should be on every car tested on April 24th at Indianapolis. There is a tiny, pinky-sized widget ahead of the small windshield on the renderings, but from the information released earlier about the AFP, the 3-inch tall device – albeit small – should be larger than what the car appears to have.

Alonso also tested the No. 66 car’s twin at a closed event at Texas Motor Speedway yesterday. In the video released by IndyCar, Alonso appears moderately positive about his new ride and getting acclimated to it. The testing event was not a mere quick warm-up, as Alonso did as many as 105 laps in the car.

The 2019 Indy500 is Alonso’s second attempt after a disastrous run in 2017 – then, Alonso drove a Honda-powered car for Andretti Autosport and despite leading for 27 laps, had to retire with just 21 laps to go due to an engine problem. The 2019

McLaren

car built at the company’s technology center in Woking, England,

uses a Chevrolet

engine,

as McLaren announced late last year

.

Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at @alo_oficial‘s first test in the #McLaren66 🏎️💨#INDYCAR // @McLarenIndy pic.twitter.com/YHHk9zIcNY

— NTT IndyCar Series (@IndyCar) April 10, 2019