Juncos Hollinger Racing announced in the past hour that Agustin Canapino is taking a leave of absence from the No.78 Chevrolet Dallara for this weekend’s XPEL Grand Prix at Road America and will be replaced by Nolan Siegel. The news comes following a week of threats against Arrow McLaren’s Theo Pourchaire, who was involved in an on-track incident with Canapino in Detroit.
Arrow McLaren terminated their commercial agreement with Juncos Hollinger Racing this week. In a statement issued by Juncos Hollinger Racing on Friday, the team said:
Nolan Siegel will be running the No. 78 entry in place of Agustin Canapino, who will be taking a leave of absence for this weekend’s Xpel Grand Prix. The growth of online abuse and harassment resulting from the events of this week have led to a very difficult experience for Agustin, the team and the entire INDYCAR fan base, and the safety of Agustin and the rest of the competitors has to be considered first and foremost. Abuse, hatred, and harassment in any form is a detriment to this sport, and we must prioritize the mental and physical wellbeing of both our drivers and our competition.
“Online abuse is unacceptable, and we need to ensure that our drivers are prepared both mentally and physically when they get in the car,” said Brad Hollinger, Co-Owner of Juncos Hollinger Racing.
“We are saddened by the events that led to this scenario.”Juncos Hollinger Racing is working directly with INDYCAR to create a better community for our fans, drivers and team members, uniting to make INDYCAR a welcome sport for all.