After seven races this season, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kyffin Simpson stands only one position higher in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES standings than he did a year ago at this time. But that fact doesn’t reflect the progress made by the series’ second-youngest driver.

Everything about the 20-year-old Simpson seems stronger this year, and that includes a career-best fifth-place finish in last weekend’s Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear. The driver of the No. 8 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda has qualified in the top 10 twice this season – he didn’t do that at all last year – and he has posted the fastest lap of the race twice in these seven races.

This point is also noteworthy in assessing Simpson’s year-over-year progress: His month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earned him the minimum number of championship points. A clutch issue that came out of nowhere kept him from starting the Sonsio Grand Prix at the road course, which relegated him to a last-place finish (27th). Then on the oval, he crashed off Turn 4 on Fast Friday presented by Turtle Wax and was collected in Kyle Larson’s accident in the race. The combined result: 10 measly points.

Chip Ganassi Racing team manager Taylor Kiel, who is Simpson’s race strategist this season, said the driver deserved a better fate at IMS, particularly in the road course race. Kiel called that “his best effort of the year, and he never left the grid.”

“It’s the first time certainly this year and in his time at (CGR) that he was line on line with Alex (Palou),” Kiel said of the comparable performance data. “He drove his butt off (in practice and qualifying), and we went into that race really believing that the top five is where we should (finish), and anything short of that was going to be disappointing.”

Kiel said there was no reason to believe the car had a clutch issue until it was too late. Simpson’s race was over literally before it started.

Still, Simpson sees the bright side of the happenings so far this season.

“It’s been a good season,” he said following the 100-lap race in the Motor City. “We haven’t had the results that I think we deserve. We’ve been a very strong car all year, but we’ve just got to start putting some results down.”

Simpson’s rookie campaign saw a best race finish of 12th, and he has already bettered that twice this season. He finished 10th in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and was fifth in Detroit. He also started this year’s Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge five positions higher than he did in last year’s race (18th last year, 13th this year).

Excellent strategy in Detroit helped put Simpson in the second position for the restart on Lap 76. Two laps later, his car took contact from Kyle Kirkwood, who was charging to the lead of the race he would go on to win. But Simpson held his ground and got, as Kiel described, the finish he deserved in his Ridgeline-sponsored car. The only drivers ahead of him were Kirkwood, Santino Ferrucci, Colton Herta and Will Power, and three of those have combined for 57 career race wins.

“We knew we were really good on the green tires,” Simpson said. “So, we just wanted to capitalize on (those) was as much as we could and try to get the clean air where we could.

“I think we did a great job of that.”

It’s important to remember that Simpson is still four months shy of his 21st birthday -- only Nolan Siegel, who turns 21 a month later, is younger among series full-timers. In 18th place, Simpson is three positions ahead of Arrow McLaren driver Siegel in the standings.

Christian Rasmussen won the 2023 INDY NXT by Firestone championship in Simpson’s final season in the series. Siegel finished third that year with Louis Foster fourth, Jacob Abel fifth and Simpson 10th. They’re all in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES now, with Rasmussen again leading the group. But Simpson is only three points behind him.

Kiel said everything about Simpson’s performances this season has improved.

“His driving is better, his approach is better,” he said. “Everything we asked him to work on over the winter … are big improvements over a year ago.”