Curt Cavin

curt.cavin@indystar.com

IndyCar's hottest free agent has made a decision about his 2015 employment; he just isn't ready to reveal it.

But Simon Pagenaud, who has finished in the top five of the standings each of the past two seasons, said Tuesday that the news will be coming soon. Best guess as to when: After his contract with Schmidt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports expires Oct. 1.

"Yes, I've made a decision," Pagenaud said during a break in Firestone testing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "But (the contract) is not fully done yet."

Indianapolis 500 champion Ryan Hunter-Reay, one of the four Verizon IndyCar Series drivers testing at IMS, doesn't expect the 30-year-old Frenchman to return to Sam Schmidt's team for a fourth consecutive year.

"He's telling everyone he's gone," Hunter-Reay said.

The options likely are IndyCar teams owned by Roger Penske, Chip Ganassi and Michael Andretti. Recent speculation has pointed toward Penske's.

If it indeed is Team Penske, veteran driver Helio Castroneves doesn't know, but that's not unusual, he said.

"They didn't tell me about (Juan Pablo) Montoya (joining for 2014) until the night before the announcement, like 7 o'clock," Castroneves said. "That's so I don't open my mouth."

Team Penske is believed to have Castroneves, Montoya and reigning series champion Will Power under contract for next year. The team has never fielded four cars in IndyCar.

Castroneves said Montoya helped the team take another step forward in terms of competitiveness, and he'd expect Pagenaud, who has won four races over the past two seasons, to do the same.

"If it happens (that Pagenaud signs with the team), great, but if he doesn't we'll just do what we're doing," Castroneves said.

All three Team Penske drivers finished in the top four of the recently completed season. Pagenaud was in third place with a shot at the title heading to the final race, but he finished fifth when his No. 77 car incurred mechanical problems at Auto Club Speedway.

Ganassi Racing fielded four cars in 2014: for drivers Scott Dixon, Tony Kanaan, Charlie Kimball and Ryan Briscoe. The team also has Sage Karam, a rookie this season, under contract.

Andretti Autosport has Hunter-Reay, Marco Andretti and Carlos Munoz signed for next season. The fourth seat is expected to go to James Hinchcliffe, but he has not been confirmed to a deal. Hinchcliffe is also believed to have had discussions with Schmidt's team and KV Racing Technology.

Schmidt's team will test three drivers – Rodolfo Gonzalez, Rocky Moran Jr. and another to be announced – next week on Homestead-Miami Speedway's road course.

Firestone testing at IMS will continue through Wednesday afternoon. Castroneves and Ed Carpenter are working on behalf of Chevrolet; Pagenaud and Hunter-Reay on behalf of Honda. The session is closed to the public, but there is free spectator viewing at the south end of the facility (in front of the IMS Hall of Fame Museum).

Carpenter's team, rebranded CFH Racing, is operating for the first time with members of the combined crew. A pair of smaller Indianapolis-based teams, Ed Carpenter Racing and Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing, announced in August a merger.