Dale Coyne Racing: With Justin Wilson set to return for his third season with DCR, the 7-time Indy car race winner will have his trusty engineer Bill Pappas and Honda engines in place for what should be a seamless continuation of their 2012 program. With James Jakes intent on finding a new team, and a number of crew members having recently been laid off (with instructions to return in January), it’s clear that Coyne wants to remain at two cars next season, but at present, only one car is close to being finalized.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Honda for Justin Wilson. Possible second Dallara-Honda.

Dragon Racing: With Bourdais locked in for 2013, the team continues to work on its second car and could also add to its management ranks. Former KV Racing general manager Mark Johnson, who led many of Dragon’s current crew members while at the PPI Indy car team, has been in discussions to hold a similar post with the Jay Penske-owned team, and could be the right ingredient to move the operation closer to the front of the grid.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Chevy for Sebastien Bourdais. Probable second Dallara-Chevy for Katherine Legge.

Ed Carpenter Racing: ECR is set for owner/driver Ed Carpenter to continue with no major changes in 2013. The team, like most others, has a desire to add another full-time entry, and certainly for the Indy 500, but sponsorship would need to be in place to make it happen.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Chevy for Ed Carpenter.

HVM Racing: Team owner Keith Wiggins has all of the equipment, except for an engine lease, to continue, but without the sponsorship or a funded driver to replace what was lost in the KV Racing exodus, a switch to sports cars continues to be his safest bet. Teams in need of DW12s have also been in contact with HVM about purchasing his cars. With that being said, Wiggins is the epitome of an open-wheel survivor, and has rebounded from bigger blows than what he’s recently faced.

Entries: None at present.

KV Racing Technology: Tony Kanaan and Simona de Silvestro comprise KV’s downsized team, with Kanaan’s 2012 crew in place and de Silvestro’s engineer, manager and numerous crew members following her over from HVM Racing. A third KV entry for the Indy 500 is likely.

Entries: 2 Dallara-Chevys for Tony Kanaan and Simona de Silvestro.

Mike Shank Racing: Shank continues to have an interest in fielding an entry with the Dallara DW12 he purchased a year ago, and has at least two drivers with an interest in joining forces but, in what must be the 10th time this has been written, he does not have an engine lease in place and his voicemails aren’t being returned.

Entries: None at present.

Panther DRR: The team is focused on making a few small personnel changes, but will continue largely unchanged for 2013. A second Indy 500 entry is possible.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Chevy for Oriol Servia.

Panther Racing: No major changes to team since the dismissal of a number employees took place shortly after the season finale.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Chevy for JR Hildebrand.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing: The most popular girl at the dance could, if everyone found a budget, run about eight cars next year…

The team continues to covet Ryan Briscoe, but could add everyone from Takuma Sato to James Jakes as Graham Rahal’s teammate. A multi-car Indy 500 effort including Michel Jourdain and Tristan Vautier could also happen.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Honda for Graham Rahal. Possible second Dallara-Honda.

Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing: Josef Newgarden is under contract for 2013, and the team has held onto its crew. SFHR has received few inquiries about fielding a second car, which is odd, given the potential shown by its rookie driver last season.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Honda for Josef Newgarden.

Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports: 2012 IndyCar Rookie of the Year Simon Pagenaud is back for his second season, and should be joined by F1 veteran Rubens Barrichello and some of the Brazilian’s former KV Racing crew members once the deal is consummated.

With a laundry list of recent Schmidt Indy Lights drivers looking for a way into the IndyCar Series, the option to run additional cars at Indy and during the season also exists.

Entries: 1 Dallara-Honda for Simon Pagenaud. Probable second Dallara-Honda for Rubens Barrichello.

Team Penske: Will Power and Helio Castroneves will return for 2013 with no major changes on the cards.

Entries: 2 Dallara-Chevys for Will Power and Helio Castroneves.

Car Count: 20 confirmed/almost confirmed cars as of 11.13.12 (11 Chevy, 9 Honda). Could reach as high as 27 if additional cars happen for a number of teams (Dale Coyne, Dragon, Foyt, Ganassi, Herta, Rahal and Schmidt). The Honda ranks would swell the most with 15 cars to Chevy’s 12.

Something in the 24-car range for St. Pete would be a realistic number to target.

Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, and covers the IndyCar Series. Before joining SPEED, Pruett worked in open-wheel racing for 20 years as a mechanic and engineer. He also contributes to RACER, Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him @MarshallPruett.