Following a successful eight-year stint in Champ Car competition, Patrick
Carpentier will make his debut in the Indy Racing League IndyCar® Series which
opens its 10th season at the Toyota Indy 300 on March 6 at Homestead-Miami
Speedway
source: Max d'Orsonnens
Last fall Carpentier signed a two-year deal to drive for Eddie Cheever alongside
Californian Alex Barron.
Carpentier is no stranger to the Homestead complex, having competed four times
on the 1.5-mile (2.414-km) oval track between 1997 and 2000 with Team Player's.
The Joliette, Quebec native posted three top-10 finishes at Homestead, with a
best finish of fifth, in 2000. His strongest qualifying effort came in 1999,
when he started third.
Like all competitors in the Indy Racing League, Carpentier got a feel for the
newly reconfigured track during the IRL February test session. Following the
2004 IRL race at Homestead, major renovations were made to the race complex,
increasing track bankings from 6 to 20 degrees in the turns, through the use of
an innovative variable-degree banking system which will facilitate three-car
wide racing in the corners. The $10-million construction project was completed
last November.
''I can't hardly wait to start the season,'' Carpentier said. ''It's going to be
a new experience and I'm really excited to begin the season with a new team in a
new series. There was quite a bit of action going on at the shop following the
Winter test sessions and the team worked real hard to improve the handling on
the car. I'm looking forward to see the results.''