HERTA JOINS ANDRETTI'S RACE TEAM VALENCIA RESIDENT GETS OWN IRL RIDE FOR 2004.Byline: Tim Haddock Staff Writer Valencia resident Bryan Herta will drive a fourth entry for Andretti Green Racing Andretti Green Racing is an auto racing team that competes in the IRL IndyCar Series and the American Le Mans Series. Early years in CART Founded in 1993 by Barry Green and Gerry Forsythe as Forsythe Green Racing in the 2004 Indy Racing League The Indy Racing League, better known as IRL, is the sanctioning body of a predominantly American based open-wheel racing series. The League consists of two series, the premiere IndyCar Series IndyCar Series, it was announced Tuesday. Herta, who competed in 11 races for Andretti Green Racing in 2003, will join drivers Tony Kanaan, Dario Franchitti and Dan Wheldon. The Hart High of Newhall graduate won the first IRL 1. (jargon, chat) IRL - In real life. Generally synonymous with f2f. 2. (language, robotics) IRL - Industrial Robot Language. race of his career last season at Kansas Speedway while driving for Andretti. He made his debut with the team June 7 at Texas Motor Speedway Texas Motor Speedway is a superspeedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas -- the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The track layout is very similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor , filling in for Franchitti, who was recovering from injuries suffered in a motorcycle accident. The 33-year-old Herta also put together a string of three consecutive podium finishes at Kentucky Speedway, Nazareth Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway in August and September. ``I couldn't be happier to be back with Andretti Green and Honda,'' Herta said. ``Last year was a great opportunity, and it is awesome to be able to continue with the team and expand on what we achieved in 2003.'' Herta joined Andretti after the Indianapolis 500. He was tabbed as the substitute driver for Robby Gordon, a NASCAR NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla. Winston Cup driver who was competing in the Indy 500 and NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) is a speedway in Concord, North Carolina, north of Charlotte. It features a 1.5 mile long quad-oval track that seats 167,000 people, with room for 50,000 more spectators in the infield. in North Carolina North Carolina, state in the SE United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), South Carolina and Georgia (S), Tennessee (W), and Virginia (N). Facts and Figures Area, 52,586 sq mi (136,198 sq km). Pop. on the same day. But Herta didn't get a chance to race. Next season, Herta will be able to qualify his own car for the Indianapolis 500 in May. ``It's very exciting for Andretti Green Racing to be able to add a fourth car,'' team co-owner Michael Andretti said. ``Bryan did such a great job for us last year and we really didn't want to lose him. The IndyCar Series is so competitive that you need every resource and advantage you can get.'' Herta will be driving the team's No. 7 Honda-powered Dallara entry. The sponsorship package for the car is being finalized, according to Andretti Green Racing, which is the only IRL team with four drivers. Most teams have two. The IRL season opens Feb. 29 at Miami-Homestead Speedway for the Toyota Indy 300. California Speedway in Fontana will host the Toyota Indy 400 on Oct. 3. Tim Haddock, (818) 713-3715 timothy.haddock(at)dailynews.com |
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