for Sebring
Reigning IRL Champion and 2008 Indy 500 winner to reunite withde Ferran Motorsports to campaign the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring INDIANAPOLIS (26 January 2009) - 2008 IndyCar Champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon is today confirmed to drive for de Ferran Motorsports in the team's brand new Acura ARX-02a at the first round of the 2009 American Le Mans Series - the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring (18-21 March 2009).
The 28-year-old New Zealander will be joining regular de Ferran pairing of team owner Gil de Ferran and young French star Simon Pagenaud in the 12-hour spectacular at the 3.7-mile Central Florida track and is relishing the chance to 'kick start' his season.
"What a great opportunity to be driving for de Ferran Motorsports again," enthused Dixon. "The ten-hour Petit Le Mans back in October last year was a fantastic experience for me. I loved the team's spirit and camaraderie. Like everyone else I am really looking forward to getting behind the wheel of the brand new Acura ARX-02a and will be testing with Gil and Simon for two days this week (26-30 January)."
Dixon enjoyed his most successful open-wheel racing season in 2008 scooping the Indy 500 and the IndyCar Series Championship at the wheel of the No.9 Honda Dallara for Target Chip Ganassi Racing. He has proved himself to be 'the man to beat' in the open-wheel arena and will be determined to shine for Acura in this all-important debut race for the new LMP1 machine.
de Ferran Motorsports team owner and 2003 Indy 500 winner Gil de Ferran is delighted to be including Dixon in his Sebring line-up.
"The Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring is going to be a huge challenge for us," commented Gil. "It is the first race in the brand new LMP1 car, the first race of the 2009 season and the start of de Ferran Motorsports' first full season in ALMS. I am delighted to add Scott to our line-up again. We worked very well together at Petit Le Mans last year and he understands the rationale and determination of de Ferran Motorsports. We are all looking forward to the challenge."
In addition to capturing the Indy 500 and IndyCar Series Championship last year, Dixon's racing resume is outstanding with the 2003 IndyCar Series points title, 2001 CART Rookie of the Year honours, the 2000 Indy Lights points championship and the 2006 24 Hours of Daytona victory.
About de Ferran Motorsports:
de Ferran Motorsports was formed in 2008 by 2003 Indianapolis 500 winner and two-time CART champion Gil de Ferran. Based in Brownsburg, Ind., de Ferran Motorsports will campaign an Acura ARX-02a prototype sports car in the LMP1 class in the ten-race 2009 American Le Mans Series. Led by general manager John Anderson, the 20-person organisation will prepare and race the No. 66 Acura ARX-02a driven by de Ferran and past Formula Atlantic champion Simon Pagenaud.
The de Ferran Motorsports operation debuted in May 2008 with the Acura ARX-01 in the LMP2 category at the Miller Motorsports Park in Utah, finishing on the podium. The team went on to record all top-ten finishes in 2008 with three podiums from eight starts and a season best result of runner-up at the final race of the year at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca event. In addition, de Ferran achieved overall pole position at the Mid-Ohio round in July. Towards the end of '08 de Ferran Motorsports announced its transition from LMP2 to LMP1 with the new car in
