Harrington back on IRL scene.

1999 Indy Racing Northern Light Series rookie of the year Scott Harrington has finally landed a permanent drive in the championship with the Mid-America Motorsports outfit.

Harrington has been out of a full time ride since his family owned team was forced to close at the end of last year. Scott drove for Nienhouse Motorsports on a one off basis at Las Vegas in April although the car retired with an electrical problem.

The 36 year old driver signed a two year contract with Mid-America Motorsports last week in the seat vacated by rookie Doug Didero. Didero and the team have endured a frustrating season thus far, failing to qualify for the blue riband Indy 500 in May and failing to finish four of the other five races held so far this year. Didero currently sits in 24th place in the points standings whilst the Western Star Trucks backed outfit are only 27th in the teams championship. It is hoped that Harrington's relative experience will help the team move into a more competitive position.

Despite being a rookie last year, Harrington competed occasionally in the IRL since its inception in 1996. He was part of the field that formed the first ever Indy 500 under IRL rules in 1996 and recorded a 15th place finish in Atlanta last season. Outside of IRL competition Scott has also competed in IMSA and CART events along with many short oval championships.

Mid-America Motorsports are planning to expand the team to at least two cars for next season and team boss David Didero, cousin of Doug, explained why the change had to be made now. "I'm setting up for next year and I wanted to get Scott in the car now. We know that there is no way we can win the points championship now and we believe that we can better utilise our time testing for next year."