Team Fernandez is go for 2001.

Adrian Fernandez finally confirmed yesterday that he is to run his own team of Reynard-Honda's in the 2001 CART Fed-Ex Championship even though he is in contention to win this year's CART title with current employer Pat Patrick.

The Mexican driver has long been expected to go it alone in the next couple of seasons but the rumours that Fernandez Racing would make their debut next year heightened when Fernandez recruited Target/Chip Ganassi Managing director Tom Anderson earlier this year to co-own the team and head up the technical side of the operation.

Current Champ Car rookie Shinji Nakano will join Fernandez in the squad and Fernandez' current sponsors Tecate, Quaker State and Telmex will provide the funding. It is thought that Nakano came as part of the Honda deal and the team will start their racing lives with possibly the best chassis/engine combination in Champ Cars today.

"This is a great thing for Tom and myself," said a beaming Fernandez who could only qualify 14th for Sunday's Marlboro 500 with current team Patrick Racing. "We have been working for a long time and I am so proud to be able to make this happen today at Fontana."

"This is a great step forward in my career, a way for me to extend my career beyond my years as a driver," added the Mexican who has scored two victories this season and is just six points behind current series leader Gil De Ferran. "There is no doubt that starting my own team will be a great challenge, but it is one I look forward to meeting."

In Anderson, Adrian has one of the most experienced men in the Fed-Ex Championship and his time with the ultra successful Ganassi operation will prove invaluable to the Indianapolis based outfit. "This is a fantastic challenge," said Anderson, who is the second high profile figure to leave Ganassi in the past two years after Mo Nunn and the chance to carry the number one plate in their first season would be a vital boost to the fledgling outfit.

"The chance to help build a team up from scratch is a rare opportunity and one I welcome," added Anderson. "It took a great deal of planning and preparation just to get to this point. But know the real work begins."

Fernandez is the most successful Mexican driver ever to have competed in CART and he is fast becoming a national hero in Mexico after several years as a consistent front-runner firstly for the Tasman team, where he first gained the connection with Honda, and more recently Patrick Racing.

Fernandez Racing will make their race debut in Rio de Janeiro next spring and with the second round of the 2001 Championship taking place in Mexico, the expectations are high for the squad to deliver.