Dana, Ethanol confirmed for third Rahal entry.
In line with speculation over the Christmas break, Rahal Letterman Racing has signed a multi-year deal with Team Ethanol that will see Paul Dana pilot the third RLR entry in this year's Indy Racing League.
As a primary sponsor, Team Ethanol will once again brand Dana's #17 car in full Ethanol livery, as the series works its way towards becoming the first to run a mixture of ethanol and methanol as a spec racing fuel. The fuel mixture in 2006 will be a ten per cent ethanol and 90 per cent methanol, before switching to 100 per cent fuel grade ethanol in 2007.
In line with speculation over the Christmas break, Rahal Letterman Racing has signed a multi-year deal with Team Ethanol that will see Paul Dana pilot the third RLR entry in this year's Indy Racing League.
As a primary sponsor, Team Ethanol will once again brand Dana's #17 car in full Ethanol livery, as the series works its way towards becoming the first to run a mixture of ethanol and methanol as a spec racing fuel. The fuel mixture in 2006 will be a ten per cent ethanol and 90 per cent methanol, before switching to 100 per cent fuel grade ethanol in 2007.
"Team Ethanol and its key sponsors have made a significant impact on the IRL IndyCar Series in the last few years," said team owner Bobby Rahal, "The leaders of Broin, Fagen and ICM have a vision on how they can positively affect the availability of fuel with ethanol that is a renewable resource. Their involvement and the historic partnership they forged with the IRL to become the fuel of the IndyCar Series, is bringing them one step closer to bringing that vision to all Americans.
"Along the way, they are fundamentally changing not only the future of open-wheel racing, but also the way Americans' drive. This demonstrates to me that this is a group of companies that wants to have an impact on and off the track."
The multi-year sponsorship marks the second consecutive season of running three entries in the IRL IndyCar Series for Rahal Letterman Racing. Dana will join the team after recovering from injuries sustained in practice for the 2005 Indianapolis 500, having posted a successful year in the Menards Infiniti Pro Series in 2004, where he finished as overall runner-up. The American will partner compatriots Buddy Rice and Danica Patrick in the RLR line-up this season.
"Rahal Letterman Racing's performance history speaks for itself," Dana said, "The opportunity to work in a multi-car team, where I can learn from experienced team-mates and compare their data, is an amazing opportunity.
"This is a dream come true and I intend to work as hard as possible to make the most of it. I'd like to thank everyone who has been involved in bringing the Team Ethanol programme to where it is today for the work they did over the last three years."
