Philippe rejoins Conquest for Houston test.

Having elected to miss the opening test for the new Panoz DPO1 Champ Car at Sebring, Conquest Racing will turn its first laps with the new car this week at MSR Houston - and with a familiar face behind the wheel.

Frenchman Nelson Philippe, who made his debut with the team in 2004 and also raced for Eric Bachelart's squad the following season, will be at the wheel of the Panoz for the two-day test as Conquest gets to grips with the car.

Philippe, who became the youngest race winner in Champ Car history with his win at Surfers Paradise last season while driving for CTE-HVM, has already spent time in the car after testing the Minardi Team USA machine at Sebring.

The team will also debut a new look at Houston, including a new logo that will be used by both the Champ Car and Atlantic teams.

"After celebrating our ten years of existence, we thought it was a good time to update our image and give it a more modern look all while keeping our team colors of orange and grey," Bachelart explained. "With our new car taking its first laps and with our new look, we can say that today marks the 'official' beginning of our 2007 Champ Car season."

Driver Philippe is currently without a drive for the new season with the CTE-HVM team having been taken over by Paul Stoddart and re-branded as Minardi - with no drivers having yet been signed.