Yasukawa makes three for Dreyer & Reinbold.

IndyCar Series veteran Roger Yasukawa will attempt to qualify a third Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Dallara-Honda for the 91st Indianapolis 500 when the third day of grid-setting kicks off on Saturday.

Yasukawa, who drove for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in 2005, will drive the #24 entry, having sourced backing from Indianapolis-based Wellman-Corbier Custom Homes, as he seeks to make his fifth start in the blue riband event.

"I'm really excited to be back in the 500," he said, having contested last year's race for Playa Del Racing, "I looked at a number of options, and Dreyer & Reinbold was the best place with the best opportunity to do well. I was at DRR in 2005 and worked with a lot of the Fernandez guys in 2003, so the whole synergy is really great.

"We're excited to get out there and work on the race set-up - and we'll definitely will be the quickest of the second week group. The best qualifying we can hope for is 23rd, but that's not going to matter too much for the race as I know DRR has a really good race set-up. I needed something that was going to reboot my career, so I need to go out there and drive really hard to make sure we are going to be finishing top ten."

Yasukawa joins the regular DRR pairing of Buddy Rice and Sarah Fisher, both of whom made the field on day two of qualifying at the weekend.

"Roger did a great job for us in 2005, and we are excited to have him back with us this year," team co-owner Dennis Reinbold commented, "This is the first time we have ever been a three-car team heading into the Indy 500 and we are excited about that."

Ivan Koldsgaard, who has previous experience of working with Yasukawa, will serve as the Japanese driver's lead engineer.

"I worked with Roger in 2003 when John Dick engineered his car," said Koldsgaard, who normally serves as Buddy Rice's fuel strategist, "He has definitely matured as a driver, and I'm looking forward to working with him this month. Coming into the IndyCar Series is definitely a tall order, but his racecraft has improved with the experience he has gained on the track. I really look forward to working with him this month and getting a solid finish. This is a new experience for me, so I'm looking forward to the challenge."

Yasukawa will join the field for practice on 16 May and will attempt to qualify for the race on Saturday.