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Ganassi Extends IndyCar Programme to 4 Cars

In a time when most teams are finding it hard to secure financial backing for a 2-car effort, Chip Ganassi defied all odds and announced it is prepared to field no less than 4 cars in the 2011 campaign of the IndyCar season.

Alongside 2010 regulars Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, the team has just signed Graham Rahal and Charlie Kimball, two rising stars of the North American open-wheel racing world. While the former is the youngest race winner in the history of IndyCar racing, with his 2008 victory at St Petersburg, the latter was ranked 4th in the 2010 Indy Lights championship.

It's no secret that we're always looking for ways to get better and expand our racing programs,” said team boss Chip Ganassi in a media statement.

Graham has shown us all over the past few years that he can be a front runner. And many don't realize this, but we have had a relationship with Charlie for a number of years now. I have been keeping close tabs on him and his successes in racing whether he was racing in F3 in Europe or running Indy Lights. We're excited to have the opportunity to turn this longstanding relationship into a reality.”

For the first time in a long period of time, Rahal will do a full schedule in the IRL series with a single team, while Kimball will make the step to IndyCar through the Road to Indy sponsorship scheme.

This is the kind of opportunity every driver dreams of. I have been working to get into one of Chip's cars and now that has become a reality. I'm thrilled to be a part of this great organisation and look forward to making the most out of this opportunity,” said Rahal.

I am honoured to join Ganassi and excited to be moving up to IndyCar. This is a dream come true and I am very proud to work with Novo Nordisk and continue to spread the message that diabetes does not have to slow you down.”
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