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INDYCAR: Highcroft Still Aiming For IndyCar In 2012
Monday's announcement that Highcroft Racing and HPD have split won't impact the Connecticut-based team's desire to join the IZOD IndyCar Series next season.
Marshall Pruett  |  Posted May 17, 2011   Indianapolis, IN
Duncan Dayton, right, hopes to run his driver Simon Pagenaud, left in at least one IZOD IndyCar Series event this year. (Highcroft Racing)


The relationship between Highcroft Racing and Honda Performance Development in sports car racing came to an end on Monday, but according to the team, the split with HPD will not affect their ongoing efforts to secure backing for a full-time IZOD IndyCar Series entry in 2012.

"The last two weeks have been clearly focused on maintaining our entry at Le Mans," Highcroft Racing owner Duncan Dayton told SPEED.com. "But as we stated in our press release, our desire is still to win additional ALMS races and Le Mans in the future. But our goals continue to extend beyond sports car racing, and we are working hard to join the IZOD IndyCar Series ranks as soon as possible."

While Highcroft won two consecutive American Le Mans Series championships with HPD in 2009 and 2010, a shortfall in funding from both parties saw Highcroft make one appearance in 2011 on behalf of the manufacturer, taking second at the 12 Hours of Sebring in March.

Highcroft and HPD had spent the past few months preparing to compete in June's 24 Hours of Le Mans, with all signs pointing towards the team making the trek to France until the plug was pulled on Monday.

Plans to make Highcroft's IndyCar Series debut at this month's Indy 500 also dissolved after lengthy negotiations with Dragon Racing.

Highcroft's Simon Pagenaud, who made a strong impression during his maiden IndyCar Series outing at Barber Motorsports Park with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, was slated to occupy the seat currently filled by Scott Speed, but the team's primary sponsor apparently wanted a driver of a more domestic persuasion.
Dayton's team-first approach at Highcroft Racing is led by the highly respected open-wheel veteran Robin Hill, right. (Highcroft Racing)

"We thought we had a deal in place to run Simon at the Indy 500 in partnership with a team, but that fell by the wayside at the last moment when their sponsor chose to go with an American driver. We didn't think we could get Simon ready with an American accent that was good enough to pass the test by Indy,” he said with a laugh. “So now we're concentrating on finding the corporate partners to make our next move in open-wheel."

The possibility for the Frenchman to make his second run in the IndyCar Series are also in the works, with the $5 million season finale at Las Vegas serving as the most likely venue for Highcroft to run the former-Champ Car ace.

"We've stated openly about our desire to compete at the Las Vegas race with Simon,” Dayton continued. “Now we're waiting to hear back from the IndyCar Series about whether we will be able to compete."

Being sharp and ready for the 2012 is of the utmost importance for Dayton, and as he shares, getting Highcroft on the IndyCar grid for at least one race in 2011 is something he remains committed to making happen.

“It’s consistent with the approach we took in [the ALMS] in 2006 where we bought a proven commodity with a reliable engine and chassis package to we could spend our time developing our team, rather than working on fixing the car or other concerns. We’ve spoken to a number of IndyCar teams about partnering for Las Vegas in such a way where Highcroft will have a direct hand in running the car so we can get our team the experience we need as an organization in open-wheel. It would give us an opportunity to run the car, to do pit stops and to learn the logistics involved with running in IndyCar. I want my team to be as ready as possible.”

Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, covering IndyCar and sports cars. He also contributes to Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
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